The national flag of France has three colors arranged vertically, namely red, white and blue. In French, the banner is also referred to as “drapeau francais”, “les couleurs” or “drapaeu tricolore”. Before, the French traditional symbols were present on the flag such as the lily or fleur-de-lis. This flower was shown during the 12th century. The French flag was also raised frequently during the Revolution and has become quite famous around the globe to stand for liberty.
One approach regarding the flag’s symbol is that the red and blue colors stand for Paris. The white is said to represent the Bourbon Dynasty. The colors were said to represent the virtues that the French Revolution stood for such as brotherhood, equality and freedom. The colors and design of the flag of France were known to have been inspired by the Dutch flag. There were other meanings attached to the symbols in the following years.
In various French schools, the flag of France are known to stand for the three key estates of the Ancient Regime. The white stood for the clergy, the blue stood for the bourgeoisie and the red represented the nobles. The white may also have been linked to Joan of Arc.
Since 1358, the blue and red tones of the flag have become the main colors that represent Paris. Etienne Marcel, the leader of the Parisian revolution, also used the same colors. In 1794, the blue, white and red tricolor was used by the Convention. Lafayette was said to have added the white.