Red, White and Blue Flags

Which countries have red, white and blue flags?

In Europe, France has vertical blue, white and red bands. The Netherlands has horizontal red, white and blue, Russia has white, blue and red. Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Slovakia add a coat of arms to a horizontal tricolor. The Czech Republic is white over red with a blue triangle, and Norway and Iceland use Nordic crosses: Norway a blue cross inside a white-edged red field, Iceland the reverse arrangement on a blue field.

In the Americas, the United States has 13 stripes and 50 stars. Chile has a white star on blue beside red and white. Cuba has blue and white stripes with a red triangle, Panama four quarters, and Costa Rica five horizontal stripes. The Dominican Republic and Haiti are also on the list, as is Paraguay, whose red, white and blue bands carry a different emblem on each side.

In Asia, Thailand has five stripes with a wide blue center. Nepal is the only non-rectangular national flag, and the Philippines, North Korea, Laos and Cambodia also appear. In Africa, Liberia (11 stripes and a star) and Cape Verde are listed. Oceania includes Australia, New Zealand and the Cook Islands, plus British territories such as Bermuda, Anguilla and the Cayman Islands, which carry the Union Jack in the corner.

Why are red, white and blue so common on flags?

Part of the answer is history. The Dutch flag, red, white and blue, inspired the French tricolor of the 1790s, and French revolutionary ideals then spread the tricolor idea across Europe and Latin America. The Dutch colors also shaped the Pan-Slavic palette seen in Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia and Croatia.

The United Kingdom and the United States played a second role. The Union Jack, with the red cross of St George, the white saltire of St Andrew and the blue field, appears on the flags of Australia, New Zealand and many British territories. The Stars and Stripes influenced designs such as Liberia and Cuba. Red, white and blue are also easy to make in dyes and stand out clearly from each other, so these three colors keep appearing together.