Here was the challenge.
Submission 1
Submission 2
Flag Challenge 197: It Comes in all Shapes
Create a flag for a nation which is not in the shape of a rectangular or square.
The flag should be based on a real world object: eg kite, tent, sandals… Whatever you think would be a possibility, and please explain why the flag developed from the object that inspired it.
The nations can be real world or created by you, but should be plausible countries.
No ASB nations.
For a reference, in the Dark Ages of flag contests, before our current set up, I created a flag based on both sails and kites. I also did another based on wind socks (unfortunately cannot find that post). A real world example would be the flag of Nepal.
Submission 1
The Battle-Axe Flag of Ulaid
At the end of the 12th century, it seemed that the kingdom of Ulaid was destined to fade into history. Its territory had been reduced by other Irish kingdoms and the Norman invasion had introduced a group of power-hungry nobles to the island. In 1177 Ulaid was invaded by John de Courcy, in violation of the treaty between the Irish high king, Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair (Rory O'Connor) and Henry II of England.
De Courcy's surprise attack on Ulaid's capital, Dún De Lethglaise (Downpatrick), initially forced the King of Ulaid, Ruaidrí Mac Duinn Sléibe (Rory MacDonlevy), to flee. The papal legate, Cardinal Vivien, had ordered de Courcy to withdraw, but his command had been ignored. As a result, Ruaidrí was able to call on the support of the church. A week after the surprise attack, he returned with a superior force, accompanied by the Bishop of Down and other clerics from across the province. The ensuing battle lasted all day and looked likely to end in a bloody stalemate when two things happened simultaneously.
As Ruaidrí fought his way through the Norman forces, he met de Courcy and a vicious combat ensued. De Courcy was renowned as one of the most skilled swordsmen in Ireland and at first it seemed that Ruaidrí, armed with a battle-axe, was out-classed, but eventually, despite bleeding from countless wounds, it was Ruaidrí who won the day, his axe splitting de Courcy's head open 'like a cabbage' according to the Annála Uladh (Annals of Ulster).
Whilst this single combat was going on, the main battle continued unabated. A small group of Norman archers had been positioned on the flank and were intermittently firing on the Irish forces. Having been attacked a few times, when they saw movement in a small wood nearby they not surprisingly fired a few arrows into it. Unfortunately for them, the movement was not a group of Irish soldiers but a herd of cattle belonging to the local monastery, including a huge brown bull. An arrow struck this bull which, enraged, charged out of the wood followed by the entire herd. This stampede ran right into, and over, the Norman forces.
The double blow of losing their leader and a stampede of cattle all bearing branded crosses was enough to rout the remaining Normans, leaving Ruaidrí holding the field.
Until this battle Ruaidrí, like most other warlords, had flown simple coloured pennants in battle. Now, however, he decided to adopt a personal standard to symbolise his victory. The standard was shaped like his battle-axe, coloured white to symbolise the purity of his cause supported by the church but with a red border to show the blood of the slain. On the white field was put a brown bull, standing over the heads of three eagles, symbolic of the death of de Courcy. Many within northern Ireland saw parallels in the stampede of the brown bull with the old Irish legend of Donn Cuailnge (the Brown Bull of Cooley), which in time led to conflict between Ulaid and the church, eventually assuaged by the addition of a cross brand being put on the shoulder of the bull, clearly showing that the bovine intervention had been divinely sanctioned, not the working of ancient magics.
Over the next few months and years, the victorious Ruaidrí cemented alliances with other Irish kings and the Lords of the Isles in the west of Scotland and Isle of Mann. Other Norman petty nobles were dissuaded from launching attacks into Irish territory and a sort of peace came to the island. This was shattered a century later when Edward I of England set out to conquer the non-Norman/English held areas, but by then Ulaid's position as one of the premier kingdoms of Ireland was secure.
The axe-shaped battle standard of Ruaidrí was adopted by his heirs and came to be used as the flag of the kingdom itself. It was always flown from a spear (latterly a flag-pole with a spear-head or spike atop) and with red streamers to show the flowing blood.
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Image(s) created by FriendlyGhost using paint.net. Free for use on this site (alternatehistory.com) as long as you credit me (@ my username is fine). Use on other sites is also permitted as long as you PM me here to let me know.
Some of the constituent parts of this image were amended from images in the public domain, as follows:
(1) Bull adapted from Meuble héraldique Taureau, in the public domain. Recoloured and resized by me.
(2) Eagle heads taken from Blason Beauval-en-Caux by Chatsam on Wikipedia commons, CCA-SA. Recoloured and resized by me.
Edited for size of image and to remove a stray apostrophe (!).
Submission 2
The Jack of the Neapolitan Navy
The Jack, or Port Flag, of the Neapolitan Imperial Navy derives from the naval pennant flown during the Adriatic Wars as Robert of Taranto, III Latin Emperor, II King of Sicily-in-Naples, staked his claim to his aunt Joanna's Neapolitan throne. The pennant is based on his plain arms as heir presumptive - Azure, semé-de-lys Or, a chief embattled Gules bearing a cross potent encircled between four crosslets Or which he simplified down from tierced per pale 1 Gules, a cross between four crosses encircled between four crosslets Or; 2 Argent a cross potent between 4 crosslets Or; 3 Azure, semé-de-lys Or, a label Gules - compare the current flag of the Neapolitan Empire with its golden encircled crosses over a red-white-blue tricolore. The unusual edging comes from the legend where the flag ship at harbour was stormed by Venetians and with flag aflame the crew defeated them turning the tide of battle, thereafter each victory was bore this tattered and charred flag. The exact battle varies but most historians agree it was probably the Battle of Arta.
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