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Mexican Flag
By Amy Lambert
The Mexican flag is an object of great national pride within Mexico. It stands grandly in the central Zocalo square in Mexico City and even has an annual celebration dedicated to it, the Flag Day of Mexico, Dia de Bandera! This happens every year on February 24th and is the Mexican national holiday.
The Mexican flag consists of three vertical stripes which are red, white and green. On the central white stripe lies the national crest; an eagle sat upon a cactus. The Mexican flag was officially created in 1821 and whilst the flag has changed moderately over time the new Mexican flag is nearly exactly the same as that which was created almost 200 years ago.
Interestingly whilst people think that the Mexican flag is simply the Italian tricolour with the Mexican national crest placed upon it, the Mexican flag was actually created before the Italian flag. What´s more is that the Mexican flag uses darker shades of green and red and also different dimensions. Also the meaning of the flag makes it very different to the tricolour.
Mexican Flag History
The Mexican flag symbols have a fascinating story behind them. The eagle on the Mexican flag alludes to Mexican culture and the Mexicans Aztec past. Legend has it that the Aztec population were told by one of their Gods, Huitzilopochtli, that they should look on a lake for an Eagle sat upon a cactus and holding a snake in its talon. When they saw this they were to build their Empire around this point. The Aztec people spotted this eagle in what is now Mexico City. Thus the central emblem is a reminder for the Mexican people of their Aztec roots.
The Mexican flag colors also have interesting origins. At the beginning of the 19th century when Mexico was fighting for independence from Spain, the Army of the Three Guarantees used red, white and green in their flag, after independence from Spain had been won. Until then most flags had used red, white and blue. Thus both the colours used in the flag and the symbols represent important parts of Mexico´s history.
The history of the Mexican flag following its creation in 1821 is relatively straightforward. The dimensions of the flag have changed only slightly as have the Mexican flag images. For example the flag which was used during the Second Mexican Empire actually contained 5 eagles, with one in each corner of the flag as well as the central one in the national crest. The current version of the Mexican flag was adopted in 1968. It contains the national crest on both the front and back of the flag.
The Mexican flag is very important within Mexico. This is shown by the fact that there is a day which celebrates the flag! Each year the Mexican people pledge allegiance to the flag and their country. What´s more is that the flag is protected under Mexican law and special permits are needed to use its image! The reason that the flag has such importance is because the strip of fabric represents both the people´s freedom from Spain and their Aztec past.
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