Last modified: 2002-10-12 by ivan sache
Keywords: sword | shahada | imam | stars: 5 (white) |
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![[Kingdom of Yemen]](../images/y/ye_kingd.gif)
by Vincent Morley
See also:
The Kingdom of Yemen was never a British protectorate - it was
nominally part of the Ottoman empire
until 1918 and was independent thereafter. Independently, here were
two British protectorates (known as
the Eastern and Western Aden Protectorates) which contained 24
sultanates, emirates and sheikhdoms in the hinterland of Aden.
In 1962, the imam of Yemen was overthrown and the
Yemen Arab Republic established.
The Yemeni flag which was adopted in 1927. The drawing is based on
the illustration in National Geographic, February 1951
[kng51]. The National
Geographic of September 1961
[geo61] shows a flag of essentially
the same design but with dimensions of 2:3 instead of 1:2.
The following text accompanies the drawing in the 1951 edition:
'The five stars represent the five natural geographic divisions of Yemen; they also recall the five dogmas of Islam and the five times a day the prayers are recited by the faithful. The saber, widely used as an emblem by Arabs, and the red field on which it is placed, are reminders to the people of the blood they have sacrificed in defense of the liberty and independence of their country.'
The flag was in use until 1962 when the imam was overthrown and the Yemen Arab Republic established. A civil war between republicans (supported by Egypt) and royalists (supported by Saudi Arabia) continued until 1970, with the royalist side continuing to use the flag of the kingdom.
Vincent Morley, 5 February 1997
Alternative design
![[Alternative design]](../images/y/ye_alt.gif)
by Zeljko Heimer
Source: Knaurs Lexicon flag chart (1955)
The flag of Imam of Yemen used prior to the revolution was red, with in white the shahada in Arabic script (less artistic than in the Saudi flag)
Mark Sensen, 20 November 1995
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