American Flag
Basic facts about the American Flag
'Stars and Stripes' and 'Old Glory' are the two most prominent
names for the national flag of the United States. In 1814,
Francis Scott Key wrote a poem that became the American National
Anthem, in which he referred to the flag as the 'Star Spangled
Banner'. The American flag stands for the land, the
people, the government and the ideals of the
United States and has undergone many changes since the first
official flag of 1777.
On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress passed the first
Flag Act, which said that the flag would be made up of thirteen
alternating red and white stripes representing the 13
original colonies. It also said that the Union would consist
of thirteen white stars on a blue field which would be
symbolic of a new constellation, but left no record
indicating as to why they chose the specific colors of the
flag.
On April 14, 1818, Congress ordered that a star be added for
each new state that joined the Union. Currently, the flag
contains 50 stars which represent the fifty states. Even though
it appears that the colors did not have a specific meaning at the
time the flag was created, they did become significant for the
flag after the same colors were chosen for the Great Seal of
the Unites States in 1782. The Congressional resolution on
the Great Seal listed meanings for the following colors:
The colors
- White : Signifies purity and innocence
- Red : Signifies valor and bravery
- Blue : Signifies vigilance, perseverance and justice
Stars are considered a symbol of the heavens and the divine goal to which man has aspired from time immemorial...the stripe is symbolic of the rays of light emanating from the sun.