Flags of the Confederate States of America This article is about historical uses of ags asso- ciated with the Confederate States of America. For modern uses, see Modern display of the Confederate ag. There were three successive national ag designs that served as the ocial national flags of the Confeder- ate States of America (the "Confederate States" or the "Confederacy") during its existence from 1861 to 1865. Since the end of the American Civil War, private and of- cial use of the Confederacy's ags, and of ags with derivative designs, has continued under philosophical, political, cultural, and racial controversy in the United States. These include ags displayed in states; cities, towns and counties; schools, colleges and universities; private organizations and associations; and by individu- als. The state ag of Mississippi features the familiar Con- federate battle ag in the canton, or upper left corner, the only current U.S. state ag to do so. Georgia’s state ag is very similar to the rst national ag of the Confeder- acy, the “Stars and Bars"; a prior design incorporating the Confederate battle ag was in use from 1956 until 2001. Three versions of the flag of the Confederate States of Amer- ica and the Confederate Battle Flag are shown on this printed poster from 1896. The “Stars and Bars” can be seen in the up- 1 National flags per left. Standing at the center are Stonewall Jackson, P. G. T. Beauregard, and Robert E. Lee, surrounded by bust portraits of 1.1 First national flag: “The Stars and Jefferson Davis, Alexander Stephens, and various Confederate army officers, such as James Longstreet and A. P. Hill. Bars” (1861–1863) German/Prussian artist Nicola Marschall in Marion, Al- abama and resembles the Flag of the Austrian Empire (later Austria-Hungary, now the Republic of Austria), with which Marschall would have been familiar.[12][13] The “Stars and Bars” ag was adopted March 4, 1861, in the rst temporary national capital of Montgomery, Al- abama, and raised over the dome of that rst Confederate capitol. Marschall also designed the Confederate army uniform.[13] One of the rst acts of the Provisional Confederate Congress was to create the “Committee on the Flag and Seal”, chaired by William Porcher Miles of South Car- A Confederate “Stars and Bars” flag, captured by soldiers of the olina. The committee asked the public to submit thoughts Union Army at Columbia, South Carolina. and ideas on the topic and was, as historian John M. Coski puts it, “overwhelmed by requests not to abandon the 'old The rst ocial national ag of the Confederacy, ag' of the United States.” Miles had already designed a often called the “Stars and Bars”, was own from ag that would later become known as the Confederate March 4, 1861 to May 1, 1863. It was designed by "Battle Flag", and he favored his ag over the “Stars and 1 2 1 NATIONAL FLAGS Bars” proposal. But given the popular support for a ag 1. ^ “Confederate States of America government”. similar to the U.S. ag ("the Stars and Stripes" – orig- Retrieved October 5, 2014. inally established and designed in June 1777 during the Revolutionary War), the “Stars and Bars” design was ap- proved by the committee.[14] When the American Civil 1.2 Second national flag: “The Stainless War broke out, the “Stars and Bars” caused confusion on Banner” (1863–1865) the battleeld at the First Battle of Bull Run because of its similarity to the U.S. ag, especially when it was hanging During the solicitation for a second Confederate national [15] limp, down on the agsta. ag, there were many dierent types of designs that were The “Stars and Bars” was also criticized on ideologi- proposed, nearly all making use of the battle ag, which cal grounds for its resemblance to the U.S. ag, which by 1863 had become well-known and popular among many Confederates disliked, seeing it as symbolizing those living in the Confederacy. The new design was abolitionism and emancipation, to which the government specied by the Confederate Congress to be a white eld of the Confederacy were ocially opposed to as a matter “with the union (now used as the battle ag) to be a square of policy. As early as April 1861, a month after the ag’s of two-thirds the width of the ag, having the ground red; adoption, some were already criticizing the ag, calling it thereupon a broad saltire of blue, bordered with white, and emblazoned with mullets or ve-pointed stars, corre- a “servile imitation” and a “detested parody” of the U.S. [17] ag.[16] In January 1862, George William Bagby, writ- sponding in number to that of the Confederate States.” ing for the Southern Literary Messenger, wrote that many The ag is also known as “the Stainless Banner” and Confederates disliked the ag. “Every body wants a new was designed by William T. Thompson, a newspaper ed- Confederate ag,” Bagby wrote, also stating that “The itor and writer based in Savannah, Georgia, with assis- present one is universally hated. It resembles the Yankee tance from William Ross Postell, a Confederate block- ag and that is enough to make it unutterably detestable.” ade runner.[2][3][5][6][7][8] The nickname “stainless” re- The editor of the Charleston Mercury expressed a simi- ferred to the pure white eld which took up a large lar view, stating that “It seems to be generally agreed that part of the ag’s design, although W.T. Thompson, the the 'Stars and Bars’ will never do for us. They resemble ag’s designer, referred to his design as “The White too closely the dishonored 'Flag of Yankee Doodle'… Man’s Flag”.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] In referring to the white we imagine that the "Battle Flag" will become the South- eld that comprised a large part of the ag’s design el- ern Flag by popular acclaim.” In addition, William T. ements, Thompson stated that its color symbolized the Thompson, the editor of the Savannah-based Daily Morn- “supremacy of the white man":[1] ing News also objected to the ag, stating in April 1863 that he was opposed to it “on account of its resemblance to that of the abolition despotism against which we are ghting.”[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] In 1863, Thompson would go on to design the ag that would succeed the “Stars and Bars”, the “Stainless Banner”.[5][6][7][8] Over the course of the ag’s use by the Confederacy, additional stars were added to the ag’s canton, even- tually bringing the total number of stars on the ag to thirteen. This reected the Confederacy’s claims of hav- ing admitted Kentucky and Missouri into the Confeder- Second national flag acy. Although they were represented in the Confeder- (May 1, 1863 – March 4, 1865[18]), 2:1 ratio ate Congress, neither state was ever fully controlled or administered by the Confederacy. The rst showing of the 13-star ag was outside the Ben Johnson House in As a people we are ghting maintain the Bardstown, Kentucky; the 13-star design was also in use Heaven-ordained supremacy of the white man as the Confederate navy’s battle ensign. over the inferior or colored race; a white ag • would thus be emblematical of our cause. First national ag with 7 stars —William T. Thompson (April 23, 1863), (March 4, 1861 – May 21, 1861) Daily Morning News[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] • First national ag with 9 stars (May 21, 1861 – July 2, 1861) • However, the ocial Confederate ag act of 1864 did First national ag with 11 stars not formally state what the white-colored eld ocially (July 2, 1861 – November 28, 1861) symbolized and thus, many Confederates at the time of- • First national ag with 13 stars fered various interpretations. The Confederate Congress (November 28, 1861 – May 1, 1863[1]) debated whether the white eld should have a blue stripe 1.3 Third national flag: “The Blood-Stained Banner” (1865) 3 the canton was sucient enough to distinguish the ag from that of one of truce and that adding any additional elements would make the ag look too much like the U.S. one, which he referred to derisively as “the Yan- kee ag”.[5][6][7][8] However, despite these complaints, the second national ag was applauded by some for its design invoking Confederate ideology. George William Bagby praised the ag, referring to the saltire in the ag’s canton as the “Southern Cross”, as did others at the time, and stating that it embodied “the destiny of the Southern master and his African slave”, pointing them southward to "the banks of the Amazon", expressing the desire many Confederates held of expanding slavery southward into Second national flag, also used as the Confederate navy’s ensign, [4][20] 1.5:1 ratio Latin America. and whether it should be bordered in red. As the ag’s 1.3 Third national flag: “The Blood- designer, W.T. Thompson opposed adding any such ad- Stained Banner” (1865) ditional elements to the white eld.[2][3][8][5][6][7] William Miles delivered a speech supporting the simple white de- sign that was eventually approved. He argued that the battle ag must be used, but for a national ag it was nec- essary to emblazon it, but as simply as possible, with a plain white eld.[19] In May 1863, when Thompson dis- covered that his design had been chosen by the Confeder- ate Congress to become the Confederacy’s next national ag, he was pleased.