The Red Flag

This article is about the socialist anthem. For other uses, see Red flag (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Bandiera Rossa.

The Red Flag
A red flag being waved on International Workers' Day in Madrid
Party anthem of Labour Party (UK), Social Democratic and Labour Party (Northern Ireland) and Labour Party (Ireland)
LyricsJim Connell, 1889
MusicMelchior Franck, 16th century
Audio sample
The Red Flag sung in 1926

"The Red Flag" (Roud V45381) is a socialist song, emphasising the sacrifices and solidarity of the international labour movement. It is the anthem of the British Labour Party,[1][2] the Northern Irish Social Democratic and Labour Party and the Irish Labour Party.[3] It was formerly used by the New Zealand Labour Party until the late 1940s.[4] The song is traditionally sung at the close of each party's national conference.[5]

Translated versions of the song are sung by the Japanese Communist Party and Korean People's Army.[6]

  1. ^ "The Red Flag ends Labour rally". BBC News. 1 October 1999. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  2. ^ "Labour Party Anthems – Top 10 songs the Labour Party has used over the years". Daily Mirror. 7 April 2010. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  3. ^ Hennessy, Mark (19 November 2007). "Party delegates adopt Red Flag as anthem". The Irish Times. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  4. ^ Trevett, Claire (21 October 2014). "Like a cult and too red – Parker on Labour". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  5. ^ Alwyn W. Turner (5 September 2013). A Classless Society: Britain in the 1990s. Aurum Press. pp. 258–9. ISBN 978-1-78131-142-4.
  6. ^ Lee, Jae-won (17 February 2014). "법원 "'적기가' 부른 이석기 국보법 위반"…'적기가' 뭔지 보니" [Court rules 'The Red Flag' song a violation of the Korean National Security Law...I see what 'The Red Flag' song is] (in Korean). Money Today. Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2018.