FLAG OF MADEIRA

The flag of the Madeira archipelago consists of a blue-gold-blue vertical triband with a red-bordered white Cross of Christ in the center, alluding the fact that it was discovered by two knights of the Household Henry the Navigator: João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira; symbol of connection to the Republic of Portugal. Many have claimed its design to have been inspired by the flag of the now deceased Madeira Archipelago Liberation Front.

The regulations and clarification of the dimensions, colours and symbolism of the flag of the Autonomous Region were approved by decree of the Legislative Assembly of Madeira of 28th July 1978. Its use has been made possible by the Portuguese Constitution, recognizing the status of the Madeira regional autonomy arrangements that differentiate themselves from the rest of the Portuguese territory.

Flag proportions: 2:3

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ABOUT MADEIRA:

Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago situated in the north Atlantic Ocean, southwest of Portugal. Its total population was estimated in 2011 at 267,785. The capital of Madeira is Funchal on the main island's south coast.

It is just under 400 kilometres (250 mi) north of Tenerife, Canary Islands. Since 1976, the archipelago has been one of the two Autonomous regions of Portugal (the other being the Azores, located to the northwest). It includes the islands of Madeira, Porto Santo, and the Desertas, administered together with the separate archipelago of the Savage Islands. It is an outermost region of the European Union.

Madeira was claimed by Portuguese sailors in the service of Prince Henry the Navigator in 1419 and settled after 1420. The archipelago is considered to be the first territorial discovery of the exploratory period of the Portuguese Age of Discovery, which extended from 1415 to 1542.

CAPITAL OF MADEIRA:

Funchal