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==History== ==History==
]
] from the 16th to the 19th centuries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flheritage.com/facts/symbols/flags.cfm |title=Florida's Historic Flags |accessdate=2012-08-17}}</ref>]]
] after 1785. Its colors are reflected in the present ].]]
], 1651.]]
]. Design by ].]] ]. Design by ].]]
] of ] from the 16th to the 19th centuries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flheritage.com/facts/symbols/flags.cfm |title=Florida's Historic Flags |accessdate=2012-08-17}}</ref>]]
] after 1785. Its colors are reflected in the present ].]]
], 1651.]]


] was a dynastic union and federation of kingdoms when ] discovered and claimed Florida in 1513. Several flags were used during the first period of Spanish settlement and governance in Florida, such as the standard of the ] in ] and the ] in ]. As with other Spanish territories, the Burgundian saltire was used in Florida to represent collective Spanish sovereignty between 1513 and 1821. The symbols of the ] was used when ] discovered and claimed Florida in 1513 for the ]. Several flags were used during the ] of Spanish settlement and governance in Florida, such as the standard of the ] in ] and the ] in ]. As other Spanish strongpoints in Europe and Americas, the Burgundian saltire was used in Florida by armed forces to represent Spanish sovereignty up to 1821.


In 1763, the Spanish passed control of Florida to Great Britain via the ]. Britain used the original union flag with the white diagonal stripes in Florida during this brief period. The British also divided the Florida territory into ], with its capital at St. Augustine, and ], with its capital at Pensacola. In 1763, the Spanish passed control of Florida to Great Britain via the ]. Britain used the original union flag with the white diagonal stripes in Florida during this brief period. The British also divided the Florida territory into ], with its capital at St. Augustine, and ], with its capital at Pensacola.

Revision as of 14:46, 4 September 2012

Florida
UseCivil and state flag
Proportion2:3
AdoptedSeptember 24, 1900
DesignRed saltire on a white background, with the seal of Florida superimposed on the center.

The flag of the state of Florida consists of a red saltire (diagonal cross) on a white background, with the seal of Florida superimposed on the center. The design was approved by a popular referendum in 1900. The current design has been in use since 1985, after the state seal was graphically improved and officially sanctioned for use by state officials.

History

Coat of Arms of colonial Americas at end of Spanish rule
Florida's first state flag was adopted during the American Civil War. Design by Governor Perry.
Flag of the Armed Forces of Spanish Empire from the 16th to the 19th centuries.
The Spanish Flag after 1785. Its colors are reflected in the present seal of Florida.
Burgundian saltires at the Assembly of the States-General, 1651.

The symbols of the Crown of Castile was used when Juan Ponce de León discovered and claimed Florida in 1513 for the Catholic monarchs. Several flags were used during the Habsburg period of Spanish settlement and governance in Florida, such as the standard of the Crown of Castile in Pensacola and the Cross of Burgundy flag in St. Augustine. As other Spanish strongpoints in Europe and Americas, the Burgundian saltire was used in Florida by armed forces to represent Spanish sovereignty up to 1821.

In 1763, the Spanish passed control of Florida to Great Britain via the Treaty of Paris. Britain used the original union flag with the white diagonal stripes in Florida during this brief period. The British also divided the Florida territory into East Florida, with its capital at St. Augustine, and West Florida, with its capital at Pensacola.

Spain regained control of Florida in 1783. In 1785, King Charles III chose a new naval and battle flag for Spain, which was now a more centralized nation-state, and its territories. This flag, a tri-band of red-yellow-red, was used along with the Burgundian saltire in the provinces of East and West Florida until 1821, when the Florida provinces joined the United States.

Between 1821 and 1861, Florida had no official flag. The Lone Star and Stripes, previously the Naval Ensign of Texas, was used as a provisional between 1861 and 1868, after Florida seceded from the Union and declared itself a "sovereign and independent nation." This flag was also used when State forces took control of the federal forts and a navy yard in Pensacola. Col. William H. Chase was Commander of Florida Troops and the flag is also referred to as the Chase Flag. Later in the year the Florida Legislature passed a law authorizing Governor Perry to design an official flag for the state. His design was the Stars and Bars but with the blue field extending all the way down the flag and the newly created seal of Florida within the blue field.

As part of the Confederacy, Florida flew all three versions of the Confederate flag and the Bonnie Blue Flag, which was briefly used as an unofficial flag of the Confederacy before the first official flag was adopted. The Bonnie Blue flag had a single five-point star centered in a blue background and was previously used as the flag of the short-lived Republic of West Florida in 1810, which included parts of modern-day Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Between 1868 and 1900, the flag of Florida was simply the state seal on a white background. In a discrepancy however, one version of the state seal depicts a steamboat with a white flag that included a red saltire, similar to Florida's current flag. In the late 1890s, Governor Francis P. Fleming, a nationalist, advocated that a red cross be added so that it would not appear to be a white flag of retreat hanging still on a flagpole. This addition was approved by popular referendum in 1900.

Five Flags over Florida

The term "Five Flags over Florida" usually refers to the five governments that have exerted sovereignty over all or part of Florida: the flags of Spain, France, Great Britain, the United States, and the Confederacy. At various times in its history, at least 16 different flags have been used in Florida or parts of Florida.

See also

References

  1. "Florida's Historic Flags". Retrieved 2012-08-17.
  2. "Ordinance of Secession, 1861 (From: Florida Convention of the People, Ordinance of Secession, 1861, Series S972)". Retrieved 2012-08-17.
  3. ^ "Florida House of Representatives - About Florida – Flags of Florida". Retrieved 2008-11-04.

External links

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