National colours of Italy
The national colours of Italy are green, white, and red, collectively known in Italian as il Tricolore. The three Italian national colours appeared for the first time in Genoa on 21 August 1789 on the cockade of Italy shortly after the outbreak of the French Revolution, on 11 October 1796 they were used for the first time in Milan on a military banner, while on 7 January 1797 in Reggio Emilia they appeared for the first time on a flag.
The three Italian national colours carved on the floor of the Palazzo delle Poste in Florence. After their appearance in Genoa on 21 August 1789, red, white and green gradually became part of the Italian collective imagination until they were represented in the most varied areas.
Dante and Beatrice by Carl Oesterley (1845), represented as described by Dante in canto XXX of the Purgatorio of the Divine Comedy. On the left, we can see Beatrice's green, white and red dress.
Panorama of Genoa in the early 19th century. Here the Italian tricolour cockade first appeared, and with it the Italian national colours.
The departure of the Mille expedition
The cockade of Italy is the national ornament of Italy, obtained by folding a green, white and red ribbon into a plissé using the technique called plissage (pleating). It is one of the national symbols of Italy and is composed of the three colours of the Italian flag with the green in the centre, the white immediately outside and the red on the edge. The cockade, a revolutionary symbol, was the protagonist of the uprisings that characterized the Italian unification, being pinned on the jacket or on the hats in its tricolour form by many of the patriots of this period of Italian history. During which, the Italian Peninsula achieved its own national unity, culminating on 17 March 1861 with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. On 14 June 1848, it replaced the azure cockade on the uniforms of some departments of the Royal Sardinian Army, while on 1 January 1948, with the birth of the Italian Republic, it took its place as a national ornament.
Camille Desmoulins, who invented the cockade of France, which in turn inspired the birth of the Italian one
The people of Paris attack the fortress of the Bastille on 14 July 1789, decreeing the beginning of the French Revolution. Initially the Italian rioters mistakenly believed that the flag waved between the Parisian barricades was green, white and red.
Panorama of Genoa in the early 19th century. Here, the Italian tricolour cockade appeared for the first time, and with it the Italian national colours.
The three Italian national colours carved into the floor of the Post Office Building in Florence. After their appearance in Genoa on 21 August 1789, red, white and green gradually became part of the Italian collective imaginary until they were represented in the most varied areas.
