Flag of Hungary
Three equal horizontal bands of red, white and green.
What the flag means
Article I of the Fundamental Law, in force since 2012, names the colours as symbols of strength (red), fidelity (white) and hope (green). This repeats an interpretation from the Romantic period and was written into law long after the flag first appeared.
History
The red, white and green tricolour became a national symbol in the revolution of 1848–49, and Act XXI of 1848 made it official. The Habsburg authorities banned it after the revolution failed, and it became legal again after the Compromise of 1867. In the 1956 uprising, protesters cut the communist emblem out of the centre, and the flag with a hole became a symbol of the revolt. The coat of arms introduced in 1957 was never placed on the flag, so the plain tricolour has been official since then.
After 1957 it was one of only three flags of European socialist states without socialist symbols. The other two were those of Poland and Czechoslovakia.
Earlier flags of Hungary
- 1946–1949Tricolour with the Kossuth coat of arms in the centre
- 1949–1956Tricolour with the communist Rákosi coat of arms in the centre
Flags that look like this one
Hungary is red, white, green from the top. Bulgaria is white, green, red. Iran is green, white, red with a red emblem. Tajikistan is red, white, green with a gold crown and stars.
Flags of Hungary's neighbours
Sources
- Wikipedia: Flag of Hungary
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Read how we research flags in our editorial policy, or report a mistake.
