Georgia State Flag

What Is the Georgia State Flag?

The Georgia state flag is the official banner representing Georgia. Three horizontal stripes of equal width cover the flag. The top and bottom stripes are red. The center stripe is white.

A square blue canton sits in the upper left corner. The canton width equals two of the stripes. Georgia's coat of arms appears in gold at the center of the canton. Thirteen white five-pointed stars circle the coat of arms. The words IN GOD WE TRUST appear directly below the coat of arms.

The bottom red stripe runs the full length of the flag. The top red stripe and center white stripe extend from the canton to the end. Government buildings, schools, and public spaces across Georgia fly this flag.

Meaning of the Georgia State Flag

The Georgia state flag represents the state's identity and constitutional principles. The design connects Georgia to both the original thirteen colonies and Confederate heritage. The overall pattern comes from the First National Flag of the Confederacy, called the Stars and Bars.

The 13 white stars represent Georgia as one of the original Thirteen Colonies. The coat of arms shows three pillars supporting an arch. The arch symbolizes Georgia's constitution. The three pillars represent the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government.

A figure in colonial military dress stands between the pillars holding a drawn sword. The sword represents defense of the constitution. The state motto Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation wraps around the pillars. The words IN GOD WE TRUST appear below the coat of arms as a foundation for the principles above.

History of the Georgia State Flag

Georgia had no official state flag until 1879. When Georgia seceded from the Union on January 19, 1861, several banners served unofficially. The Bonnie Blue Flag showed a single white star on deep blue. Another flag raised over the Savannah Custom House on February 1, 1861, displayed Georgia's coat of arms on white bordered with red.

Georgia state senator Herman H. Perry introduced the first official flag in 1879. Perry was a former Confederate colonel. He based the design on the First National Flag of the Confederacy. The 1879 flag featured a vertical blue band at the hoist and three horizontal stripes. The original design had a solid blue band with no emblems.

A 1902 amendment added the state coat of arms to the blue band, though no surviving examples exist. By 1904, the coat of arms appeared on a white shield with a gold outline and a red ribbon reading GEORGIA. Some manufacturers included the year 1799 from the state seal. In 1914, the General Assembly changed the date to 1776 to mark the Declaration of Independence.

Between the 1910s and 1920s, the coat of arms was replaced with the state seal. The 1927 Georgia Official Register was the first state publication to use the seal instead of the coat of arms.

In early 1955, attorney John Sammons Bell suggested a new flag incorporating the Confederate Battle Flag. State senators Jefferson Lee Davis and Willis Harden introduced Senate Bill 98 during the 1956 legislative session. The bill was signed into law on February 13, 1956, and took effect July 1. The 1956 flag replaced the red and white stripes with the Confederate battle flag. A 2000 Georgia Senate research report concluded the flag was adopted during an atmosphere of preserving segregation and resentment toward federal integration rulings.

Political pressure for change increased during the 1990s, particularly before the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Governor Roy Barnes pushed through a replacement design in 2001. Architect Cecil Alexander designed a compromise flag showing small versions of previous Georgia flags under the words Georgia's History. The North American Vexillological Association ranked this design worst among all state and provincial flags.

Sonny Perdue was elected governor in 2002, partly on a platform of allowing a state referendum on the flag. The legislature designed a new flag in 2003 based on the First National Flag of the Confederacy. Governor Perdue signed the legislation on February 19, 2003. A referendum on March 2, 2004, asked voters to choose between the 2001 and 2003 designs. The 1956 flag was not an option. The 2003 design won with 73.1% of the vote.

Previous Versions of the Georgia State Flag

Symbols of the Georgia State Flag

Georgia State Flag Colors

The Georgia state flag uses the same red, white, and blue as the United States national flag. The coat of arms adds gold. Georgia statute provides Cable and Pantone values for red, white, and blue but not for gold.

Georgia State Flag Facts

• Georgia holds the record for most flag iterations with eight different designs
• The current flag was adopted February 19, 2003, and approved by referendum March 2, 2004
• The 2003 design won the referendum with 73.1% of the vote
• The 2001 Barnes flag ranked worst in a NAVA survey of 72 flags
• Georgia is one of three state flags featuring In God We Trust
• The design is based on the Confederate Stars and Bars from 1861