Historical Flags 1652-1928
- Many flags were used in South Africa prior to political unification in 1910.
- The original Dutch East India Company colony at the Cape of Good Hope (1652-1795) flew the Dutch flag, with the VOC logo in the centre. This flag was also flown during the period of Batavian Republic rule (1803-06).
- The Boer Republics, i.e. Orange Free State (1854-1902), South African Republic (1857-1902), Stellaland (1882-85), Goshen (1883-85), the Nieuwe Republiek (1884-88), and Klein Vrystaat (1886-1891) had their own flags. Several were derived from the Dutch flag.
- The British colonies that existed in the 19th century, flew the British flags, and from the early 1870s some, i.e. Natal, Cape Colony, and later the Orange River Colony and Transvaal, added their own colonial flag badges.
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1876 – 1910 | Flag of the Cape Colony | A blue ensign defaced with the shield-of-arms of Cape Colony | |
| 1843 - 1910 | Flag of the Colony of Natal | A Blue Ensign defaced with the shield-of-arms of the colony of Natal | |
| 1900 – 1910 | Flag of the Orange River Colony | A blue ensign defaced with a springbok antelope in a disc | |
| 1900 – 1910 | Flag of Transvaal | A blue ensign defaced with a disc showing a lion lying on an African plain with palm trees. |
- The Union of South Africa, formed in 1910, initially used a red ensign, defaced with a badge depicting the Union coat of arms. This was superseded by the first South African national flag, introduced in 1928.
Read more about this topic: List Of South African Flags, History
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