In recent years, the black-yellow-white imperial flag, or white-yellow-black, has become popular. What is the meaning of the imperial flag? What is its history? Why is he forgotten? For many decades, disputes have not subsided about which flag is the imperial one. And each side finds irrefutable evidence of its innocence. But after that, the next question arises: is it worth returning to the imperial flag?
History of the flag
Tsargrad fell in 1453, holding back the siege of the Ottomans for two months. This was the last hope of the Byzantine Empire. Emperor Constantine XI Palaiologos was killed during the siege.
After some time, the Vatican began to look for allies, intending to organize a crusade against the Turks. The Muscovite state, which was then ruled by Ivan III, could become a strong ally. Therefore, the Pope marries Ivan III Sophia Paleolog - the niece of Emperor Constantine XI. The pope hoped that this marriage would bear fruit: the reconquest of the former possessions of Byzantium. In addition, the Vatican wanted Muscovy to accept the Union of Florence and submit to Rome. But Ivan III had other plans: strengthening power in Moscow.
Marrying Sophia Paleolog, Ivan IIIbecame king and defender of Orthodoxy. And Moscow became the heiress of Constantinople and Rome. Therefore, the coat of arms of the Moscow state has also changed. The Byzantine coat of arms merged with the Moscow coat of arms - a yellow field and a double-headed black eagle and a white horseman slaying a snake.
Alexey Mikhailovich introduced this coat of arms into circulation. And other rulers followed this tradition of such an image of the coat of arms.
The Senate in 1731 issued a decree according to which each infantry and dragoon regiment had to have scarves and hats that had the colors of the coat of arms. The Russian army had to use gold and black silk for tailoring. In addition, they now had white bows.
Peter I introduces new colors
Imperial flags as such did not exist at that time. The tricolor (white-blue-red) flag appeared in Russia, according to most historians, during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich. The military ship "Eagle" had a banner, for the manufacture of which worm, white and azure fabrics were used, that is, red, white and blue. This detail, not noticed by everyone, destroys the main argument of the critics of the tricolor, since the majority believes that Peter I "brought" this flag to our country. Peter the Great drew a different flag: the white cloth was divided by a blue straight cross into four equal parts, called roofs. The first and fourth are white, the second and third are red. Toward the end of the 17th century, the flag was firmly attached to the masts of Russian ships.
After a trip to Holland, the young king decided to buildships, so I immediately went to Arkhangelsk. On the way to the capital, he stopped at Vologda, where he presented Archbishop Athanasius with three flags from his ship. The largest was the "flag of the Tsar of Moscow". It consisted of three horizontal stripes: white, blue and red (from top to bottom). Also on the cloth was a double-headed eagle holding a scepter and an orb. The chest of the eagle was decorated with a red shield with Saint George.
There is a version that he created the flags already in Arkhangelsk. Some sources claim that the Russian flag was conceived along the lines of the Dutch tricolor, but with a different color order. But the mistake is that Peter I had already created this flag before his trip to Holland.
After the appearance of the flag of the Moscow Tsar, the white-blue-red imperial flag with the coat of arms sewn on remained the royal ship standard. In 1697, Peter introduced a new tricolor flag, without the eagle.
Under Peter I, the tricolor was the battle flag of Russia, land and sea forces. But during the Northern War, the army and navy began to use the St. Andrew's flag. In 1705, on January 20, Peter I ordered the use of the white-blue-red flag only in the merchant fleet.
In the post-Petrine time, the German entourage of the reigning persons had the greatest influence. Therefore, the national colors were practically lost.
Imperial standard
Imperial flags also complemented the imperial standard. It was approved by Peter I: a double-headed black eagle is depicted on a yellow cloth, holding nautical charts with White, Azov andCaspian Sea. Quite quickly, a fourth sea chart was added. Partially the coast of the B altic Sea was joined in 1703.
Before that, in 1696, the emperor created a coat of arms, which was based on the one used during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich. The banner was red with a white border, in the center was a golden eagle that soared over the sea. The Savior was depicted in a circle on his chest, next to him were the Holy Spirit and the holy apostles Paul and Peter.
In 1742, the coronation of Elizabeth Petrovna took place. Before this event, a new State banner of the empire was created: on a yellow cloth - a black double-headed eagle surrounded by 31 oval shields with coats of arms. At that time, territorial emblems were not yet depicted on the wings of an eagle.
Baron Bergard Karl Koehne created the second state banner. He was prepared for the coronation of Alexander II (1856, August 26). In addition to the state banner, Bernhard Koehne also created a large, medium and small coat of arms of the Russian Empire. After that, he created the coat of arms of the Romanov dynasty and generally carried out a heraldic reform of Russian territorial emblems. Koene's main idea was to establish colors that reflect the colors of the coat of arms on flags and banners. Festive draperies and military uniforms also had these shades. This was the custom in the Kingdom of Prussia and the Austrian Empire. But the official colors were approved under Anna Ioannovna (1731, August 17).
Since the state emblem had a golden shield, a double-headed black eagle, silver crowns, a scepter and an orb, thenBergard Karl Koehne reasoned that, according to the rules of heraldry, the coat of arms colors are black, gold and silver.
In 1883, the third state banner was created for the coronation of Alexander III. It was painted by the artist Belashov. But instead of a golden eyelet, they used a silk fabric that has the color of old gold.
For the coronation of Nicholas II, which took place in 1896, the fourth state banner was completed. It was made of gold fabric with embroidery, not painting.
Strengthening the unity of the nation
The Patriotic War with Napoleon ended, and the white-yellow-black flag was hung out only on holidays. The existence of the flag in this form continued only until the moment of its official adoption. Nicholas I ordered to use the colors of the future imperial flag on the cockades of civil servants.
Nikolai I generally sought to adopt state symbols and attributes. He was convinced that in this way the unity of the nation could be strengthened. That is why the emperor approved the patriotic anthem "God Save the Tsar" as the national one.
Inverted flag
Alexander II wanted to put things in order in the state symbols, as it should have been brought to the common European heraldic standards. Therefore, in 1857, the Emperor appointed Baron Bergard-Karl Köhne as head of the Heraldry Department.
1858 marks the beginning of the history of the imperial flag as a state flag. In 1858, on June 11, Alexander II signed a decree approving the new state flag. Only nowit was inverted: black-yellow-white. It was supposed to hang on all state institutions, government buildings. At the same time, private individuals had the right to use only the flag of the merchant fleet with the old tricolor: white, blue, red.
The author of the project of the imperial flag was Bernhard-Karl Koehne. It was he who came up with the idea to make a black-yellow-white imperial flag. What do the colors on the cloth mean? Why did the baron flip the flag? In general, in heraldry, an inverted banner denotes mourning. At sea, it's a distress signal. The excellent heraldist Köhne could not have been unaware of this. Symbolically or not, but after that the fate of the country began to change dramatically and not for the better.
Paintings of artists "fixed" the arrangement of colors in the following order: white, yellow and black.
Meaning of flowers
The colors of the imperial flag of Russia have a deep meaning that makes you think about the past, present and future of the country. We will consider the first version of the imperial flag.
The bottom layer - black - is the personification of the sovereign coat of arms of the empire. The stability and prosperity of the whole country is concentrated here, with inviolable and strong borders and the unity of the nation.
Middle layer - yellow color - moral development, high spirituality of the Russian people. Also, this color is interpreted as a reference to the times of the Byzantine Empire - as the progenitor of Russia in the Orthodox world.
Top layer - white color - a prayer and an appeal to George the Victorious, who has been the patron of Russian lands for many centuries. In addition, this color is a symbolsacrifice of the people of Russia. He is ready to shake the world in an impulse to give everything for his country, if only to preserve its greatness and his own honor.
There is another version as to what the color of the imperial flag means. The white stripe is Orthodoxy, which is the foundation and foundation of life. The yellow stripe is autocracy, which is established in Orthodoxy, since this is the only form of power given by God. The black stripe is a people that is based on Orthodoxy and autocracy. Black - because it is the color of the earth, Russia must live by noble labor on earth.
Disputes
White-yellow-black flag as a state banner in the next 15-20 years was perceived unequivocally and was not disputed. But closer to the 70s of the 19th century, opposition from liberal circles strengthened in the empire, opposing the monarchical system. Its representatives wanted the country to start following the Western model of development. As a result, they had a craving for European symbolism. The flag approved by Peter I to some extent refers to European symbols.
Monarchists advocated the preservation of the imperial flag. Their motives are quite understandable: one people is a single Empire, and hence one imperial flag. Which means all together - the country is invincible and strong.
Imperial flags: are there two?
1881 - the year of the death of Alexander II. His death came at a very difficult and important moment for the state. Alexander III pretty soon (in 1883, April 28) endowed the white-blue-red flag with the status of a sovereign, although he was offeredmake it just a trade flag. The situation was further complicated by the fact that the imperial flag had not been cancelled.
In 1887, the War Department Order was issued, which approved the black-yellow-white imperial flags as national.
The situation was very ambivalent, something had to be decided immediately. In April 1896, representatives of the Academy of Sciences and the Ministries decided that the new state banner could be national. And the imperial flag has no heraldic tradition.
Nicholas II ordered to prepare a new coronation banner for his coronation, the prototype of which was similar banners of his predecessors.
In March 1896, before the coronation, Nicholas II gathered representatives from the Academy of Sciences and foreign and various ministries. At the meeting, it was decided that the tricolor should be called national, Russian. Its colors are called state colors (red, blue and white).
Interpretation of the new tricolor
The new colors of the flag - white, blue and red - have become national and have received an official interpretation. So, the new imperial flag. What does each stripe mean?
The most popular transcript is the following:
- white - a symbol of nobility and frankness;
- blue is a symbol of honesty, chastity, fidelity and impeccability;
- red is a symbol of courage, love, courage and generosity.
Red - sovereignty. Blue - Our Lady covering Russia. White - freedom and independence. Also these colorsthey talked about the commonwe alth of White, Little and Great Russia. Despite the complicated history of this flag, in fact, there is no historical or heraldic meaning behind its colors.
Interestingly, the Provisional Government continued to use the new tricolor as a state one. The Soviet Union did not immediately abandon the tricolor. Only in 1918, Ya. M. Sverdlov put forward a military red flag for approval, which became the state flag for 70 years.
Before the revolution
But the debate continued. In 1910, on May 10, a Special Meeting was established, chaired by Minister of Justice A. N. Verevkin. The purpose of this meeting was to clarify the question of what colors are state, national. The largest scientists-heraldists worked on this problem. Despite long work, they could not find a clear heraldic justification for any of the flags. But most scientists believed that the state colors are black, yellow and white. The Russian imperial flag must wear these colors. The other flag could only be used by merchant ships in inland waters.
In addition, the monarchists wanted to return the "correct" flag on the occasion of the approaching 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty.
On July 27, 1912, a meeting was held, during which it was decided to get another opinion in terms of expediency and practical acceptability. This was to be done by a special commission under the Naval Ministry.
The commission held two meetings. The majority of votes as a result decided that the Special Meeting under the Ministry of Justice wasuncomfortable reform proposed.
The Council of Ministers on September 10, 1914 decided to transfer the decision on flags to the Naval Ministry. But since 1914, the government and society could no longer deal with heraldic disputes. We managed to create a "symbiosis" of both flags. The white-blue-red cloth in the "roof" now had a yellow square with a double-headed black eagle. In the First World War, this demonstrated the unity of the nation and the monarchical power.
70 years later
On November 5, 1990, the Government of the RSFSR decided to create drafts of the State Emblem and the flag of the country. For this purpose, a Government Commission was established. During the work, the idea arose to revive the white-blue-red flag. Everyone supported her unanimously. And on November 1, 1991, an amendment to the Constitution was adopted at the Congress of People's Deputies of Russia. In addition, the article that described the National Flag was changed.
Imperial flag today
Recently, the question of returning to the imperial flag has been raised more than once. But there are many inaccuracies in this issue. Starting with the fact that the exact and correct arrangement of flowers is unknown. In addition, it is the flag of the imperial family. In a sense, now to return the flag of Russia - the imperial flag - is inappropriate.
Unfortunately, many people do not understand what the imperial flag means. It is often mistaken for the flag of the Nazis, confusing them with the nationalists.
There is an interesting modern version of the banner - "Kolovrat". The imperial flag bears symbols that are understandablededicated people and native believers. The center of the cloth is occupied by the ancient symbol of the Slavic peoples - Kolovrat, or thunder. When our ancestors drew this solar symbol, they called on the help of the gods. They counted on their help in military affairs. They asked for a rich harvest, they wanted to receive sacred knowledge, which practically did not reach our time. Now few understand what the imperial flag of Russia means. But for some people, he still personifies the greatness and victories of the Russian Empire.
