Russia’s state flag is a horizontal tricolour of white, blue and red. The present legal specification uses three equal stripes and an overall width-to-length ratio of 2:3.
What does the Russian flag look like?
The upper stripe is white, the middle stripe blue and the lower stripe red. Russian law does not prescribe exact shades for the blue and red.
Origins of the tricolour
The white-blue-red flag developed alongside Russia’s first naval vessels in the late seventeenth century and was initially associated mainly with maritime use. It later appeared on land as Russian exploration and state representation expanded.
Modern history
The tricolour became an important national flag in imperial Russia before being replaced after the 1917 Revolution by Soviet flags. It returned during the final months of the Soviet Union in 1991 and became the flag of the Russian Federation. Later legislation standardised its modern form.
Russia flag facts
- Colors: white, blue and red
- Design: three equal horizontal bands
- Ratio: 2:3
- Restored: 1991
Source
Primary reference: Official Russian state symbols — The Flag.
