The current flag of Mississippi was introduced on 3rd of November in 2020. It shows vertical stripes in red, blue and red, in a ratio of 1:2:1 with narrow golden dividing stripes and a white magnolia blossom in the centre of the blue field, as well as a ring of 20 stars around the magnolia and the words: "In God We Trust". At the top of the star ring there is a golden five-pointed star star. The white magnolia blossom is the official state flower, and the saying "In God We Trust" is the official motto of the United States. The 20 stars represent Mississippi as the 20th state admitted to the United States, and the golden star represents Mississippi's indigenous Indian tribes. This flag was adopted out of political constraints to eliminate the heritage of the Southern Confederacy that was present in the previous flag of 1894. Mississippi had declared its independence on 9th of January in 1861 and left the USA (secession) and was a founding member of the Confederate States of America (CSA) on 8th of in February 1861. When Mississippi left the USA, the first state flag of its own was used, albeit unofficially, as there was no parliamentary resolution to do so. This flag featured a single-coloured blue bunting with a white, five-pointed star in the middle. Although this flag was officially replaced by a different model after just a few weeks, it became very popular as the "Bonnie Blue Flag" and is still widely used today. It goes back to the flag of the former Republic of West Florida. On 30th of March in 1861, a new flag was officially introduced as the state flag. It featured a plain white bunting with a red border and a square blue upper corner with a white, five-pointed star (Bonnie Blue) in the centre of the free space in the white field. A magnolia tree was placed in the centre of the open space in the white field. It was used until 22nd of August in 1865. This flag was reproduced many times, in different variants, of which the most widespread variant showed a plain white bunting, the square blue upper corner with the white star, a vertical red stripe at the waving end and a blossoming magnolia tree in the centre of the free space in the white field. With the defeat in the Civil War, all own state symbols were abolished. A new flag was introduced on 7th of February in 1894. It showed three horizontal stripes, in blue, white and red, and the square battle flag of the Confederate States of America (CSA) in the upper corner. Blue, white and red are the colours of the CSA, as well as France (the former colonial power), but also the colours of the USA. The CSA battle flag in the upper corner marked the country as a former member of the Southern Confederacy. There was already a design for a flag without the CSA top corner in 2001; here the top corner was blue and showed 20 concentrically arranged white stars. The flag is probably popular, as it is still produced and sold today.
about 7000 B.C. · settlement by Indians (Natchez, Caddo, and Chickasaw)
1541 · the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto reaches the area by land
1699 · French colonization on the coast, founding of Fort Maurepas (today Biloxi)
1682 · Robert Chevalier de La Salle takes possession of the land for France, French colonization, to the colony of French Louisiana
1716 · founding of Natchez
1754–1763 · Seven Years War, conflict between Britain and France, France has to cede all territories in Canada and eastern the Mississippi River to United Kingdom, West Florida (in thiy way the south of the today's state of Mississippi) France ceded to Spain
1783 · Treaty of Paris, the end of the Independence War of the United States against Great Britain, all the land to the Mississippi is ceded by Britain to the United States
7th of April 1789 · formation of the Mississippi Territory
10th of December 1817 · Mississippi joins the USA as 20th state
9th of January 1861 · Mississippi declares its independence and leaves the United States (Secession)
1861–1865 · Civil War: Biloxi is conquered in 1861 by U.S. troops, Vicksburg id conquered in 1863 by U.S. troops, and in 1864 is almost the entire south of the country in the hands of the USA
9th of April in 1865 · General Lee surrenders at Appomattox (Virginia) as commander of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, the other CSA Armies capitulate gradually until July 1865
1865–1877 · "reconstruction", forced return of the CSA states into the USA
23rd of February 1870 · reentry into the United States
The name "Mississippi" comes from the Indian name of the river with the same name. It means translated "Father of Waters", according to another translation only "Big River".
