The twelve-star "flag of Europe" was designed in 1950 and officially adopted by the
Council of Europe in 1955. The same flag was adopted by the
European Parliament in 1983. The
European Council adopted it as an "emblem" for the
European Communities in 1985. Its status in the European Communities was inherited by the
European Union upon its formation in 1993. The proposal to adopt it as official flag of the European Union failed with the ratification of the
European Constitution in 2005, and mention of all emblems suggesting
statehood was removed from the
Treaty of Lisbon of 2007, although sixteen member states signed a declaration supporting the continued use of the flag. In 2007, the
European Parliament officially adopted the flag for its own use.
1950–present: Council of Europe on
Villa Schutzenberger, seat of the
European Audiovisual Observatory, an institution within the Council of Europe (2011 photograph) The
Council of Europe in 1950 appointed a committee to study the question of adopting a symbol. Numerous proposals were looked into. The design was a blue field with a red cross inside an orange circle at the centre. Kalergi was very committed to defending the
cross as "the great symbol of Europe's moral unity", the
Red Cross in particular being "recognized by the whole world, by Christian and non-Christian nations[,] as a symbol of international charity and of the brotherhood of man", but the proposal was rejected by
Turkey (a member of the Council of Europe since 1949) on grounds of its
religious associations in spite of Kalergi's suggestion of adding a
crescent alongside the cross to overcome the Muslim objections. Other proposals included the flag was the
European Movement, which had a
large green E on a white background, a design was based on the
Olympic rings, eight golden rings on a blue background, rejected due to the rings' similarity with "dial", "chain" and "zeros", or a large yellow star on a blue background, rejected due to its equality with the flag of the Belgian Congo. (positioned according to capital cities, with a large star for
Strasbourg, the seat of the council). He had circulated his flag round many European capitals and the concept had found favour. one of which was accepted by the Assembly. The design was similar to Salvador de Madariaga's, but rather than a constellation, the stars were arranged in a circle. None of his proposals perfectly match the design that was adopted. Paul Levy claims that he was the one who designed the template for the flag, not Arsène Heitz. In 1987, Heitz would claim that his inspiration had been the crown of twelve stars of the
Woman of the Apocalypse, often found in
Marian iconography (see
below). On 25 September 1953, the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe recommended that a blue flag with fifteen gold stars be adopted as an emblem for the organisation, the number fifteen reflecting the number of states of the Council of Europe.
West Germany objected to the fifteen-star design, as one of the members was
Saar Protectorate, and to have its own star would imply
sovereignty for the region. The Committee of Ministers (the council's main decision-making body) agreed with the Assembly that the flag should be a circle of stars, but opted for a fixed number of twelve stars, "
representing perfection and entirety". Officially adopted on 8 December 1955, the flag was unveiled at the
Château de la Muette in Paris on 13 December 1955. Shortly after this design considerations by Paul Levy, on 27 July 1950, Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, president of the
Pan-European movement wrote a memorandum which contained some rules that a flag for such union should follow. The rules he stated where: • It should be a symbol of our common civilisation. • It should present a European emblem. • It should not provoke any national rivalry. • It should represent tradition. • It should be beautiful and dignified. After these statements, Coudenhove-Kalergi proposed that the
Pan-European movement flag would be the perfect one to fit these criteria 15 July 1951, the consultative assembly put forward a final memorandum on the European flag. The symbols proposed where the following • A cross: Symbol of Christianity, Europe's crossroads, reminiscent of
the crusades, and present in half of the member state's flags. • An "E": Used by the
European Movement. • A white star in a circle: Symbol used in
1944–45 by the armies of liberation. • Multiple stars: Each star could represent a member. They could be green on a white background, white stars on a red background, or silver stars for associate members, and golden stars for full members. • Strasbourg's Coat of Arms: To symbolize the official seat of the
Council of Europe. • A sun: It would represent dawning hope. • A triangle: It would represent culture. Furthermore, several colours were also proposed: • Multi-coloured: It was proposed that the flag could contain all the colours the flags of the member states had. • Green and White: These were the colours of the
European Movement. • Blue: Symbol of peace and neutrality, as other colours were already used for other movements such as black for mourning, red for bolshevism, or green for Islam. In the end, the flag of Europe was chosen to have 12 five-pointed golden stars in a circle over a blue background, probably inspired by the Pan-European flag and other designs such as Salvador de Madariaga's and Arsène Heitz's proposals.
1983–present: From European Communities to European Union Following
Expo 58 in Brussels, the flag caught on and the Council of Europe lobbied for other European organisations to adopt the flag as a sign of European unity. Under the header of "strengthening of the Community's image and identity", the Committee suggested the introduction of "a flag and an emblem", recommending a design based on the Council of Europe flag, but with the addition of "a gold letter E" in the center of the circle of stars. The European Council held in
Milan on 28/29 June 1985 largely followed the recommendations of the Adonnino Committee. But as the adoption of a flag was strongly reminiscent of a
national flag representing
statehood and was extremely controversial with some member states (in particular the United Kingdom, as the proposed flag closely resembled the
Queen's personal standard), the Council of Europe's "flag of Europe" design was adopted, without the letter E, only with the official status of a "logo". This compromise was widely disregarded from the beginning, and the "European logo", in spite of the explicit language of giving it the status of a "logo", was referred to as the "Community flag" or even "European flag" from the outset. The Communities began to use the "emblem" as its
de facto flag from 1986, raising it outside the
Berlaymont building (the seat of the
European Commission) for the first time on 29 May 1986. The European Union, which was established by the
Maastricht Treaty in 1992 to replace the European Communities and encompass its functions, has retained
de facto use of the "Community logo" of the EC. In 1997, the "Central and Eastern
Eurobarometer" poll included a section intending to "discover the level of public awareness of the European Union" in what were then candidate countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Interviewees were shown "a sticker of the European flag" and asked to identify it. Responses considered correct were: the European Union, the European Community, the
Common Market, and "Europe in general". 52% of those interviewed gave one of the correct answers, 15% gave a wrong answer (naming another institution, such as NATO or the United Nations), and 35% could or would not identify it. The
European Cycling Union, established in 1990, uses the blue and yellow stars with includes lighter shades of blue and tilted stars in its logo. The same design elements are seen on championship jerseys and medals awarded to the winners of annual championships. In 2002, Dutch architect
Rem Koolhaas designed
a symbol, dubbed the "barcode", which displayed the colours of the national flags of the EU member states in vertical stripes. It was reported as a replacement for the European flag, which was not the intention. It was not adopted by the EU or any other organisation at the time, but an updated version was used in the visual identity of the Austrian
EU Presidency in 2006. The official status of the emblem as the flag of the European Union was to be formalised as part of the
Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. However, as the proposed treaty failed ratification, the mention of all state-like emblems, including the flag, were not included in the replacement
Treaty of Lisbon, which entered into force in 2009. Instead, a separate declaration by sixteen Member States was included in the final act of the Treaty of Lisbon stating that the flag, the anthem, the motto and the currency and Europe Day "will for them continue as symbols to express the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it." In reaction to the removal of the flag from the treaty, the
European Parliament, which had supported the inclusion of such symbols, backed a proposal to use these symbols "more often" on behalf of the Parliament itself;
Jo Leinen, MEP for Germany, suggested that the Parliament should take "an
avant-garde role" in their use. In September 2008, the Parliament's
Committee on Constitutional Affairs proposed a formal change in the institution's rules of procedure to make "better use of the symbols". Specifically, the flag would be present in all meeting rooms (not just the hemicycle) and at all official events. The proposal was passed on 8 October 2008 by 503 votes to 96 (15 abstentions). In 2015, a set of
commemorative Euro coins was issued on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the emblem by the European Communities. In April 2004, the European flag was flown on behalf of the European Space Agency, by Dutch astronaut
André Kuipers while on board the
International Space Station, in reference to the Framework Agreement establishing the legal basis for co-operation between the
European Space Agency and the European Union. Following the
2004 Summer Olympics, President
Romano Prodi expressed his hope "to see the EU Member State teams 2008 Summer Olympics|in Beijing [viz., the 2008 games] carry the flag of the European Union alongside their own national flag as a symbol of our unity". Use of the flag has also been reported as representing the European team at the
Ryder Cup golf competition in the early 2000s, although most European participants preferred to use their own national flags. The flag has been widely used by advocates of
European integration since the late 1990s or early 2000s. It is often displayed in the context of
Europe Day, on 9 May. Outside the EU, it was used in the context of several of the "
colour revolutions" during the 2000s. In
Belarus, it was used on protest marches alongside the
white-red-white flag and other flags of
opposition movements, such as
Zubr, during the
protests of 2004–2006. The flag was used widely in a 2007 pro-EU march in
Minsk. Similar uses were reported from
Moldova in 2009. In
Georgia, the flag has been on most government buildings since the coming to power of
Mikheil Saakashvili (2007), who used it during his inauguration, stating: "[the European] flag is Georgia's flag as well, as far as it embodies our civilisation, our culture, the essence of our history and perspective, and our vision for the future of Georgia." It was used in 2008 by pro-western Serbian voters ahead of an election. waving
Ukrainian and European flags during the
Euromaidan demonstrations in 2013 The flag became a symbol of
European integration of
Ukraine in the 2010s, particularly after
Euromaidan. Ukraine is not a part of the EU but is a member of the Council of Europe. The flag is used by the
Cabinet of Ukraine,
Prime Minister of Ukraine, and
MFA UA during official meetings. It was flown during the 2013
Euromaidan protests in Ukraine, and in 2016 by the
pro-EU faction in the
EU membership referendum campaigns in the United Kingdom. The flag has also been adopted as a symbol for EU policies and expansionism by
EU-sceptics. In an early instance, Macedonian protesters burned "the flag of the EU" in the context of EU involvement in the
2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia. In the 2005
Islamic protests against the
Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons, the
Danish flag was most frequently burned, but (as the cartoons were reprinted in many European countries), some protesters opted for burning "the EU flag" instead. Protesters during the
Greek government-debt crisis of 2012 "burned the EU flag and shouted 'EU out' ". Burning of the EU flag has been reported from other anti-EU rallies since. By the 2010s, the association of the emblem with the EU had become so strong that the Council of Europe saw it necessary to design a new logo, to "avoid confusion", officially adopted in 2013.
Euro coins also display a circle of twelve stars on both the national and common sides. It is also depicted on many
driving licences and
vehicle registration plates issued in the Union.
Diplomatic missions of EU member states fly the EU flag alongside their national flag. In October 2000, the then-new
British Embassy in Berlin sparked controversy between the UK and Germany and the EU when the embassy did not have a second external flagpole for the EU flag. After diplomatic negotiations, it was agreed that the outside flagpole would have the
diplomatic Union Flag while inside the embassy, the EU flag would accompany the UK flag. Some member states'
national airlines such as
Lufthansa have the EU flag alongside their national flags on aircraft as part of their aircraft registration codes, but this is not an EU-mandated directive. A number of logos used by EU institutions, bodies and agencies are derived from the design and colours of the EU emblem. Other emblems make reference to the European flag, such as the
EU organic food label that uses the twelve stars but reorders them into the shape of a leaf on a green background. The original logo of the
European Broadcasting Union used the twelve stars on a blue background adding ray beams to connect the countries. There was a proposal before the EU parliament in 2003 to
deface national civil ensigns with the EU emblem. The proposal was rejected by the parliament in 2004. The flag is usually flown by the government of the country holding the
rotating presidency Council of Ministers. In 2009, Czech President
Václav Klaus, a
eurosceptic, refused to fly the flag from his castle. In response,
Greenpeace projected an image of the flag onto the castle and attempted to fly the flag from the building themselves. Extraordinary flying of the flag is common on
Europe Day, celebrated annually on 9 May. On Europe Day 2008, the flag was flown for the first time above the German
Reichstag. File:KOD demonstration, Warsaw May 7 2016 21.jpg|A
KOD demonstration in
Warsaw,
Poland against the ruling
Law and Justice party, on 7 May 2016 File:Holding an EU flag.jpg|European flag with the
Ukrainian trident at
a pro-EU rally in
Kyiv,
Ukraine, on 24 November 2013 File:The Europa series 100 € obverse side.jpg|Flag of the EU in the top left corner of a 100 euro banknote (second series) File:Logo European Central Bank.svg|
European Central Bank logo File:Saksen-Anhalt license plate 02.JPG|The EU uses the emblem in a number of ways, here on
vehicle registration plates. The "D" in this photo indicates Germany (Deutschland). File:Sergio Mattarella e António Guterres al Quirinale 2019 (2).jpg|In Italy the European Flag must be displayed alongside the national flag in official ceremonies and over public buildings. File:EU Flag Louvre.jpg|The European Flag is placed on numerous municipal flagpoles in
Paris, on a par with the
flag of France; here in front of the
Louvre Palace (flown upside down). File:Flickr - Πρωθυπουργός της Ελλάδας - Angela Merkel - Αντώνης Σαμαράς (9).jpg|Order of precedence at the state visit of Greek prime minister
Antonis Samaras in Berlin (24 August 2012): The Greek flag takes the first order of precedence, followed by the German flag on
the right (seen on the left when facing the
building) and the European flag in third order, on the left. File:BadElster Grenze4383.JPG|German border sign File:Croatian driving licence 2023 (recto).jpg|
Driving licences in the EU feature the twelve stars on a blue background with the country's distinguishing sign. File:2021 Czech ID card front.jpg|From 2021,
identity cards issued in the EU display an EU flag with their two-letter country code. Sixteen out of twenty-seven member states in 2007 signed the declaration recognising "the flag with a circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background" as representing "the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it." In 2017, president of France
Emmanuel Macron signed a declaration endorsing the 2007 statement, so that, as of 2018, 17 out of
27 member states have recognised the emblem as a flag representing "allegiance to the EU":
Austria,
Belgium,
Bulgaria,
Cyprus, France, Germany,
Greece,
Hungary, Italy,
Lithuania,
Luxembourg,
Malta,
Portugal,
Romania,
Slovakia,
Slovenia and Spain. Italy has incorporated the EU flag into its flag code. According to an Italian law passed in 2000, it is mandatory for most public offices and buildings to hoist the European Flag alongside the
Italian national flag (Law 22/1998 and Presidential Decree 121/2000). Outside official use, the flag may not be used for "aims incompatible with
European values". In Germany, the federal flag code of 1996 is only concerned with the
German flag, but some of the
states have legislated additional provisions for the European flag, such as
Bavaria in its flag regulation of 2001, which mandates that the European flag take the third order of precedence, after the federal and state flags, except on
Europe Day, where it is to take the first order of precedence. In Ireland on occasions of "European Union Events" (for example, at a
European Council meeting), where the European flag is flown alongside all national flags of member states, the national flags are placed in alphabetical order (according to their name in the main
language of that state) with the European flag either at the head, or the far-right, of the order of flags. In most member states, use of the EU flag is only
de facto and not regulated by legislation, and as such subject to
ad hoc revision. In national usage, national protocol usually demands the national flag takes precedence over the European flag (which is usually displayed to the right of the national flag from the observer's perspective). In November 2014, the speaker of the Hungarian Parliament
László Kövér ordered the removal of the EU flag from the parliament building, following an incident in which a member of parliament had "defenestrated" two EU flags from a fourth story window. In November 2015, the
newly elected Polish government under
Beata Szydło removed the EU flag from government press conferences. ==Derivative designs==