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Last modified: 2006-05-06 by ivan sache
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Flag of Monaco
Left, in proportion 4:5 - Image by António Martins, 14 February 2000
Right, in proportion 2:3 - Image by Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 14 February 2000
Flag adopted 4 April 1881, coat of arms adopted 15 March 1858
Proportion: 4:5 or 2:3
Description: Horizontally divided red-white
Use: on land, as the national and civil flag; at sea,
as the national and civil ensign
Colour approximate specifications (as given in Album des Pavillons [pay00]):
See also:
The Principality of Monaco is the second smallest sovereign state in the world (the smallest being the Holy See), with an area of 151 hectares, and the most crowded one.
The early history of Monaco is linked to the Genoese civil wars
between the Guelphs (supporting the Pope) and the Ghibellines
(supporting the German Emperor). In 1297, the Guelph Rainier Grimaldi
captured Monaco's rock from the Ghibellines and founded a dynasty,
even if he was not able to keep Monaco for a long time.
In 1342, Charles Grimaldi, from the same family, proclaimed himself
Lord of Monaco, and bought in 1346 the seigniories of Roquebrune and
Menton.
In the XVIth century, Monaco became the first historical example of a
protectorate. During the Spanish protectorate (1525-1641), the Lords
of Monaco upgraded their title to Prince. In 1641, by the treaty of
Péronne, Monaco was transfered under French protectorate.
In 1793, the Principality was annexed by the French Republic.
In 1814, after the fall of Napoléon I, the Grimaldi were
restored and the Principality was put under Sardinian protectorate by
the second treaty of Paris. The economical and political situation
was very bad and led to the proclamation of the
free cities of Roquebrune and Menton
in 1848, which were incorporated to France in 1860 with the
County of Nice. Count Cavour took the
opportunity of these events to drop the Sardinian protectorate over
Monaco.
The real birth of Monaco started in 1863 with the creation of
gambling, which was forbidden in the neighbouring countries. The
suppression of most taxes in 1869 and the achievement of the railway
line between Nice and Monaco in 1868 were also important events. All
of them were promoted by Prince Charles III, who is also to be
credited of the adoption of the current national flag.
The small city of Spéluges became Monte-Carlo in 1866, and the
casino was added a theater in 1879, designed by Garnier on the model
of the Paris opera. From 1949 onwards, the late Prince
Rainier III favoured business with the help of
very advantageous fiscal laws.
The current Constitution was enacted on 17 December 1962. The Prince shall hold the executive and judicial powers, and a part of the legislative power. The State Minister, equivalent of a Prime Minister, shall be appointed by the Prince among proposals made by the French government. Ordinary governmental councilllors shall be chosen by the Prince. The National Council (18 members elected by universal suffrage for 5 years) can only propose laws and vote those proposed by the Government. Only the Prince can dissolve the National Council. Justice shall be rendered by courts on behalf of the Prince.
Monaco, although sovereign and independent, has signed "particular conventions with France". French is the national language and the Monegasque franc had the same value as the French franc until adoption of Euro on 1 January 2002. There has been a French-Monegasque customs union since 1865. According to a treaty signed in Paris on 17 July 1918 and officialized on 28 June 1919, Monaco must "exert its sovereignty rights in perfect agreement with the political, military, naval and economic interests of France". There was a severe French-Monegasque crisis in 1962 for political and economical reasons. After 11 months of difficult discussions, a new fiscal status was adopted for Monaco.
Monaco is still a fiscal paradise: the Monegasque citizens and the non-French foreign inhabitants of Monaco do not pay any income tax. To have the same status, French citizens need to have settled in Monaco at least five years before the 13 October 1962. Companies realizing more than 75% of their benefit in Monaco also do not pay any corporation tax. Local taxes are also inexistant. Therefore Monaco has attracted several members of the jet-set, show-biz, professional sport etc... Among the genuine Monegasque citizens is to be mentioned the poet and singer Leo Ferré (1916-1993)
Source: Guide Gallimard Alpes-Maritimes
Ivan Sache, 14 February 2000
Red and white are the heraldic colours of the Grimaldi family. The colours are attested as far back as 1339, but the flag design changed with time. In the XVIIth century, a banner of arms - red and white lozenges - was used.
Sources: W. Smith [smi75c], Dorling-Kindersely Pocket Flag Book [udk97]
Ivan Sache, 14 February 2000
According to both Smith (in The Flag Bulletin [tfb] 215) and notes by William Crampton, the bi-colour of Monaco is now almost invariably (but
unofficially) displayed in proportions of 2:3, as opposed to 4:5 as shown in
the Annex to the Decree (of Prince Charles III) dated 4 April 1881 which
formally established it.
In the Annex mentioned above both flags (the state and national) are shown
flying from striped (in a spiral) flagpoles, and there is a photograph
(dating from the 1950s) in The Flag Bulletin 215 which shows the same thing,
however, I have no idea how common the practice is today.
Christopher Southworth, 7 April 2005
![[Princely standard and government flag]](../images/m/mc-gov.gif)
Princely standard and government flag - Image by Eugene Ipavec, 4 April 2005; coat of arms from Christian Siemer's Wappenlexicon
The white flag with the national coat of arms is consistently identified as:
Smith (1980 [smi80]) identifies this flag as the state flag and ensign, war flag and ensign (indicated in his 6-point grid).
On the website of the
Monegasque government, this flag is shown flying at the seats of
the Conseil de la Couronne (which seems to be a wing of the
palace) and the Conseil du Gouvernement (which is clearly a
separate building), while the red-white bicolour is shown flying at
the seat of the Conseil National.
It should be noted that the Monegasque government (that is the
executive) is responsible to the Prince, not to the Conseil
National (the elected legislature). The latter institution, like
the rest of the population, uses the red-white bicolour flag and for
this reason I feel that the term "government flag" is more
appropriate than "state flag" when referring to the arms-on-white
flag. Znamierowski [zna99] also
makes the relevant point that the red-white bicolour flag is used by
Monegasque missions abroad.
Vincent Morley, 1 May 2002
The height of the arms is almost exactly 3/4th that of the flag. Flaggenbuch [neu92], however, shows the Arms occupying 17/20th the height of the flag (proportion 2:3), and describes the flag as:
Fürstliche Flagge, gleichzeitig Standarte des Fürsten und Dienstflagge, darf an Land auch von Privaten geführt werden
I found a large, recent picture of a Monegasque Carabinier about
to hoist the State Flag above Saint Mary's tower in Monaco Castle.
This was published in Paisajes, a complimentary magazine
handed out to passengers in the Madrid-Seville high speed train, page
52, November or December 1999 issue. The picture is so large that
even the folds in the flag are apparent, and measuring the flag
height and comparing it that of the arms is straightforward. Santiago Dotor, 16 February 2000 The monks supporting the shield in the coat of arms allude to the
conquest of Monaco in 1297, when a Grimaldi entered the city with
soldiers dressed as monks, with swords hidden under their cassocks
(therefore the monks bear swords on the arms). The collar surrounding
the shield represents the St. Charles' Order. The Grimaldi motto
(Deo Juvante) reads "With God's help" (also related to the
1297 capture). Sources: W. Smith
[smi76c], Dorling-Kindersely
Pocket Flag Book [udk98] Ivan Sache, 14 February 2000 Prince Rainier's car flag - Image by Santiago Dotor, 14 February 2000 Smith [smi75c] shows the
"Princely Flag" with unofficial proportions 5:6, and says about it:
"The cipher [sic] of Prince Rainier figures on his personal
flag". Barraclough and Crampton [bcr81]
identify this flag as the car flag of Prince Rainier III. Santiago Dotor, 14 February 2000 My guess would be that this flag is used only in the immediate
presence of the Prince - perhaps mainly, or only, on cars in which he
is travelling. Vincent Morley, 1 May 2002 The national anthem of the Principality of Monaco mentions an
ancient flag in the second stanza: Principauté Monaco, ma patrie, Fiers Compagnons de la Garde Civique, English translation: Principality of Monaco, my country, Proud Fellows of the Civic Guard, The national anthem of Monaco was performed for the first time in
1867 (words by Théophile Bellando de Castro [1820-1903]; music
by Charles Albrecht [1817-1895]) Text and translation from the
website of the Mission
of Monaco to UNO The mention of the ancient flag most probably refers to the
national flag, whose colours are said to date back to 1339. Ivan Sache, 6 May 2003 Monaco lozengy flag - Image by Marcus Schmöger, 11 July 2002 The Flag Bulletin [tfb] has
covered the symbols of Monaco in a recent article. The cover picture
shows Whitney Smith's rendition of a Monaco lozengy flag. Marcus Schmöger, 11 July 2002
The arms are 11/20ths (0,55) as high as the flag, which does not fit
the images in either Smith [smi75c]
or Flaggenbuch [neu92].
The motto (Deo Juvante) is shown in red letters, not gold ones
as in some renderings.
Coat of arms of Monaco
Prince Rainier III's car flag
![[Prince's standard]](../images/m/mc_riii.gif)
The flag is shown as being 5:6 with the fringe - without it it
would be quite exactly 3:4. The fringe appears to be one ninth of the
height of the white field.
National anthem of Monaco
Oh! combien Dieu est prodigue pour toi.
Ciel toujours pur, rives toujours fleuries,
Ton souverain est plus aimé qu'un Roi.
Ton souverain est plus aimé qu'un Roi.
Respectons tous la voix du Commandant.
Suivons toujours notre bannière antique.
Le tambour bat, marchons tous an Avant,
Le tambour bat, marchons tous an Avant.
Oh! how God is lavish with you.
An ever-clear sky, ever-blossoming shores,
Your Sovereign is better liked than a King,
Your Sovereign is better liked than a King.
Let us all listen to the Commender's voice.
Let us always follow our ancient flag.
Drums are beating, let us all march forward,
Drums are beating, let us all march forward.
Historical flag of Monaco
![[Historical flag of Monaco]](../images/m/mc_loz.gif)
This lozengy banner of arms seems to have been used mainly in the
XVIIth century, as evidenced by paintings in the princely palace. As
an unofficial flag it has been used until now. The aforementioned
article shows a black-and-white photograph of the celebrations in
1957 when Prince Rainier married Grace Kelly (afterwards known as
Princess Gracia Patricia). On this photograph there are eight of the
banners of arms, however the exact number of lozenges can't be
counted, as the flags are not fully unfurled. There seems to be at
least to different variants on this foto, though, so I guess that
(especially as an unofficial flag) there is quite some variation
anyway.