French Flag
From LoveToKnow French
The French Flag or Le drapeau tricolour is a proud symbol of France. It has a long and fascinating history and has changed substantially throughout the centuries from having a cross (or semblance thereof), to bearing les fluers de lis. Many countries use variations of the Tricolore.
French Flag Colors
The colors of the french flag are blue bleu, red rouge and white blanc.
In 1356 Étienne Marcel, a Parisian merchant defended Paris against the monarchy in what is known now as The Revolt of Paris. He introduced a rallying insignia of a blue and red hood and although he was ultimately defeated those have been the colors of Paris ever since. It was during the Revolution that the white was added, thus le drapeau tricolour incorporated the colors of Paris. The final design was adopted in 1794.
An alternate meaning of the colors of the french flag is as follows:
- Blue - bourgeoisie
- White - clergy, Virgin Mary, God
- Red - nobility
The blue and the red are thought to be separated by the white or God, who is the superior power.
The colors have also been associated with the ideals of the French Revolution, liberté, egalité, and fraternité.
The stripes are of equal size, except on the naval flag where the white and red stripes are slightly wider than the blue. The flag is wider than it is long by fifty percent or with a ratio of 2:3.
History of Le Tricolour
The drapeau tricolour was adopted officially on February 15 1794. It first appeared during the French Revolution. After the defeat of Napolean I in 1815, the Bourbon monarchy restored the pure white flag. When Louis-Philippe came to power after the 1830 revolution, the tricolour was restored.
At the urging of the famous painter Jacques Louis David, the blue is always on the hoist side, closest to the flagpole.
Historical French Flags
Prior to the adoption of the tricolour many other flags were used in France.
- Oriflamme, or the flag of St Denis was used in the Middle Ages. It was originally the battle flag of Charlemagne and it was often at the head of French armies led by the King. This is a red flag with 2 or 3 spikes.
- Cross, a white cross on either a red or blue field was used during the Hundred Years War against England.
- Fleur de Lis, meaning lily flower was adopted as a symbol of the French monarchy around the 12th century, first as a gold fleur-de-lis on a blue background, and later on a white background. Joan of Arc carried a banner with fleur-de-lis during her battles against the Dauphin.
- Vichy flag, during WWII, the Vichy regime inserted or defaced the white stripe of the tricolour with fasces or a bundle of sticks, a recognized symbol of power.
- Free French flag, during WWII, the Free French forces fighting against the Vichy regime and Germany, inserted a red cross of Lorraine (a symbol of Joan of Arc's fight against foreign invaders) on the white stripe of the tricolour.
Other Flags Associated with France
There are many other french flags and flags related to France.
- French Regional Flags--each of the French regions, such as Bourgogne, Alsace and Bretagne have their own flags.
- Province of Québec Flag--as an officially francophone region of Canada, this flag is related to the older cross flag of France.
- Overseas departments and territories--such as French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, New Caledonia and Reunion, also fly the tricolour, although they also have their own flags.
Where to See the French Flag
The French Flag flies atop all public buildings in France and is flown widely during national holidays like Bastille Day.
If you would like to purchase a French flag, there are many websites where you can do so.
The French flag has a long and illustrious history and has gone through many changes. Today it is a proud symbol of the nation.
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