Bulgaria // State Flag (unofficial) / 1990(?)-present
The white over green over red Bulgarian flag with the states coat of arms in white stripe towards hoist.
As far as is known there is no "state flag" prescribed i.e., the national tricolour with the coat of arms in the upper stripe). The closest thing to it is the Prime Minister's flag, but with the white stripe double the width.
It may be that the former custom of having the coat of arms in the canton induced some to produce and use such a flag by ignorance or eagerness.
The flags in green, white and red colours were used by Bulgarian Legia (revolutionary organisation founded in Serbia by Bulgarian emigrants led by G. Rakovsky) in 1861-1862. The first white-green-red striped flag was made by S. Paraskevov and presented to Russian-Bulgarian troops (during the war against Turkey) in the Romanian town of Braila in 1877. It was a swallow-tailed banner. There was a lion and inscription "BULGARIA" in the centre (in Cyrillic characters). Now the "banner of Braila" is kept in War Museum in Sofia. The Bulgarian Constitution of 1878 confirmed this flag (but rectangular and without a lion).
Each year since the fall of the communist government, a ceremony is conducted in Sophia, where the Bishop sprinkles holy water on a symbolic horses tail and a flag from the Russo-Turkish war. The flag and horses tail are provided by the Museum of Military History. The celebration occurs on January 6, a religious festival day in Bulgaria. In addition, the bishop throws a silver cross into a river or lake, from which it is retrieved by a devout believer.
Article 166 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria states that the Flag of the Republic of Bulgaria is a tricolor: white, green, and red from top, placed horizontally. According to the Bulgarian State Seal and National Flag Act, The three color fields shall be identical in form and size: Form - rectangular with a 3:5 width-to-length ratio. Size: 18 cm x 30 cm, 24 cm x 40 cm, 90 cm x 150 cm, 129 cm x 215 cm. Colors: white - with a degree of whiteness not less than 80%, green - #17-5936 TS according to the Pantone-textile scale, and red - #18-1664 TS according to the Pantone-textile scale. Standard samples of the colors of the national flag shall be kept by the Committee of Standards and Metrology.
This flag was given to Martin Wedel by Mr.Sokolov, Director of Bulcacoop,when Bulgaria changed from communism to democracy in 1990.
ZFC Noteworthy Flag
No Description
