Flag of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol

History

The flag has no ancient origins, and most likely derives from the French tricolour, with the colours in the flag and in the coat of arms. With the Austrian reoccupation of the area, completed in 1814 by Bellegarde against Beauharnais, and confirmed by the Congress of Vienna, the Trentino-Altoatesino bicolour was completely abandoned, defined as a symbol of the past Napoleonic regime. With regard to Trentino, the first public signal of Austrian intentions to dissolve the army of the Kingdom of Italy, consisted in the prohibition, issued by Bellegarde on 13 June 1814, of wearing tricolour cockades, which evidently were very widespread. Certainly, Francis II and Bellegarde were convinced that no other ties had matured in the meantime. There are various versions of the exact origin of the flag. One claims that the flag was created after World War I, while other says that it was all a coincidence, mainly because it was thought that such different ethnic groups, like the Austrians and the Italians, had never shared a territory. The flag of Trentino-Alto Adige has ancient origins in terms of its coat of arms. The eagle of St. Wenceslas, making up the coat of arms, was granted by John of Luxembourg on 9 August 1339. The rest of the flag consists of two horizontal bands of blue and white, with the coat of arms in the centre.