Flag of Lithuania

Lithuania

Use	National flag and civil ensign
Proportion	3:5
Adopted	1918 (modifications made in July 2004)
Design	A horizontal triband of yellow, green and red.
Variant flag of Lithuania
Use	State flag
Proportion	3:5
Adopted	2004, first documented use 1410.

The State flag of Lithuania represents Vytis - a horseman who fights enemies. It is required to use in the Royal Palace of Lithuania, Trakai Island castle as well as in Vytautas the Great's Miliary museum in Kaunas

The Flag of Lithuania is a tricolour flag currently used by Lithuania. The flag has three horizontal stripes. The yellow stripe on the top represents the sun, the green stripe in the middle represents forests, the red stripe on the bottom represents the blood of people who defended Lithuania's freedom. The flag's ratio is 3:5 (1:2 in 1989). The Council of Lithuania first adopted it in 1918. When the Soviets occupied Lithuania in 1940, they changed the flag to a Soviet one. When Lithuania gained independence in 1990, the flag was reintroduced. This newly introduced flag had a ratio of 1:2. In 2004, it was changed to 3:5.

Special days for the flag

The table below shows the dates when the flag should be flown:

Date	English Name	Remarks
January 1	Flag day	Commemorating the day when the national flag was first raised on the Gediminas Tower in 1919
January 13	Day of the Freedom Fighters	In memory of the January Events in 1991
February 16	Day of Re-establishment of the State of Lithuania (from the Russian Empire, 1918)	Hoisted with the Latvian and Estonian flags
February 24	Day of Independence of Estonia	Hoisted with the Latvian and Estonian flags
March 11	Day of Restitution of Independence of Lithuania (from the Soviet Union, 1990)	Hoisted with the Latvian and Estonian flags
March 29	NATO Day	In honor of Lithuania's accession to NATO in 2003; hoisted with the NATO flag
May 1	European Union Day	In honor of Lithuania's accession to the European Union in 2004; hoisted with the EU flag
May 9	Europe Day	Commemorates the end of World War II in 1945; formerly called Victory Day during the Soviet era
May 15	Day of Convening of the Constituent Seimas	In honor of the Constituent Assembly of Lithuania
June 14	Day of Mourning and Hope	Marks the date of the first mass deportations of Lithuanians to Siberia in 1941; the flag is marked for mourning
June 15	Day of Occupation and Genocide	Marks the beginning of Soviet occupation of Lithuania in 1940; the flag is marked for mourning
July 6	Statehood Day	Commemorates coronation of the first king, Mindaugas, in 1253
July 15	Day of the Battle of Grünwald	Commemorates the Lithuanian and Polish victory over the Teutonic Knights in 1410
August 23	Day of Black Ribbon	Marks the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939; the flag is marked for mourning
August 31	Day of Freedom	Marking the final departure of the Red Army from Lithuania in 1993
September 23	Day of Genocide of Lithuanian Jews	Marking the destruction of the Vilnius ghetto by Nazi Germany in 1943
October 25	Constitution Day	Commemorating the adoption of the national constitution in 1992
November 18	Day of Latvian Independence	Hoisted together with the Latvian and Estonian flags
November 23	Day of the Lithuanian Soldier	Commemorating the establishment of the Army of Lithuania in 1918