For two hundred years, from 1720 to 1918, St. Andrew's flag was the stern flag of the navy of the Russian Empire. In 1992, it was again raised on ships of the Russian Navy. And since December 29, 2000, on the basis of Federal Law No. 162, it became the banner of the naval forces Russian Federation. The history of St. Andrew's flag over three hundred years has been filled with examples of heroism, self-sacrifice, patriotism and tragedies. It became inseparable from the history of Russia and experienced ups and downs along with it.

History of the blue and white flag

The St. Andrew's flag owes its appearance to Peter 1. It was he who chose a blue oblique cross on a white field (the symbol of St. Andrew the First-Called) as the flag of the young navy. There are several legends explaining this choice of the king. One of them claims that the oblique shadow from the window frame falling on Blank sheet paper, brought Peter to this idea. However, most likely it is due to the special attitude of Russians towards the saint. After all, Andrew the First-Called has long been considered the patron saint of Rus'. Even in the “Tale of Bygone Years” it is reported that the apostle preached in places where, over time, Kyiv and Veliky Novgorod appeared, and blessed them. No wonder Peter, describing the new flag, said that it depicts the cross with which the Apostle Andrew baptized Russia.

The last flag of the Russian Empire

St. Andrew's flag fluttered over Russian ships in the days of their glorious victories at Gangut, Chesma, Navarino and Sinop; it inspired desperately fighting sailors in the Tsushima Strait. It went to the bottom along with the dead but not surrendered cruiser “Varyag”, which sank in Chimulpo Bay (now the city of Incheon). This St. Andrew's flag, the photo of which is presented below, was raised and returned to Russia in 2009 (the photo was taken after the flag was delivered to its homeland).

During the Civil War, in particular during Drozdovsky’s campaign, the St. Andrew’s flag was the banner of Colonel Zhebrak’s unit. It was used on ships of the “white movement” and after civil war, until 1924. In December of this year, the St. Andrew's flag was lowered on the last remaining “white” ships stationed in the port of Bizerte (North Africa). The reason for this was the recognition of Soviet Russia by France. At first, the Soviet Navy also used a guy with a St. Andrew's Cross, to which minimal changes were made in the form of a star in the center. But later, the now well-known flag of the USSR Navy was introduced. However, here too the influence of the previous symbols is clearly visible to the naked eye, because the new flag retained the colors of the old one - white and blue.

The pride of Russian sailors

The history of the uprising on the battleship speaks eloquently about the attitude of Russian sailors to the St. Andrew's flag Black Sea Fleet"Prince Potemkin-Tauride". The rebel sailors raised the red banner, but left the stern St. Andrew's flag in place. For they believed that it was a symbol of the courage and glory of the Russian navy, and not the banner of the Tsar. And this glory and the memory of the fallen heroes will be unshakable as long as the white banner with an oblique blue cross proudly flutters on the ship.

St. Andrew's flag became official symbol Russian fleet since 1698, from the moment of its introduction. Today, sailors note that its four corners are symbols of the four seas on which the Russian fleet dominated and is present today - the Black, White, Caspian and Azov Seas. The oblique cross symbolizes the crucifixion of St. Andrew the First-Called, the saint who patronizes sailors. Before Peter the Great introduced this flag, the fleet did not have any special distinctive banners. However, why was this particular symbolism chosen for it?

St. Andrew's flag can raise many questions, but by considering the history of its appearance, you can easily answer most of them.

Description of St. Andrew's flag

St. Andrew's flag is named after the Apostle Andrew, brother of Peter. Both saints patronize sailors, since they were originally simple fishermen. The flag looks like a white cloth with blue stripes - there are two of them, they form an inclined cross, symbolizing the one on which Andrei was crucified. The blue stripe is 1/10 of the total length of the flag, while the panel itself has an edge ratio of 1/1.5.

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Today this symbol appears on the flags of Alabama, Scotland, Jamaica, Tenerife and a number of other countries, where it has its own characteristics of execution. In Russia it is used precisely within the framework of naval traditions.

Who is Apostle Andrew?

Andrew is the first of the disciples and followers called by Jesus, and therefore in Christianity he is called the First Called. It is believed that he personally visited Rus', and therefore is its patron. He traveled a lot, was persecuted, preached, performed miracles of faith, and then accepted the fate of a martyr in the city of Patras. The saint voluntarily shared the fate of the Savior, confirming his desire to die on the cross even after they wanted to free him. He chose an oblique cross because he considered himself unworthy to follow the same fate as Jesus himself. This cross, to which he was tied, became his symbol.

Where was St. Andrew's flag first raised?

St. Andrew's flag appeared in the English and Scottish unions in 1606-1707, and from 1707 to 1801 - in the union of Great Britain. The flag with an oblique cross appeared for the first time on the flag of Scotland; this is connected with the legend of King Angus the Second. It is believed that in 832, when this leader was at the head of an army of Scots and Picts that was supposed to fight the Angles, he prayed and vowed to declare Andrew the patron saint of Scotland if he were granted victory. In the morning, after a night of prayer, I discovered that the clouds in the sky had formed an oblique cross, which was transferred to the banners after the victory, despite the superiority of forces on the enemy’s side. However, the first documented appearance of the St. Andrew's Cross in official sources dates back to 1286, this is the seal of the Scots Guards. In 1503, a flag with this cross appeared for the first time, and subsequently it appeared quite often.

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St. Andrew's flag in Russia

In Russia, this flag was established by Peter I in 1689, simultaneously with the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. In practice, it began to be used in the same year and existed until the memorable revolution of 1917, being present on the stern and on the huys. Then, in 1918, it was decided to replace it with state banners, after which a new version of the St. Andrew's flag was developed, which for many decades became a symbol of the Soviet navy. The politics and worldviews of those times did not allow any mention of religion, and the old symbols characteristic of the previous period of royal power were also actively eradicated. The white background remained, as did one blue stripe that ran horizontally along the panel from below. In the center there is a star and a hammer and sickle, symbols of the country’s new era.

St. Andrew's flag is a cloth with a blue cross on it. This cross is called St. Andrew's cross.

There are at least two versions of the appearance of this flag in Russia. One version says that the amusing ships of Peter I sailed under this flag.

The second version of the appearance of the St. Andrew’s flag is as follows: Russian ambassadors were heading to Turkey and they needed a flag.

Peter I took upon himself the responsibility of making the sketch. After some time, the flag was ready, and was a three-stripe banner on which the St. Andrew's cross was depicted.

Since then, Russian ships have sailed under this banner. The appearance of the St. Andrew's flag, according to the second version, is dated 1699.

In 1703, the St. Andrew's flag became the official flag of the Russian fleet. This happened after Russian troops occupied the mouth of the Neva.

The Russian Empire now had access to the White, Caspian, Baltic and Azov seas.

And now the main question. Why did St. Andrew's Cross become the symbol of the Russian fleet? The answer must be sought in Orthodoxy. Once upon a time there lived two fishermen who fished in the Sea of ​​Galilee.

The names of those fishermen were Andrey and Peter. Andrew became the first person whom Christ called to be his disciple. Therefore, the Apostle Andrew is called the First-Called.

Andrew the First-Called is considered the patron saint of maritime affairs and the Slavs. The Apostle preached a lot, including in the places of settlement of Slavic tribes. Like many of the first preachers of Christianity, he died a martyr's death on an oblique cross.

This story contains the answer to the question of why St. Andrew's flag. Peter I believed that Rus' received holy baptism from Andrew the First-Called, and the Apostle Peter was the patron saint of the emperor.

In 1709, the appearance of the St. Andrew's flag underwent some changes. Panels of three colors were introduced - white, blue and red, on which there were St. Andrew's crosses. The white St. Andrew's flag was assigned to the admiral's squadrons, the blue one to the vice admiral, and the red one to the rear admiral.

Under Anna Ioannovna, the white St. Andrew's flag with a transverse blue cross became common to all ships of the Russian fleet. Under Elizaveta Petrovna, St. Andrew's flags of various colors appeared again.

Blue belonged to the vanguard, white to the battle cord, red to the rearguard. Catherine II returned the single white flag. And Paul I again returned the options for using the St. Andrew's flag of 1709.

In 1865, by decree of Alexander II, the Russian fleet acquired a single white St. Andrew's flag and sailed under it until the 1917 revolution.

Ships that especially managed to distinguish themselves in battle received a special banner - the St. Andrew's flag. The first ship to receive such a banner was the Azov. “Azov” especially distinguished itself during the Battle of Navarino, during one of the Russian-Turkish wars.

In January 1992, the St. Andrew's flag was returned to the status of the Russian Naval flag. It was a wise and historically correct decision. St. Andrew's flag - personifies the power, strength and valor of the Russian fleet, which more than once brought horror and fear to the enemies of our Motherland.

Russian ships sailed under the St. Andrew's flag different countries peace . Very successful, by the way.

St. Andrew's flag is a rectangular panel with an aspect ratio of 1 to 1.5. On a white background there are two diagonal blue stripes that form an oblique cross. The width of the stripes is 10 times less than the length of the flag.

Origin of symbolism

The name is associated with the name of Andrew the First-Called, who was the first of the apostles to follow Christ and accompanied him on all his earthly wanderings. He was present at the Ascension of Christ, and on the day of Pentecost he received by lot the lands of the Black Sea region and the Balkans as an inheritance for preaching. The Apostle visited Abkhazia, Alania and Adygea, after which he visited Byzantium. The places of his fiery sermons were Greece and Macedonia, Bithynia and Scythia. Apostle Andrew finished his earthly path in the Greek city of Patras. He chose the shape of the cross for the crucifixion in the form of the letter “X” himself, believing that he was not worthy of crucifixion on a cross of the same shape as Christ.

Crucifixion of St. Andrew the First-Called

According to legend, Andrew the First-Called visited Russia, reaching Novgorod, so he is considered the special patron saint of our country.

Story

The history of the flag goes back more than 1000 years. In 832, an army consisting of Scots and Picts defeated the Angles, and then King Angus II proclaimed Andrew the First-Called the patron saint of Scotland. Before the battle, the clouds in the sky united into an oblique cross. But this is a legend, and the first reliable evidence of the use of an oblique cross is found on the seal of the Scots Guards and dates back to 1286. In 1606, the union of England and Scotland was formed with the accession of the Scottish King Jacob IV to the English throne. The Union Jack became the flag of the union state, combining two crosses - the straight English cross and the Scottish oblique.

It can be found on the flags of many countries that were part of the British Empire before its collapse in the twentieth century. Many city flags also include a cross.

The history of the St. Andrew's flag as the naval flag of Russia begins in the era of Peter I. He personally worked on its creation and tried many options. A drawing by Peter has been preserved, in which the tricolor crossed the St. Andrew's cross. According to legend, he fell asleep while working, and when he woke up he saw that the sun's rays, refracting on the mica window, formed a blue cross.

Peter I approved the St. Andrew's flag as the naval flag of Russia. This happened on December 11, 1699.
Since then, the cross banner has become a symbol and witness of Russia's naval victories. The traditional parting word before the battle was: “God and St. Andrew’s flag are with us.”

In its entire history, it was lowered in front of the enemy only twice. The first time this happened was at the end of the Russian-Turkish war. In 1829, the commander of the frigate Rafail, which was surrounded, Stroynikov lowered it, wanting to save the lives of hundreds of sailors. The name of the frigate was henceforth covered in shame, and the officers were demoted. The war was coming to an end, the battle did not decide anything, so Smolnikov violated the order, which ordered, if there was a threat of death, to approach the enemy ship and blow up the frigate. Nicholas I ordered the ship to be blown up, which is what Admiral Nakhimov did during the Battle of Sinop.

The second incident occurred during the Battle of Tsushima. On the second day of the tragic naval battle for Russia, the five remaining Russian ships were surrounded by more than 20 Japanese ships, and then Rear Admiral Nikolai Nebogatov gave the order to lower the flags. The lives of more than two thousand sailors were saved, but the tribunal sentenced Nebogatov to death, which was later replaced by 10 years of imprisonment in the fortress.

These two cases were the only ones in more than two centuries of use of the St. Andrew's flag in the Russian navy. Sailors sacredly honored the honor of the flag, neglecting their lives, and disrespect shown to the flag was considered a grave insult and sometimes almost led to wars.

So in 1910, the Russian-Austrian war almost broke out due to the fact that the Austrians did not respond to the salute given by the Russian squadron that arrived in the Hungarian port of Fiume. The Austrians insulted the flag twice: first, when the ships entered the port, the guns in the fortress were silent, and then the Austro-Hungarian squadron, which soon approached the same port, did not respond to the greeting from the traditional 21 salvo. Commander Nikolai Mankovsky demanded that the Austrians give a salute at 8 o'clock in the morning when the flags were raised by Russian sailors, threatening to lock the Austrian squadron ten times stronger in the port. The Austrians fired a salute the next morning

St. Andrew's flag in modern history

After the revolution, the cross banner continued to fly on the ships of the White Guards until October 1924, when in the North African port of Bizerte the flags were lowered after France recognized Soviet Russia.

Until 1932, the St. Andrew's cross was present on the guy (nose flag) of Soviet warships.

The St. Andrew's flag returned by Yeltsin's decree of July 21, 1992. Since 2000, it has become the official flag of the Russian Navy.

The phrase “St. Andrew’s flag” has long become stable and is associated exclusively with the fleet, but the question still arises: why exactly this male name chosen for the name, because it could well be Aleksandrovsky, Ivanovsky or Fedorovsky. The thing is that a special cross was chosen as a symbol for the banner, which is called St. Andrew's.

And his story is this: among the apostles of Jesus there were two fishermen brothers Peter and Andrey, the latter is discussed in the song “Walking on Water,” popular in the 90s of the last century. After the crucifixion of Christ, he traveled, preached Christian doctrine and was executed in Greece. He suffered martyrdom on a cross, the shape of which represents the intersection of two beams driven into the ground at an angle and forming an acute angle. Therefore, two intersecting lines are a symbol of the Apostle Andrew.

The proportions of Andreevsky's sides are 2 to 3, and the width of the blue stripes is 1/10 of the length.

Why exactly Apostle Andrew

The connection between the Apostle Andrew and the Navy of the Russian Federation is not obvious, but there are two reasons why the symbol of this martyr adorns the flags of our fleet. Firstly, in his wanderings, Andrew the First-Called reached the places that later became Russia, and even, according to some legends, left his pectoral cross in Kyiv. This statement can be questioned, because the emergence of the first urban settlements on the right bank of the Dnieper dates back to the 5-6th century AD.

And although the legend remains a legend, it is precisely because of it that St. Andrew the First-Called is one of the patrons of Russia. The second fact connecting the apostle with the fleet is his profession - he fished in the Sea of ​​Galilee. And since part of the fish was for sale, initially he patronized all maritime trade, and only after St. Andrew’s Cross adorned the flags of warships.

Peter I honored St. Andrew the First-Called, and it was he who, by his decree, approved the type of stern flags in 1720.

St. Andrew's Cross on other Flags

It is interesting that the symbol of the fisherman apostle, whom Christ called to be his disciple first, is very popular in emblems and, in particular, in heraldry. The St. Andrew's Cross can easily be seen in the flags of Great Britain, Scotland, Jamaica, the American states of Alabama and Florida, and the Brazilian cities of Rio de Janeiro and Fortaleza. It was also used during the Great Patriotic War by Vlasov’s detachments, and is now part of the troops of such maritime states as Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Belgium.