Did you know that the Italian flag, as we know it today, was born in Bologna? The history of our flag began while Napoleon Bonaparte was conquering Piedmont: for the first time, in some historical documents, traces of the use of a flag hoisted outside the buildings, a symbol of revolution and renewal. In fact, Italy was divided into many small pieces that, over the course of about 150 years, following conquests and battles, were unified. On October 18, 1796, an official meeting was held in Bologna where it was decreed that the colors of the Italian flag were these: white, red and green. It was designed by Luigi Zamboni, a student at the Alma Mater, and Giovanni Battista De Rolandis, a Piedmontese patriot.
It is the first time that on an institutional occasion in the presence of officials and important figures, the flag is spoken of and its colors are declared, so it can be said that it is the very day our tricolor was born. Luigi Zamboni (1772-1795) from Bologna, was the son of a cloth merchant from Via Strazzacappe, and of Brigida Borghi, since he was a boy he questioned foreign travelers who went to his father’s warehouse and became passionate about French affairs. He thus became convinced that Bologna had to free itself from papal rule to regain its ancient autonomy. His mother shared his innate patriotism and made him tricolor cockades in the French style, replacing the green with the blue. After this official meeting, the use of the flag with these three colors was confirmed and institutionalized in Reggio Emilia, and the Italian flag began to represent this new nation, our Italy. It was January 7, 1797. The flag changed geometry and designs for a few more decades, but always maintained the three colors that symbolize hope and productivity (green), passion and courage even in fighting (red), brotherhood and fraternal unity (white)
Study Italian in Italy 