Flag of Russia (< 1917)

[Sergio]

I thought that the Russian flag hadn`t always the same aspect through its History. So, I went searching the internet and I found this website http://www.fotw.net/flags/ with the following informations:

1858-1914

1883-1914

1914-1917

March-October (O.S.) 1917 (never officially adopted)

In 1858, a black-golden yellow-white horizontal tricolor was adopted as the civil flag. This flag was highly unpopular and so in 1883, the white-blue-red horizontal tricolor flag was adopted as an "alternate civil flag".
However, the black-yellow-white was not officially abolished, so that Russia had two civil flags from 1883 to 1914.
The white-blue-red tricolor with a canton of the imperial arms was introduced by imperial decree on 19 November 1914. It replaced the black-yellow-white tricolor and also the plain white-blue-red tricolor.
The 1914 civil flag disappeared in 1917 when the monarchy was abolished. The plain white-blue-red tricolor then became the nation's de facto national flag. However, it was never officially adopted as such — Kerensky's government had too much else on its mind!

But I can`t find any flag before 1858!

[Merrique]

Thank you so much sergio for sharing this.I have always wondered about the flags and what was used during imperial times.Thanks for posting this.

[Belochka]

Hi Sergio,

Another great topic coming from you! Thanks for raising this one! (pun intended)

A number of schools of thought suggest that it was Peter the Great who introduced the first Russian flag, while others believe it was actually his father, Tsar Alexei Mihailovich, who during his reign, flew the first flag of white-blue-red on a cloth bearing a red double-headed eagle. It was raised on the first military Russian vessel Orel (Eagle) in 1667.

Peter the Great influenced by the appearance of the flag after his visit to the Netherlands, adapted the idea and re-designed the original flag by drawing three parallel stripes, using the same colors as his father. He issued a decree on 25 January 1705 to enforce the use of this newly designed flag on all his trading vessels which cruised along Russia's riverways.

Alexander III prefered the Petrine flag over the black-yellow- white one. He raised its status by using it during his Coronation. He later announced that the Petrine Flag should be used on special commemorative days to decorate city buildings.

It was also used by the armed forces during the Russo-Japanese conflict during 1904 - 5.

While the white-blue-red tricolor became a national symbol during the final decades of the Imperial era it was never officially adopted. That moment only came after the Russia became a modern republic in 1991.    

[Sergio]

About the white-blue-red flag:

The first to use it was Peter the Great, who on January 20, 1705 ordered to hoist this flag as a trade one on all Russian ships on Moscow, Volga and Dvina rivers.
In those times the lower red stripe symbolized the Earth, the blue stripe - the sky, and the upper white stripe meant the world of God. At the same time, according to the Russian tradition, white color meant nobility, blue - honesty, red - courage and love.

Later, in the XIX-th century, the three stripes on the flag were thought to embody the commonwealth of three Slavonic nations - Russian, Ukranian and Belorussian.
Beginning from the middle of the century the three-color flag gradually acquire functions of the national symbol. In 1856 during the Paris Congress, while the peace treaty about the end of the Crimea war was being negotiated, the red-blue-white banner was used as the national flag of the Russian Empire.

But it still had to come through a tough competition with a black-yellow-white Emperor's banner, which was proclaimed the Russian national flag by the order of Alexander II, issued on June 11, 1858. For 25 years the red-blue-white flag was used, as in the XVIII-th century, only as a trade streamer.
But after Alexander II was killed, the new Emperor, Alexander III, reconsidered the matter. Before the Coronation ceremony the Interior Minister, Count Tolstoy, produced to the Emperor both flags, and Alexander chose the red-blue-white one. So, this banner regained the status of the national flag and preserved it till the October Revolution of 1917.

After the Revolution it was replaced by the Soviet Red Banner. Only 76 years later the old three color flag became again the national flag of the Russian Federation.

The existing three-color Russian national flag was adopted by the Order of President Boris Yeltsin of December 11, 1993.


From: http://www.russianembassy.org/

[Sergio]

This is a standard with an image of a gryphon - the Romanov`s emblem.
It is approximately dated 1760-1789`s.



From: http://www.russian-antique.com/Romanov-Coronation/747/Romanov-Dynasty-Ancestral-Standard-1760-1789.html

[Val289]

Wow - what a great topic - Sergio!  Thanks for posting the information about Russia's flags