Wikipedia

Flags of the Confederate States of America

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The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the [[American Civil War|American CivilTemplate:NbspWar]]. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 toTemplate:Nbsp1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 toTemplate:Nbsp1865; and the "Template:Nowr Banner", used inTemplate:Nbsp1865 shortly before the Confederacy's dissolution. A rejected national flag design was also used as a battleTemplate:Nbspflag by the [[Confederate States Army|ConfederateTemplate:NbspArmy]] and featured in the "Stainless Banner" and "Template:Nowr Banner" designs. Although this design was never a Template:Nowr, it is the most commonly-recognized symbol of the Confederacy.

Following the end of the American Civil War, [[Modern display of the Confederate battle flag|private and officialTemplate:Nbspuse of the ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflags]], particularly the battleTemplate:Nbspflag, has continued amid philosophical, political, cultural, and racial controversy in the UnitedTemplate:NbspStates. These include flags displayed in states; cities, towns and counties; schools, colleges and universities; private organizations and associations; and individuals. The battleTemplate:Nbspflag was also featured in the [[Flags of the U.S. states and territories|stateTemplate:Nbspflags]] of Georgia and Mississippi, although it was removed by Georgia inTemplate:Nbsp2003 and Mississippi inTemplate:Nbsp2020. However, the new design of the GeorgiaTemplate:Nbspflag still references the original "Stars and Bars" iteration of the GeorgiaTemplate:Nbspflag. After the GeorgiaTemplate:Nbspflag was changed inTemplate:Nbsp2001, the city of Trenton, Georgia, has used a flag design nearly identical to the previous version with the battleTemplate:Nbspflag.

It is estimated that 500–544 flags were captured during the war by the Union. The flags were sent to the [[United States Department of War|WarTemplate:NbspDepartment]] in Washington.[1][2]

First flag: the "Stars and Bars" (1861–1863)

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File:Fort Sumter, April 15, 1861.jpg
The "Stars and Bars" flies at Template:Nowr, AprilTemplate:Nbsp15, 1861.

The Confederacy's first official national flag, often called the Template:Vanchor, flew from MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1861, to MayTemplate:Nbsp1, 1863. TwoTemplate:Nbspmen claim to have designed the flag. While it has been traditionally attributed to Prussian-American artist Nicola Marschall from Marion, Alabama, evidence now shows that OrenTemplate:NbspRandolph from [[Louisburg, North Carolina|Louisburg, NorthTemplate:NbspCarolina]] likely also designed a similar flag at the same time. Alabama and NorthTemplate:NbspCarolina both certified that theirs was the first design, but an investigation into both men's claims has revealed evidence that supports both men.[3]

The flag is very similar to the flag of the United States, and is said to resemble the flag of Austria, with which Nicola Marschall would have been familiar.[4]Template:Efn The original version of the flag featured a circle of seven white stars in the Template:Nowr canton, representing the seven states of the South that originally composed the Confederacy: [[South Carolina in the American Civil War|SouthTemplate:NbspCarolina]], Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. The "Stars and Bars" flag was adopted on MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1861, in the first temporary national capital of Montgomery, Alabama, and raised over the dome of that first Confederate capitol. Marschall also designed the [[Uniforms of the Confederate States military forces|ConfederateTemplate:Nbsparmy uniform]].[5]

One of the first acts of the Provisional Confederate Congress was to create the CommitteeTemplate:Nbspof the Flag andTemplate:NbspSeal, chaired by [[William Porcher Miles|WilliamTemplate:NbspPorcher Miles]], a Democratic congressman and "[[Fire-Eaters|Template:Nowr]]" from Template:Nowr. The committee asked the public to submit thoughts and ideas on the topic and was, as historian JohnTemplate:NbspM. Coski puts it, "overwhelmed by requests not to abandon the 'oldTemplate:Nbspflag' of the UnitedTemplate:NbspStates." Miles had already designed a flag that later became known as the Confederate [[#Battle flag|BattleTemplate:NbspFlag]], and he favored his flag over the "Stars and Bars" proposal. But given the popular support for a flag similar to the [[Flag of the United States|U.S.Template:Nbspflag]] ("the Stars and Stripes"), the "Stars and Bars" design was approved by the committee.[6]

As the Confederacy grew, so did the numbers of stars: two were added for Virginia and Arkansas in MayTemplate:Nbsp1861, followed by two more representing Tennessee and [[North Carolina in the American Civil War|NorthTemplate:NbspCarolina]] inTemplate:NbspJuly, and finally twoTemplate:Nbspmore for Missouri and Kentucky.

When the American Civil War broke out, the "Stars and Bars" confused the battlefield at the [[First Battle of Bull Run|Template:Nowr Template:Nowr]] because of its similarity to the U.S. (orTemplate:NbspUnion) flag, especially when it was hanging limply on its flagstaff.[7] The "Stars and Bars" was also criticized on ideological grounds for its resemblance to the U.S.Template:Nbspflag. Many Confederates disliked the Stars and Bars, seeing it as symbolic of a centralized federal power against which the Confederate states claimed to be seceding.[8] As early as AprilTemplate:Nbsp1861, a month after the flag's adoption, some were already criticizing the flag, calling it a "servile imitation" and a "detested parody" of the U.S.Template:Nbspflag.[9] In JanuaryTemplate:Nbsp1862, [[George William Bagby|GeorgeTemplate:NbspWilliam Bagby]], writing for the Southern Literary Messenger, wrote that many Confederates disliked the flag. "Everybody wants a new ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag," Bagby wrote. "The present one is universally hated. It resembles the YankeeTemplate:Nbspflag, and that is enough to make it unutterably detestable." The editor of the Template:Nowr expressed a similarTemplate:Nbspview: "It seems to be generally agreed that the 'Stars and Bars' will never do for us. They resemble too closely the dishonored 'FlagTemplate:Nbspof Template:Nowr' ...Template:Nbspwe imagine that the '[[#Battle flag|BattleTemplate:NbspFlag]]' will become the SouthernTemplate:NbspFlag by popular acclaim." [[William Tappan Thompson|WilliamTemplate:NbspT. Thompson]], the editor of the Template:Nowr [[Savannah Morning News|Template:Nowr]], also objected to the flag,[10] due to its aesthetic similarity to the U.S.Template:Nbspflag, which for some Confederates had negative associations with emancipation and abolitionism. Thompson stated in AprilTemplate:Nbsp1863 that he disliked the adoptedTemplate:Nbspflag "on account of its resemblance to that of the abolition despotism against which we are fighting."[11][12][13][14]

Over the course of the flag's use by the Template:Abbr, additional stars were added to the canton, eventually bringing the total number to thirteen-a reflection of the Confederacy's claims of having admitted the [[Border states (American Civil War)|borderTemplate:Nbspstates]] of Kentucky and Missouri, where slavery was still widely practiced.Template:Efn[15] The first showing of the Template:Nowr flag was outside the [[Ben Johnson House (Bardstown, Kentucky)|BenTemplate:NbspJohnson House]] in Bardstown, Kentucky; the Template:Nowr design was also in use as the ConfederateTemplate:Nbspnavy's battle ensign. The Template:Nowr design uses the same starTemplate:Nbspformation as the Template:Nowr.

Second flag: the "Stainless Banner" (1863–1865)

File:Flag of the Confederate States of America (1863-1865).svg File:Confederate States Naval Ensign after May 26 1863.svg File:Stainless Banner (Mobile, Alabama variant).svg File:Stainless Banner (Battle of Painesville variant).svg File:Stainless Banner (Fort Fisher variant).svg
Second national flag (MayTemplate:Nbsp1, 1863Template:Snd MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1865), 2:1Template:Nbspratio Second national flag (MayTemplate:Nbsp1, 1863Template:Snd MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1865) as commonly manufactured, with a 3:2Template:Nbspratio A 12-star variant of the "Stainless Banner" produced in Mobile, Alabama Variant captured following the [[Battle of Painesville|BattleTemplate:Nbspof Painesville]], 1865 Garrison flag of Template:Nowr, the "Southern Gibraltar"

Many different designs were proposed during the solicitation for a second Confederate nationalTemplate:Nbspflag, nearly all based on the Battle Flag. ByTemplate:Nbsp1863, it had become well-known and popular among those living in the Confederacy. The Confederate Congress specified that the new design be a white field "...with the union (now used as the battleTemplate:Nbspflag) to be a square of Template:Nowr the width of the flag, having the groundTemplate:Nbspred; thereupon a broad saltire of blue, bordered with white, and emblazoned with mullets or Template:Nowr stars, corresponding in number to that of the ConfederateTemplate:NbspStates."[16]

File:Stainless banner grave flag 2.jpg
Stainless Banner grave flag at Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina

The flag is also known as the Stainless Banner, and the matter of the person behind its design remains a point of contention. On AprilTemplate:Nbsp23, 1863, the Savannah MorningTemplate:NbspNews editor [[William Tappan Thompson|WilliamTemplate:NbspTappan Thompson]], with assistance from [[William Ross Postell|WilliamTemplate:NbspRoss Postell]], a Confederate blockade runner, published an editorial championing a design featuring the battleTemplate:Nbspflag on a white background he referred to later as "The [[White people|WhiteTemplate:NbspMan]]'s Flag", a name which never caught on.[10] In explaining the white background of his design, Thompson wrote, "As a people, we are fighting to maintain the Heaven-ordained [[White supremacy|supremacyTemplate:Nbspof the whiteTemplate:Nbspman]] over the inferior or coloredTemplate:Nbsprace; a whiteTemplate:Nbspflag would thus be emblematical of our cause."[9][17] In a letter to Confederate Congressman Template:Nowr, dated AprilTemplate:Nbsp24, 1863, a design similar to the flag which was eventually created was proposed by General Template:Nowr, "whose earlier penchant for practicality had established the precedent for visual distinctiveness on the battlefield, propos[ing] that 'a good design for the nationalTemplate:Nbspflag would be the present Template:Nowr as [[wikt:Union Jack|UnionTemplate:NbspJack]], and the rest all white or all blue'... The final version of the second nationalTemplate:Nbspflag, adopted MayTemplate:Nbsp1, 1863, did just this: it set the [[St. Andrew's Cross (flag)|St.Template:NbspAndrew's Cross]] of stars in the UnionTemplate:NbspJack with the rest of the civilian banner entirely white."[18][19][20][21]

The Confederate Congress debated whether the white field should have a blue stripe and whether it should be bordered in red. William Miles delivered a speech supporting the simple white design that was eventually approved. He argued that the battleTemplate:Nbspflag must be used, but it was necessary to emblazon it for a nationalTemplate:Nbspflag, but as simply as possible, with a plain white field.[22] When Thompson received word the Congress had adopted the design with a blue stripe, he published an editorial on AprilTemplate:Nbsp28 in opposition, writing that "the blue bar running up the center of the white field and joining with the right lower arm of the blue cross, is in bad taste, and utterly destructive of the symmetry and harmony of the design."[11][13] Confederate Congressman [[Peter W. Gray|PeterTemplate:NbspW. Gray]] proposed the amendment that gave the flag its white field.[23] Gray stated that the white field represented "purity, truth, and freedom."[24]

Regardless of who truly originated the Stainless Banner's design, whether by heeding Thompson's editorials or Beauregard's letter, the Confederate Congress officially adopted the Stainless Banner on MayTemplate:Nbsp1, 1863. The flags that were actually produced by the Richmond Clothing Depot used the Template:Nowr adopted for the ConfederateTemplate:Nbspnavy's battle ensign, rather than the official Template:Nowr.[16]

Initial reaction to the second national flag was favorable, but over time it became criticized for being "too white." Military officers also voiced complaints about the flag being too white, for various reasons, such as the danger of being mistaken for a [[white flag|flagTemplate:Nbspof truce]], especially on naval ships where it was too easily soiled.[25] The Template:Nowr Template:Nowr observed that it was essentially a battle flag upon a flagTemplate:Nbspof truce and might send a mixed message. Due to the flag's resemblance to one of truce, some Confederate soldiers cut off the flag's white portion, leaving only the canton.[26]

The first official use of the "Stainless Banner" was to drape the coffin of General [[Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson|ThomasTemplate:NbspJ. "Stonewall" Jackson]] as it [[lay in state|layTemplate:Nbspin state]] in the Template:Nowr, MayTemplate:Nbsp12, 1863.[27][28] As a result of this first usage, the flag received the alternate nickname of the "JacksonTemplate:NbspFlag".

Third flag: the "Blood-Stained Banner" (1865)

File:Flag of the Confederate States of America (1865).svg File:Flag of the Confederate States (1865, variant).svg File:Flag of the Confederate States (1865, variant 2).png File:Confederate National Flag since Mar 4 1865 (Mobile version).svg
Third national flag (after MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1865) Third national flag as commonly manufactured, with a square canton Third national flag variant produced from an example of the second national flag A 12-star variant of the "Template:Nowr Banner" produced in Mobile, Alabama

Rogers lobbied successfully to have this alteration introduced in the Confederate Senate. Rogers defended his redesign as symbolizing the primary origins of the people of the Confederacy, with the saltire of the [[Flag of Scotland|ScottishTemplate:Nbspflag]] and the red bar from the [[flag of France|flagTemplate:Nbspof France]], and having "as little as possible of the YankeeTemplate:Nbspblue"Template:Snd the [[Uniforms of the Union Army|UnionTemplate:NbspArmy wore blue]], the [[Uniforms of the Confederate States Armed Forces|ConfederatesTemplate:Nbspgray]].[25]

The Flag Act of 1865, passed by the Confederate Congress near the very end of the war, describes the flag in the following language:

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Due to the timing, very few of these third national flags were actually manufactured and put into use in the field, with many Confederates never seeing the flag. Moreover, the ones made by the Richmond Clothing Depot used the square canton of the second nationalTemplate:Nbspflag rather than the slightly rectangular one that was specified by the law.[29]

State flags

Alabama and Arkansas are not on this list because they did not have flags during the American Civil War. Although Alabama had a secession flag in 1861, it does not count as a state flag due to it not being flown again, after being placed in the state archives. Template:Gallery items

Indian Territory

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Battle flag

File:Battle flag of the Confederate States of America (1-1).svg
Battle flag of the ConfederateTemplate:NbspStates Template:Nowr
File:Our Heroes and Our Flags 1896.jpg
Three versions of the flag of the ConfederateTemplate:NbspStates ofTemplate:NbspAmerica and the Confederate BattleTemplate:NbspFlag are shown on this printed poster fromTemplate:Nbsp1896. The "Stars and Bars" can be seen in the upperTemplate:Nbspleft. Standing at the center are Stonewall Jackson, Template:Nowr, and Template:Nowr, surrounded by bust portraits of Jefferson Davis, Alexander Stephens, and various Confederate army officers, such as James Longstreet and Template:Nowr.
File:Sponsor souvenir album - history and reunion (1895) (1895) (14576050240).jpg
Drawing in the United Confederate Veterans 1895 Sponsor souvenir album
File:Cherokee Confederates Reunion.gif
Cherokee Confederates reunion in NewTemplate:NbspOrleans, 1903

At the First Battle of Manassas, near Manassas, Virginia, the similarity between the "Stars and Bars" and the "Stars and Stripes" caused confusion and military problems. Regiments carried flags to help commanders observe and assess battles in the warfare of the era. At a distance, the two nationalTemplate:Nbspflags were hard to tell apart.[30] Also, Confederate regiments carried many other flags, which added to the possibility of confusion.

After the battle, General P. G. T. Beauregard wrote that he was "resolved then to have [ourTemplate:Nbspflag] changed if possible, or to adopt for my command a 'BattleTemplate:Nbspflag', which would be Entirely different from any State or FederalTemplate:Nbspflag".[7] He turned to his aide, who happened to be [[William Porcher Miles|WilliamTemplate:NbspPorcher Miles]], the former chairman of the ConfederateTemplate:NbspCongress's CommitteeTemplate:Nbspon the Flag and Seal. Miles described his rejected nationalTemplate:Nbspflag design to Beauregard. Miles also told the CommitteeTemplate:Nbspon the Flag and Seal about the general's complaints and request that the nationalTemplate:Nbspflag be changed. The committee rejected the idea by a Template:Nowr-one vote, after which Beauregard proposed the idea of having twoTemplate:Nbspflags. He described the idea in a letter to his commanding general [[Joseph E. Johnston|JosephTemplate:NbspE. Johnston]]:

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The flag that Miles had favored when he was chairman of the "CommitteeTemplate:Nbspon the Flag and Seal" eventually became the battleTemplate:Nbspflag and, ultimately, the Confederacy's most popular flag.

According to Museum of the Confederacy Director JohnTemplate:NbspCoski, Miles' design was inspired by one of the many "secessionistTemplate:Nbspflags" flown at the [[South Carolina secession convention|SouthTemplate:NbspCarolina secession convention]] in Charleston of DecemberTemplate:Nbsp1860. That flag was a blue [[St. George's Cross|Template:Nowr Cross]] (an upright or LatinTemplate:Nbspcross) on a redTemplate:Nbspfield, with 15Template:Nbspwhite stars on the cross, representing the slave-holding states,[31][32] and, on the redTemplate:Nbspfield, palmetto and crescent symbols. Miles received various feedback on this design, including a critique from Charles Moise, a Template:Nowr "Southerner of Jewish persuasion." Moise liked the design but asked that "...Template:Nbspthe symbol of a particular religion not be made the symbol of the nation." Taking this into account, Miles changed his flag, removing the palmetto and crescent, and substituting a heraldic saltireTemplate:Nbsp('X') for the upright cross. The number of stars was changed several times as well. He described these changes and his reasons for making them in earlyTemplate:Nbsp1861. The diagonal cross was preferable, he wrote, because "it avoided the religious objection about the cross (from the Jews and many Protestant sects), because it did not stand out so conspicuously as if the cross had been placed upright thus." He also argued that the diagonal cross was "more HeraldricTemplate:Sic than Ecclesiastical, it being the 'saltire' of Heraldry, and significant of strength and progress."[33]

According to Coski, the Saint Andrew's Cross (also used on the [[flag of Scotland|flagTemplate:Nbspof Scotland]] as a white saltire on a blueTemplate:Nbspfield) had no special place in Southern iconography at the time. If Miles had not been eager to conciliate the SouthernTemplate:NbspJews, his flag would have used the traditional upright "[[Saint George's Cross|SaintTemplate:NbspGeorge's Cross]]" (as used on the [[flag of England|flagTemplate:Nbspof England]], a redTemplate:Nbspcross on a white field). JamesTemplate:NbspB. Walton submitted a battleTemplate:Nbspflag design essentially identical to Miles' except with an upright SaintTemplate:NbspGeorge's Cross, but Beauregard chose the diagonal cross design.[34]

Miles' flag and all the flag designs up to that point were rectangular ("oblong") in shape. General Johnston suggested making it square to conserve material. Johnston also specified the various sizes to be used by different types of military units. Generals Beauregard and Johnston and Quartermaster‐General Cabell approved the Template:Nowr Confederate BattleTemplate:NbspFlag's design at the RatcliffeTemplate:Nbsphome, which served briefly as Beauregard's headquarters, near [[Fairfax, Virginia|Fairfax CourtTemplate:NbspHouse]] in SeptemberTemplate:Nbsp1861. The 12thTemplate:Nbspstar represented Missouri. President JeffersonTemplate:NbspDavis arrived by train at [[Fairfax Station, Virginia|FairfaxTemplate:NbspStation]] soon after and was shown the design for the new battleTemplate:Nbspflag at the RatcliffeTemplate:NbspHouse. Template:Nowr and her sister, along with her cousin, [[Constance Cary Harrison|ConstanceTemplate:NbspCary Harrison]], made prototypes. One such Template:Nowr flag resides in the collection of Richmond's [[American Civil War Museum|MuseumTemplate:Nbspof theTemplate:NbspConfederacy]] and the other is in the [[Confederate Memorial Hall Museum|Confederate MemorialTemplate:NbspHall Museum]] in Template:Nowr.

On November 28, 1861, Confederate soldiers in General Template:Nowr's newly reorganized [[Army of Northern Virginia|ArmyTemplate:Nbspof NorthernTemplate:NbspVirginia]] received the new battleTemplate:Nbspflags in ceremonies at Centreville and Manassas, Virginia, and carried them throughout the CivilTemplate:NbspWar. Beauregard gave a speech encouraging the soldiers to treat the new flag with honor and that it must never be surrendered. Many soldiers wrote home about the ceremony and the impression the flag had upon them, the "fighting colors" boosting morale after the confusion at [[Battle of First Manassas|FirstTemplate:NbspManassas]]. From then on, the battleTemplate:Nbspflag grew in its identification with the Confederacy and theTemplate:NbspSouth in general.[35] The flag's stars represented the number of states in the Confederacy. The distance between the stars decreased as the number of states increased, reaching thirteen when the secessionist factions of Kentucky and Missouri joined in lateTemplate:Nbsp1861.[36]

The Army of Northern Virginia battle flag assumed a prominent place Template:Nowr when it was adopted as the copyrighted emblem of the United Confederate Veterans. Its continued use by the SouthernTemplate:NbspArmy's Template:Nowr veteran's groups, the United Confederate VeteransTemplate:Nbsp(U.C.V.) and the later [[Sons of Confederate Veterans|SonsTemplate:Nbspof Confederate Veterans]]Template:Nbsp(S.C.V.), and elements of the design by related similar female descendants organizations of the [[United Daughters of the Confederacy|Template:Nowr Template:Nowr]]Template:Nbsp(U.D.C.), led to the assumption that it was, as it has been termed, "the soldier's flag" or "the Confederate battleTemplate:Nbspflag."

The square "battle flag" is also properly known as "the flag of the [[Army of Northern Virginia|ArmyTemplate:Nbspof NorthernTemplate:NbspVirginia]]". It was sometimes called "Beauregard'sTemplate:Nbspflag" or "the Virginia battleTemplate:Nbspflag". A [[Virginia Department of Historic Resources|Template:Nowr Template:Nowr]] marker declaring Fairfax, Virginia, as the birthplace of the Confederate battleTemplate:Nbspflag was dedicated on AprilTemplate:Nbsp12, 2008, near the intersection of Main and OakTemplate:NbspStreets, in Fairfax, Virginia.[37][38][39]

Template:Anchor To boost the morale of the Army of Tennessee, [[Joseph E. Johnston|GeneralTemplate:NbspJohnston]] introduced a new battleTemplate:Nbspflag for the entire army. This flag bore a basic design similar to the one he had contributed to creating in Virginia inTemplate:Nbsp1861 and had been commissioned in Mobile while he was in command in Mississippi inTemplate:Nbsp1863. These flags for infantry and cavalry were to measure Template:Convert. The white edgingTemplate:Nbspcross was about Template:CvtTemplate:Nbspwide and was often filled with battle honors. The stars were from Template:Cvt, with a Template:Convert cross. Flags for artillery were Template:Cvt overall.[40]

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The fledgling Confederate States Navy (Template:Abbr) adopted and used several types of flags, banners and pennants aboard all CSNTemplate:Nbspships: jacks, battleTemplate:Nbspensigns and smallTemplate:Nbspboat ensigns, as well as commissioning pennants, designatingTemplate:Nbspflags and [[Signal flag|signalTemplate:Nbspflag]]s.Template:Citation needed

The first Confederate Navy jacks, in use from 1861 toTemplate:Nbsp1863, consisted of a circle of seven to fifteen Template:Nowr white stars against a field of "mediumTemplate:Nbspblue." It was flown forward aboard all Confederate warships while they were anchored in port. One Template:Nowr jack still exists today (found aboard the captured ironclad [[USS Atlanta (1861)|CSSTemplate:NbspAtlanta]]) that is actually darkTemplate:Nbspblue.[41] The first ConfederateTemplate:NbspNavy jack closely resembles the [[Navy jack of the United States|navyTemplate:Nbspjack of the UnitedTemplate:NbspStates]].

The second Confederate Navy Jack was a rectangular cousin of the ConfederateTemplate:NbspArmy's battleTemplate:Nbspflag and was in use fromTemplate:Nbsp1863 untilTemplate:Nbsp1865. It existed in a variety of dimensions and sizes, despite the Template:Abbr's detailed naval regulations. The blueTemplate:Nbspcolor of the diagonal saltire's "Template:Nowr" was much lighter than the battleTemplate:Nbspflag's darkTemplate:Nbspblue.[41]

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Other navy flags

The first national flag, also known as the "Stars and Bars" Template:See above, served fromTemplate:Nbsp1861 toTemplate:Nbsp1863 as the ConfederateTemplate:NbspNavy's first [[naval ensign|battleTemplate:Nbspensign]]. It was generally made with a 2:3Template:Nbspaspect ratio, but a few veryTemplate:Nbspwide Template:Nowr ensigns survive today in museums and private collections. As the Confederacy grew, so did the number of white stars on the ensign's darkTemplate:Nbspblue canton: seven-, nine-, eleven-, and Template:Nowr groupings were typical. Even a few 14- and Template:Nowr ensigns were made to include states expected to secede but that never completely joined the Confederacy.Template:Citation needed

The second national flag was later adapted as a naval ensign, using a shorter 2:3Template:Nbspaspect ratio than the 1:2Template:Nbspratio adopted by the [[Congress of the Confederate States of America|ConfederateTemplate:NbspCongress]] for the nationalTemplate:Nbspflag. This particular battleTemplate:Nbspensign was the only example taken around the world, finally becoming the last ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag lowered in the CivilTemplate:NbspWar; this happened aboard the commerce raider [[CSS Shenandoah|CSSTemplate:NbspShenandoah]] in Liverpool, England on NovemberTemplate:Nbsp7, 1865.

National flag proposals

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Hundreds of proposed national flag designs were submitted to the [[Congress of the Confederate States of America|ConfederateTemplate:NbspCongress]] during competitions to find a first Template:Nowr and second (AprilTemplate:Nbsp1862; AprilTemplate:Nbsp1863) nationalTemplate:Nbspflag.

First national flag proposals

When the Confederate States of America was founded during the Montgomery Convention that took place on FebruaryTemplate:Nbsp4, 1861, a nationalTemplate:Nbspflag was not selected by the convention, as no proposals had been submitted. President JeffersonTemplate:NbspDavis's inauguration took place under the Template:Nowr of Alabama, and the celebratory parade was led by a unit carrying the Template:Nowr of Georgia.

Realizing that they quickly needed a national banner to represent their sovereignty, the [[Provisional Congress of the Confederate States|Template:Nowr the Template:Nowr]] set up the CommitteeTemplate:Nbspon Flag and Seal. The chairman was [[William Porcher Miles|WilliamTemplate:NbspPorcher Miles]], who was also the SouthTemplate:NbspCarolina representative in the Confederate HouseTemplate:Nbspof Representatives.

The committee began a competition to find a new national flag, with an unwritten adoption deadline of MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1861, the date of [[First inauguration of Abraham Lincoln|PresidentTemplate:NbspLincoln's inauguration]]. This would serve to show the world that theTemplate:NbspSouth was truly sovereign. Hundreds of examples were submitted from across the ConfederateTemplate:NbspStates and from states that were not yet part of theTemplate:NbspConfederacy (e.g.Template:NbspKentucky), and even from UnionTemplate:Nbspstates (such as NewTemplate:NbspYork). Many of the proposed designs paid homage to the "Stars and Stripes", the result of a sense of nostalgia in earlyTemplate:Nbsp1861 that many of the new Confederate citizens felt toward theTemplate:NbspUnion. Some of the homages were outright mimicry, while others were less obviously inspired by the Stars and Stripes yet were still intended to pay homage to that flag.

Those inspired by the Stars and Stripes were discounted almost immediately by the committee because they mirrored the Union'sTemplate:Nbspflag too closely. While others were wildly different, many of which were very complex and extravagant, they were largely discounted because of the complexity and expense that would be involved in their production.

The winner of the competition was Nicola Marschall's "Stars and Bars" flag. This flag was selected by theTemplate:NbspCongress on MarchTemplate:Nbsp4, 1861, the day of the deadline. The firstTemplate:Nbspflag was produced in a rush, as the date had already been selected for an official Template:Nowr ceremony; Template:Nowr credited the speedy completion of the first "Stars and Bars"Template:Nbspflag to "fair and nimble fingers". This flag, made of Template:Nowr, was raised by Letitia Tyler over the Alabama State Capitol. TheTemplate:NbspCongress inspected two other finalist designs on MarchTemplate:Nbsp4. One was a "Blue ring or circle on a field of red", while the other consisted of alternating red and blue stripes with a blueTemplate:Nbspcanton containing stars. These two designs were lost, and their existence is known only from an 1872Template:Nbspletter sent by Miles to Template:Nowr.

Miles was not pleased with any of the proposals. He did not share in the UnionTemplate:Nbspnostalgia, believing that the South'sTemplate:Nbspflag should be completely different from that of the North. He proposed a flag design featuring a blueTemplate:Nbspsaltire on white fimbriation with a field of red. He had originally planned to employ a blue [[St. George's Cross|St.Template:NbspGeorge's Cross]] similar to that of the [[South Carolina Sovereignty Flag|SouthTemplate:NbspCarolina SovereigntyTemplate:NbspFlag]], but was dissuaded from doing so. Within the blueTemplate:Nbspsaltire were seven white stars representing the current seven states of the Confederacy, two on each of the leftTemplate:Nbsparms, one on each of the rightTemplate:Nbsparms and one in the middle. However, Miles'sTemplate:Nbspflag was not Template:Nowr by the rest of theTemplate:NbspCongress. OneTemplate:Nbspcongressman even mocked it as looking "like a pair of suspenders". Miles'sTemplate:Nbspflag lost to the Stars and Bars.

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Flag variants

In addition to the Confederacy's national flags, a wide variety of flags and banners were flown by Southerners during the CivilTemplate:NbspWar. Most famously, the Template:Nowr was used as an unofficialTemplate:Nbspflag during the earlyTemplate:Nbspmonths ofTemplate:Nbsp1861. It was flying above the Confederate batteries that first opened fire on Template:Nowr in Charleston harbor, beginning the [[American Civil War|CivilTemplate:NbspWar]]. The "Van Dorn flag" was carried by several Confederate regiments from Arkansas and Missouri fighting in the [[Trans-Mississippi Theater|Template:Nowr]] and [[Western Theater of the American Civil War|WesternTemplate:Nbsptheaters]] ofTemplate:Nbspwar and were, or had been, a part of the Army of the West in 1862. Many military units also carried their own regimentalTemplate:Nbspflags into battle. Though there are only three officialTemplate:Nbspflags with the correct number of stars.[42] Template:Clear

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Controversy

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File:Battle flag of the Confederate States of America (3-5).svg
The elongated version of the battleTemplate:Nbspflag is the most common modern variation that is often used and mistaken to be the official ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag.

Though never having historically represented the Confederate States ofTemplate:NbspAmerica as a country, nor having been officially recognized as one of its nationalTemplate:Nbspflags, the BattleTemplate:NbspFlag of the ArmyTemplate:Nbspof Tennessee and its variants are now flagTemplate:Nbsptypes commonly referred to as the "ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag". It is also known as the "rebelTemplate:Nbspflag", "DixieTemplate:Nbspflag" and "Template:Nowr". It is sometimes incorrectly called the "Stars and Bars", the name of the first national ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag.[43]

The "rebel flag" is considered by some to be a divisive and polarizing symbol in the UnitedTemplate:NbspStates,[44][45] while its supporters maintain that it is a symbol of regional cultural pride.[46][47]

A YouGov poll in 2020 of more than 34,000 Americans reported that 41% viewed the flag as representing racism, and 34% viewed it as symbolizing Southern heritage.[48] A JulyTemplate:Nbsp2021 Politico–Morning ConsultTemplate:Nbsppoll of 1,996 registered voters reported that 47% viewed it as a symbol of Southern pride while 36% viewed it as a symbol of racism.[49][50] In a 2017Template:Nbspscientific article about the psychology of the ConfederateTemplate:Nbspflag's supporters, the authors found the primary reasons for the flag's support to be Southern regional patriotism, political conservatism, or White American racial biases against African-Americans. However, the authors indicated that the majority of the flag's supporters did not tend towards racial biases as the reason for their support.[51] Template:Clear

Arkansas

Alabama

Florida

Georgia

Louisiana

Mississippi

Tennessee

Texas

Virginia

See also

Notes

Template:Notelist

References

Template:Reflist

Sources

Template:Refbegin

Template:Refend

"Southern Confederacy" (Atlanta, Georgia), 5 Feb 1865, pg 2. Congressional, Richmond, 4 Feb: A bill to establish the flag of the Confederate States was adopted without opposition, and the flag was displayed in the Capitol today. The only change was a substitution of a red bar for one-half of the white field of the former flag, composing the flag's outer end.

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Template:US state flags Template:Lists of flags Template:Six flags of Texas Template:Portal bar Template:Authority control

  1. ↑ Template:Cite web
  2. ↑ Template:Cite web
  3. ↑ Template:Cite web
  4. ↑ Template:Cite web
  5. ↑ Template:Cite journal
  6. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Template:Harvnb
  8. ↑ Template:Cite web
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named StainlessBannerBirth
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named SMNMay4
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named GHPreble1872
  12. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named SMNApril23
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named SMNApril28
  14. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named StainlessBannerNeo
  15. ↑ Template:Cite news
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named fotc
  17. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named FAllenp67
  18. ↑ Bonner, Robert E., "Flag Culture and the Consolidation of Confederate Nationalism." Journal of Southern History, Vol. 68, No. 2 (May 2002), 318–319.
  19. ↑ Template:Harvnb. "Some congressmen and newspaper editors favored making the Army of Northern Virginia battle flag (in a rectangular shape) itself the new nationalTemplate:Nbspflag. But Beauregard and others felt the nation needed its own distinctive symbol, and so recommended that the Southern Cross be emblazoned in the corner of a white field."
  20. ↑ Template:Cite web
  21. ↑ Template:Cite book
  22. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  23. ↑ Journal of the Confederate Congress, Volume 6, p.477
  24. ↑ Richmond Whig, May 5, 1863
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Template:Harvnb
  26. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  27. ↑ John D. Wright, The Language of the Civil War, p.284
  28. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  29. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named fotc3
  30. ↑ Template:Cite web
  31. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  32. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  33. ↑ Template:Harvnb: "describes the 15 stars and the debate on religious symbolism."
  34. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  35. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  36. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  37. ↑ Template:Cite web
  38. ↑ Template:Cite report
  39. ↑ Template:Cite web
  40. ↑ [1]
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Template:Cite web
  42. ↑ North & South – The Official Magazine of the Civil War Society, Volume 11, Number 2, Page 30, Retrieved April 16, 2010, "The Stars and Bars" Template:Webarchive
  43. ↑ Template:Harvnb
  44. ↑ Template:Cite web
  45. ↑ Template:Cite web
  46. ↑ Template:Cite book
  47. ↑ Template:Cite news
  48. ↑ Template:Cite web
  49. ↑ Template:Cite web
  50. ↑ Template:Cite web
  51. ↑ Template:Cite journal
  52. ↑ Template:Cite web
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