Blowin' In The Wind Trivia Quiz

The European Union began life with the Treaty of Rome in 1957. At that time six countries formed the European Economic Community, which was often referred to as the Common Market. Three of the founding countries, France, Italy and Belgium have flags which consist of three vertical stripes.

The French flag has stripes of blue, white, and red; it was adopted after the French Revolution at the end of the eighteenth century. The blue has been a symbolic colour of France since King Clovis united the country at the beginning of the sixth century in the common era. White can represent, peace and unity. The red represents the blood shed during the revolution and other conflicts.

The flag of Belgium has vertical stripes of black, yellow, and red. It was adopted in 1831, with the vertical stripes being based on the French design, after a previous version, the year before, with horizontal stripes in the same colours. The black stripe represents the black lion of Namur and Flanders. The yellow stripe symbolises the lion of Brabant. The red is for the lions of Hainaut, Limburg and Luxembourg.

Italy has a flag similar to that of France with vertical stripes of green, white, and red. It was adopted after the Second World War in 1946. There are several different interpretations for the symbolism of the colours. Idealistically the green symbolises freedom, the white is for freedom, and the red represents love. The religious representations are for the three Christian virtues; green is for hope, white for faith, and red for charity. Geographically the green is for the countryside, the white is for the snow-capped mountains in the Alps, and the red represents the blood lost in the wars of independence and unification.

The other three founding members of the European Economic Community were Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. They all have flags with three horizontal stripes.

The German flag has stripes of black, red, and gold. Those colours were first used in the 1840s after the defeat of Napoleon. Since that time German flags have used either those colours, or black, white, and red; the latter combination came to be associated with right wing political ideals. The black, red, and gold were used by the German Empire from 1848 to 1849, and by the Weimar Republic from 1919 to 1933. In 1949 it was reintroduced as the flag of the Federal Republic of Germany, sometimes referred to as West Germany. The flag of the German Democratic Republic, sometimes called East Germany, was similar, but it had a coat of arms with a hammer, compass and wreath of wheat in the centre. A similar flag with a white disc in the centre was used by supporters of German reunification between 1989 and 1990. Following the achievement of that reunification, the unadorned striped flag was adopted by the whole country. In modern Germany the black symbolises the determination of the German people. The red is for the bravery and strength. The gold represents the historical wealth and power.

The flags of both Luxembourg and the Netherlands have horizontal stripes of red, white, and blue. Both the red and the blue used in the Dutch flag are darker shades than those on the flag of Luxembourg.

Although the Dutch flag has been in use since the sixteenth century, its status was reaffirmed in 1937 and the colours officially standardized in 1949. The red stripe represents bravery and strength. The white is for peace and honesty. Truth, loyalty and justice are symbolised by the blue stripe.

The flag of Luxembourg was first used in the middle of the nineteenth century, although it was 1993 before it was officially adopted. The colours come from the coat of arms which belonged to the feudal rulers from Ardennes. Revolution and power are now symbolised by the red stripe. The white is for harmony and innocence. The blue is taken to represent determination and perseverance.

The United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland were two of the countries to join the community in 1973, which was the first of several changes to take place following the Treaty of Rome. The United Kingdom became the first country to leave the European Union, almost four years after a referendum held in 2016.

The flag of the United Kingdom is commonly known as the Union jack, but is more correctly termed the Union Flag. It is composed of the three crosses of St. George (England's patron saint), St. Andrew (the patron of Scotland), and Ireland's St. Patrick. St. Andrew's cross is a white saltire on a blue background. Superimposed on it are both the red saltire of St. Patrick on part of a white background, and also the red cross of St. George on part of a white background. Close inspection of the diagonal cross on the flag reveals that the red strip within the white one is not central because half the diagonal is the saltire of St. Andrew and the other half is for St. Patrick's. Care is required when raising the flag, since flying it upside down is a sign of distress.

The republic of Ireland has a flag which is similar to those of France, Italy and Belgium. Its stripes are green, white and orange. The green stripe represents the Roman Catholic religion. The orange stripe represents the Protestant religion. The white stripe symbolises the unity of the two, or the peace between them. It was adopted in 1922 following a successful campaign for home rule, and the division of the island of Ireland into two parts, with six counties in the north remaining as part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

In addition to Ireland and the United Kingdom, Norway and Denmark had also applied, and been accepted, to join the Community in 1973. However, the Norwegian voters rejected the decision in a referendum. They held another referendum about twenty years later, and decided, once again, not to join the European Union. In 1995, two more Nordic countries, Sweden and Finland, did, however, become members of the European Union.

The flag of Denmark, consisting of a white Nordic cross on a red background is one of the oldest in the world, having been adopted in 1219 following a battle; it was recognised as the national flag in 1625. Legend says that a banner with a white cross on a red background fell from the sky during the wars with Estonia, although there is some debate about which battle, the Danish soldiers were encouraged towards victory by it. The red is said to represent the battle, and the white cross symbolises the holiness of the cause of the conflict.

Sweden's flag is another Nordic cross, of yellow on a pale blue background. It dates back to the sixteenth century, and was officially adopted in 1906. The colours are taken from the traditional royal coat of arms. The yellow cross symbolises generosity. The blue represents truth, loyalty and vigilance.

Finland's Nordic cross is blue on a white background. It was first seen in the nineteenth century and officially adopted in 1918 following Finland's independence. The colours represent the geography of the country, with white symbolising the snow, and the blue for the thousand lakes of the country's nickname.

Greece became the tenth member of the European Union in 1981.

The flag was adopted in 1978. The Greek colours of blue and white symbolise, respectively, the sea and sky, and the purity of the struggle for independence. The cross in the upper left corner represents the Christian Orthodox religion. Some say that the nine stripes represent the nine syllables of the phrase "Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος" [Eleftheria i thanatos] meaning 'freedom or death', a motto which arose during struggles for independence in the nineteenth century.

In 1986 two more countries joined the European Union. They were the two countries on the Iberian peninsula - Spain and Portugal.

The Portuguese flag has a block of green and a larger block of red as a background, with a version of the country's coat of arms superimposed over the dividing line between the two colours. The red represents the blood lost by the Portuguese people who died defending their country. The green symbolises hope. The flag was adopted in 1911 after the abolition of the monarchy.

The Spanish flag has a broad yellow stripe horizontally in the middle with bands of red at the top and the bottom. The total area of the red stripes is the same as that of the yellow band. The Spanish coat of arms is positioned left of centre on the yellow band. The yellow band symbolises generosity, and the red stripes represent valour and strength. Although another version suggests that the red represents the blood lost by the bulls in a fight, and the yellow is for the sand in the arena.

Austria joined the European Union in 1995, at the same time as Sweden and Finland.

The flag with horizontal stripes of white sandwiched between two red ones was first used in the thirteenth century. It was adopted as the official flag of the modern republic in 1945. The white centre stripe symbolises honesty and peace. The red stripes represent bravery and love. There is a legend that tells of Duke Leopold V wearing a white surcoat during the siege of Acre; after the fighting finished his garment was completely soaked in red blood, apart from a white stripe where his belt had been, giving the design of the flag.

The Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were three of the ten countries which joined the European Union in 2004.

All three have flags with horizontal stripes. Estonia's are blue, black and white. The blue represents loyalty and devotion, and also the blue sea, sky and lakes in the country. The black is for the tragic past, and the traditional jacket worn by the peasants; it also represents the soil. The white stripe symbolises the aspiration for freedom and virtue, and also represents the snow and birch bark to be seen in the country. The flag was originally adopted in 1918 after Estonia gained independence, although it was banned after the Soviet Union invaded during the Second World War. It came into use again in 1990 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Latvia has two stripes of a dark red at the top and bottom with a narrow white band between them. It was originally adopted in 1921, until it was suppressed during the Soviet reign in 1940. It came back into use in 1990. Legend says that the flag came into being after a chief was mortally wounded in battle; he was carried away on a white sheet which became stained with his blood along the edges; this sheet was carried into the next battle as a flag. Another theory is that the white represents purity and peace, and the red represents the Latvians willingness to shed blood for freedom.

Lithuania's three stripes are yellow, green and red. The yellow represents the ripening wheat and the sunshine, and also freedom and goodness. The green symbolises the countryside and forests; it also stands for hope and liberty. The red is for the land and courage, and also for the blood shed by the Lithuanian people. It was first adopted in 1918, before being suppressed by the Soviet Union in 1940; it was readopted in 1988, before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Two of the ten new countries joining the European Union in 2004 were islands in the Mediterranean Sea - Cyprus and Malta.

When Cyprus was declared independent from the United Kingdom in 1960 a new flag was designed. It consisted of the shape of the island in a copper colour above two green olive branches on a white background. The copper colour comes from the Greek word for the metal, which gave its name to the island because of all the copper deposits found there. The olive branches and the white background are both symbols of peace. Unfortunately the Turkish community in the north of the island and the Greeks in the south were unable to agree on the independence of the island. More than sixty years later they were still operating as two separate entities, with a United Nations peacekeeping force between them. Officially the Republic of Cyprus covered the whole island; in practice the north was ruled by the unofficial Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Malta's flag was adopted when the country gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1964. The flag is composed of two rectangles of white on the left and red on the right; superimposed in the top left hand corner is a representation of the George Cross, which is a medal for gallantry awarded to all the people of the island by King George VI during the Second World War.

Following the ending of the Warsaw Pact in 1991, its countries were free to apply for admission to the European Union. The Democratic Republic of Germany was the first to be admitted, following the re-unification of Germany. Czechoslovakia had been a member of the Warsaw Pact. In 1992 there was a peaceful split of the country into Slovakia and the Czech Republic, later to be known as Czechia. These were two more of the ten countries admitted to the European Union in 2004.

The Czech flag appeared in 1920 when it was used by the first Czechoslovakian Republic. At that time the red represented Moravia, the white Bohemia, and the blue was for Slovakia. The flag was suppressed by the Nazis during the Second World War, but was reinstated in 1945. Following the split between Slovakia and Czech, the flag was retained by the Czech Republic. The blue triangle became a symbol for justice, truth, and loyalty. The white stripe represents peace and honesty. The red stripe symbolises hardiness in battle and courage.

Slovakia's flag was adopted after what is sometimes called the Velvet Divorce in 1992. It consists of horizontal stripes of white, blue, and red, with the country's coat of arms superimposed on the left hand side. The shield with the coat of arms has a red background with three blue mountains, representing the Tatra, Fatra, and Matra ranges, topped by a double white cross symbolising the Christian Orthodox religion.

In 2007 Bulgaria and Romania were the last two countries from the former Warsaw Pact to join the European Union. Hungary and Poland had been two of the ten countries admitted in 2004.

The Bulgarian flag has three horizontal stripes in white, green, and red. It was first adopted in 1879. During the period of communist government, following the Second World War and before the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact, it also had a representation of the country's national emblem in the top left hand corner. The white stripe symbolises peace and freedom, the green is for the country's agricultural wealth, and the red represents military courage.

Romania has a flag with three vertical stripes of blue, yellow, and red. It was first seen in the middle of the nineteenth century. From 1948 until 1989 it had the country's coat of arms in the middle of the yellow stripe. A version of the flag with a hole where the coat of arms should have been was used as a symbol of resistance to the communist government. In 1989 the original unadorned version of the flag was re-adopted. The blue, yellow, and red stripes represent liberty, justice, and fraternity.

The Hungarian flag is comprised of three horizontal stripes of red, white, and green. The colours represent three virtues - red for strength, white for faithfulness, and green for hope. The flag was first adopted in 1957 and reaffirmed in 1990.

The Polish flag has two horizontal stripes in its national colours - white at the top and red at the bottom. The white is for nobility and purity. The red represents power, strength and blood. It was adopted in 1918.

In 2103 Croatia became the second of the countries which had formerly been part of Yugoslavia, to join the European Union. Slovenia was the first, being one of the ten countries admitted in 2004.

A plain horizontal tricolor of red, white and blue stripes was in use as a civil flag for Croatia from 1868 to 1918, when the country was absorbed into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. From 1939 until 1990 the tricolor was adorned with a shield or a star at different times. Following the disintegration of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the flag shown in the picture was adopted in 1990. The red symbolises the blood of the martyrs, the white represents peace, and the blue is symbolic of the geographical history of the country and the monarchy. The red and white checked shield is the national symbol of Croatia. The crown above the shield is composed of the shields of the five historic regions in the country.

Slovenia's flag has horizontal stripes of white, blue, and red, with the country's coat of arms on a shield crossing the white and blue stripes in the top left hand corner. The stripes are similar to those of the Russian flag and were chosen to show solidarity with the Slavic people in 1848. The shield shows Mount Triglav in white, with two blue lines to represent rivers and the Adriatic Sea, on a blue background; above are three yellow stars. Following the disintegration of Yugoslavia, Slovenia adopted the flag with those stripes and the shield in 1991.