Civil Ensign 1919-1933 (Germany)

Handelsflagge

Last modified: 2005-09-10 by santiago dotor
Keywords: ensign: civil | canton (germany) |
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2:3
by Marcus Schmöger, 22 February 2002

• Description
• Use of the Imperial Civil Flag and Ensign 1919-1921 (alte Handelsflagge)

See also:

• Ensign for Merchant Ships Transferred to the Allies 1918 (Überführungsflagge)
• Weimar Republic 1919-1933 (Germany)
• Germany

Description

The black-white-red tricolour with the national flag in the canton. The usage was suspended for two years, but became permanent with the 1921 Ordinance on Flags. This flag was in use until early 1933 (de facto 31st January, de jure April). In 1919 the black-red-gold flag was adopted [as national flag] but as a compromise the black-white-red remained as merchant flag with a canton bearing the black-red-gold (and the war flag was the same plus an Iron Cross in the middle). The Nazis eliminated the red-black-gold in 1933 but continued to use the black-white-red (without the canton) as national and merchant flag until 15th September 1935.

Norman Martin, 1998

From my observations only the small black stripe was fimbriated white on its fly side.

Carsten Linke, 4 October 1996

The civil ensign was black-white-red —like the old civil ensign of 1867—, but ad