Thenational flag ofLithuania (Lithuanian:Lietuvos vėliava) consists of a horizontaltricolour of yellow, green, and red. It was adopted on 25 April 1918 during Lithuania's first period of independence (1918–1940), which ceased with the occupation first by theSoviet Union, and then byNazi Germany (1941–1944). During the post-World War II Soviet occupation, from 1945 until 1988, theFlag of the Lithuanian SSR consisted first of a generic redSoviet flag with the name of the republic, in 1953 that was changed to the red flag with white and green bands at the bottom.
The earliest known flags with a Lithuanian identity were recorded in the 15th-centuryBanderia Prutenorum, written byJan Długosz. At theBattle of Grunwald in 1410, two distinct flags were present. The majority of the 40 regiments carried a red banner depicting a mounted knight in pursuit. This flag, known as theVytis, would eventually be used as the Lithuanian war flag, and again in 2004 as the state flag. The remaining regiments carried a red banner displaying theColumns of Gediminas. Those that bore the Vytis were part of theGrand Ducal Lithuanian army, while those who bore the Columns of Gediminas were fromLithuanian nobility. Until the end of the 18th century, when itwas annexed by the Russian Empire, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania used the Vytis as its flag.[1]
The birth of the yellow, green, and red tricolour occurred during a drive by other European republics to change their flags. One example that gave life to the idea of the tricolour was theFrench blue, white, and red flag adopted after theFrench Revolution. The only tricolour that existed for Lithuania before the yellow, green, and red flag was a green, white, and red flag used to representLithuania Minor.[1]
It is not known who originally suggested the yellow, green, and red colours, but the idea is usually attributed to Lithuanian exiles living elsewhere in Europe or in the United States during the 19th century. These three colours were frequently used in folk weavings andtraditional dress.[2] At theGreat Seimas of Vilnius of 1905, this flag was favoured over the Vytis banner as the flag of the Lithuanian nation. The Vytis, strongly advocated byJonas Basanavičius, was not chosen for three reasons: the first was that as part of the drive for national identity, the Seimas wished to distance itself somewhat from the flag of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which also encompassed now-distinct nations such asBelarus and Ukraine. The second issue was the choice of the colour red by revolutionaries who aligned themselves withMarxist orCommunist causes. And finally, the flag with Vytis would be too complicated and could not be easily sewn.[3]
The Lithuanian triband at the Culture Congress inKaunas, 1927.
Debates about the national flag occurred again in 1917 during theVilnius Conference. Two colours, green and red, were chosen based on their prevalence in folk art. ArtistAntanas Žmuidzinavičius decorated the conference hall with small red and green flags. However, the delegates did not like the design as it was too dark and gloomy.[3] Then Tadas Daugirdas suggested adding a narrow strip of yellow (to symbolise the rising sun) in between the red (clouds lit up by the morning sun) and green (fields and forests).[4] However, the delegates decided that the matter should be settled by a special commission, composed of Basanavičius, Žmuidzinavičius, and Daugirdas. On 19 April 1918, they submitted their final protocol to theCouncil of Lithuania. The flag was supposed to be a tricolour (yellow at the top, green in the middle, and red at the bottom) with Vytis in the upper left corner or in the middle.[3] The Council accepted the proposal, but the 1922Constitution of Lithuania did not include any mention of the coat of arms. It adopted the national flag that is used today. Any of the debates failed to produce a historical flag.[3] Discussions of the national flag continued; its opponents considered gold an inappropriate colour, since the combination of yellow, green, and red did not follow the existingrules of heraldry. However, no changes were made during theInterwar period.
DuringWorld War II, Lithuania wasoccupied by the Soviet Union (1940–1941, 1944–1990) andNazi Germany (1941–1944). The use of the national flag during this period was prohibited and prosecuted. Two flags were used during the period of Soviet occupation (1944–1988): immediately after the war, the flag consisted of a red field, goldenhammer and sickle with theLatin charactersLIETUVOS TSR (Lithuanian SSR in theLithuanian language) above them in goldsans-serif lettering.[3] That flag was replaced in 1953 by the last flag used by theLithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic—a red flag, with the hammer and sickle and star in thehoist. At the bottom of the flag, a white and green horizontal bar was placed.[1] The red portion of the flag took2⁄3 of the flag's width, the white1⁄12 and the green1⁄4.[3] Since Lithuaniabanned Soviet symbols in 2008, raising or otherwise using the Lithuanian SSR flag in public is illegal.[5]
Flag of Lithuania from 1988 to 2004. The flag had a 1:2 ratio at the time.Flag of Lithuania on top ofGediminas Castle
During 1988, when the Lithuanianmovement towards independence was gaining strength, theLithuanian Supreme Soviet again recognised the tricolour as the national flag, by amending article 168 of the Constitution (Fundamental Law) of the Lithuanian SSR.[6] The flag was defined as rectangular tricolour which consists of three equally sized horizontal stripes: the upper is yellow, the middle is green, the lower is red; the flag ratio was to be 1:2 (as that ofSoviet flags). This flag was confirmed by the Provisional Constitution of 11 March 1990 No. I-10.[7]
After independence from the Soviet Union, the tricolour flag was written into the newConstitution of Lithuania, which was adopted by areferendum in 1992.[1] This constitution has not specified the flag aspect ratio and therefore it remained 1:2 until 2004, when 1991 law "On the national flag and other flags" was revised by 8 July 2004 law no. IX-2331, making the flag ratio 3:5.[8]
Passed on 26 June 1991, the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Lithuanian State Flag (Law No. I-1497) governs the design, sizes and use of the state flag. The law was amended on 8 July 2004, (Law No. IX-2331) with the most notable changes including the switching of the national flag ratio from 1:2 to 3:5 and the official adoption of a historical flag as the state (government) flag. The amendment came into force on 1 September 2004, after it was approved by PresidentValdas Adamkus.[9]
The yellow in the flag is meant to symbolise the sun and prosperity, the green is for the forests, the countryside, liberty, and hope, and the red represents the blood and bravery of those who have died for Lithuania.[1] The proper colours of both the national and state flag are made according to thePantone Matching System, specifically Pantone textile-paper (TP). The ratio of both the national and state flag must be 3:5, with the standard flag size to be 1.0 by 1.7 metres (3.3 by 5.6 ft). Different sizes of the flag can be created, but they must conform to the colour codes and ratio requirements set in the law.[9] The official Pantone colours have been published since 2004; the list below shows the official colours and their suggested equivalents:
State flag (upper) and the national flag, displayed by theLithuanian basketball fans in 2011.
In 2004, along with the law authorising the change of the flag ratio, a state flag was adopted. This flag displays the nationalcoat of arms in banner form. The ratio of the flag is the same as that of the national flag, i.e. 3:5. The state flag, called thehistorical national (armorial) flag in law,[13] was proposed byČeslovas Juršėnas, the vice-speaker of the Seimas, and byEdmundas Rimša, the chairman of the Commission of Heraldry. This flag was also proposed at the same time as the grand coat of arms; both were meant to honour the 750th anniversary of the coronation ofMindaugas in 1253 (anniversary took place in 2003). This was one of the few flags considered to become the national flag during the drive for national independence. Several other countries, including Finland, Spain, Venezuela, Germany and Thailand, have an official national flag for civilian use and astate flag for government use.
In 2008, the project intended to draft state flag was formed by the Commission of Heraldry. It concluded work in 2010. The designer of the State (historic) flag wasArvydas Každailis, who also designed the coat of arms.[14] On 17 June 2010, this state flag proposal was adopted.[15][16]
A vertical display of the Lithuanian flagFlags hoisted on theHouse of the Signatories on 16 February 2007.
The flag can be flown vertically or horizontally from public buildings, private homes, businesses, ships, town squares, or during official ceremonies. If the flag is flown horizontally, the yellow stripe must be at top; when flown vertically, the yellow stripe must be facing Left with the red stripe facing Right. While the flag should be flown from sunrise to sunset, government offices in Lithuania and abroad must fly the flag on a 24-hour basis. The flags must conform to the legal standards, and cannot be soiled or damaged in any way.[9]
Formourning activities, the flag can be flown in either of the following ways. The first method, commonly known ashalf-staffing, is performed when the flag is hoisted to the top of the flagpole, then lowered to the pole's one-third position. The other method is to attach a black ribbon to a flag that is permanently affixed to a staff. The ribbon itself is ten centimetres wide and it is attached to the mast so that the ends of the ribbon reach the bottom of the flag. During a funeral ceremony, the flag may be used to cover the coffins of government officials, soldiers, signatories of theAct of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania, and persons designated by an act of the President; these flags are later folded and presented to the next of kin before interment.[9]
When flying the Lithuanian flag with other flags, the following is the correctorder of precedence: the national flag, the historical (state) flag, flags of foreign states, theflag of Europe, internationalNGOs, the presidential standard, military and government standards,county flags, city flags and any others. When foreign flags are used alongside the Lithuanian flag, the flags are sorted according to their countries' names in theLithuanian language. The only exception is when the congress or meeting held in Lithuanian dictates a different language to be used for sorting. The flag of Europe has been hoisted since Lithuania became a member of theEuropean Union. While not mentioned by name in the law, theflag of NATO can be used in Lithuania, since it belongs to that organization as well. It is also common to fly the flags ofEstonia andLatvia during certain occasions, mainly the celebration of independence of the threeBaltic states. TheLaw of the Republic of Lithuania on the National Flag and Other Flags governs the rules, use, protocol and manufacturing of the national and other flags used inside the country.[9]
As part of the flag protocol, the daily display of the Lithuanian flag is encouraged, but is strongly encouraged or legally required on the following days:[9][18]
Apart from these days, the flag is flown atelection polling sites. The national government, under Article 4, Section 7 of the flag law, is given the authority to call for the display of the national flag and to determine special conditions, such as marking for mourning.[9]
Naval ensign (Ratio 3:5) Military ensign with theColumns of GediminasPresidential standard (Ratio 5:6)
Anaval ensign has been used by Lithuania starting on 25 May 1992. The ensign has a white background charged with a blue cross, with the national flag in the canton. The width of each cross is 1/10th of the total width of the ensign, with the ratio being 3:5.[19] Thenaval jack is identical to the historical state flag of Lithuania. A masthead pennant has been adopted by theLithuanian Navy to use on their ships.[20]
ThePresident of Lithuania was officially given a standard by theSeimas from 26 January 1993, with color shades standardized on 18 February. The standard is the coat of arms of Lithuania that supported by griffon and unicorn charged in the center on a single-color background.[21] Under state law, the background color is stated as purple, but the color used in practice is dark red. The ratio of the standard is 1:1.2.[22][23]
Each county of Lithuania has adopted a flag, each of them conforming to a pattern: a blue rectangle, with ten instances of the Cross ofVytis (double crossor) appearing in gold, acts as a fringe to the central feature of the flag, which is chosen by the county itself. Most of the central designs were adapted from the counties' coat of arms.[24]
The main proposal for the Lithuanian state flag change from 1940[25]
Even though all members of theCouncil of Lithuania agreed with the flag proposal, some were unsatisfied with the adopted national flag claiming it to be very similar to national flags ofColombia andEthiopia. Serious deliberations on changing the Lithuanian flag began in 1936.[26] One of the greatest supporters for the flag change during theinterwar period was a famous artistMstislav Dobuzhinsky who claimed that the current flag of Lithuania did not meet the standards ofheraldry. In 1938, Dobuzhinsky consulted with Lithuanian philosopherVydūnas who provided him with information on the historical flag ofLithuania Minor.[27] Dobuzhinsky convinced PresidentAntanas Smetona that the flag must be changed. According to journalist and collector Vilius Kavaliauskas, "The explanation was simple: the colors of the flag had to match those of thecoat of arms. No green color was present in the coat of arms. What is interesting that Smetona was convinced and, possibly on 8 May 1940, he convened a meeting with the Commission of Heraldry where it was decided to change the Lithuanian flag." Any further considerations regarding the flag change ended with theoccupation of Lithuania by the Soviet Union in June 1940.[28]
^(in Lithuanian)Lithuanian Heraldry CommissionArchived 27 May 2020 at theWayback Machine. The color red is described in Lithuanian as "purpuro", which means "magenta". However, that doesn't mean the flag color itself is purple. This error was made in regard to the Presidential Standard in early reports byvexillologist publications.
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