2009Estonian National Flag - 125th Anniversary - Set

The idea of the blue, black and white colour combination was conceived in the spirit of the Estonian national awakening on 29 September 1881 in Tartu, at the founding meeting of the student fraternity Vironia (later the Estonian Students’ Society). The first tricolour was made in 1884 and was blessed on 4 June 1884 at the Otepää parsonage. Later, the flag was associated with Estonian patriotism and was adopted as the national flag after the Republic of Estonia declared its independence on 24 February 1918. Although use of the national colours was prohibited in Soviet Estonia, Estonians carried them in their hearts, while the Estonian flag lived on in public outside the borders of the Soviet Union. The historical flag was brought out of hiding during the Singing Revolution and the blue, black and while tricolour was flown from the top of the Pikk Hermann tower once again on 24 February 1989 after a period of 45 years. Less than ten per cent of the world’s national flags are older than 100 years. Even more unusual, however, is the fact that people have been able to preserve the original flag to this day, despite the occupations that ravaged the country. Estonian people have formed a strong emotional bond with the colours of blue, black and white, and the country’s flag has become one of the most important and loved national symbols. The Estonian tricolour has been depicted on 17 postage stamps previously issued by Estonian Post Ltd.