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Holidays, songs, poetry, books, artwork, and more have all been inspired by the American Flag. The flag has been used to demonstrate nationality, rebellion, and everything. The flag is so significant that its history tells the story of the United States of America. It symbolises the freedom, dignity, and genuine meaning of citizenship in the United States of America. Read the full article to understand the American Flag’s meaning and learn about the different types of American Flags.
American Flag’s meaning
There is no formal American Flag meaning or symbolism assigned to the flag’s colours. In defining the proposed Great Seal of the United States, Charles Thomson, secretary of the Continental Congress, provided the following symbolism: “White represents purity and innocence, Blue signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice, and red, toughness and valour.” Like many other national flags, the Stars and Stripes have long been a source of patriotic pride. Millions of youngsters have repeated the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag at the beginning of each school day since 1892, and the national anthem’s lyrics are also about the flag.
Stripes on the American Flag
The first recognised national flag was the Stars and Stripes. In the year 1777, the Continental Congress authorised the flag on the 14th of June. Each star on the flag symbolised a state, and every stripe on the American flag was representing the thirteen colonies that broke away from the British Empire. Although the Flag’s colours are derived from the British flags and they have no formal significance.
Different types of American Flags
There were 27 different Flag variations of the American Flag. They consist of stripes and stars since the United States was founded in 1776. Nine of the 27 iterations of the Flag were only flown for a year or less, showing the country’s fast growth. With the expansion of the United States westward for the growth of North America, each new Flag marked the acquisition of one or more states.
On the 14th of June in the year 1777, the flag with 13 stars was formally adopted as the Flag of the United States, and the day is commemorated every year as Flag Day. After Kentucky and Vermont became one of the 14th and 15th states in the year 1791 and 1792, the government added two stripes and two stars to the Flag.
On April 13, 1818, the Flag with twenty stars was adopted as one of the official flags. It became the first of the other nine flags to be modified in just a year. Illinois joined the Union barely over a year after the twenty-star Flag was created, bringing the total number of states to 21. With the addition of the State of Alabama in the year 1819 and the State of Maine in the year 1820, the number of states in the United States increased to 23. Missouri was added to the Flag in 1821, giving it 24 stars.
On the 15th of June in the year 1836, Arkansas became a slave state and it joined the Union, bringing the total number of states to 25. For maintaining the balance between free and slave states, Michigan was added to the Union as a free state in 1837. In 1845, Florida, which was a former Spanish colony, joined the Union, bringing the total number of states in the U.S. to 27. Florida did not stay in the Union for a longer period: in 1861, it would secede.
The Flag changed again in the year 1846, this time in response to the admittance of Texas. Iowa was added to the Union after it become a free state on December 28, 1846, for maintaining the balance between slave and free states. Wisconsin was admitted to the Union on the 29th of May in the year 1848, and the 30th star was added to the American Flag.
Conclusion
The Stars and Stripes became the official symbol of America almost 200 years ago, with the Second Continental Congress even declaring that the 13 stars adorning the first flag signified “a new constellation” with the belief that America reflected a brilliant new hope and light for mankind. Today, and for many years to come, the U.S. flag will continue to embody its great nation’s inspirational and basic principles. In this article, we have discussed different types of American Flags and explored the stripes on the flags. After reading this article, you will get to know the meaning of the American Flag.
