Germany Flag

Germany Flag image for printout, free download and activities for students.

About Germany Flag

Germany Flag: National Flag of Germany is a tricolor made up of three equally spaced horizontal stripes that represent the country's three colors: black, red, and gold. In the German Confederation, the flag was seen for the first time in 1848. From 1919 to 1933, it served as the Weimar Republic's official national flag, and it has been hoisted since it was restored in West Germany in 1949. The black-red-gold tricolor became the flag of the Federal Republic of Germany on May 23, 1949, when the Basic Law was officially enacted.

According to Article 22 of Germany's Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, the colors of the federal flag are black, red and gold. The Germany flag is designed in accordance with criteria established by the West German government in 1950 and has a width-to-length ratio of 3:5. The tricolor used during the Weimar Republic had a ratio of 2:3. Other than "Black-Red-Gold," there were no specified color requirements at the time the flag was adopted. On the other hand, the federal cabinet introduced a corporate design for the German government on June 2, 1999.

Civil Flag: In 1949, as a part of the (West) German constitution, the black-red-gold tricolor was made the sole component of the German national flag, or Bundesflagge. The plain tricolor is now used as the German civil flag and civil ensign after separate government and military flags were later created.

Government Flag: The Dienstflagge der Bundesbehörden, or Bundesdienstflagge for short, is the name given to Germany's national flag. The government flag, which was first used in 1950, is the civil flag that has the Bundesschild defiled on it, covering up to one-fifth of the black and gold bands. The eagle's depiction and the shield's shape are the two fundamental differences between the Bundesschild and the regular coat of arms of Germany. The base of the Bundesschild is rounded, whereas the standard coat of arms is pointed.

Vertical flags: Many public structures in Germany display flags in a vertical orientation in addition to the usual horizontal one. This is how most town halls fly their respective flags. Many German town flags are only available vertically. There is no information on the dimensions of these vertical flags. The Bundesschild is displayed in the center of the flag, overlapping with up to one fifth of the black and gold bands. In 1996, a layout for the vertical version of the government flag was established. This layout interestingly matched the design of the "traditional" black-red-gold flag of the Principality of Reuss-Gera. The black band should be on the left when draped or hung like a banner. The black band should be facing the staff when flown from a vertical flagpole.

Military flags: The Bundesdienstflagge is also used as the German war flag on land because the German armed forces (Bundeswehr) are a federal institution. The German Navy's official flag, the Dienstflagge der Seestreitkräfte der Bundeswehr, was first used in 1956. The navy jack is another name for this nautical flag.