Last modified: 2007-08-25 by jarig bakker
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![[Municipality flag of Amsterdam]](../images/n/nl-ams.gif)
image by Mark Sensen, 14 Nov 1996
Adopted: 5 Feb 1975
The present flag is probably also the oldest design (16th
or 17th century): a banner-of-the-arms, rotated 90 degrees.
Adopted: 5 February 1975. (Source: [ped80]
Pedersen 1980).
Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
![[Unnoficial flag of Amsterdam before 1975]](../images/n/nl-amst1.gif)
image by Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
Before 1975, unofficially a tricolour red-white-black with the arms
on the white stripe was used. Such a flag was already know since the 17th
century.
Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
![[Historical flag of Amsterdam]](../images/n/nl-amst3.gif)
image by Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
Another variant used in the 17th century had seven horizontal stripes
white, red, black, white, black, red, white, with the arms all over. (The
arms on both variants could again be in different variants: shield only,
shield and crown, shield, crown and supporters; either centered or shifted
to the hoist.).
Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
![[Historical flag of Amsterdam]](../images/n/nl-amst2.gif)
image by Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
Another early variant was the Dutch tricolour
with the saltires in black.
Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
![[Resistance flag of Amsterdam]](../images/n/nl_ams-v.gif)
image by Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
Amsterdam has a special Verzetsvlag ("Resistance flag"): white
with the full coat of arms. Such a flag was given in 1947 by Queen Wilhelmina
on occasion of the addition of the motto to the coat-of-arms 28 May 1947.
This motto Heldhaftig, Vastberaden, Barmhartig ("Heroic, Determined,
Merciful") was given to the city for the merit during 1940-1945. This flag
is used during WWII-commemorations.
Mark Sensen, 08 July 1999
On 13 March 2004, a group of activists called "Rainbow Warriors" unfolded
in Amsterdam a huge rainbow flag (100 sq. m). They wanted to protest against
the prohibition of rainbow flags in the historical center of Amsterdam,
decided by deputy-mayor Anne Lize van de Stoel against the advice of the
municipal council. The council proposed to allow the emancipatory and non
commercial flags.
The "Rainbow Warriors" said that the prohibition of the flags was hypocrit,
since commercial billboards are allowed because they are "short-lived"
and a big source of money for the municipality.
Source: Tetu.com (online
magazine for gays and lesbians).
Ivan Sache, 19 May 2004
International
Civic Arms : http://www.ngw.nl/
![[Buitenveldert flag]](../images/n/nl-nh_bv.gif)
image by Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
Buitenveldert is a city ward of Amsterdam, the last defence against
Amstelveen (and Schiphol) and very boring, though posh. The street-pattern
may be familiar to USA-citizens.
Some observer wrote: "The ever growing cities get into a situation,
wherein the citizens consider themselves more part of a ward than of the
city as a whole, and that ward is then seen as their "village". They tend
to look for a simple symbol to show their identity, like a flag.
Buitenveldert, a ward of Amsterdam, has its own flag, designed by one
of its inhabitants, F. Muller.
Source: Vexilla Nostra--V:89.
No mention of symbolism, but the colors are of Amsterdam, as well as
the saltire; the NS arrows probably symbolize the important rôle
of Buitenveldert in the connection between Amsterdam and the outlying villages.
Jarig Bakker, 17 May 2004
Are you sure this flag is not indeed the ensign of the Albanian
snowplough squadron or ice-breaking fleet?
Ivan Sache, 18 May 2004
![[Zeemanshoop flag]](../images/n/nl~zha.gif)
image by Jaume Ollé, 27 Apr 2003, after Steenbergen:
Vlaggen
van alle Natiën, 1862.
(See Zeemanscolleges)
Collegie "Zeemanshoop" (College "Seaman's Hope"), established 1822
in Amsterdam. Captain J.H. de Weerd had number 576. Captain Thomas Lange's
biography mentions that in 1836 the members of Zeemanshoop were renumbered;
could it be that this college originally did not reuse its membership numbers.
This college, was still in existence in 1979, and as far as I know, exists
to this day (6 December 2001).
Flag: Red with white numbers (on both sides) and a white anchor in
the top hoist. All sources show the anchor to lean halfway between hoistwise
and flywise, however: = [noh71] in 1848
shows number 20, where I described the numbers as slightly
below the centre, and it has the anchor leaning hoistward. = Captain
J.H. de Weerd's flag in 1855 likewise has the anchor leaning hoistward,
but has the numbers slightly off-set towards the bottom, as well as off-set
towards the hoist. The latter is caused by this being the only image that
shows the flag as clearly not 2:3; ignoring the flowing of the flag it
has a ratio of ca. 1:2. = Leen Smit in 1935 depicted number 151 with the
numbers almost centered; slightly off-set towards the bottom and the fly,
and the anchor leaning flyward.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 6 Dec 2001
![[De Nieuwe Amsterdammers flag]](../images/n/nl}dna.gif)
image from this website.
I want to report the flag of "The Nieuwe Amsterdammers. See this
website. We made one but it got damaged. We're planning to have one
done for our next debate. The flag is: horizontal blue - black - pink;
on black three white saltires. "De Nieuwe Amsterdammers" exists
for 6 months, mainly active in "De Pijp" citypart (which is around
the old Heineken brewery just south of the center of Amsterdam). The group
consists of 10 people; its purpose is to to use the collective intelligence
of "ourselves" to change Amsterdam and Dutch politics.
The flag is a mix of Amsterdam, New York, stars and stripes, boys and
girls, the Dutch flag - a playful interpretation of the old Amsterdam flag.
Laurent Chambon, 3 Sep 2006