EU Countries And Nations: Denmark
Those interested in the history of national flags no doubt will have come across the national flag of Denmark. The reason for this is that this national flag has been around for many hundreds of years! Even though this flag was recognized as the national flag of this country in the 19th century, it has been hoisted on Danish flagpoles for many years, decades and centuries before. Also called “the cloth of the Danes,” this flag was first a perfect square. The design of the flag was then changed to a rectangle at some point in time.
According to Danish historians, the flag supposedly fell from the sky in June 15th of 1219. It was one this day that that the then ruling King of the territory battled and defeated Estonia. The very first recorded use of this flag was in the early 14th century.
The state flag of this country is not a rectangular shaped flag, but a swallow-tailed type banner. Especially the Danish army and navy have used this flag. Private citizens mainly use the civil banner.
Back in the day, Denmark once dominated Scandinavia and was united at one time or another with the other states, so it is likely that flag practices spread to them from Denmark. However, the actual construction of the Scandinavian Cross and the swallow-tailed forms is different in each country.
Danish flagpoles are colored mostly white, unlike the flagpoles installed in the United States. Flagpoles in the United States come in different finishes, including white. But consider this fact only as a side-note to this article. Throughout the Scandinavian territory, including the various dependencies, flags have had substantial meaning. Even in Greenland, regardless of the weather conditions, flags are hoisted to Scandinavian flagpoles.
The climate in this area is in the so-called “temperate zone.” Meaning that the winters are not all that cold, and the summer season being not all that hot. Less than half the days in one year is experienced with precipitation, with autumn being the wettest season of the year and the spring season being the driest. Since this country is located a distance up north, days can be long in summer. Also, nights can be long in winter. In fact, the longest day in summer is celebrated in Denmark. The particular celebration is called “St. John’s evening.”
Some dear friends of mine are from Scandinavia and have displayed their respective national flag from American flag poles. The latter was done in accordance to U.S. Flag Code, which is adhered to strictly by U.S. citizens and nationals.
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