FLAGS OF THE CIVIL WAR

On 4 July 1859, this flag became the offical flag of the United States after the admission of Oregon on 14 February 1859. The canton contained four rows of seven stars each, separated in the middle by a single row of five stars. This was the flag in use when when the southern states began to secede from the Union -- South Carolina the first to do so on 20 December 1860. A new state, Kansas, was admitted to the Union before Fort Sumpter was fired upon 12-14 April 1861, but the flag incorporating a star to represent Kansas had not yet become official. Thus, the 33-star flag was the first one fired upon by Confederate forces.

On 29 January 1861, the state of Kansas was admitted to the union and a new flag became official on 4 July 1861. The first two and last two rows contained seven stars each. The middle row contained six. This was the first new flag to be authorized following the secession of the southern states. The United States Govenment authorized 34 stars believing the southern states to be in rebellion. To remove stars representing the southern states would be admitting they had the right to secede. Therefore, all the stars were kept on the flag, even the ones representing southern states.

On 20 June 1863, West Virginia was admitted to the union. At the start of the war, West Virginia was part of the state of Virgina. When Virginia voted to secede, many of those in the mountainous region of Virginia disagreed with the decision. Most of the inhabitants there were poor and felt no ties to the landed gentry in the eastern regions of the state. In 1861, delegates from 26 western counties met and illegally passed ordinances to reorganize the state and create a new state called Kanawha, with Wheeling as its capitol. There was great division over these actions, and the region became a battleground throughout the war. During 1862, the federal congress approved a bill to admit the state, which may have been unconstitutional. State admissions require a quarum for a congressional vote, which was never acheived with southern representatives in absentia. President Lincoln disapproved of the bill, considered vetoing it, but reluctantly consented. A new flag was authorized to represent the addition of the new state and became offical on 4 July 1863. The canton of this flag contained five rows of stars, of seven stars each. It was the most popular because it became official just as Union forces acheived great victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg, and was still the official flag of the United States when Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomatox Courthouse 12 April 1865.

Near the close of the war, another state was admitted to the Union -- Nevada -- on 31 October 1864. The admission of Nevada did not draw as much ire as that of West Virginia. Nevada was organized from a territory apart from other states and no division existed over the loyalties of the inhabitants. The flag produced after Nevada's admission contained a canton with five rows of stars. The first, third, and fifth rows contained eight stars each; and the second and fourth contained six. It became official on 4 July 1865 and lasted for two years until Nebraska was admitted (1 March 1867) and a 37-star flag became official on 4 July 1867. Thus, it became the flag that saw hostilities end and a nation reunited.

THE BONNIE
BLUE FLAG

This flag was first seen when Mississippi (the second state to succeed), voted to do so and a large silk banner bearing a single star was carried through the crowd of the convention. It represented the first state to succeed (South Carolina) and had come to stand primarily for unity of spirit and an expression of nationalism. It was said to have inspired a song composed by Harry McCarthy called the "Bonnie Blue Flag." When discussions first arose about what form the first national flag of the confederacy would take, there were many proponents of the Bonnie Blue Flag ... a single star representing a new constellation in the south. But eventually, the mind-set of representing each state with a star, much as the founding fathers had, took prescedence. Hence the first national flag included a circle of stars representing each state, much as the the "Betsy Ross Flag" had during the American Revolution.

FIRST NATIONAL
FLAG (1861-1863)

This flag was never officially adopted because the Confederate Congress hurried to get it approved and it never received a full vote. Nevertheless, it was the standard colors for the first two years of the Confederacy. The canton (a rectangular division in the upper corner of the flag next to the staff) was to be blue in color and carry a field of equal-sized stars for each state, arranged in a circle, though other designs such as the St. Andrew's cross were also used. The original configuration contained seven stars, which was later increased to nine, eleven, twelve, and eventually thirteen as other states joined the Confederacy. Even though the Confederate Congress voted to admit two of those thirteen states -- Kentucky and Missouri -- and flags were produced that contained thirteen stars, those states were never recognized by the U.S. Goverment to be in rebellion. Consequently, the Confederate states were historically considered to number only eleven. The First National Flag was displeasing to both civilians and military leaders alike because of its similarity to northern flags. During battle, under heavy fire, it was often confused with the standards of Federal regiments. By the spring of 1862 a new flag was being considered.

SECOND NATIONAL
FLAG (1863-1865)

Because the First National flag was so indistinguishable from that of northern flags, southern commanders took to displaying battle flags of their own design. The most popular was that carried by the Army of Northern Virginia, which is what most people think of as the Confederate flag. The only difference was that it was square. Since this flag was so popular, no doubt partly due to the success of that particular army, the Confederate Congress enacted a bill incorporating the battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia as the union of the flag, on a white field. It was first used to cover the coffin of General Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson as his body lay in state in Richmond. Consequently, it was often called the "Jackson Flag," and also, because of the white field, the "stainless banner." The flag mostly flew over government facilities, field units preferred the First National flag or their own colors, although western units accepted the Second National flag more readily. However, it too received complaints from the very beginning. On windless days, when the banner hung limp, it took on the appearance of a white flag of truce.

THIRD NATIONAL
FLAG (1865)

This flag was short-lived because it was not adopted until March of 1865, during the final days of the Confederacy. The added stripe was red because according to its designer, Artillery-Major Arthur L. Rogers, it symbolized fortitude and courage. He also specified traits for the other aspects of the flag -- the white field symbolized purity and innocence, the St. Andrew's cross symbolized descent from british stock (the Union Jack contains the crosses of St. George, St. Andrew, and St. Patrick -- patron saints of England, Scotland, and Ireland respectively), and the bar was taken from the French flag symbolizing the descent of many southerners from French stock.