Ireland is a country whose struggle for the right to national independence has been going on for a long time. Intense discussion does not stop to this day. Therefore, the flag of Ireland and its other symbols can be quite controversial. And for
This issue is of great importance to the Irish, it doesn’t matter whether the northern or southern parts of the island are in question.
Official symbols
Since Northern Ireland is part of the British Kingdom, its flag is British. The blue panel with a red straight cross and a white-red oblique immediately symbolizes Britain, Scotland and Northern Ireland, combining different standards in one image. The British part is associated with St. George, it is symbolized by a white background and a straight red cross. Scotland is represented by St. Andrew's flag - a blue cloth with a white slanting cross. The patron saint of Ireland is St. Patrick. Its flag is white with a red slanting cross. Such a standard as part of a single British is considered an official symbol. But there is also an unofficial one, which belongs only to the Irish, and is in no way connected with Great Britain.
Historic Flag of Northern Ireland
The unofficial symbol at the moment is the so-called Ulster banner. This is the historical flag of Ireland in this part of the island. The banner arose from the union of the heraldic symbols of the main royal dynasties. It combines a red St. George cross on a yellow background, a white shield in the middle of the panel and
red hand on it. In 1924, Northern Ireland was allowed to officially use the Ulster banner. True, some changes were made. A six-pointed star, symbolizing the number of counties, was added to the flag of Ireland. When the local parliament was dissolved in 1973, the official symbol was lost. Since then, the Irish can only use the standard of the United Kingdom. The historic flag of Northern Ireland, photos of which sometimes appear in the press, is used by separatists and Protestant communities. Demands for the return of the right to its official use do not cease.
Symbolism of the unofficial banner
The flag of Ulster County has a long history. Both Catholics and Protestants use it equally. True, under the red hand depicted on it, they understand completely different things. So, for unionists, the image is a symbol of the six counties of Northern Ireland. Nationalists claim that the image applies to all nine counties, including southern ones. At the same time, the initially red hand decorating the flag of Ireland arose as a sign of the local aristocracy. An old legend is associated with it. When the kings staged a contest for supremacy over Ulster, O'Neill began to lag behind his opponent and cut off his hand to throw it forward and win the race. Along with the old flag, national symbols such as Easter lily and flax flowers are also used. The first is connected with the uprising in 1916, therefore it is widely used, first of all, by separatist groups.
The second is more neutral in meaning. Blue flax flowers symbolize light industry, in which almost the entire population worked. Labor united and united the Irish.
Flag of the Independent State of Ireland
If the northern part of the island nevertheless achieves independence, the country will unite under the tricolor, now used in the southern part. The official national flag of Ireland includes three vertical stripes: green, white and orange. The first designates Catholics, and the last - Protestants, the white color between them symbolizes the consent of different faiths. There is another interpretation. So, green is associated with the indigenous people, and orange - with the British colonists of the time of William of Orange. White, however, in this embodiment denotes a union. The most romantic residents describe the flag of Ireland as follows: green indicates a free Irish soul, orange indicates a love of life, and white indicates an aspiration for God.