Peru’s red‑white‑red vertical tricolour dates to 1825 reforms following San Martín’s 1820 banner. The civil flag omits arms; state and war flags display the coat of arms (vicuña, cinchona, cornucopia). Colours are read as sacrifice (red) and peace (white). Law fixes a 2:3 ratio, colour references, and protocol—display, half‑masting, ceremonies, and dignified retirement.
Peru’s earliest independence flag (1820) used diagonals; in 1825 the nation adopted a simpler vertical tricolour of red, white, red. The civil flag consists solely of the bands, while the state and war flags add the coat of arms depicting a vicuña, a cinchona tree, and a cornucopia—signifiers of fauna, flora, and abundance.
Interpretations commonly present red as the blood of patriots and white as peace and purity. The legal proportion is 2:3, with definitions for shades and emblem drawings. Protocol governs precedence with foreign flags, half‑masting for mourning, and ceremonial handling. Old flags are retired with dignity.
The design has remained largely unchanged since the nineteenth century, aside from refinements to the arms. The flag is central in civic education and national days and appears widely on public buildings and at missions abroad.