Editing Flag of Albania (section)

==Origin==
[[File:Older attested and illustrated flag of Albania in 1598 by Henninges.png|thumb|Flag of Albania (1598)]]
[[File:Paolo Veronese - The Triumph of Mordecai - WGA24785.png|thumb|''Trionfo di Mardocheo'' by [[Paolo Veronese]] in the church of [[San Sebastiano, Venice]], 1556. According to a modern analysis of the painting, Skanderbeg who holds the Albanian flag is depicted as the Biblical hero [[Mordechai]] who saved the Hebrews in the [[Babylonian Empire]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nadin |first1=Lucia |title=Venezia e Albania: una storia di incontri e secolari legami |date=2013 |publisher=Regione del Veneto |isbn=978-88-97784-35-7 |page=96 |url=https://www.academia.edu/14397282}}</ref>]]

During [[John Hunyadi]]'s campaign in [[Niš]] in 1443, [[Skanderbeg]] and a few hundred Albanians defected from the Turkish ranks; for twenty-five years he scored remarkable victories against the Ottomans. He adopted the similar Eastern Roman imperial flag, with the double-headed eagle and the red background, and his victories brought him the papal title ''Athleta Christi''.<ref>{{harvnb|Mucha|Crampton|Louda|1985|p=36}}.</ref> The eagle was used for [[heraldry|heraldic]] purposes in the [[Middle Ages]] by a number of noble families in [[Albania (toponym)|Albania]] and became the symbol of the [[Albanians]].<ref name="Elsie2010">{{harvnb|Elsie|2010|loc="Flag, Albanian", p. 140: "The eagle was a common heraldic symbol for many Albanian dynasties in the Late Middle Ages and came to be a symbol of the Albanians in general. It is also said to have been the flag of Skanderbeg...As a symbol of modern Albania, the flag began to be seen during the years of the national awakening and was in common use during the uprisings of 1909-1912. It was this flag that Ismail Qemal bey Vlora raised in Vlora on 28 November 1912 in proclaiming Albanian independence."}}</ref> The [[Kastrioti family|Kastrioti]]'s [[coat of arms]], depicting a black [[double-headed eagle]] on a red field, became famous when he led a revolt against the [[Ottoman Empire]] resulting in the independence of Albania from 1443 to 1479. This was the flag of the [[League of Lezhë]], which was the first unified Albanian state in the Middle Ages and the oldest representative political body in the country with extant records.<ref name="Matanov2010">{{harvnb|Matanov|2010|p=363}}.</ref><ref name="PickardÇeliku2008">{{harvnb|Pickard|Çeliku|2008|p=16}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Schmitt|2009}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kuvendi i Lezhës (1444)|url=http://www.letersia.fajtori.com/Historia/Skenderbeu/kuvendi_i_lezhes.php|website=letersia.fajtori.com|language=sq}}</ref>

[[File:Doppeladler Albanien.jpg|thumb|180px|right|Double-headed eagle found in a mural inside the [[St. Anthony Church, Durrës|Shën Ndoji church]] in [[Cape of Rodon|Rodon]], possibly dating from the 15th century]]

The symbol of the double-headed black eagle on a red background was re-used by [[Albanian nationalism|Albanian nationalists]] during the 19th and early 20th centuries as a symbol of their campaign for their country's independence from the [[Ottoman Empire]].<ref name="Elsie-2001-78">{{harvnb|Elsie|2001|loc="Eagles", p. 78}}.</ref><ref name=Elsie2010/><ref>{{harvnb|Brahaj|2007|pp=114–116}}</ref> In Ottoman territory, the first time it was raised in possibly over 400 years is the [[Battle of Deçiq]] (6 April) in the [[Albanian revolt of 1911]]. It was raised by the rebellion leader [[Ded Gjo Luli]] on the peak of Bratila (present-day [[Tuzi Municipality]]) after victory was secured. The phrase ''Tash o vllazën do t’ju takojë të shihni atë që për 450 vjet se ka pa kush'' (Now brothers you have earned the right to see that which has been unseen for 450 years) has been attributed to Ded Gjo Luli by later memoirs of those who were present when he raised the flag.<ref name="Verli1">{{cite journal |last1=Verli |first1=Marenglen |title=The role of Hoti in the uprising of the Great Highlands |journal=Studime Historike |date=2014 |issue=1–2|url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/viewpdf?id=463929}}</ref> It was one of three banners brought to [[Malësia]] by Palokë Traboini, student in Austria. The other two banners were used by Ujka of [[Gruda (tribe)|Gruda]] and Prelë Luca of [[Triepshi (tribe)|Triepshi]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Martin |first1=Traboini |editor1-last=Pepo |editor1-first=Petraq |title=Kujtime nga lëvizja për çlirimin kombetar (1878-1912) |date=1962 |publisher=University of Tirana |page=446 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DR0WAQAAMAAJ |chapter=Mbi kryengritjen e Malsisë së Madhe në vitet 1911-1912}}</ref>
[[File:Castle of Kruja (Kalaja e Krujes).jpg|thumb|Albanian flag on a pole at the entrance of [[Castle of Krujë|Krujë Castle]]]]
The Albanian flag has gone through a number of changes over the years as different regimes have modified it. During the reign of [[King Zog]] (r. 1928–1939), a crown was added to the flag and was replaced by two [[fasces]] during the [[Italian occupation of Albania]]. After [[World War II]], the communist regime added a five-pointed golden [[Five-pointed star|star]], which was removed on 7 April 1992 after the communist government in Albania collapsed.

Albania's [[maritime flags]]—the [[civil ensign]] and the [[naval ensign]]—are both different from the national flag. The civil ensign consists of three horizontal bands of red, black, and red. The naval ensign is similar to the national flag, except that the eagle is on a white field, and the lower portion of the flag has a red stripe. The eagle of the flag of Albania is depicted on the [[Obverse and reverse|reverse]] of the Albanian five [[Albanian lek|lekë]] coin, issued in 1995 and 2000.<ref>{{cite web|title=Albanian coins in circulation – Issue of 1995, 1996 and 2000|year=2004–2009|publisher=Bank of Albania|url=http://www.bankofalbania.org/web/Albanian_coins_of_circulation_43_2.php|access-date=2012-03-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090306234131/http://www.bankofalbania.org/web/Albanian_coins_of_circulation_43_2.php|archive-date=2009-03-06|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Beginning in 1969, the flag of Albania was widely unofficially flown in [[Kosovo]] by the country's ethnic Albanian population.<ref>{{harvnb|Malcolm|1998|p=325}}.</ref> The flag was the symbol of the self-declared [[proto-state]] [[Republic of Kosova]] during the 1990s. Kosovo uses [[Flag of Kosovo|a different flag]] that was designed to avoid any symbols associated with a particular ethnic group, similarly to the flags of [[Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]] and [[Flag of Cyprus|Cyprus]].