Red is one of the most important and one of the most common colours. In non non-German, it is also known as 'Gueules' or 'Gules'; in German it is 'rot', sometimes referred to as 'beak red' (Schnabelrot).
In the Middle Ages, red was used as a pure, unmixed, mineral-based colour derived from cinnabar or red lead, for example for painting. Various dye plants were used for dyeing textiles. However, the shade of red varied depending on which dye plant was used. These could include: woodruff (for a dusky pink), madder (a plant, Latin name Rubia tinctorum, also known as dyer’s red or dyer’s madder, for a medium red, light red or wine red), cherry tree bark, sorrel seeds, beard lichen (for an orange), buckthorn, hibiscus flowers, blueberries, blackcurrants, lingonberries, and sandalwood (for a pink).
Purple, a dye derived from the purple snail, was already known in ancient times. It was exorbitantly expensive and was used to dye the garments of the noblest and most exalted. Over the centuries, it has retained its status as the colour of rulers – whether spiritual or secular – even though carmine red was introduced for reasons of cost. Carmine red (scarlet) – the dye itself is called cochineal – is extracted from scale insects. Many kings wore purple cloaks, had – and still have – purple hoods on their crowns, and also carried purple banners. Ordinary red was dyed using madder (a plant, Latin: Rubia tinctorum, also known as dyer’s madder).
The differences in colour between painted pigments and dyes derived from plants or animals are particularly striking in the case of red. It becomes clear that, before the age of industrialisation – with its chemical possibilities – it was virtually impossible to achieve any kind of standard, and it is easy to understand why so many different shades of red emerged.
In black-and-white depictions of coats of arms or three-dimensional representations of coats of arms carved in stone, red is represented by fine vertical lines. Red is associated with the planet Mars and the gemstone ruby, and it often symbolises merit.
Today, the colour red – particularly on flags – is associated with fire, courage, patriotism, blood, the sun and loyalty, as well as revolution and progress. Worldwide, red is regarded as the colour of socialism and communism.
In colour psychology, red is said to have a stimulating, provocative effect. It is also associated with vitality, passion, fire, heat, strength, dynamism, conspicuousness and aggression.
In the Middle Ages, on court days, a red cloth was attached to the courthouse, symbolising power over life and death through the colour of blood. During the French Revolution, red flags appeared on the side of the revolutionaries, drawing on this tradition. This was intended to signal that justice would be administered. The ensuing mass deaths, mass executions, murders and acts of violence were the consequences of this ideologically motivated presumption, which was neither just nor fair. The far left, which began to take shape in the mid-to-late 19th century, readily adopted the red flag as its own symbol, along with the determination to make short work of its opponents. Red served as a warning sign, which unfortunately went largely unheeded and cost the lives of over 100 million people by the end of the socialist regimes. The National Socialists consequently adopted the colour red into their repertoire.
In the Indian Ocean region, red is a flag colour with a long tradition and widespread use, from the coasts of Arabia, through Zanzibar, to the Maldives, and is closely associated with Islam. Oman had previously, until around 1730, subjugated the entire east coast of Africa (extending far into what is now Mozambique), and by moving its seat of government to Zanzibar (around 1830) established a new empire (Zanzibar), which also flew its own solid red flag. All Islamic dynasties that trace their origins to the Alawites (also known as the Alids, descendants of Ali) have or had red flags (e.g. Morocco today, and formerly North Yemen), as do the Arab Emirates, including Oman. This is another reason why red is one of the pan-Arab colours.
