The flag of

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...

() was adopted on January 8, 1996. The current flag is the third used by the country since its independence from

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

on June 29, 1976. The colours used in the current flag are the official colours of two of the nation's major political parties: the Seychelles People's United Party and the

Seychelles Democratic Party The Seychelles Democratic Party is a political party in Seychelles. It was founded by the late Sir James Mancham in 1964, and governed the country from 1976 to 1977. History After a time in exile in the United Kingdom, Mancham returned to the ...

Description

This unique flag consists of five different coloured bands (blue, yellow, red, white, and green) starting from one end and diverging towards the other end. The oblique bands symbolize a dynamic new country moving into the future. The colour blue depicts the sky and the sea that surrounds the Seychelles. Yellow is for the sun which gives light and life, red symbolizes the people and their determination to work for the future in unity and love, while the white band represents social justice and harmony. The green depicts the land and natural environment.

Construction Sheet

History

The original flag was adopted after independence on June 29, 1976. It had alternating blue and red triangles. The flag was very similar to the

Australasian United Steam Navigation Company The Australasian United Steam Navigation Company (AUSNC) was an Australian shipping company formed in 1887 by the merger of the Australasian Steam Navigation Company and the Queensland Steam Shipping Company and their fleets. It existed from ...

's flag, whose ships regularly visited the islands of Seychelles in the early 20th century. In 1977, when president James Mancham was overthrown by

France-Albert René France-Albert René (; 16 November 1934 – 27 February 2019) was a Seychellois lawyer, politician and statesman who served as the second President of Seychelles from 1977 to 2004. He also served as the country's 2nd Prime Minister from its in ...

, the old flag was abolished and the red, white and green flag based on the flag of the Seychelles People's United Party came into use, which had a distinct wavy white stripe. The only significant difference between the national flag and SPUP's flag was the depiction of the sun in the party's flag which was not used in the country's flag. The flag looked like a combination of the flag of the Latvian SSR and the

Lithuanian SSR The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian SSR; lt, Lietuvos Tarybų Socialistinė Respublika; russian: Литовская Советская Социалистическая Республика, Litovskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialistiche ...

. When the party lost the majority in the elections, other parties demanded a change in the flag which led to a parliamentary approval of a new proposed design.

1903–1976

File:Flag of Seychelles (1903–1961).svg, Flag of Seychelles
(1903–1961)
Badge designed by Major-General Charles George Gordon. Prior to 1903, Seychelles was administered as a dependency of Mauritius File:Flag of Seychelles (1961–1976).svg, Flag of Seychelles
(1961–1976)
Badge designed by Mrs. Patricia McEwen of Toronto, Canada File:Flag of the Governor of Seychelles (1903–1961).svg, Governor's flag
(1903–1961) File:Flag of the Governor of Seychelles (1961–1976).svg, Governor's flag
(1961–1976)

1976–present

Flag of Seychelles (1976–1977).svg, Flag of Seychelles
(1976–1977) Flag of Seychelles (1977–1996).svg, Flag of Seychelles
(1977–1996) Flag of Seychelles.svg, Flag of Seychelles
(from 1996) Flag of the President of Seychelles (1976–1977).svg, President's flag
(1976–1977) Flag of the President of Seychelles (1977–1996).svg, President's flag
(1977–1996)
The national flag of 1977, with a yellow border, defaced with a white circle containing the Coat of arms of Seychelles Flag of the President of Seychelles.svg, President's flag
(from 1996)
The national flag defaced with the Coat of arms on the upper right corner

References

External links

*
A history of Seychelles flags
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seychelles, Flag of the Flag Flags of Africa Rainbow flags Flags introduced in 1976 Flags introduced in 1977 Flags introduced in 1996