National Day of the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Russia, and Germany. The origin of the national flags

Japan: The red circle on the flag symbolizes the sun. Japan’s flag is called the Hinomaru, which comes from the Japanese word "Hinomaru", which literally means "sun circle". It is uncertain exactly when the sun circle symbol was first used on flags and slogans. However, in the 12th century, samurai appeared. During the struggle for power between the Minamoto and Taira families, the samurai liked to draw sun circles on folding fans (called gunsen in Japanese). During Japan's Warring States Period in the 15th and 16th centuries, when many military figures vied for spheres of influence, the sun flag symbol was widely used as a military emblem. A folk craft screen painting depicting the battle at Sekigahara in 1600 shows an army with many of its military flags having the basic colors of the Sun Flag. Although a red circle on a white background is most common, there are also dark blue backgrounds with gold circles.

The sun circle flag was hung on the ship carrying the shogun. The sun flag (Hinomaru) is used as a symbol to represent the entire country. Its history can be traced back to Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the late 16th century and Tokugawa Ieyasu was aboard ships sent to foreign countries for trade in the early 17th century. A screen depicting a scene in 17th-century Edo (today's Tokyo) shows a sun flag being used as a symbol to indicate that the shogun was on board. During the "lockdown" period (1639-1854), foreign trade and other relations with countries other than China, Korea, and the Netherlands were prohibited. But when the Tokugawa shogunate began trading with other countries (including the United States and Russia) after 1854, Japanese trading ships began to use the sun flag again. In 1854, the Tokugawa shogunate accepted the suggestion of a man named Shimazu Nariakira from the territory of Satsuma Domain (Satsuwa: now Kagoshima Prefecture) and decided that in order to avoid being mistaken for foreign ships, Japanese ships would use "white" Flag on the background of the sun". In 1860, the official ship Kanrin Maru, which carried Japanese officials to the United States, flew the sun flag. The Sun Flag, the modern Japanese flag, was established in 1868 after the Tokugawa family lost their political rights and the Meiji government was established. According to Order No. 57 issued by the Grand Council of State on January 27, 1870, the Sun Flag was officially designated as the Japanese flag used on commercial ships. The Sun Flag was first used on the grounds of a government building in 1872, the year before the solar calendar officially replaced the lunar calendar. At that time, many ordinary families and non-governmental organizations also expressed their desire to fly the sun flag during the holidays. In subsequent years, numerous notices and documents were published that reinforced the Sun Flag's status as a symbol of Japan.

UK: The Union Jack is the national flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The earliest Union Jack was born on April 12, 1606 when James I of England unified England and Scotland. It was formed by merging the Cross of St. George of England and the Cross of St. Andrew of Scotland. However, the flag of this flag is not today's dark blue but light blue. Wales did not appear on the Union Jack at that time because it had been conquered by Edward I of England in the early days and was considered part of England.

Today's Union Jack was born on January 1, 1801, when Ireland and Britain formed the United Kingdom. The red cross-shaped flag of St. Patrick of Ireland was once again merged with the Union Jack to form today's Union Jack.

The Union Jack was originally the flag of the royal family. Even today, there is no law in the United Kingdom that recognizes the Union Jack as the national flag of the United Kingdom. However, it is no different in function from the national flag. In 1908, the British Parliament declared that "the Union Jack should be regarded as the national flag of the United Kingdom." In 1933, the British Home Secretary announced that "the Union Jack is the British flag."

Many former British colonies place the Union Jack in the upper left corner of their flags to show their relationship with Britain. These countries include Australia and New Zealand.

The flag used by Canada before 1965 also had the Union Jack pattern on it.

United States: The American flag is the Stars and Stripes, which was born during the Revolutionary War. In early July 1776, the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Army, George Washington, came to Cambridge to form a regular army. A flag-raising ceremony was held on New Year's Day in 1777. This flag, called Cambridge, is a slightly modified version of the British merchant ship flag commonly used by colonists. It has white horizontal stripes added to the red flag, with a total of 13 stripes, representing Thirteen continents revolted at that time. Although the Cambridge flag has not been approved by Congress, it has been widely recognized, including abroad. On June 14, 1777, Congress passed a resolution determining that the American flag should consist of 13 identical red and white horizontal stripes, with 13 white stars on a blue base. In this way, the stars and stripes became the American flag. Since the resolution of Congress did not stipulate the specific size and the specific layout of the horizontal stripes and stars, the flags produced in various places were initially very different. Later, as the number of states joining the United States gradually increased, the number of stars and stripes on the flag also increased. On April 4, 1818, President Monroe signed a law stipulating that the American flag consisted of 13 red and white horizontal stripes and 20 white stars on a blue background. The 20 stars represented the 20 states that participated in the United States at that time. At the same time, it was decided to add a star to the flag of each additional state, which would usually be implemented on July 4th of the second year after the new state joined. The final 50th star on the American flag was added after the state of Hawaii joined the United States in 1960.