Nevertheless, the junta was established (at least nominally) as a way of controlling the government during the absence of King Fernando VII, so that the symbols of government remained Hispanic. It would be during the government of Jose Miguel Carrera in which the desire for emancipation would gain more strength. Alternative version with the first Chilean shield, Cross of Santiago and reversed blue and white stripes.Īt the onset of the Chilean War of Independence, the First Government Junta was proclaimed on 18 September 1810, marking Chile's first step toward independence.
The use of this red-and-yellow flag would be extended in 1793 to "maritime towns, castles and coastal defenses." Despite the establishment of this new flag, the cross of Burgundy would still often used by colonial entities. In 1785, Carlos III established a uniform flag for all ships of the Spanish Armada, similar to the current flag of Spain. The Cross of Burgundy was one of the main symbols of the Spanish Empire overseas, so it flew over the warships and was carried by the militia in the colonial territory during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. One of the symbols most commonly used was the Cross of Burgundy, a jagged, red saltire crossed on a white cloth. Each battalion had its own flag, which could incorporate different elements including the heraldic coat of arms of the King of Spain. In the case of the colonizing troops, they used several Spanish flags. In the independence of Chile, Bernardo O'Higgins said that guñelve was the direct inspiration for creating the Chilean flag with the Lone Star. The main symbol of this flag is the star of Arauco, called guñelve, representing the flower of the canelo and the bright star of Venus. The latter flag appears to be waved by the chief Lautaro in the best-known artistic representation of it, created by painter Pedro Subercaseaux. One consisted of a five-pointed white star on a blue background similar to the canton of the current Chilean flag, while the second had a white eight-pointed star centered on a blue diamond with border zigzagged over a black background. However, these descriptions were made late in the eighteenth century without certainty about the age of them. Two flags have been documented as used by Mapuche troops. In Canto XXI, Alonso de Ercilla described Talcahuano, warrior and chief of the Mapuche who work the lands near the present-day city that bears his name, bearing emblems of blue, white and red. The first records on the possible use of flags by indigenous peoples date back to the War of Arauco, the most famous being the use described in the late 16th-century epic poem La Araucana. "Flag Day" is held each year on the ninth of July to commemorate the 77 soldiers who died in the 1882 Battle of La Concepción.įlag possibly used by Mapuche troops during the early 18th century Arauco War. Īccording to the epic poem La Araucana, the colours were derived from those from the flag flown by the Mapuche during the Arauco War. The star represents Venus significant to the country's indigenous Mapuches symbolizing a guide to progress and honor while other interpretations say it refers to an independent state blue symbolizes the sky and the Pacific Ocean, white is for the snow-covered Andes, and red stands for the blood spilled to achieve independence. The upper area is divided once: into a square (blue), with a single centered white star and into a rectangle (white), whose lengths are in proportion 1:2. It has a 3:2 ratio between length and width, it is divided horizontally into two bands of equal height (the lower being red). The Chilean flag is also known in Spanish as La Estrella Solitaria ( The Lone Star). The flag of Chile consists of two equal-height horizontal bands of white and red, with a blue square the same height as the white band in the canton, which bears a white five-pointed star in the center.
Same design as the National Flag with the National Coat of Arms superimposed at the center.