Weekly Flag Challenge: New Challenges & Previous Winners

[FONT=&quot]Fly! Dragon of Liberty! Republican Chinese Dragon Flag[/FONT]
AH Historical Background said:
During Boxer War, With the International Legations overrun and diplomats killed (POD, IOTL it stood firm), the invading Alliance of Eight Nations took revenge by killing a good part of the Qing royal house and abolishing the dynasty.
The provincial governors of China, fearing anarchy and possible foreign partition of China, activated a previously-made agreement and hastily declared a Chinese “Republic”, with Li Hungchang (
23089_100001074751204_2358_q.jpg
) as China’s new President.
This regime fared surprisingly well…
Despite starting as a de facto oligarchy, the regime had democratic trappings since its birth, and they were able to carry out gradual democratizing experiments. This is why their flag is called the Dragon of Liberty, especially during the Sino-Soviet Confrontation days.
Your task is to make a Republican Chinese Flag upon the creation of this republic in 1900.
Rule No.1: Do not recycle the Qing flag, use of this (
72_avatar_small.jpg
) dragon is strictly forbidden. The Qing had a bad press in those days so the Republican dragon should be different.
Rule No.2: The dragon featured on the flag can be of ANY form, but it must be recognizably Chinese. Dragons with wings are forbidden.
Rule No.3: Try to give this flag "something new", something that can differentiate itself from the Qing disaster. (e.g. Symbols of democracy##, of modernity, of nationalism et cetera.)
Rule No.4. Do not deface the flag with words.#
As for colour of the dragon, colour of the flag, the configurations, and addition of other elements on the flag, the choice is yours. ###

CLOSING DATE FOR ENTRIES:
[FONT=&quot]Saturday, 18 May
4:47 p.m. GMT[/FONT]

VOTING (should :)) start 18 May and finish 25 May, midnight GMT.

# (Here is my "dragon flag" design... But national flags should not bear words)
## (RoC's 62 Airborne division used a blue-white-red background behind a dragon. And Blue-White-Red is precisely the colour for democracy.)
### (I personally prefer white dragon in blue sea wave, like this. But you can come up with a nicer colour combination.)
 
Here is the new flag challenge:

Alternate colonial independence

Many European countries, throughout the colonial period established colonies which were unsuccessful or which they sold or had taken away from them.

Design a flag for one of these colonies, as if it had been granted independence in the 1960s. No need to post a timeline, but kudos if you do.

Example colonies: Italian East Africa, New Netherland, New Sweden, Mosquito Coast, Gao.

A reminder that all entries should be 300px high.

Challenge begins: Monday May 27th
Challenge ends: Monday June 3rd
Voting begins: Monday June 3rd
Voting ends: Monday June 10th

All dates in AEST (GMT+10)


Good luck!
 
FLAG CHALLENGE 94

SOUTH GERMAN CONFEDERATION

Design a flag for a South German Confederation (or South German Union etc) which comes into being anytime from 1815 (OTL Congress of Vienna) to 1866 (OTL Austro-Prussian War). Chiefly comprising Austria and Bavaria, but feel free to add in any other states in the south of Germany. Feel free to include or exclude Hungary and her attendant territories, in the latter case assuming an independent Hungary.


[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Challenge begins: Friday 14 June
Challenge ends: Friday 21 June (midnight BST)
Voting begins: Saturday 22 June (hopefully!)
Voting ends: Saturday 23 June (midnight BST)[/FONT]

[/FONT]
 
And viperhawkz won with this:
The flag of the South German Federation, adopted in 1866 after Austria's final capitulation and subsequent incorporation into the Federation. Clashes between Munich and Vienna would mark the rest of the Federation's history...

(Includes Baden, Wurttemburg, Bavaria and Austria proper, but not Hungary, Bohemia, etc.)


vxOr5Mp.png
Thank you all! :D

Flag Challenge 95

I Would Walk Five Thousand Miles

For this week's challenge, you must design a flag for a country that originated in an alternate migration. For example: OTL, the Magyars migrated from Central Asia to Central Europe and became the nation of Hungary. But what if, say, the Uyghurs had made that trip instead? What if the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes had gone east to Sweden instead of west to England? What is the Bantus had migrated into North Africa? What if... This can be ASB if necessary.

Challenge begins: Monday, July the 1st
Challenge ends: Monday, July the 7th (Midnight EST)
Voting begins: Tuesday, July the 8th
Voting ends: Tuesday, July the 15th (Midnight EST)

Which I then won with this
Magyar migration divides in 2 - 1 heads south into Caucausus and Anatolia, the other heads west as OTL into the Pannonian Plain.
ATL however the second group, being fewer in number, get absorbed into the Avar Khaganate [1].
The Slavic dialects thus get a further boost as a lingua franca until the country evolves into the christian slavic [2] kingdom known as the Avorak Stephanate [3]
attachment.php


[1] becoming a sort of Pannonian Bulgaria
[2] albeit with Turkic and Magyar influence
[3] a stephan being roughly a high king and an ATL replacement for the word kagan
 
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Challenge 96

Challenge 96: Republica da Africa Austral

The Southern African Republic [sort of a south african Brazil] has recently undergone a constitutional change that necessitated a change in flag.
Your challenge is to show the before and after flags.
- as this is a multiflag challenge 150px height restriction applies
- other flags and maps allowed as background but won't be shown in the poll entry which shall be blurb + flags only

Challenge begins: Tuesday 17th July 2013
Challenge ends: Tuesday 24th July 2013 12noon GMT
Voting begins: Wednesday 25th July 2013
Voting ends: Wednesday 31st July 2013
 
And Keperry won with this:
I don't know if this actually fits the parameters, but I already made the flags, so I might as well post it:

A stronger Portuguese focus on Africa meant that Portugal was able to enforce the claims made in the Pink Map, linking its colonies in Angola and Mozambique with a wide swath of the African interior (OTL Zimbabwe and most of Zambia and Malawi). In 1890 the British issued an ultimatum that the Portuguese withdraw, but they were unable to enforce it due to distractions on the continent and an unwillingness to go against an old ally with such a strong presence in the area. Soon after, the area was officially recognized by Britain and the other European powers as Portuguese South Africa (África Meridional Português).

As many of the newly acquired areas were considered suitable for white habitation, Portugal quickly set about to attracting settlers from Europe, especially Catholic ones, to the colonies, and then encouraging them to speak Portuguese and assimilate into the wider Portuguese society, with some degree of success. However, whites remained a small and isolated minority of the population, with the much larger native population generally either exploited or ignored. Portuguese assistance for the Boers during the Anglo-Boer war, hidden under the diplomatic veil of volunteering, helped those nations to independence, but also had the unintended effect of fueling desires for independence in Africa Meridional, which were further inflamed by an influx of republican exiles from the metropole after a failed revolution in 1910.

When Portugal was dragged into World War I on the side of the Central Powers it granted Africa Meridional autonomy as a dominion so that it would better be able to direct the war effort in Africa, but the dominion soon became dominated by nationalist factions who turned against the Central Powers, joined the Entente, and declared independence as the Republic of Africa Meridional. As a reward, the victorious Entente recognized the RAM's independence in the Treaty of Versailles and granted it the sections of German East Africa and Southwest Africa that it had captured as mandates.

AustralFlagBefore.png

(Independence flag of Africa Meridional, combining the arms of Angola and Mozambique.)

Whites dominated the new nation, while the black majority were denied political and social rights. Eventually an official policy of "separação" was implemented in 1950, making segregation and discrimination official and strengthening the government in its pursuit of each. The black community started a campaign of resistance against separação, strengthened by struggles for independence by the black inhabitants of the Meridional mandates, opposition to separação and support for the resistance from Africa Meridional's neighbors and foreign powers, and divisions among the white governments of the various regions as the central government became increasingly right-wing and nationalistic.

Fueled by the Cold War, by the late 1970s the conflict flared into a full-blown civil war, with the white central government and the right-wing governments of the Orange Free State and Zanzibar on one side, and the black resistance, Marxist movements, and the left-wing governments of Bechuanaland and Mapungubwe (formerly Transvaal) on the other side. By 1995, the war had reached a stalemate, with the whites controlling the densely populated coasts and Zambezi River, and the blacks controlling most of the interior of the country. Western powers and the UN finally brokered a peace agreement that called for a new constitution, renaming the country to the Republic of Meridia. A democratic government with the principle of majority rule, but with assured rights and representation for the white minority, was enacted.

AustralFlagAfter.png


A new flag for Meridia was introduced. The pattern at the hoist represented the waters of Amélia Falls (OTL Victoria Falls), location of the new federal capital, as well as the ideal of the two races living together in harmony. The tricolor combines the green color of the old government and the gold favored by the resistance, and bears stars representing the Southern Cross, a unifying symbol in that it is above all Meridians regardless of race.
 
Flag Challenge 97: American Monarchies

Your challenge is to create a flag for a monarchy anywhere in the Americas. These can be monarchic versions of OTL countries as well as new countries, surviving indigenous monarchies, or transplanted monarchies from other continents.

Challenge begins: Saturday, August 3
Challenge ends: Saturday, August 10
Voting begins: Sunday, August 11
Voting ends: Sunday, August 18

Dates are PST (GMT -8).
 
CyberPhoenix001 won with this:

Well, I've never entered a contest before, but I had this flag lying around, so what the hell?

No real elaborate backstory: the basic idea is that the Seven Years War lasts for a year longer, allowing for Pitt to push for a harder peace. Louisiana and the French Caribbean are annexed.

The French Revolution kicks off several decades earlier; as a result, the British clamp down a bit harder on the colonists, aborting the American Revolution. In time, the British and the Americans work out a compromise and establish British North America as an independent constitutional monarchy.

The flag design takes elements from the flag of Britian, but with a reversed colour scheme, reflecting the Kingdom of North America's status as "Britain, on the other side of the Atlantic". In the centre, are 13 stars representing the 13 original colonies, symbolising their proud heritage, with a larger star in the centre symbolising their unity under their own monarch.

The Kingdom of North America:
attachment.php
 
Thanks to everyone who voted for my flag! Now, onto the next challenge (I hope this works for everyone):

Flag Challenge 98: A Modern Roman Flag

Your challenge is to create a flag representing a modern continuation of the Roman Empire. It can be a direct continuation of the Empire, a successor state such as the Byzantine Empire or an alternate thereof, or even an overseas colony where the glory of Rome still persists.

Addendum: The term "modern" here is being used to refer to the period immediately following the historiographical "Modern Age". Hence, the flag can be dated any time from 1500 CE - Present Day.

Challenge begins: Monday, August 19
Challenge ends: Monday, August 26
Voting begins: Tuesday, August 27
Voting ends: Tuesday, September 3

Dates are PST (GMT -8).
 
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And the winner is Rubberduck3y6 with this:

Flag of the Mauretanian Empire

The Western Roman Empire, rather than completely dissolving as IOTL, evolved into the Mauretanian Empire ITTL in much the same way as the Eastern Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire.

By the mid-C5th, imperial control in the west had been reduced parts of Gaul, Italy and Mauretania*. With the Ostrogoth barbarians bearing down on the capital Ravenna, the Emperor Julius Nepos fled to Caesarea, the capital of the province of Mauretania Caesariensis. From their exile in Africa, Julius Nepos and his successors successfully resisted incursions from the Vandals crossing over from Hispania, securing imperial rule in Africa. Various reconquest campaigns followed with only partial, temporary success. Instead the Mauretanian Empire became the leading Christian power in Africa, bringing Muslim western expansion to a halt and playing an important part in the Christian campaigns to reclaim Jerusalem for Christendom.

The flag of the Empire features an Aquila, the old symbol of the Roman military, holding a Christian crucifix, reflecting both the Empire's Roman roots and it's strong Christian identity.

*OTL modern Algeria and Morocco

attachment.php
 
Thanks to everyone who voted for my flag and for all the other entries as well. :)

Flag Challenge 99: The United Regions of America

The challenge is to design a flag for a region of the United States such as New England, the Midwest or the Pacific Northwest. The region and its boundaries are up to you and can be part of the OTL US or an alternate US, but it must consist of at least three states/territories/districts which must be specified in the flag description.

Challenge begins: Tuesday 3rd September
Challenge ends: Tuesday 10th September
Voting begins: Wednesday 11th September
Voting ends: Wednesday 18th September

All dates are BST (UTC+1)

Good luck!
 
The challenge is to design a flag for a region of the United States such as New England, the Midwest or the Pacific Northwest. The region and its boundaries are up to you and can be part of the OTL US or an alternate US, but it must consist of at least three states/territories/districts which must be specified in the flag description.

Must it be a subnational unit, or can it be an independent federation or similar? If the former, is this a replacement for the current state system or in addition to it?
 
Must it be a subnational unit, or can it be an independent federation or similar? If the former, is this a replacement for the current state system or in addition to it?
It should be a subnational interstate region, like the census regions or federal regions, or the regions of England or France. What powers the region has (if any) are up to you.
 
It should be a subnational interstate region, like the census regions or federal regions, or the regions of England or France. What powers the region has (if any) are up to you.

Coolio. When you say it has to be a part of a United States, how much leeway are you giving to that concept? Does it have to be a region of a state descended from that which gained independence in 1776? Could we do, for example, a region of a *British North America, or *Confederacy, or *Louisiana?
 
Congratulations to Martinus Paduei who won with this entry:
After a much longer Alt-WWI, featuring much heavier American involvement, an even worse Alt-Great Depression occurs. The economic cataclysm causes political meltdown and the United States violently breaks into over half a dozen nations. One of them, comprising Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan, is the Midwest Progressive Republic. The present flag, with white stars on a blue background evoking the old national flag representing the five constituent states, together with a cogwheel and wheat representing factory and farm workers, was first raised in the new capitol of Milwaukee in 1949.

A big thank you to xt828 for cleaning up the concept flag I sent to him.

MidwestProgressiveRepublic_zpse8398fb9.png
 
Congratulations, Martin. :)


I have a suggestion, guys : For the 100th round of the WFC, we should come up with a special AH flag theme, just in order to celebrate that the Contest has gotten this far and has survived for more than four years. By AH.com standards, such a long-running contest is truly remarkable. :cool:
 
Wow, I finally won! :D I don't know about a special challenge. I'd rather just have a regular old contest. I was thinking about a design contest for a surviving Khazar polity. It doesn't have to be a Khaganate, or of Jewish character, though of course those are possibilities.
 
I have a suggestion, guys : For the 100th round of the WFC, we should come up with a special AH flag theme, just in order to celebrate that the Contest has gotten this far and has survived for more than four years.

I support this proposal.

It could be competition #100 while letting Martinus P set the challenge for #101.
 
I'm actually rather torn on whether to do a wholly "celebratory" round or just a plain one with some mini-celebration attached.
 
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