Flag of Malta

Design

Construction sheet

Colours

The red hue in the Maltese flag is officially documented as Pantone 186 C, RGB (207,20,43), Hex #CF142B or Spot Colour - 50% rubine red • 50% warm red.

The constitution of Malta also states that the white side must be on the hoist pole while the red side must be "in the fly".

Tradition states that the colours of the flag were given to Malta by Roger I of Sicily in 1091. Roger's fleet landed in Malta on the completion of the Norman conquest of Sicily. It is said that local Christians offered to fight by Roger's side against the Arab defenders. In order to recognize the locals fighting on his side from the defenders, Roger reportedly tore off part of his chequered red-and-white flag. However, this story has been debunked as a 19th-century myth, possibly even earlier due to Mdina, Malta's old capital, associating its colours with Roger's in the late Middle Ages.

The white and red standard was reportedly used by Maltese insurgents during a rebellion against French occupation in September 1798.

The flag of the Knights of Malta, a white cross on a red field, was a more likely source of the Maltese colours, inspiring the red and white shield used during the British colonial period. The flag used by the knights was also known to be the oldest still-in-use national flag. The blue canton present in the 1943 to 1964 version of the flag was removed after Maltese independence, with the George cross instead given a red fimbriation.

The George Cross

The George Cross originally appeared on the flag placed on a blue canton (see List of flags of Malta). The flag was changed on 21 September 1964 with Malta's independence when the blue canton was replaced by a red fimbriation, the intention being that the Cross appear less prominent. King George VI bestowed the George Cross on Malta on April 15, 1942 in recognition of its courageousness during World War II. The symbol was later officially added to the Maltese flag on 28 December 1943 despite symbolism being in circulation between April 1942 and December 1943 depicting the flag.

Campaign

Every few years, the debate to remove the George Cross from the national flag comes up. In 1975 an act passed in parliament allowing the George Cross to be removed by a simple parliament majority with the reasoning being that the cross ties Malta to its turbulent, colonial past. A campaign on social media in 2013 further emphasized this point, coming up with an alternative of replacing it with the Maltese cross.

The issue of the cross returned to the fore of Maltese politics in 2019 when Maltese historian and noted Napoleon apologist and Francophile Charles Xuereb called for its removal from the flag, as well as the demolition of British colonial monuments across the country, arguing that the addition of the cross was a "colonial gimmick" in an interview with The Times of Malta.

Rival historian Joe Pirotta argued against Xuereb's idea in an article also published by The Times of Malta saying that the addition of the cross was a great honor with Mario Farrugia, chairman of the Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna, arguing that removing the cross would be "an insult" to those who fought against Nazism and that "The George Cross has become as famous as the Maltese Cross" as a symbol of Malta.

Civil ensign

The civil ensign shows a red field, bordered white and charged with a blank Maltese cross. It is also known as the Merchant's flag and/or the maritime flag of Malta.

Historical flags of Malta

|19th Century Flag of Malta.svg|19th century, Crown Colony of Malta |Flag of Malta (1875–1898).svg|1875–1898, Crown Colony of Malta |Flag of Malta (1898–1923).svg|1898–1923, Crown Colony of Malta |Flag of Malta (1923-1943).svg|1923–1943, Crown Colony of Malta |Flag of Malta (1943-1964).svg|1943–1964, Crown Colony of Malta |Flag of Malta (1943).svg|1943–1964, Unofficial flag of Malta ||}}

A Graphical History of the Maltese Flag

References

References

1. "LEĠIŻLAZZJONI MALTA".
2. Murphy, Philip. (2013). "Monarchy and the End of Empire: The House of Windsor, the British Government, and the Postwar Commonwealth". OUP Oxford.
3. "Country flags with text".
4. Gonzi, Lawrence. (2008). "Graphical Specifications for the National Flag of Malta". [[Prime Minister of Malta.
5. Mifsud, Ivan. (2022-03-21). "Constitutional Law in Malta". Kluwer Law International B.V..
6. (2010-04-27). "Historical Dictionary of Malta". Scarecrow Press.
7. (2019-07-15). "Malta". Cavendish Square Publishing, LLC.
8. (2021-02-24). "Flags, Symbols, & Currencies of Malta".
9. (September 2024). 1860113656.
10. (1909). "A history of Malta during the period of the French and British occupations, 1798–1815". Longmans, Green & Co.
11. Guillet (sieur.). (1705). "The Gentleman's Dictionary: In Three Parts. Viz. I. The Art of Riding the Great Horse ... II. The Military Art ... III. The Art of Navigation ...". H. Benwicke ... T. Goodwin, M. Wotton, B. Tooke ... and S. Manship.
12. Strickland, Adrian. (1997). "The vexillological heritage of the Knights of Saint John in Malta". Proceedings of the XVII International Congress of Vexillology.
13. Bamford, Paul Walden. (1964). "The Knights of Malta and the King of France, 1665-1700". French Historical Studies.
14. Smith, Whitney. (August 11, 2011). "flag of Malta {{!}} Britannica".
15. Office, Great Britain Colonial. (1963). "Malta Independence Conference, 1963". H.M. Stationery Office.
16. Sheehan, Sean. (2000). "Malta". Marshall Cavendish.
17. Mallia, Amy. (April 15, 2022). "The Story Of Malta And The George Cross". Lovin Malta.
18. Bonnici, Alfred. (August 2004). "Lord Gort's air mail letter to the U. K. (1942) & the George Cross on Malta stamps & flag".
19. Xuereb, Charles. (February 23, 2019). "75 years of the George Cross on the flag - do we still need a Colonial war medal?". [[Times of Malta]].
20. Xuereb, Charles. (September 1, 2022). "Republican Malta is still not colonially free". Malta Today.
21. (24 September 2013). "Campaign wants George Cross replaced by the Maltese Cross on the flag".
22. (11 October 2013). "George Cross controversy".
23. "Watch: 'Remove the George Cross and relocate colonial monuments'".
24. "Removing the George Cross from the flag would be ‘absurd’".
25. "Flags, Symbols and their uses".
26. Harwood, Stephenson. (2006). "Shipping finance". Euromoney Books.
27. Inc, IBP. (2013). "Malta Recent Economic and Political Developments Yearbook Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments". Lulu.com.
28. Holden, Edward Singleton. (1906). "Our Country's Flag, and the Flags of Foreign Countries ...". D. Appleton and Company.
29. [http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20160830/local/paper-trail-retraces-a-400-year-old-murder.623511 Paper trail retraces a 400-year-old murder]