Flag of Tonga

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Flag of Tonga
Flag of Tonga.svg
Vexillological symbol : National flag on land, trade and service flag at sea?
Aspect ratio: 1: 2
Officially accepted: November 4, 1875

The flag of Tonga was officially confirmed on November 4, 1875.

presentation

The flag of Tonga is 16 units high and 32 units long. The aspect ratio of the flag is therefore 1: 2. The white space at the top of the flagstick is 8 units high and 14 units long. The red cross, which consists of five squares, each with two units of edge length, is positioned exactly in the middle.

For comparison, the flag of the Red Cross, which resulted from the inversion of the Swiss cross , is shown, where the bars of the cross are not exactly square, but extended in a ratio of 7: 6 in accordance with the Swiss cross.

history

The national flag was originally white with a red cross in the middle. Since it was almost identical to the flag of the Red Cross , the cross was placed in an upper corner of a red cloth in 1866, modeled on the British Red Ensign . This was preceded by an appeal by King George Tupou I in 1862 to Tonga's first parliament. After a long discussion, he expressed his own suggestion:

“ It is my wish that our flag contains the cross of Jesus because Jesus saved us through his sacrificial death on the cross on Golgotha. Every Tongan should remember the cross and the flag should be red in color, it should represent the blood that was shed on the cross for our salvation. "

The 1875 constitution finally stipulated:

“ The flag of Tonga, the flag of King George, must never be changed. "

More flags of Tonga

On September 13, 1985, Tonga introduced a naval war flag .

The three stars in the king's standard stand for the main island groups united in Tonga. The Tongan royal crown symbolizes royalty, the dove stands for peace and the three crossed swords for the three dynasties of Tonga.

literature

  • Whitney Smith , Ottfried Neubecker : The signs of people and peoples. Our world in flags and banners . Reich Verlag, Lucerne 1975, ISBN 3-7243-0115-4 .
  • Karl-Heinz Hesmer: Flags and coats of arms of the world. History and symbolism of the flags and coats of arms of all states . Bertelsmann-Lexikon-Verlag, Gütersloh 1992, ISBN 3-570-01082-1 .

Web links

Commons : Flags of Tonga  - Collection of images, videos and audio files