Flag of Italy - Colours, Meaning, History 🇮🇹

The Italian flag, commonly referred to as il Tricolore, just like many flags around the globe, has an interesting meaning in its design, represented by the three colours selected for the flag. The French flag greatly inspired the Italian flag during the attack of Napoleon between 1796 – 1797. The current flag, a tricolor containing three uniformly sized vertical bands of green, white and red, came into use in 1946 and was officially adopted as the national flag of Italy on January 1, 1948.

Table of Contents

• History of the Flag of Italy
• What is the meaning behind the colours of the Flag of Italy
• Interesting Facts about the Flag of Italy

History of the Flag of Italy

The first adaptation of the Italian tricolor was in the Cispadane Republic in 1797, which succeeded Milan after Napoleon’s successful infiltration into Italy in 1796. The colours initially selected were red and white, similar to the flag of Milan during the time, and green—the colour of the Milanese civic guard uniforms. During this period, Jacobin, a small French-proxy republic, conquered numerous Italian states and used flags with several variations of colour, including three pales of equal sizes influenced by the French flag model.

Reportedly, the tricolor was first used in November 1794 on a cockade worn by students from the University of Bologna, headed by Giovanni Battista De Rolands and Luigi Zamboni. The main aim of these students was to collapse the Catholic government of Bologna. The students considered themselves “patriots” and the tricolor cockades used were a representation of their inspiration from the Jacobin revolutionary movements, with modified colours to differentiate them from the French.

Officially, the Italian tricolor was adopted on January 7, 1797, after deputy Giuseppe Compagnoni of Lugo proposed the need to create an official flag with three colours—red, white, and green, during the XIVth parliament of the Cispadane Republic. The flag during this time was a square with the colour red at the top, an emblem featuring a garland of laurel and atrophy of arms on top of white, and four arrows to representing the four provinces in the Republic in the middle, and green at the bottom.

However, in 1798, the Cispadane Republic and the Transpadane Republic, which used the horizontal Italian tricolor, merged with the Cisalpine Republic and embraced a vertical tricolor without a badge. In 1802, the Cisalpine republic became the Italian Republic. On August 20th of the same year, a new flag was adopted under Napoleon, the first French emperor. The new design resembled the Napoleonic military flag, which featured a white lozenge over a green triangle on a red field. Later, in 1805, Italy was using the flag of the republic which was rectangular and decorated with a golden Napoleonic eagle, which was later changed in 1814 after Napoleon’s relinquishment.

In 1848, the Tricolor, decorated with a Savoy shield at the center became the national flag of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which became the Italian kingdom in 1861. During this time the state flag and war ensign were charged with the Savoy crown over the shield. However, on June 19th, 1946, the plain tricolor was approved as the flag of the Italian Republic and to prevent confusion of the Italian flag with that of Mexico, two different coat of arms were included on the civil and war ensigns in November 1947.

What is the meaning behind the colours of the Flag of Italy?

The flag of Italy is characterized by three colours: green, white and red. The flag also referred to as the il Tricolor is vertical and features three bands of equal sizes, with green located on the hoist (left) side. The general design is similar to the tricolor flag of France of 1970.

Colours
There are a variety of interpretations regarding what each colour on the flag of Italy represents. The first interpretation claims that:

• Green: The country’s hills and plains
• White: The snow-capped Alps
• Red: The bloodshed of the wars of Independence and Unification

On the other hand, the second interpretation which is from a religious standpoint claims that the tricolor represents the three theological virtues, as indicated below:

• Green: Hope
• White: Faith
• Red: Charity

Shape
The Italian flag features three verticals bands of green, white and red of equal sizes. The universally accepted ratio of the flag is 2:3.

Interesting Facts about the Flag of Italy

• In 2003, Silver Berlusconi was accused by opposition leaders of a chromatic coup d’état following his attempt of tampering with the national flag. The flag which sparked so much revolt from the opposition leader featured a darker shade of red, which was subtly different from the original one and led to the calling of a national referendum to agree on the true colours of the national flag. The subtle difference in colour was flagged off as a ‘technical error’ on the manufacturers’ end, and the call for a national referendum was ignored.
• The flag of Italy is for national, governmental, and military use on land and at sea. However, for private use at sea, an ensign like the national flag features a shield on the white stripe with four symbols of the ‘Sea republic’ of Italian tradition, which include:
  • St Mark’s winged lion holding a book on the first quarter of Venice
  • A red on a white cross on the second quarter of Genoa
  • Maltese white cross on dark blue on the third quarter of Amalfi
  • Peculiar-shaped white cross on red on the fourth quarter of Pisa

On the other hand, the Navy used a similar flag but the Lion, in this case, held a sword in replacement of the book, and the whole shield was crowned.

• After World War II, the Italian flag always featured the Savoy coat of arms at the centre. However, when the war ended the plain tricolour was implemented as the national flag. The Italian flag distinguished from the Mexican flag by placing the Italian coat of arms at the centre of the Italian flag at sea and for the Navy.
• In 1977, Umberto Bossi, a former leader of the Northern league, received a 16-month sentence for implying that the national flag of Italy could be used as toilet paper. The sentence was revoked due to his parliamentary immunity.
• On January 7th of each year, Italy celebrates its flag day. On this day, Italians commemorate all those who participated in the Garibaldi’s mission, war for independence, the soldiers who died, the two world wars, and all the citizens who lost their lives while defending Italy’s honor. During this day among other national holidays, the flag is hoisted as a sign of celebration representing Unity and freedom predominant in Italy.
• The flag of Italy is hoisted on non-official buildings when an Italian soccer team wins a match. On ordinary occasions, the flag is usually hoisted on governmental or national buildings only.

Do you know any other interesting facts about the flag of Italy? Share your thoughts below.