The Flag of the State of Mississippi was adopted by the U.S. state of Mississippi in 1894. It is currently the only United States state
flag that incorporates the Battle Flag of the Confederacy.
When Mississippi seceded from the Union on January 9, 1861, near the beginning of the Civil War, the Bonnie Blue Flag
(a single white star on a blue field) was raised over the capitol building in Jackson as a sign of independence. On January 26,
Mississippi officially adopted a new flag which included the Bonnie Blue Flag in its canton and a magnolia tree in its center field.
Known as the Magnolia Flag, it remained in use until 1894
In 2000, the Supreme Court of Mississippi ruled[2] that state legislation in 1906 had repealed the adoption of the state flag in 1894, so
what was considered to be the official state flag was only so through custom and usage. Governor Ronnie Musgrove appointed an independent
commission which developed a new proposed design, and on April 17, 2001, a state referendum to change the flag was put before Mississippi
voters. The proposal would have replaced the Confederate battle flag with a blue canton with 20 stars. The outer ring of 13 stars would
represent the original Thirteen Colonies, the ring of six stars would represent the six nations that have had sovereignty over Mississippi
territory (various Indian nations as a collective nation, France, Spain, Great Britain, the United States, and the Confederate States),
and the inner and slightly larger star would represent Mississippi itself. The 20 stars would also represent Mississippi's status as the
20th member of the United States. The new flag was soundly defeated in a vote of 65% to 35% and the old flag was retained
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