![[Free Democratic Party, yellow variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp5y.gif)
![[Free Democratic Party, magenta variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp5m.gif)
![[Free Democratic Party, cyan variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp5c.gif)
3:5 Images by Tomislav Todorovic, 4 fFeb 2024; derived from SVG image of the logo from Wikimedia Commons
Last modified: 2024-06-15 by pete loeser
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3:5 Images by Tomislav Todorovic, 4 fFeb 2024; derived from SVG image of the logo from Wikimedia Commons
The Free Democratic Party (Freie Demokratische Partei - FDP), although being a liberal party, has always been more or less a mixture of more left-liberal (for civic rights) and right-liberal (nationalistic) attitudes. Especially in the 1950's there were several attempts to make the FDP a forum for decidedly right-wing politics (perhaps something like the Austrian FPÖ). This also could be seen in its political symbolism. With the SPD-FDP coalition 1969-1982 the left-liberals became more prominent in the party, and even before that decidedly right-wing members left the party, at least in part joining the 1964-founded NPD. Today the FDP maintains a position in the middle of the political positions, forming coalitions with the CDU as well as with the SPD in certain Länder.
The FDP was founded in 1948 and in 1949 it joined the federal coalition under Chancellor Adenauer, where it remained (except for a short opposition period 1957-1961) until 1966, when it went into opposition for another three years. During 1969-1982 it was part of the SPD-FDP coalition, from 1982-1998 part of the CDU-CSU-FDP coalition under Chancellor Kohl. Since 1998 it is in federal opposition.
Although remaining the third or fourth largest parliamentary group in the Bundestag, the FDP constantly lost support in the Länder and now it is only represented in five out of 16 Länder parliaments. Especially in the new Länder (former German Democratic Republic) the FDP is very weak, in spite of its unification with the former East German parties LDPD and NDPD.
Marcus Schmöger, 31 Mar 2001
3:5 Images by Tomislav Todorovic, 4 fFeb 2024; derived from SVG image of the logo from Wikimedia Commons
In 2015, the party adopted a new visual identity [1, 2]: the logo now consists of the text 'Freie Demokraten' inscribed in two rows, with the abbreviation 'FDP' inscribed below on a differently colored panel, aligned with the right edge of the second row of the text; the typeface is PMN Caecilia and the colors in use are yellow, cyan, magenta and white. For flags, three main designs exist, differing in the color combinations [3, 4]:
A variant with the rainbow field is also offered for sale [4], but its use is not verified. There, rainbow stripes are diagonal and curved, much like in a real rainbow, and arranged with red at the top hoist and violet at the bottom fly. In the logo, words 'Freie Demokraten' and the panel below are white, the panel being "pierced" by the letters 'FDP' which, due to their position on the flag, are in green and blue.
Vertical flags with the new design also exist, those with yellow fields offered again as the default ones [3, 4]. A different version of the logo appears on them, with the panel bearing the abbreviation 'FD' appearing in the same row with the word 'Freie', positioned so that both rows have approximately same length; the whole device is also rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise, so as to fit in the vertical field [2, 3, 4]. Again, several sizes are offered; the most used ratio seems to be 5:2 [4]. Only the variant with yellow field has been verified by the photos so far [14, 15].
The rainbow field is the option for the vertical flags as well [4], but no image of that variant is presented; its use is not verified either, so nothing can be currently said about the design details.
Sources:
[1] Free Democratic Party at Wikipedia (in German) - Logo history
[2] Free Democratic Party website - Design guide (in PDF format)
[3] Free Democratic Party online shop - Flags and banners
[4] Free Democratic Party online shop - Individual flags
[5] Münchner Merkur newspaper website
[6] Picture Alliance website - Photo from Rödinghausen, on 2021-08-30
[7] Imago images archive - Photo from Berlin, on 2021-07-24
[8] Imago images archive - Photo from Bremen, on 2019-05-26
[9] Deutschlandfunk radio station website
[10] Alamy photo archive - Photo from Magdeburg, on 2017-09-10
[11] Neue Gesellschaft/Frankfurter Hefte magazine website
[12] Imago images archive - Photo from Annaberg-Buchholz, on 2019-02-09
[13] Picture Alliance website - Photo from Rödinghausen, on 2021-08-30
[14] Alamy photo archive - Photo from Neumünster, on 2022-03-13
[15] Alamy photo archive - Photo from Neumünster, on 2022-03-13
Tomislav Todorovic, 4 fFeb 2024
![[Free Democratic Party, vertical yellow variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp6y.gif)
![[Free Democratic Party, vertical magenta variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp6m.gif)
![[Free Democratic Party, vertical cyan variant (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp6c.gif)
5:2 Images by Tomislav Todorovic, 4 fFeb 2024; derived from SVG image of the logo from Wikimedia Commons
![[Free Democratic Party 2002]](../images/d/de}fdp-1.gif)
3:5 Image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
The Freie Demokratische Partei/Die Liberalen (FDP) has a new logo. Note the blue stripe in the bottom. I'm not sure if the flags have changed in the same way. Source: Freie Demokratische Partei (FDP) - Die Liberalen
Santiago Tazon, 10 Oct 2002
The new FDP flag shows the new logo, however, there are already several variants available, depending on the manufacturer and depending on the demands of the local party branches. The Querformatflagge (horizontal flag is 150 x 250cm, the vertical variant (Hochformatflagge) is 300 x 120cm.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
![[Free Democratic Party 2002, vertical flag]](../images/d/de}fdp-2.gif)
5:2 Image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
![[Free Democratic Party 2002, paperflag]](../images/d/de}fdp-3.gif)
3:5 Image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
At this webpage is the new variant of the paper flag, that is slightly different from the horizontal textile flag. They also sell the old paper flags (with the old logo) at this webpage - I'm not sending a new gif for this one, as it is not much different from the FDP flag already shown at FOTW.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
![[Free Democratic Party 2002, variant flag]](../images/d/de}fdp-4.gif)
3:5 Image by Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
There is another manufacturer for FDP public relations with slightly different flags. You can find the textile flag and paper flag, respectively, at this
webpage and this one.
Marcus Schmöger, 19 Nov 2002
![[Flag used in 2002 claiming a 18% vote (Free Democratic Party, Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp18.gif)
Image by Marcus Schmöger
A major political event celebrating the Politische Aschermittwoch or Political Ash Wednesday, in Bavaria, took place on 13 February 2002. At the event the FDP did not decorate with as many flags as usual. Tables were decorated with small paper flags, yellow with a blue inscription '18'. This recalled their goal to get 18% of the votes at the next election, 50 years ago.
Marcus Schmöger, 15 February 2002
![[Ash Wednesday convention (2009) flag]](../images/d/de}fdp4v.gif)
Image by Marcus Schmöger, 7 Mar 2009
The FDP is now in coalition with the CSU in Bavaria, after having gained a lot of support in the 2008 Landtag elections. The Ash Wednesday Convention was in a much smaller place, a rather traditional restaurant on Passau. My flag observations from there:
![[Free Democratic Party, variant 1 (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp1.gif)
![[Free Democratic Party, variant 2 (Germany)]](../images/d/de}fdp2.gif)
1:2 Images by Marcus Schmöger, 31 Mar 2001
The flags used in the 1950's and their symbolism went out of use in the 1960s, according to Rabbow 1970. Since 1966 and even more since 1972 the FDP uses mainly the colours yellow and blue, now widely recognized in Germany as the FDP colours. Since 1969 the FDP uses the writing 'F.D.P.' (with dots) as its main symbol. This is also used on flags, in at least two variants. One is simply 'F.D.P.' and beneath Die Liberalen [The Liberals] in blue on a yellow background. The other variant is the same on a white background with two yellow horizontal stripes near the top and bottom ('Israeli' pattern).
The use of these flags is limited, though. I just found one recent event, when a flag of the second type was used. This was a demonstration against right extremism last year in Hamburg, where FDP followers also took part. During FDP meetings of several kinds one can at least see small paper flags of both variants. These were also available on the FDP website, but are gone now.
Sources: Rabbow 1970; Rabbow 1965; FDP-Bundesvorstand, Die Liberalen unter dem Vorsitz von Theodor Heuss und Franz Blücher, Sitzungsprotokolle 1949-1952, Droste Verlag, Düsseldorf; Brochure Wahlkampf und Werbung: Ein Leitfaden für die Wahlkampfleiter, Propagandisten und Redner der Partei, 1953; Photo of a demonstration in Hamburg in 2000, found in Internet; FDP website ; Election posters at Friedrich Naumann Foundation website
Marcus Schmöger, 31 Mar 2001
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