Part of the territory of modern Macedonia many centuries ago was glorified by its king - the great ruler and commander Alexander of Macedon.
A brief historical excursion
For many centuries, the Macedonian lands were conquered by other peoples: Serbs, Greeks, and Turks ... At the beginning of the 20th century, namely in 1912-1913, several wars unfolded in the Balkans, as a result of which Macedonia freed itself from Turkish rule. At the same time, the Bucharest Peace Treaty was concluded, according to which the territory of Macedonia was divided into three parts, which were distributed between Serbia, Greece and Bulgaria.
In 1929, Vardar Macedonia became part of the Yugoslav kingdom, which a few decades later was renamed the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY).
The collapse of the SFRY was the beginning of the new history of Macedonia, which became an independent state, which was now called the “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”.
Flag of Macedonia: from socialism to independence
The history of the national flag as a symbol of the country had several interesting twists. The original version was created at a time when Macedonia was part of Yugoslavia. The flag of the Republic of Macedonia was red, and in the corner (near the pole) there was a golden five-pointed star, which is a symbol of socialism.
The first modifications were associated with the recognition of the independence of Macedonia. At the same time, the red canvas of the flag, the position of the star in the corner, remained the same. But the star itself, having ceased to bear the socialist appeal, began to have 16 ends. And in the middle appeared horizontal stripes of black color. There were three of them.
There was another option that caused a lot of controversy and conflict with the Greek side. The fact is that in Greece there was also a province with the same name - Macedonia (this is part of the land that was given to Greece under the Bucharest Treaty). The flag of Macedonia as a state, which at that time they wanted to approve, was very similar to the flag of the Greek province. They differed only in the color of the canvas, which was blue in Greece and red in Macedonia. Otherwise, everything was identical. In both cases, a golden sixteen-pointed star was located in the center. The Greek government also explained its protest by the fact that this symbol (Vergina star) really existed in Ancient Greece. What archaeological excavations prove . In modern Greece, such a star was found on the tomb of one of the ancient rulers. For these reasons, the Republic of Macedonia was rejected by the UN. The government urgently had to create a new flag, which now flies on the flagpoles of sovereign Macedonia.
Description of the flag of Macedonia
The flag of Macedonia is a classic rectangle. The canvas has a bright red color. In the center is a yellow disc with a diameter of 1/7 of the length of the flag. The rays emanating from it are directed in different directions and reach almost to the edges of the canvas. There are 8 rays on the flag. The disk and rays are a kind of sun, symbolizing freedom. In the text of the hymn there is also a mention of the new sun, which shows the flag of Macedonia. A photo of the state symbol is posted below. This is the modern option.
The flag of Macedonia was approved on October 5, 1995. The relevant information is contained in the Decree of the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia.
Coat of arms: return to basics
In total, in the history of Macedonia there were two main variants of the coat of arms. The first reflects historical traditions: a red crown is crowned with a golden crown, and inside there is a lion with an unusual forked tail. The earliest mention of such a coat of arms dates back to the beginning of the 20th century.
It is known that on December 31, 1946, the government adopted another draft of the coat of arms. It depicted the sun, which rises above the mountain by the lake. This composition was framed by a wreath. It collected ears of wheat, stalks of tobacco and poppy, tied with a ribbon, the lower part of which was decorated with a traditional pattern. At the top was a five-pointed red star. And in 2009, the star was removed from the coat of arms.
Now many states have returned to their historical symbols, including Macedonia. The flag and coat of arms are made in yellow colors.
The modern coat of arms differs from the original in that the 5 teeth of the crown above the shield now symbolize the sovereignty and statehood of Macedonia. But the lion remained in its original form.