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The flag of Sweden dates back to the 17th century. It is believed to be inspired by the Coat of arms of Sweden, which feature three yellow crowns on a blue background, and modelled on the Danish flag, the Dannebrog. King John III took the form of the current Swedish flag into use in 1569. Prior to this, a similar flag appeared in the Coat of Arms of John's duchy, which is today southwest Finland. Two Swedish flags are also depicted on the coat of arms of the region of Finland Proper.
According to legend the Swedish 12th century king Eric the Holy saw a yellow cross in the sky as he landed in Finland during a crusade around 1154. Seeing this as a sign from God he supposedly adopted the yellow cross against a blue background as his banner. This legend is however contradicted by the fact that there are no depictions or descriptions of the blue and yellow banner until mid 16th century.
- According to the Swedish law 1982:269, the dimensions of the flag are 10/16 (height/width), the inner blue fields having 4/5 and the outer blue fields 4/9 (height/width). The yellow cross has a thickness equivalent to half the height of an individual blue field.
- According to Swedish law 1983:826, the colours used are established through the NCS to be: Yellow - NCS 0580-Y10R, blue - NCS 4055-R95B.
- The triple-tailed flag is reserved for the Armed Forces and the Royal Family. The Royal Family may also charge its flags either with the Lesser or the Greater Coat of Arms on a white square field centred on the cross.
When used from a standalone flagpole, the size of the flag is recommended to have a width equalling a fourth of the height of the pole. When used from a flagpole extending from a building the flag is recommended to have a width equalling a third of the height (length) of the pole.
Trivia
The flag of Wilmington, Delaware, in the United States is modelled after the Swedish flag in remembrance of the short-lived colony of New Sweden.
See also
- Nordic Cross Flag
- Flag days in Sweden
- Holidays in Sweden
- National holiday of Sweden
- National anthem of Sweden
- Flag of Denmark
- Flag of Norway
- Coat of arms of Sweden
External links
- Sweden — Flags of the World
- Military flags (Sweden) — Flags of the World
- Royal flag of Sweden — Flags of the World
National flags | Swedish culture | Nordic Cross Flags
Национално знаме на Швеция | Flagge Schwedens | Bandera de Suecia | Rootsi lipp | Ruotsin lippu | Drapeau de la Suède | דגל שבדיה | Svédország zászlaja | Bandiera svedese | スウェーデンの国旗 | Vlag van Zweden | Sveriges flagg | Flaga Szwecji | Bandeira da Suécia | Флаг Швеции | Sveriges flagga | 瑞典国旗
"Flag of Sweden"