Flag of Finland as its Grand Master. Like Sweden's, Finland's national flag is based on the Scandinavian cross. It was adopted after independence from Russia, when many patriotic Finns wanted a special flag for their country, but its design dates back to the 19th century. The blue colouring is said to represent the country's thousands of lakes and the sky, with white for the snow that covers the land in winter. This colour combination has also been used over the centuries in various Finnish provincial, military, and town flags. The first known "Flag of Finland" was presented in 1848, along with the national
Flag of Norway Norwegian government's web pages. However, Norwegian flag producers consider this red colour to be incorrect, and have complained that the Norwegian state propagates what they perceive as misinformation. Norwegian authorities have clarified that the red colour is only an internal recommendation intended specifically for screen printing, and not a legal definition. Flag producers normally use the red colours 186 or 200. The Nordic Council currently defines the red colour as "Pantone 186 C" and the blue as "Pantone 287", according to the Nordic Flag Society Four years ago the same website mentioned the blue colour as "Pantone 301". On page