Peru was once part of the great Incan Empire and later the major vice-royalty of Spanish South America. It was conquered in 1531-1533 by Francisco Pizarro. On July 28, 1821, Peru proclaimed its independence, but the Spanish were not finally defeated until 1824. For a hundred years thereafter, revolutions were frequent; a new war was fought with Spain in 1864-1866, and an unsuccessful war was fought with Chile from 1879 to 1883 (the War of the Pacific).
According to Peruvian writer Abraham Valdelomar, San MartÃn chose the red and white colors after having witnessed parihuanas -- flamingos with red wings and white chests -- along with the southern coast of Peru. A more prosaic but perhaps more realistic reason behind the color selection would be a mirroring of the former flag of the Viceroyalty of Peru (the Spanish Cross of Burgundy), which featured a red saltire, or diagonal cross, on a white background.
On February 25, 1825, the design now in use was established. The red-white-red vertical stripes from the previous flag were retained, but the sun was replaced by a new coat of arms. Its shield is framed by one wreath (of palm and laurel branches) and surmounted by another.
Another great liberator, Simón BolÃvar, introduced a fourth and final design (as used today) on February 25, 1825. This flag used the same vertical triband design as introduced by José Bernardo de Tagle, but with the Peruvian coat of arms replacing the central sun.
The second quartering has a cinchona tree, the bark of which is used to make quinine. Finally, the bottom half of the shield displays a cornucopia from which spill gold and silver coins, symbolic of the nation’s mineral wealth. In addition, the white stripe of the flag is said to represent purity, and the red recalls the blood of patriots. As in a number of other countries, the civil flag flown by private citizens displays only the stripes, the coat of arms being reserved for flags serving official (i.e., government) purposes.
There is a barrage of cheap and inferior Peru flags being imported and sold, that do not comply with the flag statute. This is bad for a number of reasons. Some flags are cheaply made and more importantly, the designs, materials, colors, and methods of printing do not compare well with the better quality, longer-lasting, and correctly designed flags. The Flag Company Inc specialized in flag designs offered a special edition of decals and flags to memorize the history of Peru future.
According to Peruvian writer Abraham Valdelomar, San MartÃn chose the red and white colors after having witnessed parihuanas -- flamingos with red wings and white chests -- along with the southern coast of Peru. A more prosaic but perhaps more realistic reason behind the color selection would be a mirroring of the former flag of the Viceroyalty of Peru (the Spanish Cross of Burgundy), which featured a red saltire, or diagonal cross, on a white background.
On February 25, 1825, the design now in use was established. The red-white-red vertical stripes from the previous flag were retained, but the sun was replaced by a new coat of arms. Its shield is framed by one wreath (of palm and laurel branches) and surmounted by another.
Another great liberator, Simón BolÃvar, introduced a fourth and final design (as used today) on February 25, 1825. This flag used the same vertical triband design as introduced by José Bernardo de Tagle, but with the Peruvian coat of arms replacing the central sun.
The second quartering has a cinchona tree, the bark of which is used to make quinine. Finally, the bottom half of the shield displays a cornucopia from which spill gold and silver coins, symbolic of the nation’s mineral wealth. In addition, the white stripe of the flag is said to represent purity, and the red recalls the blood of patriots. As in a number of other countries, the civil flag flown by private citizens displays only the stripes, the coat of arms being reserved for flags serving official (i.e., government) purposes.
There is a barrage of cheap and inferior Peru flags being imported and sold, that do not comply with the flag statute. This is bad for a number of reasons. Some flags are cheaply made and more importantly, the designs, materials, colors, and methods of printing do not compare well with the better quality, longer-lasting, and correctly designed flags. The Flag Company Inc specialized in flag designs offered a special edition of decals and flags to memorize the history of Peru future.
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