This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

# Bremen Historical Flags - part 1: 1350-1891 (Germany)

## Historische Bremer Flaggen - Teil 1

Last modified: 2026-08-15 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: bremen | banner of arms | key | hoist(chequy) | canton(white) | panel (white) | stripes(8) | stripes(9) | stripes(14) |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors

- Introduction
- Banner-of-Arms (reported 1350)
- Hanging Flag 14th Century
- 17th Century Flag (reported 1685, 1700 and 1705)
- Bremen 1695
- 1693-1891 Flag, probably mistaken (reported 1716, 1750 and 1805)
- 18th Century Flag (reported 1769)
- Proposals of Carl Wilhelm Theremin 1848
- Pre-1891 Flag (reported 1862)
- State Ensign 1815-1891 (reported 1862)
- Pre-1891 Flag (reported 1865)
- State Flag 1871 and 1921

See also:

- Historical Flags (Bremen)
- Carl Wilhelm Theremin´s 1848 Proposals
- Hanseatic Cities (Germany, Latvia, Netherlands, Poland)
- Index of all German Pages
- Germany

## Banner-of-Arms

### Reported 1350

by Jaume Ollé

Red flag with white key, diagonal with handle pointed toward lower fly (banner of arms).
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

## Hanging Flag 14th Century

by Phil Nelson

Znamierowski 1999 shows several interesting flags of the Port Cities of northern Europe. These are derived from gonfanons, originally red in color.
The flags, in a banner form [i.e. hanging flags], were flown from the stern of the vessels, the mast carrying the gonfanon of the colours. The oldest of the series, from the mid-13th century, that of Hamburg, was followed among others by Bremen in the 14th century.
Phil Nelson, 20 Feb 2000

## 17th Century Flag

### Reported 1685, 1700 and 1705

by Jaume Ollé

Chequey 7 by 6 red-white. Illustrated National Geographic 1917 p. 371
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

## Bremen 1695

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 16 Oct 2007

Bremen 1695: The flag has 9 horizontal stripes in alternating colours red and white, starting with a red stripe at the top end and ending with another red stripe at the bottom end as well. At the hoist there is the typical edge at the hoist consisting of 2 vertical red-white chequered stripes of other flags of Bremen and Wismar.
Source:
Poster entitled: "Die geschichtliche Entwicklung der als deutsche Nationalflaggen auf See gefahrenen und von den seefahrenden Nationen anerkannten deutschen Kriegs- und Handelsflaggen",
[engl: "The historical evolution of those German national flags used on ships and recognized as German war flags or merchant flags by the naval nations",
edited by Deutsches Schifffahrtsmuseum Bremerhaven, 1981, based on an original version of Kapitän zur See a.D. Karl Schultz, all flags on the poster are painted by E. Paschke.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 16 Oct 2007

## Flag 1693-1891, probably mistaken

### Reported 1716, 1750 and 1805

by Jaume Ollé

Horizontally striped, 9 stripes, red and white. In the hoist two vertical rows of 9 squares each, the first alternately red-white, the second alternately white-red.
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

Schurdel 1995 implies the 9-striped flag to be in error, probably by the Allard 1695 flag chart, and then copied in other flag charts for over a century, since he states that all documents and ship paintings always have an even number of stripes.
Norman Martin, 14 Sep 2000

According to Schurdel 1995 and Stadler 1966 the first proven occurrence of the current civil flag dates from 1691, and it has been used continuously since then in Bremen. br>M. Schmöger, 21 Sep 2001

## 18th Century Flag

### Reported 1769

by Jorge Candeias

Four horizontal stripes blue-white.
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

## Proposals of Carl Wilhelm Theremin 1848

image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 6 July 2026 | image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 6 July 2026 |  |

Proposal no.1 (see left image above) was a vertical black-red-golden tricolour. On canton on the black stripe was a 12-stripes version of the flag of Bremen.
Proposal no.2 (see right image above) was a Bremen flag with 12 stripes (according to Jarig Bakker at least eight stripes are required) with golden canton parted by a black centred cross fimbriated red on the blue upper hoist quarter. (#2)
Sources: B.Arch, DB51 405 Bl.6 row 5 column 2; B.Arch, DB51 405 Bl.7 row 5 column 1
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 6 July 2026

## Pre-1891 Flag

### Reported 1862

by Jorge Candeias

Like the 1891 Civil Ensign, except white on red.
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

## State Ensign 1815-1891

### Reported 1862

by Jaume Ollé

## Pre-1891 Flag

### Reported 1865

by Jaume Ollé

Like the 1693-1891 flag, except 14 stripes.
Norman Martin, 25 Feb 1998

## State Flag 1871 and 1921

Like the State Flag 1891, but with the crowned middle arms. Readopted 1947. Present rule allows this pattern only with 8 stripes.
Norman Martin, 25 February 1998

back to Bremen main page click here