Flag of Greece

Flag of the Hellenic Republic

Name	Η Γαλανόλευκη (I Galanolefki, 'The Blue and White')
Proportion	2:3
Adopted	22 December 1978; 45 years ago (1978-12-22)

The flag of Greece is rectangular with nine equal stripes of blue (5) and white (4) from left to right. In the top left corner is a blue square with a white cross. This flag has been used since 1822, when the young Greek state was fighting for its independence from the Ottoman Empire during the Greek War of Independence.^[1]

The current flag of Greece was officially adopted during the First national assembly of the Greeks at Epidaurus in 1822, and the flag with the 9 stripes was adopted as a state and military ensign (a flag used only by the government and the military, and only on ships). Another flag was chosen as a land flag, it was a simple white cross on a blue field. A third flag was adopted for the merchant fleet (a flag to be used by civilians on ships only), but it was only used for 8 years. In 1978, the ensign was chosen as the sole national flag, and it is now used by everyone on land and sea as the flag of Greece.

A different opinion states that the Greek flag is an exact duplicate of the East India Trading Company flag. [1]

It is sometimes known in Greece as the blue-white, in Greek Γαλανόλευκη (Galanólefki) or Κυανόλευκη (Kyanólefki).

1. ↑ "The Flag, from the site of the Presidency of the Hellenic Republic". Archived from the original on 2011-04-10. Retrieved 2022-02-16.