View source for Flag of France

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox flag
| Name = French Republic
| Nickname = {{lang|fr|Tricolore}}
| Image = Flag of France.svg
| Use = 111000
| Symbol = {{FIAV|111000}} {{FIAV|normal}} {{FIAV|Mirror}}
| Proportion = 2:3 (habitual)
| Adoption = {{Start date and age|1794|02|15|df=y}}<br>(darker variant on 13 July 2020){{efn|name=first|Use has not been continuous: readopted in 1830 after a 15 year gap, last re-adopted on 5 March 1848 after a few days.}}
| Design = A vertical [[tricolour (flag)|tricolour]] of blue, white, and red
| Designer = [[Jacques-Louis David]]
| Image2 = File:Flag of France (1790–1794).svg
| Use2 = Reverse flag
| Symbol2 = {{FIAV|Reverse}} {{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|Mirror}}
| Proportion2 = 2:3
| Adoption2 = 1790
| Design2 = A vertical [[tricolour (flag)|tricolour]] of red, white, and blue
| Image3 = File:Flag of France (2024–present).svg
| Use3 = 111000
| Symbol3 = {{FIAV|111000}} {{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|Mirror}}
| Proportion3 = 2:3 (habitual)
| Adoption3 = 1976<ref name=lightyear/>
| Design3 = An interchangeable variant of the national flag with lighter shades<br>(lighter variant on 28 February 2020)
}}

The [[national flag]] of [[France]] ({{langx|fr|Drapeau national de la France}}) is a [[Tricolour (flag)|tricolour]] featuring three vertical bands coloured [[blue]] ([[Flag terminology#Description of standard flag parts and terms|hoist side]]), [[white]], and [[red]]. The design was adopted during the [[French Revolution]] and has remained the national flag since then, with only minor variations in shade and proportion. While not the first tricolour, it became one of the most influential flags in history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ryan |first=Karina |date=2024-11-18 |title=29 Countries With a Red-White-Blue Flag Color Combinations |url=https://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/national-traditions/red-white-blue-flag.htm |access-date=2025-10-08 |website=HowStuffWorks |language=en-us}}</ref> The tricolour scheme was later adopted by many other nations in [[Europe]] and elsewhere, and, according to the ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'', has historically stood "in symbolic opposition to the [[Autocracy|autocratic]] and [[Ancien Régime|clericalist royal standards]] of the past".<ref>{{cite EBO |last1=Smith |first1=Whitney |title=Flag of France |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-of-France |access-date=2025-11-24}}</ref>

Before the tricolour was adopted the royal government used many flags, the best known being a blue shield and gold [[fleurs-de-lis]] (the [[Royal Arms of France]]) on a white background, or state flag. Early in the French Revolution, the Paris militia, which played a prominent role in the [[storming of the Bastille]], wore a [[cockade]] of blue and red,<ref name=ansa>{{cite web|url=http://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/mondo/2015/07/14/parigi-14-luglio-la-bastiglia-e-il-rosso-della-first-lady-messicana-angelica_5ffc5fb9-5c2f-406b-ab8c-99935f5c4428.html|title=Presa della Bastiglia, il 14 luglio e il rosso della first lady messicana Angelica|date=14 July 2015|language=it|access-date=9 March 2017|archive-date=28 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728201839/http://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/mondo/2015/07/14/parigi-14-luglio-la-bastiglia-e-il-rosso-della-first-lady-messicana-angelica_5ffc5fb9-5c2f-406b-ab8c-99935f5c4428.html|url-status=live}}</ref> the city's traditional colours. According to French general [[Marquis de Lafayette|Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette]], white was the "ancient French colour" and was added to the militia cockade to form a tricolour, or national, [[cockade of France]].<ref name="Lafayette">Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier Lafayette (marquis de), ''Memoirs, correspondence and manuscripts of General Lafayette,'' vol. 2, p. 252.</ref>

This cockade became part of the uniform of the [[National Guard (France)|National Guard]], which succeeded the militia and was commanded by Lafayette.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gaines|first=James|date=September 2015|title=Washington & Lafayette|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/washington-amp-lafayette-162245867/|work=Smithsonian Magazine|access-date=24 February 2019|archive-date=25 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225161847/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/washington-amp-lafayette-162245867/|url-status=live}}</ref> The colours and design of the cockade are the basis of the Tricolour flag, adopted in 1790,<ref name=ilsole24>{{Cite web |title=La storia del tricolore |last=Curiat |first=Andrea |work={{Lang|it|Il Sole 24 ORE}} |date=3 March 2011 |url=https://st.ilsole24ore.com/art/notizie/2011-03-03/storia-tricolore-nostro-viaggio-105431.shtml |language=it |access-date=5 October 2019 |archive-date=31 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731170605/https://st.ilsole24ore.com/art/notizie/2011-03-03/storia-tricolore-nostro-viaggio-105431.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> originally with the red nearest to the flagpole and the blue farthest from it. A modified design by [[Jacques-Louis David]] was adopted in 1794. The royal white flag was used during the [[Bourbon Restoration in France|Bourbon Restoration]] from 1815 to 1830; the tricolour was brought back after the [[July Revolution]] and has been used since then, except for an interruption for [[French Revolution of 1848|a few days in 1848]].<ref name=secrep>{{Cite journal|url = https://www.persee.fr/doc/r1848_1155-8806_1931_num_28_139_1209_t1_0237_0000_2|title = Les couleurs du drapeau de 1848|journal = Revue d'Histoire du Xixe Siècle - 1848|year = 1931|volume = 28|issue = 139|pages = 237–238|access-date = 10 January 2019|archive-date = 7 July 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190707143232/https://www.persee.fr/doc/r1848_1155-8806_1931_num_28_139_1209_t1_0237_0000_2|url-status = live}}</ref> Since 1976, there have been two versions of the flag in varying levels of use by the state: the original (identifiable by its use of navy blue) and one with a lighter shade of blue. Since July 2020, [[France]] has used the older variant by default, including at the [[Élysée Palace]].<ref name=moreau /><ref name="blue">{{Cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=14 November 2021 |title=Macron switches to using navy blue on France's flag - reports |website=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-59283134 |access-date=15 November 2021 |archive-date=15 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115111902/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-59283134 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Design==
Article 2 of the [[Constitution of France|French constitution]] of 1958 states that "the national emblem is the tricolour flag, blue, white, red".<ref>{{Cite book |title=Constitution du 4 octobre 1958 |trans-title= |chapter=Article 2 |author= |publisher=Légifrance (French government) |date= |url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/LEGIARTI000006527453 |language=fr |access-date=15 November 2021 |archive-date=15 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115200514/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/LEGIARTI000006527453 |url-status=live }}</ref> No law has specified the shades of these official colours.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Discrètement, Emmanuel Macron a changé la tonalité du drapeau bleu-blanc-rouge |trans-title=Emmanuel Macron has discreetly changed the hue of the blue-white-red flag |website=[[RMC (France)|RMC]] |date=15 November 2021 |url=https://rmc.bfmtv.com/emission/discretement-emmanuel-macron-a-change-la-tonalite-du-drapeau-bleu-blanc-rouge-2051123.html |language=fr |quote=La Constitution ne précise pas la tonalité des couleurs. Aucune loi non plus. |access-date=17 November 2021 |archive-date=15 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115133950/https://rmc.bfmtv.com/emission/discretement-emmanuel-macron-a-change-la-tonalite-du-drapeau-bleu-blanc-rouge-2051123.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=drapeau/> In English [[blazon]], the flag is described as ''tierced in pale [[Azure (color)|azure]], [[argent]] and [[gules]].''

The blue stripe has usually been a dark navy blue; a lighter blue (and lighter red) version was introduced in 1976<ref name=lightyear>{{Cite web |title=À propos du bleu du drapeau tricolore - |trans-title=About the blue of the tricolour flag |author= |website=Société Française de Vexillologie |date=n.d. |access-date=23 November 2021 |url=https://drapeaux-sfv.org/vexillologie/actualites/article/a-propos-du-bleu-du-drapeau-tricolore |language=fr |archive-date=15 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231015025617/http://www.drapeaux-sfv.org/vexillologie/actualites/article/a-propos-du-bleu-du-drapeau-tricolore |url-status=live }}</ref> by [[President of France|President]] [[Valéry Giscard d'Estaing]].<ref name=blue/><ref name=drapeau>{{cite web|url=http://www.promo-drapeaux.fr/content/15-drapeau-france|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131204524/http://www.promo-drapeaux.fr/content/15-drapeau-france|archive-date=31 January 2021|title=Drapeau Français|website=promo-drapeaux.fr}}</ref> Both versions were used from then; town halls, public buildings and barracks usually fly the darker version of the flag, but the lighter version was sometimes used even on official State buildings.<ref name=moreau>{{Cite news |title=Emmanuel Macron a changé la couleur du drapeau français |trans-title=Emmanuel Macron has changed the colour of the French flag |first=Louis |last=de Raguenel |website=Europe 1 |date=14 November 2021 |url=https://www.europe1.fr/politique/info-e1-le-drapeau-francais-a-change-de-couleur-4076943 |language=fr |quote=La décision de changer la couleur du drapeau français a été prise par le président de la République le 13 juillet 2020 (…) |access-date=15 November 2021 |archive-date=15 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115161915/https://www.europe1.fr/politique/info-e1-le-drapeau-francais-a-change-de-couleur-4076943 |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 13 July 2020, President [[Emmanuel Macron]] reverted,<ref name=moreau/> without any statement and with no orders for other institutions to use a specific version, to the darker hue for the presidential [[Élysée Palace]], as a symbol of the French Revolution.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Osborne |first=Samuel |date=15 November 2021 |title=Emmanuel Macron changed colour of French flag in 'very political' decision |url=https://news.sky.com/story/emmanuel-macron-changed-colour-of-french-flag-to-revive-a-symbol-of-the-revolution-12469156 |access-date=2022-12-22 |website=[[Sky News]] |language=en |quote=But they also said the "very political" decision was made "to revive a symbol of the French Revolution". |archive-date=22 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222221953/https://news.sky.com/story/emmanuel-macron-changed-colour-of-french-flag-to-revive-a-symbol-of-the-revolution-12469156 |url-status=live }}</ref> The move was met with comments both in favour of and against the change, but it was noted that both the darker and lighter flags have been in use for decades.<ref name=blue/>
[[File:Flag of France (colour shade comparison) 063712.svg|thumb|A comparison of the lighter and darker versions of the flag]]
{| class="wikitable" style="background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px solid #aaaaaa; border-collapse: collapse; white-space: nowrap; text-align: left" width="60%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" border="1"
|- style="text-align: center; background: #eee"
! Authority
! Scheme
!style="background:#000091; color:white" title="#000091"| Blue
!style="background:#FFFFFF" title="#FFF"| White
!style="background:#E1000F; color:white" title="#E1000F"| Red
|-
| rowspan="4" |Government of France<ref name='govcolours'>{{cite web |date=28 February 2024 |title=Les couleurs |url=https://www.info.gouv.fr/marque-de-letat/les-couleurs#les-couleurs-principales |website= info.gov.fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240409201323/https://www.info.gouv.fr/marque-de-letat/les-couleurs#les-couleurs-principales |archive-date=9 April 2024 |access-date=9 April 2024}}</ref>
|[[Pantone]]
|Blue 072 C
|style="background-color: #ccc;" |
|485 C
|-
|[[CMYK color model|CMYK]]
|100.90.20.7
|0.0.0.0
|0.100.100.0
|-
|[[RGB color model|RGB]]
|(0,0,145)
|(255,255,255)
|(225,0,15)
|-
|[[Hex color|HEX]]
|#000091
|#FFFFFF
|#E1000F
|-
| Ministry of Defense<ref name='milcolours'>{{cite tech report|author= |title=Couleurs de la défense nationale|language=fr|trans-title=Colours for the French ministry of defence |number=NORMDEF 0001, Édition 01|institution=République Française - Ministére de la Défense|date=March 2009|url=https://www.derivery.fr/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/NORMDEF-0001-Couleurs-de-lad%C3%A9fense-nationale.pdf}}</ref><ref name='navycolors'>{{cite web |url=https://flagspot.net/flags/fr.html#col |title=France |access-date=14 November 2017 |publisher=Flags of the World |archive-date=27 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160727203123/https://flagspot.net/flags/fr.html#col |url-status=live }}</ref>
| [[AFNOR]]<br />NFX 08002
| A 503
| A 665
| An 805
|-
| rowspan="4" | Embassy to Germany<br />(lighter colours)<ref name='colors'>{{Cite web |url=http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/de/frankreich_3/frankreich-entdecken_244/portrat-frankreichs_247/die-symbole-der-franzosischen-republik_260/trikolore-die-nationalfahne_114.html |title=Die Symbole der französischen Republik |access-date=28 September 2009 |archive-date=10 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111110005908/http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/de/frankreich_3/frankreich-entdecken_244/portrat-frankreichs_247/die-symbole-der-franzosischen-republik_260/trikolore-die-nationalfahne_114.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| [[Pantone]]
| Reflex blue
| Safe
| Red 032
|-
| [[CMYK color model|CMYK]]
| 100.80.0.0
| 0.0.0.0
| 0.100.100.0
|-
| [[RGB color model|RGB]]
| (0,85,164)
| (255,255,255)
| (239,65,53)
|-
| [[Hex color|HEX]]
| #0055A4
| #FFFFFF
| #EF4135
|}
Currently, the flag is one and a half times wider than its height (i.e. in the proportion 2:3) and, except in the [[French Navy]], has stripes of equal width. Initially, the three stripes of the flag were not equally wide, being in the proportions 30 (blue), 33 (white) and 37 (red). Under [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon I]], the proportions were changed to make the stripes' width equal, but by a regulation dated 17 May 1853, the navy went back to using the 30:33:37 proportions, which it now continues to use, as the flapping of the flag makes portions farther from the [[halyard]] seem smaller.

[[File:Drapeau France Télévision.svg|thumb|Flag used as a photographic backdrop]]
When the French president or prime minister is expected to be photographed at an official or televised event, a flag with a much narrower white stripe is often used as a backdrop to ensure that all three stripes are visible when the cameras are focused on them, as using a flag with equal stripes might show only the white stripe in frame.<ref name="LObs1">{{Cite web |title=Dix choses que vous ignoriez sûrement sur les drapeaux|language=fr|trans-title=Ten things you surely don't know about flags|author1-last=de Boutiny |author1-first=Arthur |work=[[L'Obs]] website|date=18 November 2016 |url= https://www.nouvelobs.com/rue89/rue89-rue89-culture/20140628.RUE4683/dix-choses-que-vous-ignoriez-surement-sur-les-drapeaux.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101002845/https://www.nouvelobs.com/rue89/rue89-rue89-culture/20140628.RUE4683/dix-choses-que-vous-ignoriez-surement-sur-les-drapeaux.html|archive-date=1 January 2019|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://drapeaux-sfv.blogspot.com/search/label/drapeau%20fran%C3%A7ais%20%C3%A0%20bande%20blanche%20%C3%A9troite|title=Drapeau français à bande blanche étroite|language=fr|trans-title=The French flag with a narrow white stripe|publisher=Drapeaux-SFV (former information blog of the [[French Society of Vexillology]])|date=2010–2012|author=|access-date=15 November 2021|archive-date=15 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115120414/http://drapeaux-sfv.blogspot.com/search/label/drapeau%20fran%C3%A7ais%20%C3%A0%20bande%20blanche%20%C3%A9troite|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Symbolism==
Blue and red are the [[Flag of Paris|traditional colours]] of Paris, used on the [[Coat of arms of Paris|city's coat of arms]]. Blue is identified with [[Martin of Tours|Saint Martin]], red with [[Saint Denis of Paris|Saint Denis]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gouvernement.fr/en/the-tricolour-flag|title=The three colours before the flag|access-date=5 October 2019|archive-date=21 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221121236/https://www.gouvernement.fr/en/the-tricolour-flag|url-status=live}}</ref> At the [[storming of the Bastille]] in 1789, the Paris militia wore blue and red cockades on their hats. White had long featured prominently on French flags and is described as the "ancient French colour" by Lafayette.<ref name="Lafayette"/> White was added to the "revolutionary" colours of the militia cockade to "nationalise" the design, thus forming the [[cockade of France]].<ref name="Lafayette"/> Although Lafayette identified the white stripe with the nation, other posterior accounts, notably from [[July Monarchy]], identify it with the monarchy.<ref name="elysee">{{Cite web |title=Le drapeau français |trans-title=The French flag |author= |website=Élysée (France) |date=n.d. |url= https://www.elysee.fr/la-presidence/le-drapeau-francais|url-status=live |language=fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217190339/http://www.elysee.fr/president/la-presidence/les-symboles-de-la-republique-francaise/le-drapeau-francais/le-drapeau-francais.1117.html |archive-date=17 February 2012  }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Thiers |first=Adolphe |url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k3133378/f154 |title=Histoire de la Révolution française, Tome 1 |date=1824 |pages=108 |language=fr}}</ref> Lafayette denied that the flag contains any reference to the red-and-white livery of the [[Duc d'Orléans]]. Despite this, Orléanists adopted the tricolour as their own.

Blue and red are associated with the Virgin Mary, the patroness of France, and were the colours of the [[oriflamme]]. The colours of the French flag may also represent the three main [[Estates of the realm|estates]] of the [[Ancien Régime]] (the clergy: white, the [[nobility]]: red and the [[bourgeoisie]]: blue). Blue, as the symbol of class, comes first and red, representing the nobility, comes last. Both extreme colours are situated on each side of white referring to a superior order.<ref name="flagsymbols">{{cite web| title = The French flag - Colours of the flag|url = http://users.skynet.be/lotus/flag/fra0-en.htm| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225185336/http://users.skynet.be/lotus/flag/fra0-en.htm|archive-date=25 February 2021|website=users.skynet.be/lotus/flag/fra0-en.htm}}</ref>
[[File:Brandenburg Gate in French flag colours after Paris attack (23028317551).jpg|left|thumb|The [[Brandenburg Gate]] in Berlin was one of many world landmarks illuminated in the French flag colours after the [[November 2015 Paris attacks]].]]
The [[cockade of France]] was adopted in July 1789, a moment of national unity that soon faded. Royalists began wearing white cockades and flying white flags, while the [[Jacobin Club|Jacobins]], and later the Socialists, flew the [[red flag (politics)|red flag]]. The tricolour, which combines royalist white with republican red, came to be seen as a symbol of moderation and of a nationalism that transcended factionalism.

The French government website states that the white field was the colour of the king, while blue and red were the colours of Paris.

The three colours are occasionally taken to represent the three elements of the revolutionary motto, {{Lang|fr|liberté}} (freedom: blue), {{Lang|fr|égalité}} (equality: white), {{Lang|fr|fraternité}} (brotherhood: red); this symbolism was referenced in [[Three Colours trilogy|Krzysztof Kieślowski's three colours film trilogy]], for example.

In the aftermath of the [[November 2015 Paris attacks]], many famous landmarks and stadiums around the world were illuminated in the flag colours to honour the victims.

{{clear left}}

==History==
===Kingdom of France===
{{Further|Coat of arms of France#History}}
{{anchor|Middle Ages}}{{anchor|Bourbon flag}}
During the early [[Middle Ages]], the [[oriflamme]], the flag of [[Saint Denis of Paris|Saint Denis]], was used—red, with two, three, or five spikes. Originally, it was the royal banner under the [[Capetian dynasty|Capetians]]. It was stored in Saint-Denis abbey, where it was taken when war broke out. French kings went forth into battle preceded either by Saint Martin's red cape, which was supposed to protect the monarch, or by the red banner of Saint Denis.

Later during the Middle Ages, these colours came to be associated with the reigning house of France. In 1328, the coat-of-arms of the [[House of Valois]] was blue with gold [[fleurs-de-lis]] bordered in red. From this time on, the kings of France were represented in vignettes and manuscripts wearing a red gown under a blue coat decorated with gold fleurs-de-lis.  [[Charles V of France]] changed the design from an all-over scattering of fleurs-de-lis to a group of three in about 1376; these two coats are known in heraldic terminology as ''France Ancient'' and ''France Modern'', respectively.

During the [[Hundred Years' War]], England was recognised by a red cross; [[Duchy of Burgundy|Burgundy]], a red [[saltire]]; and France, a white cross. This cross could figure either on a blue or a red field. The blue field eventually became the common standard for French armies. The French regiments were later assigned the white cross as standard, with their proper colours in the cantons. The French flag of a white cross on a blue field is still seen on some flags derived from it, such as that of [[Flag of Quebec|Quebec]].

The flag of [[Joan of Arc]] during the Hundred Years' War is described in her own words, "I had a banner of which the field was sprinkled with lilies; the world was painted there, with an angel at each side; it was white of the white cloth called '[[Buckram|boccassin]]'; there was written above it, I believe, 'JHESUS MARIA'; it was fringed with silk."<ref name="Whitney">Whitney Smith, ''Flags through the ages and across the world'', McGraw-Hill, England, 1975 {{ISBN|0-07-059093-1}}, pp. 66–67, The Standard of Joan of Arc, after quoting her from her trial transcript he states: "it was her influence which determined that white should serve as the principal French national colour from shortly after her death in 1431 until the French Revolution almost 350 years later."</ref> Joan's standard led to the prominent use of white on later French flags.<ref name="Whitney"/>

From the accession of the Bourbons to the throne of France, the green ensign of the navy became a plain white flag, the symbol of purity and royal authority. The merchant navy was assigned "the old flag of the nation of France", the white cross on a blue field.<ref>
*"...the standard of France was white, sprinkled with golden fleur de lis..." {{harv|Ripley|Dana|1879|p=250}}.
*On the reverse of this plate it says: "Le pavillon royal était véritablement le drapeau national au dix-huitième siecle...Vue du chateau d'arrière d'un vaisseau de guerre de haut rang portant le pavillon royal (blanc, avec les armes de France)" {{harv|''Vinkhuijzen collection''|2011}}.
*"The oriflamme and the Chape de St Martin were succeeded at the end of the 16th century, when Henry III., the last of the house of Valois, came to the throne, by the white standard powdered with fleurs-de-lis. This in turn gave place to the famous tricolour"{{harv|Chisholm|1911|p=460}}.</ref> There also was a red jack for the French galleys. A variant of the plain white Bourbon banner, a white field strewn with gold fleur de lis, was also sometimes seen.

<gallery mode="nolines" perrow="8" widths="130" style="background:lightgray; padding:15px; text-align:left">

File:Oriflamme.svg|The [[Oriflamme]], the banner of the Capetians
File:Flag of France (XII-XIII).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of France under the Capetian dynasty since the twelfth century
File:Flag of France (XIV-XVI).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of France under the Capetian dynasty since the fourteenth century
File:Pavillon royal de la France.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} The Royal Banner of France<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://reg.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=1214&ProjectElementID=3952|title=Royal Banner of France – Heritage Emblem|publisher=The Office of the Secretary to the Governor General|author=The Governor General of Canada|work=Confirmation of the blazon of a Flag. February 15, 2008 Vol. V, p. 202|date=12 November 2020|access-date=25 April 2021|archive-date=25 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425025226/https://reg.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=1214&ProjectElementID=3952|url-status=live}}</ref> or "Bourbon Flag". The [[House of Bourbon]] ruled France from 1589 to 1792 and again from 1815 to 1848.
File:Royal Standard of the King of France.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} The Royal Standard of France {{nowrap|(1643 design)}}
File:Pavillon royal de France.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|variant}} Variant royal standard of France {{nowrap|(1643 design)}}
File:Royal Standard of King Louis XIV.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|variant}} Variant royal standard of France {{nowrap|(1643 design)}}
File:Royal flag of France during the Bourbon Restoration.svg{{FIAV|historical}} |The Royal Standard of France {{nowrap|(1814 design)}}
</gallery>

===The ''Tricolore''===
[[File:The national flag of France & Arch of Triumph.ogv|thumb|The national flag of France at the [[Arc de Triomphe]]]]
[[File:Lar7 cogniet 001z.jpg|thumb|The white flag of the monarchy transformed into the Tricolore as a result of the [[July Revolution]]. ''[[Scenes of July 1830]]'', painting by [[Léon Cogniet]] (1830)]]
[[File:Lar9 philippo 001z.jpg|thumb|''Lamartine, before the {{Lang|fr|[[Hôtel de Ville, Paris]]}}, rejects the Red Flag, 25 February 1848''. By [[Henri Felix Emmanuel Philippoteaux]]]]

Adopted after the [[French Revolution]], the French tricolour flag evolved from revolutionary symbols like the blue and red [[cockade of France]]. These were circular rosette-like emblems attached to the hat. [[Camille Desmoulins]] asked his followers to wear green cockades on 12 July 1789. The Paris militia, formed on 13 July, adopted a blue and red cockade. Blue and red are the traditional colours of Paris, and they are used on the [[Coat of arms of Paris|city's coat of arms]]. The addition of white has been attributed to Lafayette, Mayor Jean Sylvain Bailly, and even [[Louis XVI]] himself.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pinoteau |first=Hervé |date=1992 |title=Les trois couleurs en 1789 |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/bsnaf_0081-1181_1992_num_1990_1_9536 |journal=Bulletin de la Société nationale des Antiquaires de France |volume=1990 |issue=1 |pages=42–44 |doi=10.3406/bsnaf.1992.9536 |access-date=2 March 2024 |archive-date=2 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240302125410/https://www.persee.fr/doc/bsnaf_0081-1181_1992_num_1990_1_9536 |url-status=live }}</ref> This episode is supposed to have taken place on July 17, 1789, on the occasion of the king's visit to the Paris city hall. However, it is proven that the tricolor cockade began to be worn, by order of the city, from the 13th or 14 July.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cocarde tricolore ; les origines du drapeau français |url=https://www.contreculture.org/AT%20Cocarde%20tricolore.html |access-date=2024-03-02 |website=www.contreculture.org |archive-date=2 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240302092331/https://www.contreculture.org/AT%20Cocarde%20tricolore.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In any case, Louis XVI actually went to the Paris city hall where he received the tricolor cockade. On 27 July, a tricolour cockade was adopted as part of the uniform of the National Guard, the national police force that succeeded the militia.<ref>Clifford, Dale, "Can the Uniform Make the Citizen? Paris, 1789–1791", ''Eighteenth-Century Studies'', 2001, p. 369.</ref>

A ''drapeau tricolore'' with vertical red, white and blue stripes was approved by the [[National Constituent Assembly (France)|Constituent Assembly]] on 24 October 1790. Simplified designs were used to illustrate how the revolution had broken with the past. The order was reversed to blue-white-red, the current design, by a resolution passed on 15 February 1794.

When the [[Bourbon Restoration in France|Bourbon dynasty]] was restored following the defeat of [[Napoleon]] in 1815, the ''tricolore''—with its revolutionary connotations—was replaced by a white flag, the pre-revolutionary naval flag. However, following the [[July Revolution]] of 1830, the "citizen-king", [[Louis-Philippe of France|Louis-Philippe]], restored the ''tricolore'', and it has remained France's national flag since that time.

Following the overthrow of [[Napoleon III]], voters elected a royalist majority to the National Assembly of the new [[Third French Republic|Third Republic]]. This parliament then offered the throne to the [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon]] pretender, [[Henri, Comte de Chambord]].  However, he insisted that he would accept the throne only on the condition that the tricolour be replaced by the white flag.<ref>{{cite news |last=Martin |first=Jacques |work=[[L'Osservatore Romano]] |edition=English weekly |location=Baltimore, MD |publisher=The Cathedral Foundation |orig-date=23 March 1978 |date=2022 |title=The Humour of Pope Pius IX |via=EWTN Global Catholic Network |url=https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/humour-of-pope-pius-ix-5720 |access-date=2022-07-16 |archive-date=10 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610024319/https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/humour-of-pope-pius-ix-5720 |url-status=live }}</ref> As the tricolour had become a cherished national symbol, this demand proved impossible to accommodate. Plans to restore the monarchy were adjourned and ultimately dropped, and France has remained a republic, with the tricolour flag, ever since.

The [[Vichy France|Vichy régime]], which dropped the word "republic" in favour of "the French state", maintained the use of the ''tricolore'', but [[Philippe Pétain]] used as his personal standard a version of the flag with, in the white stripe, an axe made with a star-studded marshal's [[Baton (military)|baton]]. This axe is called the "Francisque" in reference to the ancient [[Francisca|Frankish throwing axe]]. During this same period, the [[Free France|Free French Forces]] used a ''tricolore'' with, in the white stripe, a red [[Cross of Lorraine]].

The constitutions of 1946 and 1958 instituted the "blue, white, and red" flag as the national emblem of the Republic.

The colours of the national flag are occasionally said to represent different flowers; blue represents [[cornflower]]s, white represents [[Leucanthemum vulgare|marguerites]], and red represents [[poppy|poppies]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Côte-d'Or - Histoire. Cuisine de guerre : coquelicot et bleuet|url=https://www.bienpublic.com/cote-d-or/2014/11/30/coquelicot-et-bleuet|website=www.bienpublic.com|date=30 November 2014 |language=FR-fr|access-date=2021-06-12|archive-date=12 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210612061950/https://www.bienpublic.com/cote-d-or/2014/11/30/coquelicot-et-bleuet|url-status=live}}</ref>

<gallery mode="nolines" perrow="8" widths="130" style="background:lightgray; padding:15px; text-align:left">

File:Flag of Paris.svg|The [[flag of Paris]], source of the tricolour's blue and red stripes
File:The french tricolor cockade.svg|The [[cockade of France]], designed in July 1789. White was added to "nationalise" an earlier blue and red design.
File:Flag of France (1790–1794).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} The flag of France used from 1790 until 1794
File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1974, 2020–present).svg|The flag of France used from 1794 (interrupted in 1815–1830 and in 1848)
File:Drapeau france 1848.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} The [[French Second Republic]] adopted a variant of the tricolour for a few days between 24 February and 5 March 1848.<ref name=secrep/>
File:Henri d'Artois' Flag of France (proposed).svg|{{FIAV|proposal}} The French ''tricolore'' with the royal crown and fleur-de-lys was possibly designed by the [[Henri, Count of Chambord]], in his younger years as a compromise, but which was never made official, and which he himself rejected when offered the throne in 1870.<ref>Whitney Smith. ''Flags through the ages and cross the world''. McGraw-Hill Book Company. 1975. p. 75.</ref>
File:Roundel of France.svg|From 1912 onwards, the [[French Air and Space Force|French Air Force]] originated the use of [[roundel]]s on military aircraft shortly before [[World War I]]. Similar national cockades, with different ordering of colours, were later adopted as aircraft roundels by their allies.<ref>[http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/faq/roundel.cfm Royal Air Force Museum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602233007/http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/faq/roundel.cfm|date=2 June 2009 }}</ref>
File:VichyFlag.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Personal standard of [[Philippe Pétain]], as Chief of [[Vichy France]].
File:Flag of Free France (1940-1944).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag used by the [[Free French Forces]] during [[World War II]]; in the centre is the [[Cross of Lorraine]]; later, the personal standard of President [[Charles de Gaulle]], as Chief of [[Free France]].
File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1974, 2020–present).svg|The flag of France, darker red and blue variant.
File:Flag of France (2024–present).svg|The flag of France, lighter red and blue variant.
</gallery>

==Regimental flags==
<gallery align="left" mode="packed" perrow="8" style="background:lightgray; padding:15px; text-align:left">
File:Vigiles du roi Charles VII 32.jpg|The French soldiers started to use white crosses, during the [[Hundred Years' War]], to distinguish themselves from the English soldiers wearing red crosses.
File:Rég d Auvergne 1635.png|A white-crossed regimental flag during the {{lang|fr|[[Ancien Régime]]}} (here, ''{{lang|fr|Régiment d'[[Auvergne (province)|Auvergne]]}}'')
File:Rég de La Sarre 1685.png|{{lang|fr|La Sarre}} Regiment (''{{lang|fr|[[Régiment de la Sarre]]}}'')
File:Rég du Roi 1757.png|King's Regiment (''{{lang|fr|[[Régiment du Roi]]}}'')
File:Rég de La Reine 1661.png|Queen's Regiment (''{{lang|fr|[[Régiment de la Reine]]}}'')
File:Flag of Levis.svg|General {{lang|fr|[[François Gaston de Lévis|Lévis]]}}' Regiment Flag in North America. Now official flag of the city of [[Lévis, Quebec]]
File:Franche de la Marine1.jpg|The pre-[[french Revolution|revolutionary]] regimental flags inspired the flag of [[Quebec]] (here, the ''{{lang|fr|[[Compagnies Franches de la Marine]]}}'').
File:Grenadier Pied 1 1812 Revers.png|Regimental flag of the 1st Regiment of Grenadiers of the [[French Imperial Guard]] (1812)
File:Drapeaux 1RE et 2REI Paris 2003.jpg|Current regimental flags of the 1st and 2nd Regiments of the [[French Foreign Legion|Légion étrangère]]
</gallery>

==Naval flags==
{{main|French ensigns}}

<gallery mode="nolines" perrow="7" widths="130" style="background:lightgray; padding:15px; text-align:left">
File:Flag of the Kingdom of France (1814-1830).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Naval ensign prior to 1789 and 1814–1830.
File:Naval Flag of the Kingdom of France (Civil Ensign).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} The merchant flag of France {{nowrap|(1689 design)}}
File:Civil and Naval Ensign of France.svg|{{FIAV|000111}} {{FIAV|normal}} {{FIAV|Mirror}} The present ensign of France introduced on 17 May 1853
</gallery>

==Colonial flags==
{{further|French colonial flags|French Colonial Empire}}
Most French colonies either used the regular tricolour or a regional flag without the French flag. There were some exceptions:
<gallery mode="nolines" perrow="8" widths="130" style="background:lightgray; padding:15px; text-align:left">

File:Flag of Colonial Annam.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[Tonkin (French protectorate)]] and [[Annam (French protectorate)|Annam]] in [[French Indochina]]
File:Flag of French Laos.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[French Protectorate of Laos|Laos]] in French Indochina
File:Flag of the Tai Dam People.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[Sip Song Chau Tai]], French Indochina (1948–1955)
File:Flag of French Sudan.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[French Sudan]] (1958–1959), present-day [[Mali]]
File:Flag of Togo (1957-1958).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[French Togoland]] (1956–1960), present-day [[Togo]]
File:Flag of Gabon 1959-1960.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} [[Flag of Gabon]] (1959–1960)
File:Flag of the Madagascar Protectorate (1885-1896).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[Malagasy Protectorate|Madagascar under French protection]] (1885–1895)
File:Merchant flag of French Morocco.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Merchant flag of the [[French protectorate in Morocco|French protectorate of Morocco]] (1912–1956)
File:Flag of French Tunisia.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag used by some military units based in the [[French protectorate of Tunisia]]
File:Flag of the French Mandate of Syria (1920).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Briefly used flag of the [[French Mandate of Syria|French Mandate of Syria and the Lebanon]] in 1920
File:Flag of the State of Aleppo.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[State of Aleppo]], in the French Mandate of Syria (1920–1924)
File:Flag of the State of Damascus.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[State of Damascus]], in the French Mandate of Syria (1920–1924)
File:Flag of Syria French mandate.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[State of Syria (1925–1930)|State of Syria]], in the French Mandate of Syria (1924–1930)
File:Flag of the Alawite State (1920–1936).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[Alawite State|State of Alawites]], in the French Mandate of Syria
File:Flag of Jabal ad-Druze (state).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[Jabal ad-Druze (state)|Jabal ad-Druze]], in the French Mandate of Syria
File:Flag of Lebanon (1920-1943).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[Greater Lebanon|State of Greater Lebanon]] during the French mandate 1920–1943
File:Flag of the Republic of Independent Guyana (1886-1887).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[Republic of Independent Guyana]] (1886–1887)
File:Flag of Saint Barthelemy (local).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|defacto}} Unofficial flag of [[Saint Barthélemy]]
File:Flag of Franceville.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of [[New Hebrides]] (Vanuatu) under the [[Anglo-French Joint Naval Commission]] (1887–1906)
File:Flag of Uvea (1860).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the French Protectorate of [[Wallis and Futuna]] (Uvea) (1860–1886)
File:Flag of Wallis and Futuna.svg|{{FIAV|defacto}} Present unofficial flag of [[Wallis and Futuna]]
File:Flag of the Society Islands Protectorate.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the [[Kingdom of Tahiti]] under the Protectorate of France (1845–1880)
File:Drapeau Protectorat Français RuRutu (1858-1889).png|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the French protectorate of Rurutu in [[French Polynesia]] (1858–1889)
File:Flag of French Polynesia.svg|{{FIAV|110000}} Flag of [[French Polynesia]]
File:Flag of Saar (1947–1956).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the French protectorate of [[Saar (protectorate)|Saar]] (1947–1956)
File:Flag of French Governor in French Colony.svg|{{FIAV|historical}} Flag of the French colonial governor
File:Flag of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.svg|Flag of the [[French Southern and Antarctic Lands]]
File:Flag of Louisiana (January 1861).svg|{{FIAV|historical}} {{FIAV|defacto}} Unofficial flag of [[Louisiana]] (1861)
</gallery>

== Gallery ==
<gallery>

File:El_114_de_infantería,_en_París,_el_14_de_julio_de_1917,_León_Gimpel.jpg|French regimental flag, Paris, [[autochrome]] dated 1917
File:Dieudonné Costes devant le Point d'Interrogation.jpg|Flag of France, [[color photography]] dated 1930
File:Drapeaux français.jpg|Multiple French flags as commonly flown from public buildings
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Portal|France}}
* [[Armorial of France]]
* [[Flag of Haiti]], based on French Republican flag
* [[Flag of Paraguay]], inspired by the colours of the French Tricolour
* [[Flags of the regions of France]]
* [[List of French flags]]
* [[National emblem of France]]
* [[Somoto]], [[Nicaragua]], flag of similar design

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Flag |volume=10 |pages=454–463 }}
*{{Cite AmCyc|title=Flag |volume=8 |page=250  |url=https://archive.org/stream/americancyclopae07ripluoft#page/249/mode/1up }}
*{{cite web |ref={{harvid|Vinkhuijzen collection|2011}} |orig-year=2004 |date=25 March 2011 |url=http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgdisplaylargemeta.cfm?strucID=585779&imageID=1236061&parent_id=585395&word=&s=&notword=&d=&c=&f=&sScope=&sLevel=&sLabel=&lword=&lfield=&num=0&imgs=12&total=98&pos=1&snum= |title= The Vinkhuijzen collection of military uniforms: France, 1750–1757 |publisher=New York Public Library |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150406164952/http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgkeysearchdetail.cfm?strucID=585779&imageID=1236061&parent_id=585395&word=&s=&notword=&d=&c=&f=&sScope=&sLevel=&sLabel=&lword=&lfield=&num=0&total=98&pos=1&snum=&e=w |archive-date=6 April 2015}}

==Further reading==
* ''Flags Through the Ages and Across the World'', Smith, Whitney, McGraw-Hill Book Co. Ltd, England, 1975. {{ISBN|0-07-059093-1}}.

==External links==
{{commons category|National flag of France}}
* {{FOTW|id=fr|title=France}}
* [http://www.flagscorner.com/french-flag/ French flag] at Flags Corner {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224202721/http://www.flagscorner.com/french-flag/ |date=24 February 2021 }}

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