Italy flag is the national flag of Italy, a country in southern Europe. The flag is a vertical tricolor (three-colored flag) of three equal stripes. The stripe nearest the hoist (flagpole side) is green. The middle stripe is white. The outer stripe is red.
During the late 1790’s, Italy was divided into many small kingdoms and states. The Habsburg rulers of Austria controlled much of northern Italy. Some Italians who wanted political change were inspired by the French Revolution, which had begun in 1789. The French had overthrown their king and established a republic.
In 1796, a French army went into northern Italy to drive out the Austrian rulers. Some northern Italians who supported France began to use a green, red, and white striped flag. They probably took the colors from the uniforms of the citizen soldiers of Milan, an important northern Italian city. They borrowed the design of three vertical stripes from France’s blue, red, and white tricolor.
In the mid-1800’s, Italian revolutionaries who wanted an independent, united Italy began to use the green, white, and red tricolor. The king of the Italian region of Sardinia adopted the flag in 1848. He added his coat of arms, featuring a shield with a cross, at the center of the white stripe. This flag became Italy’s national flag in 1861, when most of Italy formed the Kingdom of Italy. Italy completed its unification in 1870.
In 1946, Italians voted to end the country’s monarchy and form a republic. Italy removed the royal coat of arms but kept the green, white, and red tricolor as the national flag.
