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The flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a
Canadian pale In heraldry and vexillology, a Canadian pale is a centre band of a vertical Triband (flag), triband flag (a pale (heraldry), pale in heraldry) that covers half the length of a flag, rather than a third as in most triband designs. This allows more s ...
triband consisting of blue, gold, and green bands charged with three green diamonds at the centre. Adopted in 1985 to replace a similar design used from the time of independence, it has been the flag of Saint Vincent since that year. The design of the present flag entailed substituting the country's coat of arms on a
breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family (Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of ''Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Philippi ...
leaf with the diamonds. They are a reference to both the letter "V", which is the first letter of the country's name, and its nickname as the "Gems of the Antilles" and "Jewels of the Caribbean". Accordingly, the flag itself has been given the moniker of "The Gems".


History

Sovereignty over Saint Vincent switched hands between the French and the British throughout the 18th century. This continued until 1783, when the Peace of Paris saw France permanently relinquish the island to the United Kingdom, and Saint Vincent eventually became a
crown colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony administered by The Crown within the British Empire. There was usually a Governor, appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the UK Government, with or without the assistance of a local Counci ...
within the latter's
colonial empire A colonial empire is a collective of territories (often called colonies), either contiguous with the imperial center or located overseas, settled by the population of a certain state and governed by that state. Before the expansion of early mode ...
. During this period, it utilised a British
Blue Ensign The Blue Ensign is a flag, one of several British ensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated or formerly associated with the United Kingdom. It is used either plain or Defacement (flag), defaced with a Heraldic badge, ...
defaced with the territory's coat of arms as its flag. The shield initially consisted of two
brunette Brown hair, also referred to as brunet (male) or brunette (female), is the second most common human hair color, after black hair. It varies from light brown to a medium dark hair. It is characterized by higher levels of the dark pigment eume ...
raven-haired ladies, one clutching a
palm branch The palm branch is a symbol of victory, triumph, peace, and eternal life originating in the ancient Near East and Mediterranean world. The palm ''(Phoenix)'' was sacred in Mesopotamian religions, and in ancient Egypt represented immortality. In ...
on the left and one with clasped hands kneeling before an altar on the right. This design was revised in 1907, with the women's hair colour changed to blond and the clasped hands becoming an eye. The island subsequently joined the
West Indies Federation The West Indies Federation, also known as the West Indies, the Federation of the West Indies or the West Indian Federation, was a short-lived political union that existed from 3 January 1958 to 31 May 1962. Various islands in the Caribbean that ...
in 1958 and remained part of this political union until 1962. On 27 October 1969, seven years after the federation was dissolved, Saint Vincent became an
Associated State An associated state is the minor partner in a formal, free relationship between a political territory (some dependent, most fully sovereign states) and a major party—usually a larger nation. The details of such free association are contain ...
, and adopted the aforementioned blue ensign as its official flag. When Saint Vincent became an independent country on 27 October 1979, a flag designed by native Saint Vincentian Elaine Liverpool was chosen to be the national flag. This consisted of a triband of blue, gold, and green separated by two thin white
fimbriation In heraldry and vexillology, fimbriation is the placement of small stripes of contrasting colour around common charges or ordinaries, usually in order for them to stand out from the background, but often simply due to the designer's subjective ...
s, and the centre band charged with the country's coat of arms on a
breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family (Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of ''Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Philippi ...
leaf, which had been introduced to the island by
William Bligh Vice-Admiral William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was an officer of the Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. The mutiny on the HMS ''Bounty'' occurred in 1789 when the ship was under his command; after being set adrift i ...
. However, this design soon proved to be convoluted and costly to manufacture, with the breadfruit leaf hard to recognise from afar. After the
New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...
emerged victorious in the 1984 elections, new prime minister
James Fitz-Allen Mitchell Sir James Fitz-Allen Mitchell (15 May 1931 – 23 November 2021) was a Vincentian politician who served as the second Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from 1984 to 2000 and as the second Premier of Saint Vincent from 1972 to ...
sought to have the flag redesigned. A nationwide contest was held, but it resulted in an impasse after no entry was deemed suitable. Consequently, Julien van der Wal – a graphic artist from
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
who also designed the flag of the
Canton of Geneva The Canton of Geneva, officially the Republic and Canton of Geneva (french: link=no, République et canton de Genève; frp, Rèpublica et canton de Geneva; german: Republik und Kanton Genf; it, Repubblica e Cantone di Ginevra; rm, Republica e ...
and
pictogram A pictogram, also called a pictogramme, pictograph, or simply picto, and in computer usage an icon, is a graphic symbol that conveys its meaning through its pictorial resemblance to a physical object. Pictographs are often used in writing and ...
s for the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
– was tasked with modifying the flag. He was instructed to "modernise the original flag, keeping the same colours and respecting the symbolism". In the meantime, the white fimbriations were removed from the soon-to-be disused design in March 1985. Van der Wal's design saw the arms and breadfruit leaf substituted for three diamonds grouped together in a "V" shape. Notwithstanding these changes, the meaning behind the colours remained the same. The new flag was formally adopted by the government on 12 October 1985. There is some discrepancy over when it was first hoisted officially. The islands'
national newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports an ...
, ''The Vincentian'', maintains this took place during a ceremony at the War Memorial in the capital
Kingstown Kingstown is the capital, chief port, and main commercial centre of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. With a population of 12,909 (2012), Kingstown is the most populous settlement in the country. It is the island's agricultural industry centre ...
on 21 October. On the other hand,
Whitney Smith Whitney Smith Jr. (February 26, 1940 – November 17, 2016) was a professional vexillologist and scholar of flags. He originated the term ''vexillology'', which refers to the scholarly analysis of all aspects of flags. He was a founder of s ...
in the ''
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
'' states that it was first raised one day later (22 October). The flag – which has been occasionally dubbed "The Gems" – is utilised "for all purposes", with no distinction made between
civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...
,
state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
, and
naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
ensigns.


Design


Symbolism

The colours and symbols of the flag carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The blue epitomises the sky and the sea, while the gold represents the colour of the islands' sand, the sunshine, and the "bright spirit" of the islanders. The green symbolises the country's plentiful vegetation, as well as the vitality of Vincentians. The three diamonds evoke the nicknames of Saint Vincent as the "Gems of the Antilles" and the "Jewels of the Caribbean". Their arrangement in the shape of the letter V is a subtle allusion to the first letter in "Vincent", while its placement on the marginally lower part of the centre band indicates the geographical positioning of the islands within the
Antilles The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...
.


Legal issues

The Saint Vincentian flag is utilised as a
flag of convenience Flag of convenience (FOC) is a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state ...
by foreign
merchant vessel A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are us ...
s. The government permits this in order to increase revenue for the country, and it offers many advantages for these ships, such as less expensive fees and lax rules regarding crew, safety, and the environment. However, the lack of regulation on such vessels has led to concerns over illegal and suspicious activity like
money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
. Two ships flying the flag of Saint Vincent were found by the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
(EC) to have been on the
blacklist Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist (or black list) of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list. If someone is on a blacklist, t ...
of the Regional Fisheries Management Organisations. As a result, this practice has attracted criticism from opposition parties as well as international organisations, most notably the EC. The EC identified Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as a non-cooperating country in fighting
illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) is an issue around the world. Fishing industry observers believe IUU occurs in most fisheries, and accounts for up to 30% of total catches in some important fisheries. Illegal fishing takes pl ...
(IUU) on May 23, 2020, having warned them earlier through pre-identification in December 2014. By listing the country as non-cooperating, it meant that all fisheries products from Saint Vincent could no longer be legally imported into the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
. This has negligible impact on the country, because Saint Vincent does not export fisheries products to EU member states.


Historical flags


See also

* Coat of arms of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Vincent And The Grenadines, Flag of Flags introduced in 1985 National symbols of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines National flags Canadian pale flags