Flag of the Dominican Republic

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Dominican Republic
Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg
Use State and war flag, state and naval ensign FIAV 011011.svg FIAV normal.svg
Proportion2:3
Adopted6 November 1863;161 years ago (1863-11-06)
DesignA white Saint George's Cross with the national coat of arms in the centre that divides the flag into four rectangles, blue and red at the top and red and blue at the bottom
Designed by Juan Pablo Duarte
Civil Ensign of the Dominican Republic.svg
Use Civil flag and ensign FIAV 100100.svg FIAV normal.svg
DesignQuarterly, the first and fourth quarters blue and the second and third quarters red, with a white Saint George's Cross overall

The national flag of the Dominican Republic is one of the official national symbols of the nation, along with the coat of arms and the national anthem. [1] The blue on the flag stands for liberty, the white for salvation, and the red for the blood of heroes. [2] The civil flag follows the same design, but without the charge in the center, which is the coat of arms of the Dominican Republic. [3] [4] The flag was designed by Juan Pablo Duarte. [5]

Contents

Description

As described by Article 21 of the Dominican Constitution, the flag features a centered white Saint George's Cross that extends to the edges and divides the flag into four rectangles; the top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are red (hoist side) and blue. The national coat of arms, featuring a shield with the flag, design and supported by a bay laurel branch (left) and a palm frond (right), is at the center of the cross. [2] Above the shield, a blue ribbon displays the national motto Dios, Patria, Libertad (English: God, Homeland, Liberty). Below the shield, the words República Dominicana appear on a red ribbon (this red ribbon is depicted in more recent versions as having its tips pointing upward). In the center of the shield, flanked by three spears (two of them holding Dominican banners) on each side, is a Bible with a small Latin cross above it and said to be opened to the Gospel of John, chapter 8, verse 32, which reads Y la verdad os hará libres (And the truth shall make you free). [2] It is one of 28 national flags to contain overtly Christian symbols. [6]

Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg
Colours scheme		BlueRedWhite
RGB 0,45,98206,17,38255,255,255
Hexadecimal #002D62#CE1126#FFFFFF
CMYK 100 - 54 - 0 - 620 - 92 - 82 - 190 - 0 - 0 - 0

History

Coat of arms of the Dominican Republic Coat of arms of the Dominican Republic.svg
Coat of arms of the Dominican Republic

Spanish colonists had been the first Europeans to claim the island of Hispaniola, but the French had subsequently colonised the western part of it, Saint-Domingue, which later became Haiti, whose flag contained horizontal stripes of red and blue. Haiti subsequently colonised Santo Domingo, the Spanish-speaking part of Hispaniola, and the Haitian colours became the basis of the colours of revolutionary flags in these Hispanophone areas, including the flag of the revolutionary organisation La Trinitaria.

The flag was made to reflect the Christian ideals of Juan Pablo Duarte, the father of the nation, with two white stripes that join together to form a cross, and in the centre a Bible, a cross, and the motto “Dios, patria, libertad” (“God, fatherland, liberty”). The first flags were made by María Trinidad Sánchez, María de Jesús Pina, Isabel Sosa and Concepción Bona. Juan Pablo Duarte designed it and it was first hoisted on February 28, 1844, the day after the beginning of the Dominican Revolution. [7] The ultramarine blue was to represent God's protection over the nation. The vermillion red color represents the blood shed by the patriots in our nation's struggle for freedom. And the white cross in the center symbolizes the peace and unity of the Dominicans. [8]

Use

The use of the Dominican flag is essentially regulated by Law 210-19, which regulates the use of the national symbols of the Dominican Republic. This law stipulates the following:

The white space's width is equal to half the width of a blue or red area. Dimensionbandera.svg
The white space's width is equal to half the width of a blue or red area.
Folding the flag Doblez Bandera Dominicana.svg
Folding the flag
Dominican flag on a coffin. When the Dominican flag is placed on a coffin, the blue quarter attached to the edge of the halyard should be placed over the deceased's left arm. Bandera Dominicana en Ataud.svg
Dominican flag on a coffin. When the Dominican flag is placed on a coffin, the blue quarter attached to the edge of the halyard should be placed over the deceased's left arm.
When the flag is flown next to another, it must always be on the right (left of the observer looking at it from the front).Examples: (1) On a speaker's podium. (2) On a public building. Protocolo bandera dominicana.svg
When the flag is flown next to another, it must always be on the right (left of the observer looking at it from the front).Examples: (1) On a speaker's podium. (2) On a public building.
When the flag is displayed horizontally on a wall, balcony, etc., it shall be hung so that the upper blue quarter, (upper hoist) attached to the right edge of the halyard, is to the observer's left. When the flag is displayed vertically, the upper blue quarter, attached to the thick edge of the halyard, shall be to the observer's left. Pocision Correcta Horizontal y Vertical.svg
When the flag is displayed horizontally on a wall, balcony, etc., it shall be hung so that the upper blue quarter, (upper hoist) attached to the right edge of the halyard, is to the observer's left. When the flag is displayed vertically, the upper blue quarter, attached to the thick edge of the halyard, shall be to the observer's left.
Hoisting and Lowering of the Flag on Occasion of Mourning :(1) When the flag is to be flown at half-mast, it shall first be raised to the top and then lowered to the half-mast position. (2) When it is to be lowered, it shall be hoisted to the top and then lowered. Izar Arriar bandera Luto.svg
Hoisting and Lowering of the Flag on Occasion of Mourning :(1) When the flag is to be flown at half-mast, it shall first be raised to the top and then lowered to the half-mast position. (2) When it is to be lowered, it shall be hoisted to the top and then lowered.

Specific occasions

On days officially declared as national mourning, the flag is first raised to the top of the flagpole and then lowered to half-mast. The coffins of members of the Armed Forces and high-ranking public officials are covered with the National Flag. The celebration of Flag Day was first established in Official Gazette No. 5231 of May 1938, during the rule of Rafael Trujillo. It declared October 24th as Flag Day, Generalissimo Trujillo's birthday. Once the Trujillo Era ended, Law 6085 of October 22, 1962 (Official Gazette 8707 of November 3, 1962) established February 27, the Dominican Independence Day, as the national flag day.

In music and poetry

The poet Gastón Fernando Deligne composed a poem in honor of the Dominican flag called "Arriba el Pabellón" (Up with the Flag). Note that stanzas 7, 8, and 9 discuss the meaning of the flag's colors:

Spanish
El rojo de su gloriosa
decisión dice al oído,
Soy - dice - el laurel teñido
con su sangre generosa.

Es el azul de su anhelo
progresitas clara enseña
color con que el alma sueña
cuando sueña con el cielo.

El blanco póstumo amor
a sus entrañas se aferra
dar por corona a la guerra

English
The red of his glorious
decision whispers in your ear,
I am, it says, the laurel dyed
with his generous blood.

It is the blue of your longing
progressive, a clear banner of
colour with which the soul dreams
when it dreams of the sky.

The white posthumous love
clings to its depths,
giving as a crown to war
the olive branch to the redeemer.

There is also a national anthem to the flag for schools.

Chronology

BanderaPeriodoUsoDescripción
Flag of New Spain.svg 1492–1795Flag of the Captaincy General of Santo Domingo The Cross of Burgundy was used by Spanish military units in the 15th to 18th centuries and is often used to represent the Spanish Empire.
Flag of Spain (1785-1873 and 1875-1931).svg 1809-1821Flag of the Captaincy General of Santo DomingoThe French occupation of Santo Domingo threatened to distort the Dominicans' Spanish identity and customs. The Spanish rebelled against the French at the Battle of Palo Hincado, expelling them. Thus, Santo Domingo returned to Spain until 1821.
Flag of Spanish Haiti.svg 1821-1822Flag of the Republic of Spanish Haiti During the period of "España Boba", (meek Spain), Spain neglected Santo Domingo to attend to the territories of continental America that were seeking independence. Dissatisfied, the Creoles, led by José Núñez de Cáceres, separated from Spain and created the Republic of Spanish Haiti, later annexing it to Gran Colombia . This state existed until 1822. This period is known as the "Independencia efímera" (ephemeral independence).
Flag of Haiti (1820-1849, 1859-1964).svg 1822-1844 Flag of Haiti It was a historical period that lasted 22 years, in which Haiti governed the eastern part of the island, imposing itself on the new State of Spanish Haiti , which was divided into two departments: located in the northern portion, the Cibao and in the southern portion, the Ozama.
Flag of the Dominican Republic (up to 1844).svg 1844-1849Flag of La Trinitaria
Flag of the Dominican First Republic.svg 1849-1861Flag of the Dominican Republic
Flag of Spain (1785-1873 and 1875-1931).svg 1861-1865Flag of the Captaincy General of Santo DomingoIn 1861, after 17 years of independence, General Pedro Santana asked Queen Isabella II of Spain to regain control of the Dominican Republic, and Spain made the territory a province, thus implementing the union.
Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg 1865-1916Flag of the Dominican Republic
US flag 48 stars.svg 1916-1924Bandera de Estados Unidos (1912-1948)Following the Dominican Restoration War, instigated by the United States ' interest in controlling Spanish America , the Dominican Republic experienced several years of internal civil wars, political instability, and irresponsible borrowing, first with European banks and then with American banks. Each Dominican government that came to power borrowed money and was overthrown, continuing this cycle over and over again. The Americans, fearing that the debt would not be paid, militarily invaded the Dominican Republic in 1916 and, once occupied, implemented several economic reforms.
Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg 1924-presenteBandera de la República Dominicana

Presidential Standard

Other flags

Historical national flags

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Símbolos Patrios". Embajada de la República Dominicana en los Estados Unidos Mexicanos. Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  2. 1 2 3 "CIA World Factbook - Dominican Republic" . Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  3. ↑ "Constitución Dominicana 2024". Cámara de Diputados de la República Dominicana (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  4. ↑ "Justia República Dominicana :: Constitución De La República Dominicana > TÍTULO I > CAPÍTULO VII :: Ley de República Dominicana". republica-dominicana.justia.com. Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  5. ↑ "Dominican Flag". Worldatlas. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  6. ↑ Green, Michael (March 20, 2015). "Flags, for God's Sake". brandingthenations.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2020. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Flag of the Dominican Republic | History, Meaning & Colors | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  8. ↑ "Símbolos patrios | Presidencia de la República Dominicana". www.presidencia.gob.do (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-08-27.
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