The

national National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

flag of the Republic of the Congo () consists of a yellow diagonal band divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with a green upper triangle and red lower triangle. Adopted in 1959 to replace the French Tricolour, it was the flag of the

Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo), is a country located on the western coast of Central ...

until 1970, when the

People's Republic of the Congo The People's Republic of the Congo () was a Marxist–Leninist socialist state that existed in the Republic of the Congo from 1969 to 1992. The People's Republic of the Congo was founded in December 1969 as the first Marxist-Leninist state ...

was established. The new regime changed the flag to a red field with the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of the People's Republic in the canton. This version was utilized until the regime collapsed in 1991. The new government promptly restored the original pre-1970 flag. __TOC__

History

Under

French colonial rule The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates, and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French colonial empire", that ex ...

over

French Congo The French Congo (), also known as Middle Congo (), was a French colony which at one time comprised the present-day area of the Republic of the Congo and parts of Gabon, and the Central African Republic. In 1910, it was made part of the larger ...

, the authorities forbade the colony from utilizing its own distinctive colonial flag. This was because they were worried that this could increase nationalistic sentiment and lead to calls for independence. However, with the rise of the decolonization movement in Africa, the French were obliged to grant limited autonomy to the Congo as a self-governing republic within the

French Community The French Community () was the constitutional organization set up in October 1958 between France and its remaining African colonies, then in the process of decolonization. It replaced the French Union, which had reorganized the colonial em ...

. This was granted on 28 November 1958, after a referendum was held and nine months later, the Legislative Assembly began deliberating over a national flag. The new flag was officially adopted on 15 September 1959 and remained unchanged when the

became an independent state less than a year later on 15 August 1960. It was hoisted on top of the building that formerly housed the French high commission to mark the proclamation of independence. In 1968, a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

took place in the country, with the new government proclaiming the

a year later. By doing so, it became the first Marxist–Leninist country in Africa. In order to symbolize the revolutionary change, the regime instituted a new national anthem and chose a new flag. This featured a

red field ''Red Field'' ( Portuguese: ''Seara Vermelha'') is a Brazilian Modernist novel. It was written by Jorge Amado. It has not been published in English. Background Jorge Amado published ''Red Field'' in 1946. In 1945, Brazil had entered a period of ...

charged with the country's new coat of arms—a gold star with an overlapping hammer and hoe encircled by a wreath made of two palm branches—in the top-left canton. The design was inspired by that of the Soviet Union's flag. The red flag remained in place until 1991, when economic problems and the weakening of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

's power due to the

Revolutions of 1989 The revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, were a revolutionary wave of liberal democracy movements that resulted in the collapse of most Communist state, Marxist–Leninist governments in the Eastern Bloc and other parts ...

culminated in democratic elections and ultimately, the collapse of the People's Republic of the Congo. The National Conference, which oversaw the transition to a democratic government, reinstated the original flag from 1959 on 10 June 1991. The colours and shapes on the flag are mentioned in Article 5 of the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

of the Republic of the Congo. File:Flag of the Kingdom of Loango.svg, Flag of the

Kingdom of Loango The Kingdom of Loango (also ''Luangu'', ''Luaangu'', ''Lwaangu'', ''Lwangu'', ''Luango'', ''Lwango'', ''Luaango'' or ''Lwaango'' Iko Kabwita Kabolo, ''Le royaume Kongo et la mission catholique 1750-1838'', KARTHALA Editions, 2004, p. 303-313) w ...

(c. 1550–c. 1883) File:Flag of the Kingdom of Kongo according to Giovanni Cavazzi da Montecuccolo.svg, Flag of the

Kingdom of Kongo The Kingdom of Kongo ( or ''Wene wa Kongo;'' ) was a kingdom in Central Africa. It was located in present-day northern Angola, the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, southern Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. At its gre ...

(circa 17th century) File:Royal Banner of the Kingdom of Kakongo (c. 1883).svg, Flag of

Kakongo Kakongo was a small kingdom located on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, in the modern-day Republic of the Congo and Cabinda Province, Angola. In the 13th century, it formed part of a confederation led by Vungu. Along with its neighboring kin ...

(circa 15th century) File:French Congo 1959 proposal (Flag).svg, Proposed flag of the

(pre-1959) File:Flag of the People's Republic of the Congo.svg, Flag of the

(2 January 1970 – 9 June 1991) and the

Congolese Party of Labour The Congolese Party of Labour (, PCT) is the ruling party of the Republic of the Congo. Founded in 1969 by Marien Ngouabi, it was originally a pro-Soviet, Marxist–Leninist vanguard party which founded the People's Republic of the Congo. It to ...

Design

The colours of the flag carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The green symbolizes the agriculture and forests of the Congo, while the yellow represents the "friendship and nobility" of the Congolese people. However, the symbolism behind the red was left unexplained. From a continental viewpoint, the green, yellow and red are the colours of the

Pan-Africanist Pan-Africanism is a nationalist movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all indigenous peoples and diasporas of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the Trans-Sa ...

movement; it is the only Pan-Africanist flag to utilize a diagonal pattern in its design. They are also 3 of the colors utilized in the

flag of Ethiopia The Flag of Ethiopia () consists of a green, yellow, and red tricolour with the national emblem, a golden pentagram on a blue disc, superimposed at the center. While the colors green, yellow, and red in combination held symbolic importance sinc ...

, the oldest independent country in Africa and the only nation other than

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

to remain independent during the

Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa was the invasion, conquest, and colonialism, colonisation of most of Africa by seven Western European powers driven by the Second Industrial Revolution during the late 19th century and early 20th century in the era of ...

Colour schemes

Construction Sheet

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Congo, Flag of the Republic of the Flags of Africa

Flag A flag is a piece of textile, fabric (most often rectangular) with distinctive colours and design. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design employed, and fla ...

Congo, Republic Congo, Republic Congo, Republic Tricolor flags Flags with green, red and yellow