Weekly Flag Challenge: Discussion & Entries
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Challenge: ABC Union
After a grinding Continental War lasting until 1816, all sides in the European conflict were exhausted. The war weariness of the main parties was no doubt a contributing factor in the creation of an independent Catalonia. While the Sixth Coalition controlled much of the Iberian peninsula, French forces had doggedly retained northern Spain, which in 1812 Emperor Napoleon had declared the sovereign Kingdom of Catalonia. While the move, which placed the Emperor's brother Joseph on the throne (making him King of Spain, Catalonia, and the Indies), was meant to placate the hostile Catalans with the illusion of more local control, the population nevertheless remained highly hostile to their French overlords. Despite this, as the Emperor commanded forces in the peninsula against his foe Arthur Wellesley (who died in battle in 1812), northern Spain remained a secure stronghold for the Napoleonic forces. Thus, when the warring sides finally met in diplomacy rather than battle, the French were loathe to sacrifice territory they had fought so hard for and still firmly controlled. Bargaining the withdrawal from parts of Spain and other territory in exchange for the recognized independence of Catalonia and the rule of Joseph Bonaparte (Josep I of Catalunya), the French secured the existence of their client buffer state.
The flag of Catalonia was for some time simply the same as it had been when it was a Spanish possession, followed by an uninspired red and gold tricolor. In 1852, the unpopular King Lluís I had the flag redesigned to represent the Basque peoples of western Catalonia (the Kingdom of Catalonia was actually composed of three historical regions - Catalonia, tiny Andorra [officially annexed 1812] and the Basque country [officially annexed 1816]), who had long seethed at the discrimination and underrepresentation they faced. The arrano beltza, the black eagle symbolic of the Basques, was added to the flag. The new design was decried by Spain, which claimed the eagle itself was a Spanish symbol, and that the entire flag purposefully resembled Spain's own flag. From what history records of the petty and vindictive Lluís I, using a supposedly benevolent gesture to antagonize his enemies is far from unlikely. The bandera nacional was in use until 1928, when the Kingdom of Catalonia fell and it was replaced by the red and black standard of the República Popular de Catalunya.
La Bandera Nacional, 1852 - 1928
After a grinding Continental War lasting until 1816, all sides in the European conflict were exhausted. The war weariness of the main parties was no doubt a contributing factor in the creation of an independent Catalonia. While the Sixth Coalition controlled much of the Iberian peninsula, French forces had doggedly retained northern Spain, which in 1812 Emperor Napoleon had declared the sovereign Kingdom of Catalonia. While the move, which placed the Emperor's brother Joseph on the throne (making him King of Spain, Catalonia, and the Indies), was meant to placate the hostile Catalans with the illusion of more local control, the population nevertheless remained highly hostile to their French overlords. Despite this, as the Emperor commanded forces in the peninsula against his foe Arthur Wellesley (who died in battle in 1812), northern Spain remained a secure stronghold for the Napoleonic forces. Thus, when the warring sides finally met in diplomacy rather than battle, the French were loathe to sacrifice territory they had fought so hard for and still firmly controlled. Bargaining the withdrawal from parts of Spain and other territory in exchange for the recognized independence of Catalonia and the rule of Joseph Bonaparte (Josep I of Catalunya), the French secured the existence of their client buffer state.
The flag of Catalonia was for some time simply the same as it had been when it was a Spanish possession, followed by an uninspired red and gold tricolor. In 1852, the unpopular King Lluís I had the flag redesigned to represent the Basque peoples of western Catalonia (the Kingdom of Catalonia was actually composed of three historical regions - Catalonia, tiny Andorra [officially annexed 1812] and the Basque country [officially annexed 1816]), who had long seethed at the discrimination and underrepresentation they faced. The arrano beltza, the black eagle symbolic of the Basques, was added to the flag. The new design was decried by Spain, which claimed the eagle itself was a Spanish symbol, and that the entire flag purposefully resembled Spain's own flag. From what history records of the petty and vindictive Lluís I, using a supposedly benevolent gesture to antagonize his enemies is far from unlikely. The bandera nacional was in use until 1928, when the Kingdom of Catalonia fell and it was replaced by the red and black standard of the República Popular de Catalunya.
La Bandera Nacional, 1852 - 1928
The Kingdom of the Pyrenees (sometimes inaccurately referred to as The Spanish March, Hispaniola, or Greater Navarre) has its origins in the union of Navarre and Andorra during the Papal Crises of the 16th Century. Despite opposition from Unipapalist Spain (Leon-Castile-Portugal) and Aragon-Naples, following its success in the French States, the Reformant cause had been taken up across the Pyrenean region and found its champion in the form of King Charles IV The Little Charlemagne ...
… under Spanish Emperor Leon I, Navarre-Andorra was organised into the Vascon Marches
… regained independence following the 2nd Spanish Republic
… with the assassination of King Louis III de Berry of Aragon-Naples by Neapolitan Republicans leading to 1st Great War
… Treaty of Lyon partitioned Royal Aragon between the newly formed Kingdom of the Pyrenees and the Federal Kingdom of Spain
… Premier Jaume Garcia led the 25th anniversary celebrations of the reign of Queen Joana de Berry
Flag:
a 5x9 red-yellow check
shield of the ruling House of Berry: A red border with yellow chains around a yellow fleur-de-lis on blue
[EDIT: apologies for the dodgy shield, having to use paint at present!]
the check is essentially a merging of the striped flags of Catalonia and the short lived 2nd Kingdom of Navarre and resembles the checkered flag of the separatists under Spanish Rule.
… under Spanish Emperor Leon I, Navarre-Andorra was organised into the Vascon Marches
… regained independence following the 2nd Spanish Republic
… with the assassination of King Louis III de Berry of Aragon-Naples by Neapolitan Republicans leading to 1st Great War
… Treaty of Lyon partitioned Royal Aragon between the newly formed Kingdom of the Pyrenees and the Federal Kingdom of Spain
… Premier Jaume Garcia led the 25th anniversary celebrations of the reign of Queen Joana de Berry
Flag:
a 5x9 red-yellow check
shield of the ruling House of Berry: A red border with yellow chains around a yellow fleur-de-lis on blue
[EDIT: apologies for the dodgy shield, having to use paint at present!]
the check is essentially a merging of the striped flags of Catalonia and the short lived 2nd Kingdom of Navarre and resembles the checkered flag of the separatists under Spanish Rule.
My entry for the latest Flag Challenge
The image represents the Crown of the High King on an Anglian blue field [1] and is composed of:
A band of 7 trefoils for the crowns of the 7 subkingdoms
The Silver Band of the Bretwalda [2]
A band with 3 crosses for the 3 Saints of the Heptarchy - Alban, Cuthbert,and Werburgh - and also the 3 Archbishoprics - Canterbury, Chester, and York [3]
[1] Anglian blue due to the predominance of the Royal Mercian houses before unification
[2] Also known as the Saxon Crown
[3] In this TL St Werburgh is especially venerated and the AB is moved to Chester from Lichfield
The image represents the Crown of the High King on an Anglian blue field [1] and is composed of:
A band of 7 trefoils for the crowns of the 7 subkingdoms
The Silver Band of the Bretwalda [2]
A band with 3 crosses for the 3 Saints of the Heptarchy - Alban, Cuthbert,and Werburgh - and also the 3 Archbishoprics - Canterbury, Chester, and York [3]
[1] Anglian blue due to the predominance of the Royal Mercian houses before unification
[2] Also known as the Saxon Crown
[3] In this TL St Werburgh is especially venerated and the AB is moved to Chester from Lichfield
The Seven Swords
Entry for the latest flag challenge.
The flag depicts the cross of St. Lazarus with the royal emblem attached in the centre: seven swords arranged to form the letter A, A and Y.
The first A standing for Aelfweard
The second A standing for Animus
The Y standing for the letter Upsilon: from ancient times on it stood for the path of vice or virtue. Aelfwaerd was simultaneously known as The Saint (for supporting the Catholic church in his realms) and as The Demon (for his bloodlust on the battlefields).
Entry for the latest flag challenge.
The flag depicts the cross of St. Lazarus with the royal emblem attached in the centre: seven swords arranged to form the letter A, A and Y.
The first A standing for Aelfweard
The second A standing for Animus
The Y standing for the letter Upsilon: from ancient times on it stood for the path of vice or virtue. Aelfwaerd was simultaneously known as The Saint (for supporting the Catholic church in his realms) and as The Demon (for his bloodlust on the battlefields).
Here is my cotribution. Symbols or flags of the seven kingdoms united by a Nordic Cross. I took the liberty of making all the Gules one shade and all the Ors one shade so it would look better. (Oh, and yes, I know that the horse I used for Kent is modern, but it supposed to be based on writings from the era, and as I couldn't find images that are from the era I decided to use it.)
(Flag is for the first Island group, between England and Denmark)
Flag of the Province of Crochland
Crochland (pronounced: Crosh-land) (Croch is short for Chroche which is French for "hook") are 4 small island the form a hook like shape (hence the name). In pre-roman times, it was mainly used as a port for the Germanic tribes who migrated to Britannia, but very few stayed there. After the Normans conquered England, they also claimed the small collection of island, which were used by the vikings in their own invasion. Crochland remained a quite province of the English kingdom, mainly used as docking ports for English merchant in Europe, untill a small fight broken between Scotland and England on 1689. The fight was a stalemate on the land front, but Scotland managed to take over Crochland. The act of union was signed on the same date as OTL, and Crochland remained part of Scotland, even though to this day there is still talk in Britain of returning the isles to their rightful English hands, but no one really cares about them anymore.
The original English flag for the province was almost the same, except the cross was red. When the Scots took over, they replaced the red with green, to represent, well, Scotland instead of England. The blue background represent the sea around the islands, and the stars represent each of the 4 islands, and they are also organized like them.
Flag of the Province of Crochland
Crochland (pronounced: Crosh-land) (Croch is short for Chroche which is French for "hook") are 4 small island the form a hook like shape (hence the name). In pre-roman times, it was mainly used as a port for the Germanic tribes who migrated to Britannia, but very few stayed there. After the Normans conquered England, they also claimed the small collection of island, which were used by the vikings in their own invasion. Crochland remained a quite province of the English kingdom, mainly used as docking ports for English merchant in Europe, untill a small fight broken between Scotland and England on 1689. The fight was a stalemate on the land front, but Scotland managed to take over Crochland. The act of union was signed on the same date as OTL, and Crochland remained part of Scotland, even though to this day there is still talk in Britain of returning the isles to their rightful English hands, but no one really cares about them anymore.
The original English flag for the province was almost the same, except the cross was red. When the Scots took over, they replaced the red with green, to represent, well, Scotland instead of England. The blue background represent the sea around the islands, and the stars represent each of the 4 islands, and they are also organized like them.
This is my meagre contribution. It is B.
Flag of the Republic of Tesalia
Tesalia is pronounced Tea-salia, its origin is unknown
The Tesalian people originated from the Greater British Island. They went to Tesalia once the Germanic migrations came from the continent. Over the years, migrations from Gaul helped them keep their Roman identity. The Tesalian language is very much disputed in language circles. Some say it is Romance and so should be in the Italo-Romance group. others say it is Celtic and so should be in the Celtic language group. The modern day Republic comes from the Springtime of Nations when it revolted from France and established its own land which stands to this day.
The flag of the Republic of Tesalia has a "chi-rho" symbol to represent their Roman ancestry and identity, but the flag also has the Celtic colours of green and blue to show they are also Celtic. The dimensions reflect the Roman banner.
Flag of the Republic of Tesalia
Tesalia is pronounced Tea-salia, its origin is unknown
The Tesalian people originated from the Greater British Island. They went to Tesalia once the Germanic migrations came from the continent. Over the years, migrations from Gaul helped them keep their Roman identity. The Tesalian language is very much disputed in language circles. Some say it is Romance and so should be in the Italo-Romance group. others say it is Celtic and so should be in the Celtic language group. The modern day Republic comes from the Springtime of Nations when it revolted from France and established its own land which stands to this day.
The flag of the Republic of Tesalia has a "chi-rho" symbol to represent their Roman ancestry and identity, but the flag also has the Celtic colours of green and blue to show they are also Celtic. The dimensions reflect the Roman banner.
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Well, mine was made quite quickly, I dont really think I am going to win. But my flag is simple and gets the message across.
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Kingdom of Westen
The isle of Westen (pronounced Wess-En) was for a long time a turbulent place. After the Norse managed to achieve hegemony over the island in the mid 11th century it was the scene of a rather prolonged religious conflict as the inhabitants refused to convert to Christianity, preferring the old religions instead. It was during this time the first recorded usage of the Valknut as a symbol of Westen took place.
Eventually the traditionalists were defeated and Christianity was brought to the island, which was now under firm Danish rule. Throughout the centuries ownership of the island was transferred back and forth between Denmark and Norway, and even Sweden held it for a brief period of time in the 17th century.
And the 1730s a British naval expedition was launched to deprive the Danish of use of the island as a base of operations. It was even more successful than intended and rather than a simple blockade as intended the expedition turned into an invasion when it was realised that the island was severely bereft of contemporary land fortifications.
The British were awarded the island in the treaty of Oldenburg, which saw the end of the Continental Wars of the 1730s and 40s. Their rule would last until 1846 when it was proclaimed an independent state under British protection. This first kingdom period would last until the National Wars of the 1890s when German and Scandinavian efforts to cause a rebellion saw fruition.
This saw the period of the republic of Westen, a short lived state that lasted but eleven years until it fell apart after food riots in the capital of Korpaførstning. A provisional government was set up and the country was restored as part of the British crown and commonwealth once again. This lasted seven years until civil war broke out during the middle of the Power Wars of the early 20th century. The island was used essentially as a training ground by the great powers of the continent, acting through proxies to gain valuable insight in fighting wars in the rough kind of terrain offered by the island.
Eventually the Scandinavian backed nationalist faction won the war. At firs the new government pursued an aggressive policy of cultural reformation, wiping out anything they viewed as foreign in their culture and language, and in particular removing any and all British influence that had become spread over the years. English was removed as an official language, and the new reformed Wessish language (originally very similar to the Norwegian dialect of Scandinavian, but returned to a more archaic and distinct state by the reforms) was the only allowed one until the late 1940s when gradual reform re-legalised the usage of the threatened Wessish English dialect as a minority language, and recognised Wessish English as a minority cultural group.
At around the same time the military junta that had been in charge dissolved and after a referendum it was decided that the new Wessish state would be a constitutional monarchy. The royal family was imported from Scandinavia, and a new flag was chosen by the king: a simple white with a black border and a black Valknut, which stood in contrast to the black and blue Nordic cross on a white background that had been in use since the republican era. This was deliberate, as it was seen as important that Westen set itself apart from Scandinavia to emphasise its own unique blend of Nordic and British cultural traditions.
(Just something I hastily threw together. I am aware that the demonym has irregular spelling: it's intentional. That's how they do it in this timeline. It's scenario A, I should specify.)
The isle of Westen (pronounced Wess-En) was for a long time a turbulent place. After the Norse managed to achieve hegemony over the island in the mid 11th century it was the scene of a rather prolonged religious conflict as the inhabitants refused to convert to Christianity, preferring the old religions instead. It was during this time the first recorded usage of the Valknut as a symbol of Westen took place.
Eventually the traditionalists were defeated and Christianity was brought to the island, which was now under firm Danish rule. Throughout the centuries ownership of the island was transferred back and forth between Denmark and Norway, and even Sweden held it for a brief period of time in the 17th century.
And the 1730s a British naval expedition was launched to deprive the Danish of use of the island as a base of operations. It was even more successful than intended and rather than a simple blockade as intended the expedition turned into an invasion when it was realised that the island was severely bereft of contemporary land fortifications.
The British were awarded the island in the treaty of Oldenburg, which saw the end of the Continental Wars of the 1730s and 40s. Their rule would last until 1846 when it was proclaimed an independent state under British protection. This first kingdom period would last until the National Wars of the 1890s when German and Scandinavian efforts to cause a rebellion saw fruition.
This saw the period of the republic of Westen, a short lived state that lasted but eleven years until it fell apart after food riots in the capital of Korpaførstning. A provisional government was set up and the country was restored as part of the British crown and commonwealth once again. This lasted seven years until civil war broke out during the middle of the Power Wars of the early 20th century. The island was used essentially as a training ground by the great powers of the continent, acting through proxies to gain valuable insight in fighting wars in the rough kind of terrain offered by the island.
Eventually the Scandinavian backed nationalist faction won the war. At firs the new government pursued an aggressive policy of cultural reformation, wiping out anything they viewed as foreign in their culture and language, and in particular removing any and all British influence that had become spread over the years. English was removed as an official language, and the new reformed Wessish language (originally very similar to the Norwegian dialect of Scandinavian, but returned to a more archaic and distinct state by the reforms) was the only allowed one until the late 1940s when gradual reform re-legalised the usage of the threatened Wessish English dialect as a minority language, and recognised Wessish English as a minority cultural group.
At around the same time the military junta that had been in charge dissolved and after a referendum it was decided that the new Wessish state would be a constitutional monarchy. The royal family was imported from Scandinavia, and a new flag was chosen by the king: a simple white with a black border and a black Valknut, which stood in contrast to the black and blue Nordic cross on a white background that had been in use since the republican era. This was deliberate, as it was seen as important that Westen set itself apart from Scandinavia to emphasise its own unique blend of Nordic and British cultural traditions.
(Just something I hastily threw together. I am aware that the demonym has irregular spelling: it's intentional. That's how they do it in this timeline. It's scenario A, I should specify.)
Some good entries in the first day?
What have I set myself up for?
Liking the entries guys - remember you can edit your entries up until the deadline if you so wish.
What have I set myself up for?
Liking the entries guys
- remember you can edit your entries up until the deadline if you so wish.