War flag

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

Variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land

title: "War flag" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["military-flags", "types-of-flags"] description: "Variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land" topic_path: "history/military" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_flag" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Codex_Manesse_Johann_von_Brabant.jpg" caption="1304}})"] ::

A war ensign, also known as a military flag, battle flag, or standard, is a variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land. The nautical equivalent is a naval ensign. Under the strictest sense of the term, few countries today currently have distinct war flags, most using a flag design that is also the state flag or general national flag for this purpose. TOC

History

::quote[attribution="Edward, Prince of Wales, in ''[[Henry VI, Part 3]]'', Act II, Scene II"] Sound trumpets! Let our bloody colours wave! And either victory, or else a grave. ::

Field signs were used in early warfare at least since the Bronze Age. The word standard itself is from an Old Frankish term for a field sign (not necessarily a flag).

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/1502_Acclamation_of_Nine_Standards_th.jpg" caption="Babur and his [[Mughal Army]] saluting the Nine Standards of [[Timur]]."] ::

The use of flags as field signs apparently emerges in Asia, during the Iron Age, possibly in either China or India. in Achaemenid Persia, each army division had its own standard, and "all officers had banners over their tents". Early field signs that include, but are not limited to a flag, are also called vexilloid or "flag-like", for example the Roman Eagle standard or the dragon standard of the Sarmatians. The Roman Vexillum itself is also "flag-like" in the sense that it was suspended from a horizontal crossbar as opposed to a simple flagpole.

Use of simple flags as military ensigns becomes common during the medieval period, developing in parallel with heraldry as a complement to the heraldic device shown on shields. The maritime flag also develops in the medieval period. The medieval Japanese Sashimono carried by foot-soldiers are a parallel development.

Some medieval free cities or communes did not have coats of arms, and used war flags that were not derived from a coat of arms. Thus, the city of Lucerne used a blue-white flag as a field sign from the mid 13th century, without deriving it from a heraldic shield design.

Current war flags

Used by armed forces only

|War Flag of Brunei.svg| |Canadian Forces Flag.svg| |People's Liberation Army Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg| |ROC Ministry of National Defense Flag.svg| |Georgia. Main Military flag.svg| |Flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.svg| |Flag of the Repubblica Cisalpina.svg| |Flag of JSDF.svg| |Flag of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army (Obverse).svg| |Moldovan Armed Forces Flag (svg).svg| |Flag of the Armed Forces (Tatmadaw) of Myanmar.svg| |Armed Forces of Pakistan Flag.svg| |Flag of Peru (war).svg| |Military flag of Portugal.svg| |Banner of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (obverse).svg| |chief_of_General_Staff_flag_of_the_Saudi_Armed_Forces.svg| |Flag of the Serbian Armed Forces (reverse).svg| |Ensign of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.svg| |Flag of the People's Army of Vietnam.svg|}}

Army (land) use only

|File:Flag of the Bangladesh Army.svg| |File:Flag of the British Army.svg| |File:War flag of Bulgaria.svg| |File:Ground Force Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg| |File:Republic of China Army Flag.svg| |Military flag of Colombia.svg| |File:Army Flag of Georgia.svg| |File:Hellenic Army War Flag.svg| |File:War Flag of Hungary.svg| |File:Flag of Indian Army.svg| |File:Flag of the Malaysian Army.svg| |File:Army Flag of Myanmar.svg| |File:Flag of the Pakistani Army.svg| |File:Flag of the Polish Land Forces.svg| |File:Flag of the Russian Ground Forces.svg| |File:Flag of the Royal Saudi Land Forces.png| |File:Flag of the Korean People's Army Ground Force (2023-).svg| |File:Flag of the Army of the Republic of Korea.svg| |File:Royal Thai Army Flag.svg| |File:Ensign of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.svg| |Flag of the People's Army of Vietnam.svg|}}

War flags that are also naval ensigns

|File:Flag of Austria (state, variant 2).svg| |File:Flag of Turkish Naval Forces Command.svg| |File:Flag of Denmark (state).svg| |File:Civil Ensign of El Salvador.svg| |Naval Ensign of Finland.svg| |File:Flag of Germany (state).svg| |File:Flag of Iceland (state).svg| |Naval Ensign of Japan.svg| |File:Flag of Norway, state.svg| |File:War Flag of the Philippines.svg| |Naval Bases Flag of the Royal Saudi Navy.svg| |File:Naval Ensign of Sweden.svg| |File:Flag of Venezuela (state).svg|

Former war flags

|File:Baucent.svg| |File:Flag_of_Bangladesh_(1971).svg| |File:Eureka Flag.svg| |File:Battle flag of the Confederate States of America.svg| |File:Flag of New Spain.svg| |File:War_flag_of_the_Imperial_Japanese_Army_(1868–1945).svg| |File:Flag of the Congo Army (1970-1992).svg| |File:Gadsden flag.svg| |File:Arklowflag.svg| |File:Flag of NVA (East Germany).svg| |File:War Ensign of Germany 1938-1945.svg| |File:Chetniks_Flag.svg| |War flag of Iran (1925-1979).svg| |File:War flag of the Italian Social Republic.svg| |File:War Ensign of Prussia (1816).svg| |File:War Ensign of Germany 1903-1918.svg| |File:Military flag of the Roman Republic (19th century).svg| |File:Red Army flag.svg| |File:Siamese Army Flag of King Rama V (Chudhadhujdhippatai).svg| |File:Mughals war Flag.gif| |File:US Cav 35.svg| |File:Flag of Italy (1860).svg| |File:War ensign of the First Slovak Republic.svg| |File:War flag of Croatia (1941–1945).svg| |File:War Flag of Hungary (1939-1945, size III and V).svg| |File:Flag of the Royal Yugoslav Army (Latin).svg| |File:Naval Ensign of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.svg| |File:Flag of the Yugoslav Ground Forces.svg| |File:Naval ensign of Yugoslavia (1949–1993).svg| |File:Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (with coat of arms).svg| |File:Naval ensign of Serbia and Montenegro.svg| |File:Presidential Standard of Zaire.svg| |File:Vietnamese Banner of Victory.svg| |File:War flag of South Vietnam.svg| |File:Flag of the People's Liberation Armed Forces of South Viet Nam.svg| ||}}

References

References

  1. {{OED. standard
  2. flag. (2008). Encyclopædia Britannica. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica.
  3. E. Pottier, ''Douris'', London, 1909, p. 105 fig. 20, Plate XXV.b
  4. "India before British Rule".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

military-flagstypes-of-flags