In America, especially around St. Patrick’s Day, you can just open the window to your home or car and hear people basically shouting their Irish pride. Not that this is not great, but some people hardly realize their background’s history. If you are going to shout about your Irish pride and put the Irish flag on anything from your house to a spray-painted version on your dog (I’ve seen this done), then you should know a thing or two about the history of the flag, which is where this article comes in.
To understand the flag properly it’s prudent to understand a little bit of Irish history surrounding religion. As most people know, there are two dominating religions in Ireland, the Catholic Christians and the Protestant Christians. These two religions have torn Ireland apart for centuries. Before the current flag was adopted, they used a green flag that bore a golden harp in the center. For more information on this and other Irish symbols, there is an excellent Associated Content article, http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/142665/common_irish_symbols_and_their_meanings.html . The modern-day flag is known as a tricolour flag, which derived during the times of the French Revolution in the early 19th century as a representation of beliefs, which is how Ireland adopted theirs during the religious conflicts. (http://www.irishflags.com/)
The conflict of the Protestants and the Catholics dates slightly sooner than that of the French Revolution. During the Irish Rebellion of 1798, we see the shaping of the two sides, the orange and the green. The orange was represented by the Ulster, deriving from King William of Orange’s legacy. The green represented the old tradition. The Ulster was strictly Protestant, where as the old tradition was strictly Catholic. The old tradition held their green flag with a harp until the Easter Rising of 1916. (http://www.irishflags.com/), (http://www.1916rising.com/flag.html)
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries there was much debate over what the flag should be of Ireland. It needed represent each major denomination fairly. Ideas stretched from white, yellow, blue, green all the way to green, orange, white, and blue (Presbyterian). Nothing was ever officially decided until the 1920s when the Irish flag was used to represent the Irish Free State during a revolutionary period. (http://www.1916rising.com/flag.html)
This debate reigned on until in 1937, when it was agreed in the Constitution of Ireland that the national flag should be the one we all know today. The flag’s symbolism is quite powerful because at one point in Irish history symbols were banned in Ireland. The flag we know today has three colors (tricolour). Green is the first color, closest to the pole and on the left hand side, which represents the Catholic Christians of Ireland. On the right-hand side, furthest from the pole, is the color Orange, which represents the Protestants of Ireland. In the middle, between the two rivals, is the color white, which describes the peace between the two religions. (http://www.1916rising.com/flag.html)
Next Saint Patrick’s Day when you see men and women waving and wearing the Irish flag in pride, you will be able to know confidently that you now know what this flag represents. In addition, you also know the history behind the struggles that allowed it to recognized sign it is today. Please view the article I provided earlier in this article before finishing this historical discussion discussion. It is a well-written article that deserves your attention well-admired attention.
Sources:
http://www.1916rising.com/flag.html
http://www.irishflags.com/
