The flag of Estonia is a tricolor of horizontal stripes of blue, black and white, all of equal size.
In the 1880’s the Estonian Student’s Society at the University of Tartar came up with the original Estonian national flag.
It was used when independence was declared on 24 February 1918 and formally adopted on 24 November of that same year.
Did you know it was raised for the first time on 1 December 1918 and was understandably associated with student nationalism?
The law on the state flag was adopted by the parliament on 27 June 1922 after the annexation of Estonia by the Russians. In June 1940 the Estonian flag was banned.
1987-1988 were the days of the “singing revolution” a.k.a. the process of becoming independent. The blue, black and white flag was reinstated as the national flag on 24 February 1989 and was hoisted for the last time in more than forty years.
On 21 July 1940 Soviet soldiers tore down the national flag and Estonia was given a more politically acceptable flag by the Soviet rulers. In fact they banned any combination of blue, black and white from ever being used even for clothing.
During the first occupation, 1940-1941, the Estonian flag was officially banned. This form of suppression was also imposed on Lithuania and Latvia. However Estonians managed to fly the Estonian flag.
The Germans occupied Estonia from 1941 to 1944. The Yorces found Estonian flags everywhere and many Soviet troops had already fled. Although the Germans wanted to destroy Estonian Government the Estonian flag was sometimes flown under the German flag.
In 1944 the Soviets reoccupied the nation and banned the flag. In 1991 Estonia became independent once again and the blue, black and white tricolor proudly flew over government and private facilities.