Flag of Maryland
The flag of Maryland consists of the heraldic banner of George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore. It is the only state flag in the United States to be based on British heraldry. (While the flag of Washington, D.C. is a representation the coat of arms of the Washington family, Washington, D.C. is not a state.) It was officially adopted by Maryland in 1904.
Design
The black and gold design on the flag is the coat of arms of the Calvert family. It was granted to George Calvert as a reward for his storming a fortification during a battle (the vertical bars approximate the bars of the palisade). The red and white design is the coat of arms of the Crossland family, the family of Calvert's mother, and features a cross bottony. Since George Calvert's mother was an heiress, he was entitled to use both coats of arms in his banner.
History
Unofficial state flag of Maryland used by secessionists during American Civil War
The Maryland colony was founded by Cecil Calvert, 2nd Lord Baltimore, hence the use of his family's coat of arms in the flag. Initially, only the gold and black Calvert coat of arms was associated with Maryland. The red and white Crossland coat of arms gained popularity during the American Civil War, during which Maryland remained with the Union despite popular support for the Confederacy. Those Marylanders who supported secession (many of whom fought in the Army of Northern Virginia) were reluctant to use (and to fight under) the banner that was associated with a state which, grudgingly or not, remained with the Union, so they adopted the Crossland banner, which had the benefit of being red and white (seen as "secession colors").
After the war, Marylanders who had fought on both sides of the conflict returned to their state in need of reconciliation. The present design, which incorporates both of the coats of arms used by George Calvert, began appearing. At first, the Crossland coat of arms was put in the upper-left corner, but this was changed to the Union's Calvert coat because of their victory.[citation needed]
The flag in its present form was first flown on October 11, 1880, in Baltimore, Maryland at a parade marking the 150th anniversary of the founding of Baltimore. It also was flown on October 25, 1888, at the Gettysburg Battlefield during ceremonies dedicating monuments to Maryland regiments of the Army of the Potomac. However, it was not officially adopted as the State flag until 1904 (Chapter 48, Acts of 1904, effective March 9, 1904).
Legal description
Section 13–202 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland provides:
- (a) The State flag is quartered.
- (b) The 1st and 4th quarters are paly of 6 pieces, or and sable, a bend dexter counterchanged. Thus, the 1st and 4th quarters consist of 6 vertical bars alternately gold and black with a diagonal band on which the colors are reversed.
- (c) The 2nd and 3rd, quarterly, are argent and gules, a cross bottony countersigned. Thus, the 2nd and 3rd quarters are a quartered field of red and white, charged with a Greek cross, its arms terminating in trefoils, with the coloring transported, red being on the white ground and white on the red, and all being as represented upon the escutcheon of the State seal.
The Maryland Secretary of State publishes a "Protocol for the Maryland State Flag" which, among other things, specifies the colors of the flag:
1.04. The red and yellow colors in the Maryland flag should conform to the following Pantone Marking System colors:
- red on coated stock-PMS 201
- red on uncoated stock-PMS 193
- yellow on coated stock-PMS 124
- yellow on uncoated stock-PMS 124
Flagpole restrictions
Maryland is the only state in the union that has a specific guideline not only on how to display the flag but on what the flagpole should look like as well. In 1945, the Maryland General Assembly made a gold cross bottony the official ornament for any flagpole carrying the state flag. Some time before October 10, 2007, Government House (the governor's mansion) in Annapolis ceased to display the cross bottony at the top of the flag pole, but the flags at the State House continue to do so (adhering to Maryland Code Section 13-202 and 203). All other government buildings, including public schools, obey this guideline, but many private individuals and businesses do not.
Cultural impact
The Calvert and Crossland coats of arms, and the flag itself, have been co-opted in various ways across the state.
- On September 9, 2008 the University of Maryland painted both end zones at Byrd Stadium with the flag's two patterns.
- Many municipalities have flags incorporating the state flag, including the City of Baltimore, Baltimore County, and Howard County.
- The colors of the athletic teams of the University of Maryland College Park also reflect the influence of the state flag. Until the 1960s, the Maryland Terrapins primarily used only black and gold, but then they started using red and white as well. All four colors are now used, the primary color being red, with white, gold, and black as accent colors. The entire Maryland flag is displayed on the right shoulder of the football team's jersey. The end zones of Byrd Stadium are often decorated in a Maryland flag motif, and the state flag is often run on the field during the Terrapins' home football games. The same is true for most schools within the University system of Maryland (UMBC, for example, has all four colors located in its main logo).
- The seal of The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore features the same design and colors as the Maryland flag. The Johns Hopkins colors are sable and gold, taken from the Calvert coat of arms (though the athletic colors are blue and white, as the school mascot is the Blue Jay).
- The secondary logo of the Baltimore Ravens in the National Football League was a shield with alternating Calvert Banners interlocked with a stylized "B" and "R".
External links
- History of the Maryland Flag
- Protocol for using the Maryland Flag
- Information from Flags Of The World
- Information from Maryland State Archives
