Myths of the origins of the flag (Sweden)
Last modified: 2021-08-25 by christopher oehler
Keywords: sweden | historical |
by Edward Mooney, Jr.,
Myths of the origins of the flag
Historical flags (Sweden)
Colours of the flag
Colours of the flag in history
The three crowns of Sweden
There are many stories and legends surrounding the colours of our national flag.
One legend which has a very strong support holds that blue represents the lakes and the sky and that the gold or yellow represents the sun, I am not sure I subscribe to this version although it is cute as a story.
The legend which has certain historical fact states that is that on the eve of a battle one of the kings saw in the blue evening sky a yellow cross telling him that the battle would be won and he emblazoned his personal banner and of course the battle was won.
However one should note that as long as there has been written records of flags for the Swedes as a whole the colours have been the same.
Mats W. Emblad, 18 May 1999
...am I wong assuming that the Swedish flag is a (relatively) modern "dannebrog with the tre kronor colours" sort of thing?...
Having originated "only" because of a coat of arms is one of the most "solid" meanings for a flag's colours ­ much better than say "yellow for the gold and blue for the lakes", which could turn to "yellow for the gold and blue for the sky", once the mines are depleted and the lakes claimed to cabbage farms.
Antonio Martins, 20 May 1999