The Flag Of United State:
Appearance
The US flag is also called Stars and Stripes and consists of 7 horizontal stripes that are colored red. These are interrupted by 6 white bands. In the canton, the top corner of the flag, there is a blue rectangle with 50 small white stars that have 5 points in 9 horizontal rows.
Canton design
When it became known that Hawaii and Alaska would become states, Dwight D. Eisenhower, the American president, spontaneously received at least 1,500 concepts for a new division of the canton. There are at least 3 of these designs that were identical to the flag as it is now. The design that it eventually became comes from the US Army Bureau of Heraldry.
Decoration
Traditionally, the flag may be decorated with a border that has a golden color. This is mainly done in ceremonies, with the aim of showing the beauty of the flag. The flag was first used in 1835 and from 1895 its use was first flown by the United States military.
Meaning
The 50 stars represent the fifty states belonging to the US. The red and white stripes represent the 13 original colonies, which separated from them in 1776.
The American flag represents freedom and rights afforded to them by the United States Constitution. For many people, the red and white represents the blood of those who gave their lives for freedom and for the ideal of that freedom. Eternal allegiance to the flag can be sworn by the Pledge of Allegiance. The text reads as follows: I pledge allegiance to the Flag, of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one Nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.
The United States Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776. The official flag at the time was the Grand Union Flag, which was the first official American flag. Here were 13 white and red stripes, with the then flag of Great Britain in the canton.
The stripes stood for the unity of the thirteen colonies. The British flag in the canton indicated a desire to maintain close ties with the United Kingdom. In 1775, this flag was adopted by the Second Continental Congress and was hoisted for the first time. This then became the national flag until the early stages of the American Revolutionary War.
Stars and Stripes
The newest flag was adopted on June 14, 1777. This has been a national holiday ever since and is called Flag Day. The flag started with 13 stripes and stars, because the US was then made up of 13 states. In 1795, 2 states were added and the number of stars and stripes was changed to 15. But as more and more states joined over the years, the number of stars and stripes was not increased, as this was probably considered too much hassle. In 1818 it was therefore decided to show 13 stripes on the flag, because there were originally 13 colonies. The number of stars would be made equal to the number of states. Every time the flag expanded with more stars, it happened on Independence Day, which falls on July 4.
The last time this change took place was in 1960, when Hawaii became a US state. Since then, the flag has 50 stars. America’s national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, is based on the 15-stripe flag.
