List of Russian flags

This is a list of flags used in Russia.

National Flag

Flag	Date	Use	Description
	1668?–1918 (as ensign) 1883–1918 1993–present	State Flag of Russia.	A tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal fields, white on the top, blue in the middle and red on the bottom. Used as a commercial and civil maritime ensign from the 1690s (allegedly from 1668) on.

Presidential Flag

Flag	Date	Use	Description
	1994–present	Flag of the President of Russia.	Square version of the Flag of Russia, with the Coat of arms, with a gold fringe.

Imperial Standards

Flag	Date	Use	Description
	1700–1858	Imperial Standard.	Yellow banner with Tsar's emblem.
	1858–1883	Flag of the Russian Empire for "Celebrations".[1][2][3][4][5]	The flag was introduced in 1858, however it was not as popular as the white-blue-red civil ensign, which was adopted in 1883 for land use. In the 20th century there was a widespread myth (based on incorrect statements by the leading Soviet historian K. Ivanov) that Russia had changed her official flag in 1858. Since the 1990s this flag is used by monarchists and some extreme right political groups.
	1858–1917	Imperial Standard.	Yellow banner with the coat of arms.

Military Flags

Flag	Date	Use	Description
		Flag of the Ministry of Defence
		Armed forces
		Banner of Victory (Historical battle flag)	The Banner of Victory raised on the Reichstag in 1945. Replicas of the Victory Banner can be used alongside the national flag on Victory Day.
	1996–2007	Commemorative flag.	The Victory Banner. It had a status similar to that of the national flag, and could be used alongside the national flag on national holidays.
		Flag of the Russian Ground Forces.
		Flag of the Russian Air Force.
	1712–1917 1991–present	Ensign of the Russian Navy, the so-called андреевский (St. Andrew's) flag.	A blue saltire on a white field.
		Jack of the Russian Navy.	The Ensign of the Russian Navy superimposed on a white cross on a red field.
		Flag of the Russian Airborne Troops.	A bicolour of horizontal stripes, blue and green defaced with the Russian Airborne Troops emblem.
		Flag of the Strategic Rocket Forces.

Non-Military Security Forces

Flag	Date	Use	Description
	1992–present	Flag of Ministry of Extraordinary Situations
	1992–present	Departmental Flag of Ministry of Extraordinary Situations
		Flag of Border Service of the Federal Security Service
		Ensign of Russian Coast Guard

Historical Flags

Flag	Date	Use	Description
	1668	Alleged first Russian flag.
	1693-1700	Flag of Tsardom of Russia
	1700[6]–1918	De facto (unofficial) flag of Russia	Peter the Great's tricolour was the merchant flag (civil ensign) of Russia. As the oldest civil flag to represent Russia, it was later adopted as the national flag representing the country rather than the Tsar. However, the flags used by the Russian Army were regimental flags with the Double-Headed Eagle, the official Imperial symbol, in the centre. The Imperial Standard was the black Double-Headed Eagle displayed on a golden banner, represented the Tsar, the absolute ruler of the Russian Empire.
	1914–1917	Russian Empire (unofficial, private use only).	A tricolour of horizontal stripes, white, blue and red, with a yellow canton with the coat of arms.
	1918–1937	Flag of the Russian SFSR (variant).	Red banner with stylized "RSFSR" abbreviation in gold Cyrillic letters in the honour canton.
	1937-1954	Flag of the Russian SFSR (variant).	Red banner with stylized "RSFSR" abbreviation in gold Cyrillic letters in the honour canton.
	1954–1991	Flag of the Russian SFSR.	The Flag of the Soviet Union with a blue band at the hoist.
	1922-1923	First Flag of the Soviet Union.	The First Flag of the Soviet Union.
	1923–1955	Second Flag of the Soviet Union.	The flag of the Soviet Union was used in Russia as the state flag throughout the Soviet period until the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
	1955–1980	Third flag of the Soviet Union.	The second flag of the Soviet Union changed the hammer and sickle's shape and made it smaller.
	1980–1991	Fourth and Final flag of the Soviet Union.	The third flag of the Soviet Union had lighter colors.
	1991	Flag of the Russian SFSR.	Flag of Russian SFSR from 1 November (de facto from 22 August) 1991 to 25 December 1991.
	1991–1993	Flag of the Russian Federation.	Official Flag of the Russian Federation from 25 December 1991 to 11 December 1993, when it was replaced by the present version.
	1993–Present	Current National Flag.	Current Flag of the Russian Federation.

See also

• Flags of the federal subjects of Russia
• List of Russian navy flags
• List of USSR navy flags

References

1. Bonnell, Victoria E. Russia at the barricades: eyewitness accounts of the August 1991 coup. M.E. Sharpe, 1994, p92
2. Condee, Nancy. Soviet hieroglyphics: visual culture in late twentieth-century Russia. Indiana University Press, 1995, p49
3. Saunders, Nicholas J. Matters of conflict: material culture, memory and the First World War. Routledge, 2004, p129
4. National Museum of Science and Technology (Canada). Material history review. Canada Science and Technology Museum, 2000, p46
5. CRWflags.com
6. History of the Russian flag (in Russian)