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Flag of Tonga

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Field	Value
Name	Kingdom of Tonga
Image	Flag of Tonga.svg
Use	110110
Symbol
Proportion	1:2
Adoption
Design	A red field with the white rectangle on the upper hoist-side corner bearing the red Greek Cross in the centre.
Designer	Shirley Waldemar Baker
Image2	Naval Ensign of Tonga.svg
Nickname2	Naval Ensign of Tonga
Use2	000001
Symbol2
Proportion2	1:2
Image3	Royal Standard of Tonga.svg
Nickname3	Royal Standard of Tonga
Use3	Royal standard
Proportion3	39:55

Tonga flags flying above a ceremonial gate to celebrate the coronation of [[Tupou VI

The national flag of Tonga consists of a red field with a white canton charged with a red couped cross. Adopted in 1875 after being officially enshrined into the nation's constitution, it has been the flag of the Kingdom of Tonga since that year. The constitution stipulates that the national flag can never be changed.

History

The British first arrived in Tonga in the late-18th century, when Captain James Cook made three visits to the islands between 1773 and 1777. Approximately fifty years later, English Wesleyan Methodist missionaries came to Tonga and began converting its people to Christianity. In 1831, they succeeded in converting "paramount chief" Taufa'ahau Tupou,

Upon his accession to the throne, the king sought to design a new flag for the nation, He befriended Shirley Waldemar Baker – a member of the United Kingdom's Tongan mission who later became the Prime Minister of Tonga – and they worked together to formulate a new flag, coat of arms and national anthem for Tonga.

Design

Symbolism

The colours and symbols of the flag carry cultural, political, and regional meanings. The red couped cross alludes to Christianity, It is one of 28 national flags to contain overtly Christian symbols. The white epitomizes purity, while the red evokes the sacrifice of the blood of Jesus Christ, which was shed during his crucifixion.

Construction sheet flag

Similarities

The previous design of the flag featured a plain white field charged with the red couped cross. However, it was later discovered that this flag was almost identical to the emblem of the International Red Cross, which had been adopted in 1863. As a result of this finding, the Tongan flag was set at the canton of a red field instead, leading to the present design of the flag. The previous design, nonetheless, remains a national symbol of Tonga. The current flag of Tonga also has some similarities with the flags of Switzerland and Georgia.

Gallery

Historical flags

References

"Tonga profile". BBC.
(2001). "Tonga". Lonely Planet.
Smith, Whitney. (24 November 2013). "Flag of Tonga". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc..
Kindersley Ltd., Dorling. (6 January 2009). "Complete Flags of the World". Penguin.
Peaslee, Amos J.. (1985). "Constitutions of Nations".
(20 March 2015). "Flags, for God's Sake".

Info: 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.

1875-introductions 1875-establishments-in-tonga national-symbols-of-tonga national-flags red-and-white-flags flags-with-crosses flags-with-cantons

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