The Civil war Flags: Confederate and Union

Flags... why do we have them?  What is the purpose of them?  They are a symbolism of independence.  They explain our past, present, and future to come.  The flag that flies over each state capitol represents that state, and its people. Displaying a flag can show how you feel: angry, happy, proud, disappointed, or trying to make a point.  Changing the flag, mayrepresent the change of government, and the type of government for that matter.  Flags have been used as far back as 5,000 years ago.  Flags show your opinion... and this... opinions... is the reason of the Civil war.

The South against the North... the Confederate against the Union; two armies... two peoples... and two flags.

Lets start with the North.  Now, we have thirteen stripes for the thirteen original colonies, and fifty stars, one for each state.  But, do you really know how the American flag, a.k.a. "Old Glory" was, lets say, in 1877?  There weren't even stars!  In fact, there were thirteen stripes, as now, but instead of stars; it was a small replica of England flag, in the upper left corner.  This was changed as soon as The Untied States of America became an independent country.  From 1777 to 1795 the American flag consisted of thirteen white and red stripes, and fifteen white stars.  The stars had no specific order, either; rows, squares, and even circles.  The stars changed number, as the stripes remained, to keep in mind of the thirteen colonies, which started the United States of America.  The US flag has changed a number of 27 times, each time, adding a new start, represent each newly added state.

Many people wondered, "Why those choice of colors?!?"  No one really knows why, but we have come up with one possibility!  Ok, ok, ok... I shall tell you now.  The colors: red, white and blue.  Just ordinary colors, right?  No!  As of the flags, the colors themselves have their own significant meaning.  Blue, the color behind the white stars stands for vigilance, perseverance, and justice.  The red, one of the colors of the stripes, mean hardness and courage.  Something both the Confederate and the Union had and fought for.  And white, another color of the stripes, stands for purity and innocence.  All of these colors and their meaning represent both the South and the North.

The first National Confederate flag.  Thirteen stars; one for each stae of the Confederate side The "Star's and Bars" flying over Fort Sumter

Now, on to the Confederate.  The flags... there were about thirty different flags!  But, to make things short, there are three official national Confederate flags, and one national battle flag.  The first national Confederate flag was flown between March 1861 and May 1863.  The flag strongly represented the Union flag, and was one the reasons the flag was changed.  Three rows: up and down: red, white, then red again. In the upper left corner was a blue square, in it was a circle if seven stars, which represented the following states: South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.  When fought in war, many, many times were the flags confused by their resemblance.

The second flag of the Confederate was adopted on May 1st, 1863.  Now, totally different from the first flag, was a plain white flag, with the Battle Flag in the upper left corner.  Not to succeed gaining Kansas and Nebraska, the Confederate picked up four additional states: Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina.  Having no problem with the resemblance between the Confederate and the Union, the mistake was now between the Confederate flag and the white surrender flag, especially during calm, quiet days.

The third official National Confederate flag was adopted a short time before the Civil War was over.  On March 4th, 1865, the South would carry a new flag, same as the last one, but a red strip down the right side, resembling the blood of the four-year-long Civil War.

BIBLIIOGRAPHY

"C. S. A. National Flags", <http://www.csacurrency.com/csaflag/index.htm>, (January 1st, 2000)

Thw World Book Encyclopedia, Grolier Incorporated, volume F, 1997

The New Book of Knowledge, World Book Inc., volume F~6, 1991

Rebecca Applebee Eight grade 2000-2001