One common explanation is that the Swiss Cross is used as a representation of Switzerland’s characteristic neutrality during global conflicts and wars (the country has not participated in international wars for centuries). national flag consisting of a white cross on a red field. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica.Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. While the Swiss Constitution of 1848 did not provide for the establishment of an official flag, Switzerland officially adopted the flag as the nation’s official flag in 1889 as a directive from the Federal Council.The national flag of Switzerland is one of two official flags of sovereign states in the world which have a square design.
Former Director, Flag Research Center, Winchester, Massachusetts.
The national flag of Switzerland is one of two official flags of sovereign states in the world which have a square design.
The used colors in the flag are red, white.
The national flag on land followed, being legally established on December 12, 1889.
The four arms of the cross are of equal length and do not extend to the edges of the flag.
The national flag is a red square (proportions of 1:1) that has a white cross in its center. The proportion of the Swiss flag is 1:1.
Switzerland has a stable, prosperous and high-tech economy and enjoys great wealth, being ranked as the wealthiest country in the world per capita in multiple rankings, while at the same time being one the least corrupt countries in the world.
Historians believe the white cross on the flag had its origin during the Battle of Laupen of 1339 when troops of the Old Swiss Confederacy, an early confederacy made up of small states which were a precursor of modern Switzerland.
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.In the Middle Ages the pope frequently gave a special cross flag to a king or other ruler undertaking some military campaign in the name of Christianity. It has the world's twentieth largest economy by nominal GDP and the thirty-eighth largest by purchasing power parity. However, the flag’s civil ensign, which is used by Swiss non-governmental organizations and ships, has a rectangular design with the width-length dimensions being 2:3. The history of the Swiss national flag goes back to the Middle Ages. The red field with a white cross was adapted from the flag of Schwyz, one of the orginal three cantons (regions) of the country.
However, a guide from the Federal Chancellery published in 2007 provided that the white should have a hexadecimal value of #FF0000 while red should have a hexadecimal value of #F00000.One needs to dive into the history of the Swiss flag to know the meaning behind the colors and symbols found in the national flag.
The Switzerland national flag was adopted on December 12, 1889. Author of History at your fingertips However, even before the Battle of Laupen, the Schwyz region of the Old Swiss Confederacy already had its official flag which was a solid red flag after the region was granted immediacy in 1240. The national flag is a red square (proportions of 1:1) that has a white cross in its center.
The flag is the only square national flag, other than that of the Vatican. The Swiss flag is a square with a cross in the center. Considering the origins of Switzerland's flag one should say that the white cross on a red square background symbolizes nothing more than just being part of the (once) "Christian Occident" in a very general way, and ironically the privilege to use this symbol was granted to the Swiss by a German emperor in 1230 right before they started to strive for autonomy in 1291. Finally, the necessity of clearly identifying Swiss flags on the Various medieval legends disagree on the origin of the flag.
The national flag is one of the most recognizable flags in the world as it closely resembles the official flag of the International Committee of the Red Cross. It is one of the country’s most important national symbols.
The white flag was used because it contrasts the flag of Habsburg Austria and that of Burgundy and Maximillian I. The shades of two colors featured on the flag (white and red) are not explicitly defined in Swiss law, and therefore for many years, institutions would use different shades of the colors.
At that time, Switzerland was a part of the Holy Roman Empire and thus the cross symbolizes Christianity and red color refers to the blood of Christian martyrs.
The white flag was later adopted as the official identification of the Old Swiss Confederacy and was displayed during the Battle of Arbedo of 1422 as well as the Battle of Nancy of 1477. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. A historical explanation has it that the white cross was a representation of a “Patenmedallie” cast offered to Princess Claude of France in 1547 by Hans Jakob Stampfer as a baptismal gift.All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2020 worldatlas.com The Flag of Switzerland was adopted in 1889. Basel is the capital of the pharmace… In keeping with heraldic tradition, Swiss flags on land are square in proportion.
In the Middle Ages the pope frequently gave a special cross flag to a king or other ruler undertaking some military campaign in the name of Christianity.
The flag of Switzerland consists of a red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that does not extend to the edges of the flag.
The roots of the Swiss square flag with the traditional white isosceles cross on a red background date back to the Middle Ages.