Like many other islands in the Indian Ocean and not only, Mauritius was for a long time under the colonial rule of both the British and the French. The resulting unique culture is reflected in the national flag - one of two in the world with four equal horizontal stripes (in the Central African Republic it is also four-lane and bisected by a vertical red stripe). He was chosen in anticipation of independence from colonial rule, which the island received on March 12, 1968. It was on this day that the current symbol of the state was first raised. Before independence, Mauritius had typical colonial flags of the British Empire - Union Jack, British red, and then a blue banner with a sign designating a colony.
Symbolism
The flag of Mauritius (photo is in the article) has its own attributes for each of the colors. It is said that yellow is the “light of freedom shining over the island," while red reflects the national struggle for independence. The blue bar symbolizes the island character of the country and its position in the Indian Ocean. Finally, green symbolizes the year-round greenery of the island due to its subtropical weather. Since independence in 1968, no changes have been made to the flag of Mauritius.
History
In 1638, the red-white-blue horizontal tricolor flag of the Dutch East India Company was the first to be hoisted in Mauritius. The territory remained under Dutch control until 1710, when poor harvests and weather conditions forced the Dutch to leave the area. Only five years later, in 1715, the area was colonized by the French. It was called the “Isle of France” and the official flag of the King of France was adopted here.
In 1792, it was changed to a more traditional blue-white-red vertical French tricolor. When the British took control of the area in 1810, the name of the island was changed to Mauritius. Since it has now become a colony of the British crown, the flag has been replaced by the traditional British blue banner with the coat of arms of the region. The coat of arms was a shield depicting a ship, three palm trees, a key and a white star.
In 1906, the British blue flag of Mauritius was changed, a new coat of arms appeared on it, in the image of which was added a deer and a dodo (an extinct bird, another name is the Mauritian dodo), which support it. In 1923, the image of the white circle was removed. As such, the flag of Mauritius lasted until 1968, when the island became a republic and new state symbols appeared.
Coat of arms of Mauritius
It was adopted in 1906 and is a shield divided into four parts. The upper left quarter is a blue background with a golden ship, the upper right quarter is a golden background with three palm trees, the lower left quarter is a golden background with a red key, and the lower right quarter is a blue background with a white star. Dodo and deer with sugarcane hold a shield, and below is a banner with the inscription "star and key of the Indian Ocean", made in Latin.
Other state symbols
The presidential banner is the national flag of Mauritius and a coat of arms in its center on a white circle, under which is the inscription "RM" and gold laurel branches.
The government also has its own symbol. It is a blue banner with a national flag in the upper left corner and a coat of arms in the center on the right.
The banner of the Navy of Mauritius is a white field with blue and red vertical stripes. In the center is a red anchor and a golden five-pointed star.
The civil flag of Mauritius is a red canvas with the national flag in the upper left corner and the coat of arms on a white disk in the center on the right. In addition, some cities in Mauritius have their own symbols.