Flag of Latvia
The national flag of Latvia (Latvijas karogs) was used by independent Latvia from 1918 until the country was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940. Its use was suppressed during Soviet rule. On 27 February 1990, shortly before the country regained its independence, the Latvian government re-adopted the traditional red-white-red flag.
Though officially adopted in 1921, the Latvian flag was in use as early as the 13th century. The red colour is sometimes described as symbolizing the readiness of the Latvians to give the blood from their hearts for freedom and their willingness to defend their sovereignty. An alternative interpretation, according to the Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia, is that a Latgalian leader was wounded in battle, and the edges of the white sheet in which he was wrapped were stained by his blood with the centre stripe of the flag being left unstained. This story is similar to the legend of the origins of the flag of Austria.
The red-white-red Latvian flag (die Banier der Letten) is first mentioned in the medieval Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia (Livländische Reimchronik), which covers the period from 1180 to 1343, and is thus among the oldest flags in the world. The chronicle tells of a battle that took place around 1279, in which ancient Latgalian tribes from Cēsis, a city in the northern part of modern-day Latvia, went to war, bearing a red flag with a white stripe.
Legend recounts the story of the mortally wounded chief of Latgalians who was wrapped in a white sheet. The part of the sheet on which he was lying remained white, but the two edges were stained in his blood. During the next battle the bloodstained sheet was used as a flag. According to the legend this time the Latgalian warriors were successful and drove the enemy away. Ever since then Latgalian tribes have used these colours.
Based on the aforementioned historical record, the present day flag design was adapted by artist in May 1917. The Latvian national flag, together with the national coat of arms was affirmed in this format by a special parliamentary decree of the Republic of Latvia passed on 15 June 1921.
Though officially adopted in 1921, the Latvian flag was in use as early as the 13th century. The red colour is sometimes described as symbolizing the readiness of the Latvians to give the blood from their hearts for freedom and their willingness to defend their sovereignty. An alternative interpretation, according to the Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia, is that a Latgalian leader was wounded in battle, and the edges of the white sheet in which he was wrapped were stained by his blood with the centre stripe of the flag being left unstained. This story is similar to the legend of the origins of the flag of Austria.
The red-white-red Latvian flag (die Banier der Letten) is first mentioned in the medieval Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia (Livländische Reimchronik), which covers the period from 1180 to 1343, and is thus among the oldest flags in the world. The chronicle tells of a battle that took place around 1279, in which ancient Latgalian tribes from Cēsis, a city in the northern part of modern-day Latvia, went to war, bearing a red flag with a white stripe.
Legend recounts the story of the mortally wounded chief of Latgalians who was wrapped in a white sheet. The part of the sheet on which he was lying remained white, but the two edges were stained in his blood. During the next battle the bloodstained sheet was used as a flag. According to the legend this time the Latgalian warriors were successful and drove the enemy away. Ever since then Latgalian tribes have used these colours.
Based on the aforementioned historical record, the present day flag design was adapted by artist in May 1917. The Latvian national flag, together with the national coat of arms was affirmed in this format by a special parliamentary decree of the Republic of Latvia passed on 15 June 1921.
National flag
Country - Latvia
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After centuries of Teutonic, Swedish, Polish-Lithuanian and Russian rule, which was mainly executed by the local Baltic German aristocracy, the independent Republic of Latvia was established on 18 November 1918 when it broke away from the German Empire and declared independence in the aftermath of World War I. However, by the 1930s the country became increasingly autocratic after the coup in 1934 establishing an authoritarian regime under Kārlis Ulmanis. The country's de facto independence was interrupted at the outset of World War II, beginning with Latvia's forcible incorporation into the Soviet Union, followed by the invasion and occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941, and the re-occupation by the Soviets in 1944 to form the Latvian SSR for the next 45 years. As a result of extensive immigration during the Soviet occupation, ethnic Russians became the most prominent minority in the country, now constituting nearly a quarter of the population. The peaceful Singing Revolution started in 1987, and ended with the restoration of de facto independence on 21 August 1991. Since then, Latvia has been a democratic unitary parliamentary republic.