2024-09-05 09:50:35
The Bulgarian flag, flying 111 meters above Rozhen, has been renewed. This news pleased the patriots in our country a few days ago, after, according to rumors, only the white strip remained from the tricolor. In fact, the “operation” in question is repeated already for the fourth time, as the strong mountain wind often tears the flag.
The precedent is unpleasant because it speaks to a systematic problem with the tallest flagpole ever in the entire European Union. An investigation by “24 Hours – 168 Stories” found that other countries have faced such unfortunate tragedies in the past.
The passion for building
on pedestals
to raise the national symbol as high as possible is currently strongest in the Arab world, in Russia and Asia. Globally, our pylon in Rozhen ranks 25th in height. Before him, similar facilities were reported in Egypt (202 m), Azerbaijan (191 m), Russia (175 m), Tajikistan (165 m), North Korea (160 m), Iran (150 m) and others. Some countries even have several, all longer than ours – the United Arab Emirates holds the record with seven in total, three at 123 meters and four more at 120 meters in different locations. India, Jordan and Azerbaijan have two each, which are also larger than Rozhen’s.
Of course, all of them, like ours, need special care and maintenance. Last year, even Russia faced similar problems after erecting the “Three Ages” monument in St. Petersburg. It is crowned with the flags of the Russian Empire, the USSR and the Russian Federation,
hung on the three highest
pylon of the Old Continent In June 2023, a few days after the flags were raised, to the general astonishment of the inhabitants of the city on the Neva, they were taken down. The reason, according to the city administration, is that this will ensure that the cloths from which they are sewn will not wear out excessively. And until now, there are strict rules – for example, flags are not raised in certain weather conditions – with wind speed over 12 m per second, as well as with heavy rain, fog, snowfall and hail. Also, the Russians have procedures – due to their size and weight, the flags must be lowered every 48 hours for routine maintenance.
Unlike Russia, in the USA they are much more modest. There is only one pole with a national flag in the entire territory that exceeds ours – in Sheboygan, Wisconsin (120 m). The backwardness of the Americans in this area is strange, to say the least, since it was overseas that the tradition of raising the national flag to a great height first appeared. But as early as 100 years ago, the American dream of flying the stars and stripes on a giant pylon ran into some insurmountable obstacles. As a rule, they were then made of wood, and it was not always easy to find suitable wood.
But as early as May 1, 1893, when the World’s Fair opened in Chicago, Washington decided to take advantage of the situation. Thus, a 72-meter tall fir pole was erected in the capital, on which a massive American flag measuring 18 by 6 meters flies. This was an absolute world record for that era and thus began a race of sorts.
The state of Oregon also entered the race when, in the spring of 1914, Astoria residents donated the tallest flagpole to the San Francisco International Exposition. The forests around the city were searched for the perfect tree, which was transported by tugboat down the Columbia River to the Pacific coast. But just as the tug approaches, a great storm rages in San Francisco Bay, the ropes loosen and
the flagpole
is lost in the stormy waters
However, two days later it was discovered and removed, and the 76-meter tree was taken to the exhibition grounds and driven 3 meters into a concrete block. In addition, the residents of Astoria sewed a 12-meter-long flag, which was raised at the opening of the exposition.
Three years later, the ill-fated and fragile pylon is now history, and a new race begins in the USA. On September 8, 1917, a few months after the United States entered World War I, in Tacoma, Washington, a local newspaper launched a campaign to raise funds for
purchase of
the largest flag in the world
It was to be flown at the new camp of the American army “Camp Lewis”, which was established near the city. The Army facility (which would later become Lewis-McChord Air Force Base) was the pride of Tacoma, whose voters issued bonds to fund it with the 60,000-acre land grant. The steel flagpole was originally supposed to be only 23 meters tall, but disheartening news reached local patriots. And it is that on November 1, 1917, a 41-meter steel pole was erected at “Camp Jackson” in South Carolina, and it was already the tallest for its time.
Then the initiative turned to a well-known company in Seattle, whose loggers managed to find a 100-meter fir tree.
The tree has been shaped into a flagpole, which is planned to be 95 meters tall. The post is cut, reinforced and anchored in a 9-ton concrete block. The newspaper’s successful fundraising also allowed for the purchase of a massive flag made by the American Flag Company of New York.
It measures 18 by 27 meters and each of its 13 stripes is nearly a meter and a half wide, and each of the 48 stars is 80 centimeters. The massive 116-kilogram flag was completed in early January 1918. Unfortunately, quarantine due to the worldwide Spanish flu pandemic thwarted the celebration of its dedication.
Finally, on October 12 of that year, the ceremony began and the flag was raised on the high pylon. But the moment it broke loose, there was a loud crash –
the pylon split
in three parts
under the enormous weight and collapsed to the ground.
However, the organizers did not give up and it was decided to create a second pillar with stronger joints, using the pieces of the first. It was erected by experienced riggers from the Tacoma Shipyard. Before erecting the tree, the installers requested that a piece of gold be placed under the flagpole to prevent sudden swings. The new pillar was shorter – 65 meters, and 4 meters of it were dug into a concrete block. There were two splices with heavy reinforcing clamps on each, plus strong ropes at the base.
Thanks to this, two months later, on November 12, 1918, the second consecration ceremony took place. The impressive event was attended by 4,000 soldiers, and the president of the local college gave a memorable speech about the flag, which would be a national pride. The Star Spangled Banner is hoisted and unfurled by the light breeze and this time the flagpole holds, but to everyone’s horror there is a loud tearing sound and the flag splits in two. The crowd was stunned and outraged, but Major General Joseph Leitch, commander of Camp Lewis, continued to speak as if all was well. The pylon remained in use for several years with a significantly smaller flag before being permanently removed by the fort.
However, these adversities do not break the enthusiasts and the competition continues. In 1923, residents of Astoria, Oregon managed to erect the tallest flagpole at an impressive 67 meters. But again they were unlucky – this time it was struck by lightning and destroyed.
Despite the sad American experience, this mania at one point “infects” the whole world.
In modern times, pylons are no longer free-standing pillars, but in practice are steel towers
One of the first is “Kijong-Dong” (160 m) in North Korea, and thanks to it, the closed country was proud of the highest flag for several years, before it was displaced by Saudi Arabia in 2014.
Not to be left behind, recently patriots in the USA also decided to join this prestigious ranking. Ironically, this idea was born in Maine’s poorest county, where the median household income is about $44,000 a year. There in July 2022, in a memorial park dedicated to war veterans, the Worcester family gave
start of one indeed
a grand project
– a steel tower with a height of 445 meters – taller than the Empire States Building. The flag itself was to be the size of one and a half football fields – the largest ever flown. And these gargantuan dimensions are no accident, as it is intended to be the first human creation seen by anyone arriving in the US from the air. The monument was also to include 55 memorial walls with the names of the approximately 24 million American veterans who have died over the past 250 years. Only the first phase of construction – until July 4, 2026 – was expected to cost about 1 billion dollars, and the cost of the entire project to exceed 2 billion.
“We want to unite Americans, remind them of the sacrifices over the centuries in the name of protecting our freedom and
to unite
America Divided’
financing company founder Morrill Worcester told The Associated Press last year.
But similar to the situation here, many in America have opposed the costly symbol, arguing that one cannot throw heaps of money at things of little practical use, when there are much more serious problems for society to solve. In the end, in February of this year, the family company was forced to abandon its bold plans, and for now, the leading country in the world – the United States, will probably remain at the bottom of the ranking in this field. An invaluable experience that can be useful for our patriots.