Flags – SOME GEEK TOLD ME

Flags, flags, flags, I love a good flag. I live in an area where there are four houses within walking distance of my home that have a flagpole. A few weeks ago, I was walking along when I noticed a flag slightly flying on one of them. I could make out that the flag had orange and black on it.

I suddenly realised I had no idea whose country it belonged to, let alone the continent. Orange and black, orange and black. I was going to memorise the flag, then search for it later on. What country just had orange and black on their flag?!

As I walked closer and closer, I searched the bottom of the flag knowledge file in my mind for any possible answers. Because of the angle I was facing, the majority of the flag wasn’t revealed until I was three houses away.

It was then that I made the discovery that delighted and frustrated me; it was a Halloween flag featuring a witch. This mundane incident obviously triggered my Geek-sense, and the idea grew into the amazing blog post you are now reading.

Just over three years ago, I published my first and only blog post about flags, which can be discovered here. In that literary masterpiece, I discussed four countries’ flags that are no longer in use, for various reasons.

In some circles, three years is the perfect length of time for a sequel, so where is The Batman: Part II? To extend upon this, I have decided to create a sequel to that blog post, but this time, to simply discuss one country, whose history of name changing and flag swapping would make a swinger’s head swivel.

So, sit back, relax, and put your tray table away, because we’re going to look at one country’s many failed flags.

DR Congo’s location in Central Africa, marked by a pin of its national flag. Credit: Mappr

Democratic Republic of the Congo (Formerly known as the Congo Free State/Belgian Congo/Republic of the Congo/Democratic Republic of the Congo/Zaire)

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is odd because it doesn’t just have a few national flags, but several, although it’s the same country; but at the same time, it’s six countries. I told you it was odd.

We have to venture to Central Africa, and to explain the Democratic Republic of the Congo, I need to explain Zaire. In order to explain Zaire, I need to explain the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and to explain the Democratic Republic of the Congo, I need to explain the Republic of the Congo. But to explain the Republic of the Congo, I need to explain the Belgian Congo. However, to explain the Belgian Congo, I need to explain the Congo Free State. It’s like Russian nesting dolls filled with flags and countries.

The Congo Free State

Flag of Congo Free State (1885–1908).
Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Starting with the Congo Free State is arguably the best country to begin with. The flag has a blue background with a yellow star in the centre. It was first introduced when the Congo Free State was a de facto African colony of Belgium, but more importantly, it was controlled by King Leopold II of Belgium.

Also, in a totally random and unrelated coincidence, the Congo Free State shared its flag with the International Association of the Congo or the International Congo Society, which was set up by King Leopold II of Belgium, to further his interests in the region. What are the odds of that happening?!

Belgian Congo

Flag of Belgian (1908-1960).
Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

In 1908, the Congo Free State was officially annexed by the Belgian government, so the country was renamed the Belgian Congo, but they decided to retain the flag. That was nice of them, considering the atrocities the Belgians committed upon the Congolese, in the pursuit of rubber, ivory and minerals.

Republic of the Congo or Congo-Léopoldville (Not to be confused with its neighbour, the Republic of the Congo)

Flag of the Republic of the Congo (1960–1963). Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

In 1960, the Belgian Congo declared independence from Belgium. Among civil unrest and wars that plagued the newly (re)minted country, the nation’s name changed for a second time to the Republic of the Congo, along with a tweaked version of the original flag, namely, the vertical column of six five-pointed stars on the left-hand side.¹

Flag of the Republic of the Congo (1963-1966). Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Three years later, in 1963, the flag was changed yet again to another similar, but different version. This new flag still had the original yellow star, but it was smaller and had been moved to the top corner of the left-hand side. It also had a red and yellow-lined band that ran diagonally across the centre. The star represented unity, the yellow symbolised prosperity, the blue stood for hope, and the red reflected the people’s blood.

In 1964, the call was made to change the official name of the Republic of the Congo to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, because why the hell not?

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Just like how a classic comic book character like Daredevil is relaunched with a new #1, and then three years later, he has yet another relaunch with another #1, the same applies here. In 1966, because three years in an eternity in politics, the government decided the national flag needed an update, because if the country has a new name…it needs a new flag.

This flag was identical to the previous one, but for two small changes. The red band has widened, and the yellow star has decreased in size.

Zaire

To offer a recap, the Congo Free State rebranded itself to become the Belgian Congo, then changed into the Republic of the Congo; along with several flag alternations, and another name change to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By 1971, you would think that the days of the country’s name and flag changing were over. However, to quote John Rambo, “Nothing is over! Nothing!”

The Democratic Republic of the Congo was renamed Zaire to shake off its colonial past and embrace its African heritage and culture. The new name came with a new flag, which included the Pan-African colours of red, yellow, and green.

The green background represented hope and the country’s fertile land; the yellow symbolised the country’s prosperity and bountiful natural resources, and the red stood for the blood shed for independence and the nation’s martyrs.

The circle with the flaming torch represented the unity of the Zairean people, as well as being a symbol of the ruling party, the Popular Movement of the Revolution (MPR).

Democratic Republic of the Congo (Again)

Flag of Democratic Republic of the Congo (1997-2003). Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The government was overthrown in 1997, which, you guessed it, brought about a new name and flag. The name Zaire was dissolved, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo was reintroduced, along with updating the flag. Instead of looking to contemporary times for inspiration to redesign the flag, it was decided to dive back into the past, 1960, to be correct, to find the next flag.

The new, but old flag was a variation of the first Republic of the Congo’s flag, which was adopted in 1960. The number of stars and their yellow colour didn’t change, but the central star is slightly smaller, along with a lighter blue background.

Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2003–2006). Credit: Moyogo.

When the Democratic Republic of the Congo was just six years old, a decision was made that the national flag needed to be updated. As a result, the flag underwent a makeover. Perhaps someone was allergic to the original blue or felt that it wasn’t light enough, but whatever the reason, the blue on the flag was changed to a lighter shade, and the size of the central star was also adjusted.

In my personal opinion, I think some ministers’ OCD was out of control.

Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (since 2006). Credit: Nightstallion.

By now, you would have guessed what happened in 2006, three years after the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s third flag was revealed. Yes, we have another flag change. 10 points to Hufflepuff!

You can’t make this stuff up, but in 2006, the wheel turned again, and another flag was introduced. It’s a hybrid of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s first and third flags, combining the design of the 1966 flag, but using the blue from 2003’s flag.

If I understand it properly, the star represents the future for the country, red is for “the blood of the country’s martyrs”, the country’s wealth is yellow, and the blue stands for peace.

Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s current flag, and long may it last. However, like a married man having a midlife crisis, who starts dating a woman old enough to be his daughter, will the Democratic Republic of the Congo have another makeover, via a name and flag change? Who knows?

I hope this blog post was coherent enough to understand, because as I was writing it, I kept saying to myself, “This makes no sense, but it’s true.” As always, please let me know your thoughts on the subject.

Writing about the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s flags and name changes has given me a small headache, so I’m done. Thanks again for reading, following, and subscribing to Some Geek Told Me.

Please remember to walk your dog, read a banned book, the world is a vampire, and I’ll see you next week.

^1.)When the Republic of the Congo was named, its neighbour was also called the Republic of the Congo. To sort through the confusion and help the international community differentiate between the two Congos, the flags were different.

In addition to this, the Republic of the Congo was referred to as Congo-Léopoldville, acknowledging its Belgian past. And not to be outdone, the Republic of the Congo was known as Congo-Brazzaville, acknowledging its French heritage. Not confusing at all.

I want to talk about flags, in particular flags that are no longer used. Why? This pains me to admit, but Sheldon Cooper and I have many things in common; and one of them is vexillology. If you’re not familiar with the term, you will be familiar with what it actually means: the study or love of flags.

When talking about myself, I don’t have an elephant in the room; I have a herd of them. However one of those elephants is all about flags. It’s not really the source of conversation for a first date, is it? Or the second, or the third, or the fourth.

I remember eventually explaining my love of flags to my future wife, like I was confessing that I had a window licking habit. Her response was something along the lines of, “I didn’t know that about you, though it does make sense. I knew there would be more stuff. I knew it.”

I’m not an expert on flags, far from it. Though I do like learning about them and trying to identify them as much possible. Please remember I am a geek, and I have been very upfront about that from Day One. That fact that the title of my blog is called, Some Geek Told Me, is a huge red flag.¹

Because of this, I thought I’d talk about some countries that have changed their national flag. There could be many different reasons for the change, from social, political, or cultural issues, or maybe someone smeared tomato sauce on it, so they needed to redesign it.

The point is a country changing their national flag, happens a lot more than you realise. I’m going to list some of the most famous national flag changes in the world, but as usual, there are some exemptions. I am not going to discuss a country’s flag change, where it has gone back to using the original version like Russia-USSR-Russia. What I’m talking about is a completely new design for a country’s flag, that is still being flown today.

Canada

Canadian Red Ensign (1957–1965): Image by Denelson83

The Canadian Red Ensign served as the unofficial national flag and symbol for Canada throughout the years, from as early as 1868. Canada had gone through several versions of this flag, with small differences with each one.

However there had been a call for an official flag of Canada to actually exist for decades, so during 1963-1964, the Great Canada Flag Debate was born. During this time, a new design for the flag was sought and after 3,541 entries, a winner was eventually found. On 15th February, 1965, the “Maple Leaf” flag was inaugurated as the official of flag of Canada. This flag could never be mistaken for belonging to another country, other than Canada.

The National Flag of Canada (1965-present): Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

South Africa

Just like the different flags throughout Canada’s history, South Africa has gone through many versions. This changed in 1928, when the country adopted the Union of South Africa flag. The problem with this flag is that it’s tied to the Apartheid system that the South African government used, which was based on racial segregation.

With the end of Apartheid, a new flag was purposed for the country to move past the injustices, and look towards a brighter tomorrow. Over 7,000 entries were received and on the day of the 1994 South African general election; the first general election open to citizens of all races, the famous Rainbow Flag was first flown.

The National Flag of South Africa (1994-present): Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay

Zimbabwe (Formerly known as Southern Rhodesia)

Flag of Southern Rhodesia (1968-1979): Image by Actarux

The next two entries are rather unique, because these countries didn’t just change their flag, but also their name. From 1895 to 1990, Southern Rhodesia was the name of this Southern African country. It had been a British colony ²and over the years it was known as Southern Rhodesia, the Republic of Rhodesia, Rhodesia, and finally Zimbabwe Rhodesia; with a white minority government.

This changed when the country gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1980, but also with a black majority government. Because of this, the country changed it’s name to Zimbabwe and the flag; to greater reflect and honour their African heritage.

The Flag of the Republic of Zimbabwe (1980-present): Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Myanmar (Formerly known as Burma)

The Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma Flag (1988-2010):
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Just like Zimbabwe, Myanmar has a troubled past. It has been part of the Pagan Empire, a British colony ³, been ruled by the military, and littered with civil wars. Having won its independence from the United Kingdom in 1948, the country was known as the Union of Burma. Fast forward to 1988, where the country received an updated version of their old flag.

After some voting, social, and economic reforms from the military junta, the country stepped into a new era. It was given a new name for three reasons:

1.) Myanma is the official name of the country in the native Burmese language.

2.) It was thought that the name Myanma was more inclusive of minorities than the name Bama.

3.) The military junta had long been suspicious of the casual Burmese language, which it had perceived as inferior; the English name “Burma” mirrors the Burmese name Bama.

Because of these reasons and others, a new flag was adopted in 2010.

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar Flag (2010-present):
Image by Adam Lapuník from Pixabay

And that’s a wrap from me. I realise I missed many other flags, but are there some I should have listed? Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks for letting me share my love of vexillology, because there is no known cure. Anyway, I’m off to persuade my dog to sleep somewhere else, other than my pillow. Read some banned books, eat some ice cream, and I’ll see you next Monday.

¹Pun very much intended.

² To nobody’s surprise.

³Oh no, not again!

SOME GEEK TOLD ME

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