Flag of Greece the exact pattern: white cross on blue (plain) for the land flag; nine alternate-coloured stripes with the white cross on a blue field in the canton for the naval ensign; and blue with a blue cross on a white field in the canton for the civil ensign (merchant flag). On 30 June 1828, by decree of the Governor Ioannis Kapodistrias, the civil ensign was discontinued, and the cross-and-stripes naval ensign became the national ensign, worn by both naval and merchant ships. This design became immediately very popular with Greeks and in practice was often used simultaneously with the national (plain
Flag of the Republic of Macedonia Flag of the Republic of Macedonia The national flag of the Republic of Macedonia () depicts a stylised yellow sun on a red field, with eight broadening rays extending from the centre to the edge of the field. It was created by Prof. Miroslav Grčev and was adopted on 5 October 1995 after a one-year economic blockade imposed by Greece in order to force the Republic of Macedonia to remove the Vergina Sun, a symbol from the gravesite of the ancient Kings of Macedon from the flag, as Greece considered it a Greek symbol. The new eight-rayed sun represents "the