image by Antonio Martins, 02 Mar 1999
Last modified: 2015-05-26 by bruce berry
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image by Antonio Martins, 02 Mar 1999
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In South Africa there is a political movement (or party) called the "Afrikaner Volksfront" (Popular Front), which aims to set up an independent Boer state. They use a flag very similar to the Transvaal "Vierkleur", but the red stripe is replaced with an orange one. This flag is called "Vryheidsvlag" (freedom flag).
The "Volksrepubliek Werkgroep" (People's Republic working group) made
a proposal for a constitution of this imagined state. In article 19.16.3 it is
written:
Today's freedom flag (green and orange, white, blue) must be used by the
Afrikaner.
I was have also been asked who used the flag with "a yellow, maybe orange,
stripe"?
So it seems that there are two flags: an older one with a yellow and a newer one
with an orange stripe. Or maybe the orange is because of the former South
African national flag?
Carsten Linke, 13 June 1996
As far as I am aware this is new, although the design has been popular
amongst independent-minded Afrikaners for a good while now. The "As far
as I am aware this is new, although the design has been popular amongst
independent-minded Afrikanersbfor a good while now. The "Vryheidsvlag"
mentioned has been registered with the SA Bureau of Heraldry by the Afrikaner
Volksfront as indicated in SAVA Newsletter (14/95 of December 1995).
Bruce Berry, 14 Jun 1996
The Transvaal flag (or Vierkleur) is used by the Afrikaner Volksfront
(Afrikaner People's Movement, AVF) as their Vryheidsflag (Freedom's
flag), with an orange stripe replacing the red one.
Filip Van Laenen,, 3 Oct 1996
The "vierkleur" (four colour) design has also been adopted by the
Boerestaatparty - another Afrikaner organisation seeking an independent "volkstaat"
- with the vertical stripe in green and the horizontal stripes, black, white and
blue.
Bruce Berry, 14 June 1996
The vierkleur in different coloured variations seems to be indeed a
very popular symbol of Boer movements. There are not many national flags of this
type in the world - I can think only that of the United Arab
Emiratess.
Carsten Linke, 14 June 1996
Last night on ABCTV news there was a report on a new attempt by South African
Boers to set up their own homeland (they're seeking $20m from the UK - as
compensation for the Boer War - to fund the project). A flag was briefly shown -
I only caught a glimpse - a red, white and blue horizontal tricolour; with a
vertical green stripe occupying the hoist.
David Cohen, 17 Oct 1997
I'm not a 100% sure, but I believe you might have the proportions of the
Vierkleur and the Vryheidsvlag wrong. Although many people like to
give the vertical bar the same width as that of the horizontal bars, I believe -
in the case of the Vryheidsvlag anyway because I bought one from
Orania) the correct proportions of the vertical bar is one
third the (horizontal) length of the flag, i.e. the same proportion as the width
of a bar in a vertical tricolour flag.
Hanno den Boer, 13 Mar 2002
The flag of the Afrikaner Volksfront was registered with
the South African Bureau of Heraldry on 31 October 1995 and is described as
being:
"A rectangular flag, proportion 2:3, consisting of three horizontal stripes of
equal width, from top to bottom, orange, white and blue, and at the hoist a
vertical green stripe one and one quarter the width of each of the other three
stripes".
Source:
Data of the Bureau of Heraldry on registered heraldic representations.
Mark Sensen, 19 May 2002
A flag for the Vrye Republikeinse Beweging (Free Republican Movement,
formerly Afrikaner Volksfront) was has also been registered with the South
African Bureau of Heraldry on 16 May 1997 and is described as:
"A rectangular flag, proportion 2:3, consisting of three horizontal stripes of
equal width, from top to bottom, orange, white and blue, and at the hoist a
vertical green stripe one and one quarter the width of each of the other three
stripes".
Source:
Data of the Bureau of Heraldry on registered heraldic representations.
Mark Sensen, 19 May 2002
I have just visited your web site and would like to correct some of the false
statements regarding the "Vryheidsvlag". I am a founder member of both
the Afrikaner Volksfront and the Vryheidsfront and so can speak with some
degree of authority.
1) As far as I am aware, the flag you describe was never the flag of the
Afrikaner Volksfront. The AVF used the Transvaal or
Free State Vierkleur flags, depending upon in
which province they were flown.
2) The translation of Afrikaner Volksfront as "Afrikaner Popular Front"
is incorrect. The correct translation is "Afrikaner People's Front".
3) The origin of the flag you show is from the period of the Anglo-Boer War (or
Tweede Vryheidsoorlog - Second Freedom War to many Afrikaners). When the
forces of the two sovereign republics (Transvaal and Orange Free State) fought
together, they used this flag. The orange stripe on top represents the Orange
Free State and replaces the red stripe of the Transvaal and is called the
Strydvlag (Struggle Flag). This flag was known as the Strydvlag until
some time after the foundation of the Vryheidsfront/Freedom Front. The
party changed the flag's name to tie in with that of the party.
4) The Afrikaner Volksfront dissolved soon after the 1994 general
election in South Africa.
Jon Phillips, 27 Aug 2003
