The following is a list of flags used in Vatican City and for its predecessor, the Papal States.
National flag and State flag
| Flag | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 7 June 1929 – 26 November 2000 | Two fields divided vertically, yellow field on the staff side and a white field on the fly side, which bears the tiara and the keys.[1][2][3][4] | |
| 26 November 2000 – 7 June 2023 | ||
| 7 June 2023 – present |
Papal flags
Papal standard
| Flag | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1523–1534 | Orange and red stripes charged with the coat of arms of Pope Clement VII. | |
| 2005–2013 | Two fields divided vertically, yellow field on the staff side and a white field on the fly side, which bears Pope Benedict's personal arms. | |
| 2013–2023 | Two fields divided vertically, yellow field on the staff side and a white field on the fly side, which bears Pope Francis's personal arms. | |
| 2023–2025 | ||
| 2025– | Two fields divided vertically, yellow field on the staff side and a white field on the fly side, which bears Pope Leo's personal arms. |
Papal pennant
| Flag | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 2005–2013 | With a yellow band at the hoist and Pope Benedict's personal arms in color in the white fly. | |
| 2013–2023 | With a yellow band at the hoist and Pope Francis's personal arms in color in the white fly. | |
| 2023–2025 | ||
| 2025– | With a yellow band at the hoist and Pope Leo's personal arms in color in the white fly. |
Papal banners
| Flag | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1922–1939 | Papal banner of Pope Pius XI | |
| 1939–1958 | Papal banner of Pope Pius XII | |
| 1958–1963 | Papal banner of Pope John XXIII | |
| 1963–1978 | Papal banner of Pope Paul VI | |
| 1978–2005 | Papal banner of Pope John Paul II | |
| 2005–2013 | Papal banner of Pope Benedict XVI | |
| 2013–2025 | Papal banner of Pope Francis | |
| 2025– | Papal banner of Pope Leo XIV |
Military flag
| Flag | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1978–1982 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope John Paul II and Commandant Franz Pfyffer von Altishofen | |
| 2002–2005 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope John Paul II and Commandant Elmar Mäder | |
| 2005–2008 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope Benedict XVI and Commandant Elmar Mäder | |
| 2008–2013 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Benedict XVI and Commandant Daniel Anrig | |
| 2013–2015 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope Francis and Commandant Daniel Anrig | |
| 2015–2025 | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope Francis and Commandant Christoph Graf | |
| 2025– | Papal guard flag of 1914, but with the arms of Pope Leo XIV and Commandant Christoph Graf |
Historical flags
| Flag | Date | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Papal naval ensign | White flag with a version of the coat of arms of the Holy See between the figures of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. | ||
| 1300s | Banner of Pope Boniface VIII | A red swallowtail with two golden keys crossed over an umbraculum of the same colour. | |
| 1510s | Banner of Pope Leo X | An orange swallowtail with seven red roundels. | |
| 1520s | An orange swallowtail featuring two crossed keys on a white shield. | ||
| 1520s | Flag used by papal military strategist Jacopo Pesaro | ||
| 1540s | Banner of Pope Paul III | Dark red swallowtail with the keys and tiara design. | |
| 1669–1771 | Flag for Papal Ships | A red flag with Christ on the cross, surrounded by St. Peter and St. Paul. | |
| 1808–1870[5] | Pilot flag, Infantry colours and de-facto civil flag[6] | Vertical yellow and white bicolour. | |
| –1870 | War and proto-national flag[7] flown over Porta Pia during the fall of Rome (1870)[8][9][10] | Yellow and white, with simplified coat of arms of the Holy see in the middle | |
| 1803–1825 | Flag for Papal Merchant Ships | A white banner with the keys and tiara in the centre. | |
| 1849 | Flag of the Roman Republic | The Italian tricolour with the phrase DIO E POPOLO (God and People) in the centre. | |
| 1825–1870 | Flag for Papal Merchant Ships | Vertical yellow and white bicolour with the tiara and keys in the center of the white half. |
References
- 1."Flag of Vatican City". Retrieved 2021-09-26. vertically divided yellow-white national flag with an emblem on the white stripe featuring two crossed keys and a papal tiara. The flag is square in its proportions.
- 2."The Flag of the Vatican City". Retrieved 2021-09-26. The Vatican City State flag is square in shape, with yellow and white vertically divided on each side of the flag.
- 3."Legge fondamentale dello Stato della Città del Vaticano 26 novembre 2000" (in Italian). Retrieved 2021-09-26.
- 4."letter to the German nunciature (2010-05-27)" (PDF) (in German). Retrieved 2021-09-26.
- 5."Bandiera pontificia" (in Italian). Stato della cità del Vaticano. Archived from the original on 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2008-07-09. Anticamente la bandiera dello Stato pontificio era giallorossa (o per meglio dire amaranto e rossa, colori derivati dai colori dello stemma della Santa Sede), i due colori tradizionali del Senato e del Popolo romano, che vennero tuttavia sostituiti con il bianco e il giallo nel 1808, allorché Pio VII
- 6.William Becker "Vatican Flags", 2018
- 7.William Becker "Vatican Flags", 2018
- 8."Vaticano, la bandiera di Porta Pia ritorna dopo 141 anni". La Stampa (in Italian). 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
- 9."MEMORIAE TRADERE. E' TORNATA IN VATICANO LA BANDIERA DEI DIFENSORI DI PORTA PIA – di Pucci Cipriani – Ricognizioni". www.ricognizioni.it. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
- 10.Cipriani, Pucci (2022-10-31). "È tornata in Vaticano la Bandiera dei difensori di Porta Pia" (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-11-03.