Flag of San Marino

San Marino

Use	National flag and ensign
Proportion	3:4
Adopted	6 April 1862
Design	A horizontal bicolour of white and light blue; charged with the Coat of arms in the centre
Variant flag of San Marino
Use	Civil flag
Proportion	3:4
Design	Plain white-blue bicolor.

The state and war flag of San Marino is formed by two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and light blue with the national coat of arms superimposed in the center; the coat of arms has a shield (featuring three towers on three peaks) with a closed crown on top, flanked by an oak and laurel wreath, with a scroll below bearing the word LIBERTAS (Liberty). The two colors of the flag represent peace (white) and liberty (azure).

Although the Law on the flag and coat of arms of San Marino from 2011 refers only to the "official flag" of the republic, a de facto civil flag, which omits the coat of arms, can sometimes be seen flying. Some official sources of San Marino suggest that the civil flag is actually the bicolor with the coat of arms of the specific city it is used in, instead of the national one.

The national ensign of San Marino is identical to the state flag.

The oldest attested flag of the republic dates back from 4 September 1465, when it was commissioned from a manufacturer in Florence. It showed a horizontal tricolor of orange, white and purple, with the old emblem of San Marino depicted on the white stripe. It is not known how long it remained the state flag of the republic or when the white-blue bicolor appeared. In 1797, most likely influenced by the wave of reforms in France, the Supreme Council of the Republic commissioned a white and blue cockade, which, coincidentally or not, was identical to the one used by the French revolutionaries.

The current flag was adopted on 6 April 1862 by a Decree of the Supreme Council and since then, little but graphic details of the coat of arms and some proportions were changed.

Historical Flag attested in 1465

Historical Flag attested in 1862–2011