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Tuscany - Historical Flags (Italy)

Toscana

Medici Flag
Austria-Lorraine Dinasty Flag
Reported Flag (1756)
1815 Flags
1840 Flag
1848 Flag
Suposed Ducal Standard
Suposed Merchant Flag
Reported Merchant Ensign
Pilot Flag
Flags According to Steenbergen Book (1862)

See also:

Other Sites:

Roberto Breschi Site

Medici Flag

by Jaume Ollé, 2 November 1998

The Medici family governed after 1421. A revolt deposet them in 1502 but Alexander Medici retook the power in 1512. in 1527 another revolt expelled the Medici family but Charles V restored Alexander in 1531 and give him the title of duke of Florence. He was succeeded by his son Cosm, in 1537, who took the title of Duke of Tuscany after the conquest of Siena in 1557; Cosm died in 1574 and succeeded by his son Francis I, and after him Ferdinand.,Cosm II (1608-1621), Ferdinand II (1621-1670) Cosm III (1670-?) and John Gaston (?-1737) . By a treatry the duchy pass to Francis, duke of
Austria-Lorraine.
The Medici used white flag with shield. The shield wasn't always the same exactly but always has the five red balls. This is the flag of 1574-1586. Proportions unknown.
Jaume Ollé, 2 November 1998

Austria-Lorraine Dinasty Flag

by Jaume Ollé , 2 November 1998

Flag of the Austria-Lorraine dinasty from 1749 to 1765
Jaume Ollé, 2 November 1998

Reported Flag (1756)

The cover of [sie63] shows what the book describes as approximately a quarter of a flagchart, one of many to roll of the, mostly Dutch, presses for the use of seafarers: "Tableau des Pavillons que la Plupart des Nations arborent a` la Mer. Faitau de'po^t des cartes et plans de la marine pour le service des vaisseaux du Roy par ordre de M. de Machault, Garde de se'aux de France. Par le Sr. Bellin Inge'nieur de la marine. 1756." [bel56]
On the 4th row from the bottom there is "Pavillon de Toscane" - A white flag (16 unit hoist), with a red cross with two unit wide arms and a one unit wide gold fringe. The cross is slightly asymmetrical: The lower edge of the flywise arms of the red cross follow the middle line of the flag.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 4 January 2001

1815 Flags

by Jaume Ollé, 5 November 1998

In 1765 Tuscany adopted the austrian colors with the shield of the Austria-Lorena house (probably near to hoist). Towards 1815 the shield has three flags on each side, in different order but the three on the right side are the same of three of left side. One flag is red, another red-white-red, and the last one blue with three (?) white bars. I don't know these last flags but perhaps they could be attribued to the ducal standard (red flag, with shield ,I assume) and merchant flag (blue white flag). Of course the R-W-R flag is the national one.
Jaume Ollé, 5 November 1998

1840 Flag

by Jaume Ollé, 30 April 2003

Flag c.1840 to1860 (except 1848-49).
Jaume Ollé, 5 November 1998

At J.W Norie - J.S. Hobbs: Flaggen aller seefahrenden Nationen, 1971[ nor71] (original print 1848):
228 Tuscany War - The flag in N/H has the arms centered, what apparently is intended as the same shield, a similar yellow "ornament" around it (though not as Italian), but the cross is not below the shield, but rather under it, that is: It is mostly covered by the shield with the double tips black, fimbriated light, stick out from behind the ornamentation, and between shield and crown (as on the upper side the ornamentation merely curls around the corners then stops, leaving the centre top free). The crown is of the type where the 2nd and 4th arc also arc wide enough to slightly descend near the middle of the crown, as are most crowns we represent as up-arced, making it wider. The objects around the shield appear to be, on the dexter side: A spear with a yellow over red flag of at least six stripes, lower and behind a halbard, blade downward, etc. a spear with a a mono-coloured flag of at least three yellow flywise stripes, another such halbard, all staffs sticking in the red, a barrel of a (hand) gun, a horn (like a post horn), a drum, all in the white, and in the lower red what appear like the lower end of the two spears from the other side, appearing from under the flags and placed together, though the angles don't allow for this, with a cross on a chain hanging from one end (A rosary wound around them? This is probably something completely different, but I have no idea what they are!). Sinister is a mirror image, except the fore- and up-most flag is red over yellow, the one behind it blue over yellow. Hanging from the sideways arms of the cross is the Order of the Golden Fleece around the lower half of the shield. And over it a vertical pennant with the hoist just the arms, at least, the shield, the crown, something beside it and the order hanging below it, white outlined in black, and the fly red before white before red. I don't know about the yellow and white bits of the flags, or the details of where the red should have been, but the blue was most definitely placed there on purpose. What are all these flags?
229 Tuscany Merchant - As 228, but only the ornamented shield, the crown, the cross and the Order of the Golden Fleece, slightly off-set, and without pennant.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 12 November 2001

Though it would not be very easily visible on the flag of this size, the Hungary Moderne should include a crown, ie. the double-cross should be issuing from a golden crown standing on the triple hill. At least I think it should, even if such a small detail would really be sometimes left out.
What's the idea of having Hungary in the coat of arms at all?
I know that Tuscany was at the time ruled by Habsburgs - but did the rulers have any actual connection to Hungary?
Željko Heimer, 5 May 2003