Flag of East Germany
| Flagge der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik | |
| Use | National flag and ensign |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 3:5 |
| Adopted | 1 October 1959 |
| Relinquished | 3 October 1990 (unification) |
| Design | A horizontal tricolour of black, red, and gold, adorned with the National emblem of East Germany. |
The first flag of East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic, was a tricolour of black, red and gold, identical to the flags of the Weimar Republic, West Germany, and present-day Germany. From 1959 until the unification of Germany in 1990, it was charged with the national emblem, consisting of a hammer and compass inside a wreath of wheat, centered on a red background. The second flag's design and symbolism were derived from the flag of the Weimar Republic and communist symbolism. The flag was outlawed as an unconstitutional and criminal symbol in West Germany and West Berlin, where it was referred to as the Spalterflagge ('secessionist flag') until the late 1960s.