Flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a Canadian pale triband consisting of blue, gold, and green bands charged with three green diamonds at the middle. Adopted in 1985 to replace a similar design used from the time of independence, it has been the flag of Saint Vincent since that year. The design of the present flag entailed substituting the country's coat of arms on a breadfruit leaf with the diamonds. They are a reference to both the letter "V", which is the first letter of the country's name, and its nickname as the "Gems of the Antilles" and "Jewels of the Caribbean". Accordingly, the flag itself has been given the moniker of "The Gems".

History

Sovereignty over Saint Vincent switched hands between the French and the British throughout the 18th century. This continued until 1783, when the Peace of Paris saw France permanently relinquish the island to the United Kingdom, and Saint Vincent eventually became a crown colony within the latter's colonial empire. During this period, it utilised a British Blue Ensign defaced with the territory's coat of arms as its flag. The shield initially consisted of two brunette raven-haired ladies, one clutching a palm branch on the left and one with clasped hands kneeling before an altar on the right. This design was revised in 1907, with the women's hair colour changed to blond and the clasped hands becoming an eye.