National colours of Canada National colours of Canada The national colours of Canada () were declared by King George V in 1921 to be red and white and are most prominently evident on the country's national flag. Red is symbolic of England and white of France, the colours having been used representatively by those countries in the past. The maple is one of the national symbols and red is the first leaf colour after spring budding & also the autumn colour of maple leaves. Canada's national colours can trace their history to the First Crusade of the 11th century, during which Norman nobleman Bohemond
National colours of Italy the revolution begun in Bologna to oust the foreign occupying forces. This tricolore was considered a symbol of redemption that from its creation was "consecrated to immortality of the triumph of faith, virtue, and sacrifice" of those who created it. Napoleon Bonaparte, in a letter from Milan to an executive director on 11 October 1796, stated that the Legione Lombarda had chosen these colours as the national colours. In a solemn ceremony at the Piazza del Duomo on 16 November 1796, a military flag was presented to the Legione Lombarda, which would become a unit in the Cisalpine Republic (1797–1802)