Country profile: Georgia

The five-cross flag is inspired by medieval banners of the Kingdom of Georgia. A similar banner appears on a Venetian nautical chart of 1367, by the Pizzigani brothers.

During its first independence (1918-1921), and again from 1990, Georgia used another flag, dark red with a black and white canton. The five-cross flag was taken up in the 1990s by the United National Movement, the party of Mikheil Saakashvili.

After the Rose Revolution of November 2003, Parliament adopted it as the national flag on 14 January 2004.

The Georgian flag draws entirely on the Christian tradition:

• Large red cross: the cross of Saint George, the patron saint of Georgia.
• Four small crosses: crosses pattée, often interpreted as the four evangelists, or as faith spreading in the four directions.
• White: purity and wisdom.

Georgia adopted Christianity as its state religion in the 4th century, making it one of the oldest Christian countries in the world.

The five-cross flag is often compared with that of the Crusades and the Kingdom of Jerusalem, which bore a cross surrounded by four smaller crosses.

The cross of Saint George is also that of England, whose flag is a red cross on a white field, without the four small crosses.

At sporting events, the Georgian flag is one of the most recognisable thanks to its large red cross, particularly in rugby stands, rugby being very popular in the country.