The flag of Yugoslavia was the official flag of the Yugoslav state from 1918 to 1992. The flag's design and symbolism are derived from the

Pan-Slavic movement Pan-Slavism, a movement that took shape in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with promoting integrity and unity for the Slavic people. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had ruled the South S ...

, which ultimately led to the unification of the

South Slavs South Slavs are Slavic people who speak South Slavic languages and inhabit a contiguous region of Southeast Europe comprising the eastern Alps and the Balkan Peninsula. Geographically separated from the West Slavs and East Slavs by Austria, ...

and the creation of a united south-Slavic state in 1918. The flag had three equal horizontal bands of blue, white, and red and was first used by the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

from 1918 to 1941. A

red star A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. ...

was added in its center by the victorious

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and this design was used until the

breakup of Yugoslavia After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, the constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia split apart in the early 1990s. Unresolved issues from the breakup caused a series of inter-ethnic Yugoslav ...

in the early 1990s, whereupon the red star was removed. This version continued to be used by one of the five successor states to Yugoslavia,

Serbia and Montenegro The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

, until its own dissolution in 2006. Today, the flag still holds meaning to those nostalgic for Yugoslavia or who admire its anti-fascist symbolism.

Design and symbolism

The flag of Yugoslavia is a horizontal

tricolour A triband is a vexillological style which consists of three stripes arranged to form a flag. These stripes may be two or three colours, and may be charged with an emblem in the middle stripe. Not all tribands are tricolour flags, which requires t ...

of blue (top), white (middle) and red (bottom). The design and colours are based on the

Pan-Slavic flag The pan-Slavic colors—blue, white and red—were defined by the Prague Slavic Congress, 1848, based on the symbolism of the colors of the flag of Russia, which was introduced in the late 17th century. Historically, however, many Slavs, Sla ...

adopted at the Pan-Slavic Congress of 1848, in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. Following the end of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

in 1918, the

Southern Slavs South Slavs are Slavic people who speak South Slavic languages and inhabit a contiguous region of Southeast Europe comprising the eastern Alps and the Balkan Peninsula. Geographically separated from the West Slavs and East Slavs by Austria, Hun ...

united into a single unitary state of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

, later known as

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

. The monarchy selected the pan-Slavic design to symbolise the new founded unity of all Southern Slavs. The design consisted of a simple horizontal

with three equal bands of blue (top), white (middle) and red (bottom). Following the end of the Second World War and the abolition of the monarchy in 1945, the new Communist government retained the design of the flag but added a

with yellow border in the centre. This flag remained in use until the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia in 1992, after which the new union of

removed the red star and retained a plain tricolour flag until their dissolution in 2006.

Constituent republics flags

Following

, Yugoslavia became a federal

socialist republic A socialist state, socialist republic, or socialist country is a sovereign state constitutionally dedicated to the establishment of socialism. This article is about states that refer to themselves as socialist states, and not specifically ab ...

, consisting of six sub-level constituent republics. Each constituent republic had its own flag and emblem. Most of the flags were based on the old historical flags of the respective Yugoslav states, except the flag of the

SR Bosnia and Herzegovina The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Bosna i Hercegovina, Социјалистичка Pепублика Босна и Херцеговина), commonly referred to as Socia ...

and

SR Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia (), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia, Yugoslav Macedonia or simply Macedonia, was one of the six constituent republics of the post-World War II Socialist Federal Republic of Y ...

which only gained statehood after World War II.

SR Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), commonly abbreviated as SR Croatia and referred to as simply Croatia, was a ...

SR Montenegro The Socialist Republic of Montenegro ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Crna Gora, Социјалистичка Република Црна Гора), commonly referred to as Socialist Montenegro or simply Montenegro, was ...

SR Serbia The Socialist Republic of Serbia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", Социјалистичка Република Србија, Socijalistička Republika Srbija), previously known as the People's Republic of Serbia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / " ...

, and

SR Slovenia The Socialist Republic of Slovenia (, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Slovenija, Социјалистичка Република Словенија), commonly referred to as Socialist Slovenia or simply Slovenia, was one ...

all used the

pan-Slavic colors The pan-Slavic colors—blue, white and red—were defined by the Prague Slavic Congress, 1848, based on the symbolism of the colors of the flag of Russia, which was introduced in the late 17th century. Historically, however, many Slavs, Sla ...

, red, white and blue, in the particular way in which there were already traditional for in the respective countries. They were all embellished by a communist symbol, the

. This standardization meant that

and

had identical flags, as they continued the use of the tricolours of the

Kingdom of Montenegro The Kingdom of Montenegro was a monarchy in southeastern Europe, present-day Montenegro, during the tumultuous period of time on the Balkan Peninsula leading up to and during World War I. Officially it was a constitutional monarchy, but absolu ...

and the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

respectively. As for

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

, because of its

multiethnic A multinational state or a multinational union is a sovereign entity that comprises two or more nations or states. This contrasts with a nation state, where a single nation accounts for the bulk of the population. Depending on the definition of ...

character, its flag consisted of a red flag but with a small SFR Yugoslav flag in the

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative divisions * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and entertainment * Canton (band), an It ...

. The red and yellow of the flag of

reflected the colours of the traditional coat of arms with a lion of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

History

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

The national flag of the former

was blue-white-red in the horizontal sense against a vertical staff. The common national civil flag was the same as the historic

approved at the

Pan-Slavic Congress in Prague, 1848 The Prague Slavic Congress of 1848 (, ) took place in Prague, Austrian Empire (now Czech Republic) between 2 June and 12 June 1848. It was the first occasion on which representatives from nearly all Slav populations of Europe met in one place to ...

. The naval ensign (war flag) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia is blue-white-red with the simplified lesser coat of arms: ''On one third of the ensign length there shall be the state coat of arms with the crown. The height of the arms and crown (without the globe and cross) shall be half of the ensign height.'' The flags of the Kingdom were in official use from 1922 until the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was occupied by

Axis powers The Axis powers, originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis and also Rome–Berlin–Tokyo Axis, was the military coalition which initiated World War II and fought against the Allies of World War II, Allies. Its principal members were Nazi Ge ...

in 1941. After that, the flag was used by the officially recognized government in exile, diplomatic representatives, and the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

until 1945. During the Second World War,

Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist movement and guerrilla ...

(also known as

Chetniks The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...

) continued to use the flag. The

was established on December 1, 1918 and was renamed the

on October 3, 1929. The state's first flag was officially adopted in 1922. All Yugoslav flags (including the first ones) were variations on the

adopted at the Pan-Slavic Congress in Prague in 1848. The Pan-Slavic flag was a plain blue-white-red tricolor in the horizontal sense against a vertical staff, and the

national flag A national flag is a flag that represents and national symbol, symbolizes a given nation. It is Fly (flag), flown by the government of that nation, but can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanin ...

and

civil Civil may refer to: *Civility, orderly behavior and politeness *Civic virtue, the cultivation of habits important for the success of a society *Civil (journalism) ''The Colorado Sun'' is an online news outlet based in Denver, Colorado. It lau ...

and

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

during the 1918–1943 period (Kingdom of Yugoslavia) was exactly the same. The naval ensign during the period was the blue-white-red tricolor with the simplified lesser coat of arms of Yugoslavia. The

Corfu Declaration The Corfu Declaration ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Krfska deklaracija, Крфска декларација) was an agreement between the prime minister of Serbia, Nikola Pašić, and the president of the Yugoslav Committee, Ante Trumbić, concluded on the G ...

mentions that individual Serbian, Croatian and Slovenian national flags and coats of arms are equal and can be displayed and used freely on all occasions.

Banovina of Croatia

In response to demands by Croat politicians for autonomy of Croatia, an autonomous region of Croatia was created within the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the

Banovina of Croatia The Banovina of Croatia or Banate of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=, Banovina Hrvatska, Бановина Хрватска) was an administrative subdivision ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1939 and 1941. It was formed by a m ...

. It used the Croatian red-white-blue tricolour for its civil flag, and its state flag included the tricolour charged with the Croatian ''

šahovnica The Croatian checkerboard or checky (, ) is the national symbol of Croatia and Croats. It covers the main shield of the Croatian coat of arms, above which there is a crown with five smaller shields. Squares are always arranged correctly and they ...

''. File:Civil Flag of Banovina of Croatia.svg, Civil flag of the Banovina of Croatia . File:Flag of Banate of Croatia (1939-1941).svg, State flag of the Banovina of Croatia .

World War II

In 1941 during

Yugoslavia was invaded and occupied by the

, and the Yugoslav government fled into exile in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Soon afterward, the Yugoslav resistance, the

Partisans Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Itali ...

, was formed. The Partisans did not support the Yugoslav government-in-exile and initially used a number of different flags until finally one was universally adopted. The new flag was the Yugoslav blue-white-red tricolor with a

occupying the center of the white field, and with the dimensions altered to 1:2 instead of 2:3. The Partisans were recognized by the

in late November 1943 (

Tehran Conference The Tehran Conference (codenamed Eureka) was a strategy meeting of the Allies of World War II, held between Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill from 28 November to 1 December 1943. It was the first of the Allied World Wa ...

) and the name of the Yugoslav state was altered to

Democratic Federal Yugoslavia Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, also known as Democratic Federative Yugoslavia (DF Yugoslavia or DFY), was a provisional state established during World War II on 29 November 1943 through the Second Session of the Anti-Fascist Council for the Natio ...

(DFY). The old flag continued to be used by the government-in-exile (up until its merge with the Partisan government, the

NKOJ The National Committee for the Liberation of Yugoslavia (, , NKOJ), also known as the Yugoslav Committee of National Liberation, was the World War II provisional executive body of the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, established on 29 November 1943 ...

in 1944), by its diplomatic representatives, and by the western Allies until 1945 - while in Yugoslavia, the version with the red star was primarily in use.

Socialist Yugoslavia

After the war, in 1945, the red star flag became universally official. It was given its final shape by enlarging the star and adding a narrow yellow border. The flag was usually accompanied on official buildings by the flag of the federal republic and the flag of the

League of Communists of Yugoslavia The League of Communists of Yugoslavia, known until 1952 as the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, was the founding and ruling party of SFR Yugoslavia. It was formed in 1919 as the main communist opposition party in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats ...

. Because of this, many buildings in former Yugoslavia still carry a three-poled flag holder. A smaller version of the flag served as the civil ensign while an elongated banner version was seen flown in front of the Yugoslav parliament.

Construction details

Chapter 1, Article 4 of the

1946 Yugoslav Constitution The 1946 Yugoslav Constitution, officially titled as the Constitution of the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", Устав Федеративне Народне Републике Југославије, Usta ...

laid out the specifications for the SFRY flag. The ratio was set at 1:2 and it consisted of a flag that has blue, white and red horizontal stripes that are of equal width. In the middle of the flag is a red star that has a border of golden-yellow. The red star is placed in the center of the flag where the intersections of the corners meet. In the

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

and

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

constitutions, the specifications and design of the flag did not change. Other sources state that the red star is placed in a circle that has a diameter of of the flag's hoist (width). The size of the golden-yellow border was not defined in the 1946 Constitution.

Post-breakup usage

Flags of the former federal Yugoslavia and its socialist republics continue to be flown at

anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

protests,

International Workers' Day International Workers' Day, also called Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of Wage labour, labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every yea ...

celebrations, Yugo-nostalgic gatherings and

pride parade A pride parade (also known as pride event, pride festival, pride march, or pride protest) is an event celebrating lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) social and self-acceptance, achievements, LGBT rights by country o ...

s throughout

Yugosphere The Yugosphere (Macedonian language, Macedonian, Slovene language, Slovene and sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugosfera, Југосфера) is a concept created in 2009 by British writer Tim Judah during his time as a senior visiting fellow at the European Inst ...

and among its diaspora. Yugoslav flags and symbolism are not an unusual sighting in neighbouring Italy either.

Notes and references

External links

Yugoslavia
at Flags of the World
The Flags and Arms of the Modern Era - Yugoslavia (1941–1991)
{{Yugoslavia topics Flags of Yugoslavia

1918 establishments in Yugoslavia 1992 disestablishments in Yugoslavia