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City of Wilhelmshaven (Lower Saxony, Germany)

Stadt Wilhelmshaven

3:5
image by Stefan Schwoon, 21 February 2001

Introduction
Description
Flag 1892-1939
Flag 1939-1946

See also:

County and Municipal Flags (Lower Saxony / Niedersachsen, Germany)
Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen, Germany)
Germany

Introduction

In 1853 Prussia bought a strip of land at the bay of the river Jade from the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg with the intention of building a naval base there. At this time, Prussia did not have direct access to the North Sea (hence the purchase), a situation that did not change until 1866. Along with the naval base, a town was built, which, in 1869, was named Wilhelmshaven. The name literally means William's/Wilhelm's port after King Wilhelm/William I of Prussia.

As a result of the founding of Wilhelmshaven, the surrounding Oldenburgian villages also grew, and in 1911 they were amalgamated into a new town called Rüstringen. Rüstringen was the name of a historical district in the area, part of which is nowadays below the sea-level, drowned by the floods that created the Jade bay.

In 1937, the Greater Hamburg law annexed Wilhelmshaven to Oldenburg, and the town of Rüstringen was annexed to Wilhelmshaven.

Stefan Schwoon, 27 October 2005

Description

Red-yellow with the arms. Sources: Staack 1997 [saa97] and Stadler 1964-1971 [staXX].

Stefan Schwoon, 21 February 2001

From Ralf Hartemink's International Civic Arms website:

Wilhelmshaven became an important harbour at the end of the last century. In 1873 the town became a city and in 1919 its own urban district [kreisfreie Stadt]. The first arms were granted in 1892. (...) After the incorporation of Rüstringen new arms were designed in 1939. (...) Finally, in 1949, the present arms were granted. These arms are based on the old arms of Rüstringen.
Literature: Stadler 1964-1971 [staXX].

Santiago Dotor, 18 December 2001

Flag 1892-1939

image by Santiago Dotor, 26 October 2005

Wilhelmshaven changed its symbols several times in its short history. Blue-white-black were the colours from 1892-1939. The current colours red-yellow were adopted in 1948 and were previously the colours of Rüstringen, which was united with Wilhelmshaven in 1937.

Stefan Schwoon, 18 June 2002

In 1892, Wilhelmshaven received its first coat-of-arms. The city colours to go along with these arms were black-white-blue. Rüstringen also bore arms, and its city colours were red-yellow. After the merger a new coat-of-arms was deemed necessary, which was granted in 1939, and the city colours became blue-white. The new arms were abolished by the occupation authorities in 1946, and in 1948 a third, still current, coat-of-arms was accepted, similar to the previous coat-of-arms of Rüstringen, also with the city colours red-yellow.

Sources:

Wilhelmshaven municipal website (German text only) showing the four coats-of-arms
Wilhelmshaven in Ralf Hartemink's International Civic Arms website with many more details
Deutsches Städtebuch [keyXX, volume III, 1: Niedersachsen/Bremen, editor: Heinz Stoob, 1952

Stefan Schwoon, 27 October 2005

Flag 1939-1946

image by Santiago Dotor, 28 October 2005

In 1939 the city colours became blue-white. The new arms were abolished by the occupation authorities in 1946, and in 1948 a third, still current, coat-of-arms was accepted, similar to the previous coat-of-arms of Rüstringen, also with the city colours red-yellow.

Sources: see above.

Stefan Schwoon, 27 October 2005