Flag of Georgia (country): Difference between revisions

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	The official '''flag of ]''' is the "'''five-cross flag'''", restored to official use on ], ] after a break of some 500 years. It was previously the flag of the medieval Georgian kingdom and had been used as the official symbol of the ] political party.

	== History of the flag ==

	The "five-cross flag" has been used since at least the ]. The central element of the flag is ] (still used as the national ]), who is the patron saint of Georgia. According to the Georgian scholar Giorgi Gabeskiria, the four extra crosses were probably added during the reign of ] (also known as "the Brilliant" or "the Splendid"), who drove out the ]s. Around that time, the new design was adopted as a variant of the ], a symbol used by crusaders in the ], which likewise used a large central cross with four smaller "crosslets" in the four quadrants. The crosses are said to have represented the five ] of ].

	The flag fell out of use later in the medieval period, but was revived by Georgian nationalists following the country's independence from the ] in 1991. A majority of Georgians, including the influential ] of the ], supported the restoration of the flag and in ] the Georgian parliament passed a bill to change the flag. However, it was not endorsed by the President, ]. It was adopted in the late 1990s by the main opposition party, the ] led by ], as a symbol of popular resistance to Shevardnadze's rule.

	The flag was adopted by the Georgian parliament on ], ]. It was formally endorsed by a presidential decree signed by Saakashvili on ], following his election as President of Georgia. Its adoption was not without controversy, as some complained that the adoption of a party's political flag as a national emblem was an anti-democratic move.

	== Earlier flags of Georgia ==

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	=== Independent Georgia (1918-1921, 1990-2004) ===

	During Georgia's brief existence as an independent state (the ]) from ]-], a tricolor flag was adopted (right). The design resulted from a national flag-designing contest won by Jakob Nikoladze, a painter. It was abolished by the Soviet Union following the 1921 takeover of Georgia but was revived on ], ] by the ]. It lost popularity thereafter as it became associated with the chaotic and violent period following Georgia's independence from the Soviet Union.

	=== Soviet Georgia (1921-1990) ===

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	During the Soviet period, Georgia adopted a number of versions of the ] incorporating either the ] name, or a red ] with a ] in a blue sun in ] and blue bar in the upper part of flag (right). The ] was abolished by the Georgian government when it declared independence from the Soviet Union in November 1990.

	== External links and references ==
	* , ''Flags of the World''
	* , '']'', ], ]
	* , ], ], ]
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Revision as of 22:23, 29 June 2006