Flag of Russia

"The flag of the Russian Federation is a tricolor flag consisting of three equal horizontal fields; white on the top, blue in the middle and red on the bottom. The flag was first used as an ensign for Russian merchant ships and only became official in 1696. The flag continued to be used by the Russian Provisional Government after the Tsar was toppled in the February Revolution and was not replaced until the October Revolution which established the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic - the world's first constitutionally socialist state. From that time period, a 1:2 red flag featuring the abbreviated name "RSFSR" ("РСФСР") was used, until replaced in 1954 with the universal design of the Soviet flag with a blue stripe along the mast. It was not until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 that the tricolor was brought back as the official flag of the new Russian Federation. The modern era flag underwent a proportion change in 1993 and has been official since 2000. ... Name: Tricolor. Use: Civil and state flag and ensign. Proportion 2:3. Adopted: 11 December 1993 (originally de jure from 11 May (29 April O.S.) 1696, de facto since around 1700 for vessels and 1883 for land use). Design: Rectangular tricolor with three equal-size horizontal bands: the upper one is white, the middle blue, and the lower red." [Flag of Russia. Wikipedia]