Banner o Belgium
The naitional banner o Belgium (Dutch: Vlag van België, French: Drapeau de la Belgique, German: Flagge Belgiens) conteens three equal vertical baunds o black (hoist side), yellae, an reid. The colours wur takken frae the colours o the Duchy o Brabant, an the vertical design mey be based on the banner o Fraunce.
The naitional banner haes the unuisual proportions o 13:15, but is rarely seen. A banner in a 2:3 or seemilar ratio is uised in maist cases, even bi maist govrenment bodies.[1] The unuisual proportions o 13:15 are o unkent oreegin.[2]
Previous banners
[eedit | eedit soorce]Efter the daith o Charlemagne, the present-day territory o Belgium (except the Coonty o Flanders) became pairt o Lotharingie, whilk haed a banner o twa horizontal reid stripes separatit bi a white stripe.[3] The territory then passed intae Spainyie haunds, an efter the coronation o Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor yellae an reid, the colours o Spain, wur addit. Frae the 16t century tae the end o the 18t century, the colours o whilk is nou Belgium wur reid, white an yellae.[3] Occasionally the reid cross o Burgundy wis placed on the white section o the banner.[3]
Throu the period o Austrian rule, a nummer o different banners wur tried, till the Austrian Emperor imposed the Austrian banner. The population o Brussels wis opposed tae this, an follaein the ensaumple o Fraunce, reid, yellae an black cockades began tae appear; thaim bein the colours o Brabant.[3] The colours sicweys correspond tae the reid lion o Hainaut, Limburg an Luxembourg, the yellae lion o Brabant, an the black lion o Flanders an Namur.[3]
Independence an adoption o current banner
[eedit | eedit soorce]On August 26, 1830, the day aefter the riotin at the Brussels Opera, an the stairt o the Belgian Revolution the banner o Fraunce wis flewn frae the ceety hall o Brussels. This wis hastily replaced bi a tricolour o reid, yellae an black horizontal stripes made at a nearhaun fabric store, seimilar tae the ane uised durin the Brabantian Revolution.[3] As a result, airticle 193 o the Constitution o Belgium describes the colours o the Belgian Nation as Reid, Yellae an Black insteid o the order uised in the abuin offeecial banner.[2]
On Januar 23, 1831, the stripes wur chynged frae horizontal tae vertical, an October 12 saw the banner attain its modren form, wi the black placed at the hoist side o the banner.[3] It is suggestit that the chynge wis tae mair clearly distinguish the banner o Belgium frae the banner o the Netherlands (whilk haes three horizontal stripes an aa) inspecially important in naval battles. Some think the chynge tae vertical wis a gesture o sympathy wi the French, again clearly separatin them frae the Dutch.[3]
References
[eedit | eedit soorce]- ↑ See for example the Belgian Federal Government's website, whaur they dinna display the official proportions o the national flag: "Belgian Flags". Belgian Federal Government. 2008. Archived frae the original on 13 Januar 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2009.
- ↑ a b "Belgium". Flags of the World. 6 Juin 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2009.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h (in French) Van den Bussche, E., Chief of Protocol, Belgian Federal Department of the Interior (2008). Noble Belgique, ô Mère chérie - LE PROTOCOLE EN BELGIQUE (PROTOCOL IN BELGIUM). Heule: Editions UGA. ISBN 9789067689359.
Freemit airtins
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