National colours of Germany

The national colors of Germany are officially Black, Red and Gold (in practice replaced by a shade of yellow) as seen on the flag of Germany of 1849-1852, 1919–1933, and again since 1949. The colors were used by democratic revolutionaries in the early 19th century, and had been used by the Holy Roman Empire since the Middle Ages. Today, these colors are defined by article 22 sec. 2 of the German Grundgesetz (Constitution): "Die Bundesflagge ist schwarz-rot-gold." (The federal flag shall be black, red, and gold.)

Until 1918, the German Empire had used Black, White and Red, which derive from the Black cross on White coat carried by medieval crusading Teutonic Knights, and the White and Red flag of the Hanseatic League. German sports organisations that had been founded prior to World War I have often chosen White with additional Black and/or Red as their colors.

History of Black, Red and Gold

Main article: Coat of arms of Germany

A black eagle on a gold shield with red trim had been used on the semi-official Reichsadler coat of arms of the Holy Roman Empire since the Middle Ages. Flags in Black, Red and Gold were used e.g. at the coronation of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor in 1152.^[1] When the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved by Napoleon in 1806, the Habsburg dynasty continued to use the black and gold colors for their Austrian Empire.

Uniforms of the Lützow Free Corps during the German liberation wars against French occupation under Napoleon also consisted of a combination of black, red and gold. The colors were later used on horizontal tri-colour flags by Lützow veterans and other democratic revolutionaries of the Hambacher Fest in 1832, and in the Revolutions of 1848. As a result, the German Confederation, which had continued the use of the eagle coat of arms in 1815, also adopted the tri-color flag in 1848. It was mainly used in the small Imperial fleet (Reichsflotte), which was dissolved by 1852. Because of these traditions, the Weimar Republic that replaced the monarchy of the German Empire at the end of World War I in 1918 chose Black, Red and Gold both for the tri-color flag and the eagle coat of arms.

The issue of the national colors was, however, continuously debated in the Weimar Republic. The democratic political parties were in favour of the new colours, but many people of all different political views felt that the black, white and red were the true colours of Germany and they were used by conservatives, nationalists, communists and national socialists alike, who sometimes referred to it as "black-red-yellow" or even "black-red-mustard". Organisations like Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold were founded to defend the colors and the values they represented. Yet, when Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933, he quickly abolished the "democratic" colors and made his own Nazi party swastika flag the new national flag of Germany. This Nazi flag used a combination of black, white and red colors, but not in the same way as the old flag of the Empire. Instead, the socialist red was the dominant color.

After World War II, Germany was occupied and divided. Both new states founded in 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), took up the colors of black, red and gold again, with the GDR adding their socialist symbols in 1959. As a compromise, the Olympic United Team of Germany, which had first competed in 1956, had to add white Olympic rings to the flag for the games of 1960 and 1964, and also for 1968 when two separate German teams entered under common symbols. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, East German citizens cut out the socialist symbols of the East German flag in order to show support for a unification with West Germany, which had also continued the use of the traditional eagle coat of arms, called Bundesadler.

History of Black, White and Red

Since the 13th century, a Black cross on White coat was carried by medieval Teutonic Knights which had founded the Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia. They also used the Imperial black eagle on a gold shield to indicate that they enjoyed Reichsfreiheit as direct subjects only to the Holy Roman Emperor.

The monastic state in Prussia was secularized in 1525 as Ducal Prussia, which was not part of the Empire. Thus, it became the Kingdom of Prussia in 1701. The Prussian coat of arms and flag evolved into a black eagle on white. Since the 18th century, Prussia was often at war with the Austrian Habsburgs that ruled the Empire. Due to this rivalry, the German Confederation broke up in 1866. After beating Austria and its Southern German allies in the Austro-Prussian War, Bismarck founded the North German Confederation which was dominated by Prussia.

As the Black and Gold colors were associated with Austria, another color scheme was desired. In addition to the Black and White of Prussia, the White and Red colors of the former Hanseatic League were added. Even though this medieval international trade organization had lost its influence over two centuries earlier, the Free Imperial Cities Lübeck, Bremen and Hamburg took pride in their centuries-old Hanse tradition.

The Black, White and Red tri-colour flag of the North German Confederation was carried over to the German Empire which was founded in 1871. This flag was used until 1918. Later uses of Black, White and Red had mostly a political, far right wing background, although until 1918 these colors were simply the widely accepted national colors. They were reestablished in 1933 by the National Socialists, next to the Swastika flag (which used the same three colors).

In the Federal Republic of Germany (since 1949), and especially after the 1960s, only very far right wing parties use Black, White and Red, especially (radical) conservatives and neonazis. More moderate parties from the far right, for example The Republicans, have Black, Red and Gold in their logo. Beside the right wing extremists only the very small group of monarchists display the old colors.

Use of colors in sports etc.

National soccer association German Football Association logo, ca. 1911

German rower

German sports teams often use White as main color, as organisations that had been founded prior to 1919 often have chosen a combination of the contemporary national colors, mostly White with additional Black and/or Red as their colors. Examples are the German national football team fielded by the German Football Association (DFB) since 1908, German track and field athletes and rowers who use a red chest ring, and German race cars, which were, according to the international auto racing color scheme, painted white with red numbers (since 1934, Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union have used unpainted metal, or Silver).

After 1918 and 1945, Black-Red-Gold became national colors (again). Organisations founded in that time frame, like the German American Football Association (AFVD) or the German Organisation of Non-Olympic sports IGNOV, often use black-red-gold in their colors, mostly on a white background. In recent years, most national teams of older organisations have added black-red-gold trim to their dresses.

Germany

References

1. ^ George Henry Preble: The symbols, standards, flags, and banners of ancient and modern nations, prior to 1900, reprint: Flag Research Center, Winchester, USA.

See also

• Flag of Germany
• List of flags of Germany
• Flags of German states