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Byzantine Empire

Flags assigned to the Byzantine Empire
Flag shown in the Book of All Kingdoms (XIVth century)
The Byzantine cross
The Byzantine double-headed eagle

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Flags assigned to the Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire most probably had no flag, since when flags started being established the Empire fell to the Turks and ceased to exist, but if it had one it must have been similar to the one flown by the Autonomous Greek Orthodox Church (the Byzantine cross with the four B-shaped firesteels). However, many people here in Greece think of the eagle flag as the Byzantine flag, as the double-headed eagle is a well known later Byzantine symbol.

Yannis Natsinas, 22 July 1999

The original flag of the East Roman Emperors is the flag that contains the four B-shaped firesteels on the red background with the gold cross. The flag used by the Empire itself was the black double-headed eagle on a yellow background.

John Kakos, 28 December 2000

Flag shown in the Book of All Kingdoms (XIVth century)

Flag assigned to the Empire of Constantinople in the Book of All Kingdoms
Left, after the 2005 transcription of the Book - Image by António Martins, 18 December 2007
Right, after Neubecker's rendition of the Book - Image by Santiago Dotor, 10 October 1998

The 95th flag mentioned and illustrated in the Book of All Kingdoms [f0fXX] is assigned to the Empire of Constantinople (the Byzantine Empire).
As depicted in the 2005 Spanish illustrated transcription of the Book of All Kingdoms [f0f05], the flag is in the ogival default shape of this source, quartered, I and IV a St. George cross (red on white), II and III red with a yellow cross couped, with each of its quadrants taken by a yellow chain link. The design of the II and III quarters is identical to four other flags in this source (94th, 96th, 97th and 103rd, all related to the Byzantine Empire).
The anonymous author of the Book of All Kingdoms describes the flag thusly (as translated in the 2005 edition):
E el emperador de Costantinopla ha por señales un pendón a cuarterones, los dos cuartos blancos con cruzes bermejas, e los otros dos cuarterones son bermejos con sendas cruzes de oro e con cuatro eslabones de oro d'esta manera. (The Emperor of Constantinople has for his device a flag quarterly, 1st and 4th argent a cross gules, 2nd and 3rd gules a cross or between four chain links or.)
The depiction of the flag in the 2005 edition matches the one given in the 1912 transcription of the Book of All Kingdoms [f0f05], which sources the same design to manuscript "S" [f0fXXs], while from manuscript "N" [f0fXXn] is shown instead a samnitic shield, thickly edged in black, quartered red and white with golden crosses fleury (?) on quarters I and IV and red such crosses on quarters II and III, the golden crosses added with two (not four) annulets (not links) each: on quarter I, on the II and IV cantons made by the cross, and on quarter IV, on the II and III cantons made by the cross.

Neubecker (Heraldry: Sources, Symbols and Meaning [neu77]) shows a square rendition of the flag from the Book of All Kingdoms. He shows the yellow cross throughout and with a green fimbriation, while neither the 1912 nor 2005 transcriptions show such features. The 2005 transcription, however, shows the cross througout on the 94th, 96th, 97th and 103rd flags.

According to Neubecker, the flag consists of a combination of the St. George Cross (red on a white field) with the arms of the ruling family of the Paleologues (1258-1453).
The four charges in the corners of each of the other two crosses can be seen either as firesteels, as in the badges of the Order of the Golden Fleece, or as the Greek letter Β. In the latter case they form the initial letters of the Paleologues' motto, Βασιλευς Βασιλεων Βασιλευων Βασιλευσιν (King of Kings, ruling over Kings).

António Martins & Santiago Dotor, 18 December 2007

The Byzantine cross

In the Orthodox Church, the cross that has been seen by Constantine the Great (270/288-337) is a very important symbol. Before the battle at Saxa Rubra (Milvian Bridge) he is said to have seen in the sky a very bright cross ("bright as many stars"). The message that he's been heard was: In hoc signo vinces. There is a difference between this cross of victory (Constantine won the battle) and the cross of crucifixion. In addition, it is also a representation of the bright cross they believe that will appear in the sky at the end of the World (Matthew 24:30).
There are several different ways to represent brightness of that cross. One of them is with diagonal rays, the second is with the Greek letters IS HS NI KA (Jesus Christ is victor). The third way is with four firesteels. The cross with four firesteels is an old Byzantine/Orthodox symbol and should not be connected to the Paleologues (the last ruling family). It has nothing to do with four Β (Greek or Serbian Cyrillic alphabet).

Zoran Nikolić, 14 July 2004

The Byzantine double-headed eagle

How similar did the Byzantine eagle look to the Russian double-headed eagle, the supposed descendant of the Paleologues eagle?

Some background for it: Michael VIII Paleologue adopted this symbol after he had reconquered Constantinople from the Crusaders in 1261. It represented looking towards the East (Asia Minor, traditional power center of the Byzantine-government in exile after the IVth Crusade) and the West (newly reconquered land in Europe).
The double-headed eagle had in the two centuries of Paleologue rule become identified not just with the dynasty but with the Empire itself and, more generally, with institutions and cultural ideas outside the Byzantine Empire that still remained centered on Constantinople.
Most obvious of these is the Greek Orthodox Church, centered in theory in Istanbul to this day, and so it is not surprising that the Church would use the flag.

Less obvious is the reason for its use by the Russians. In 1453 a flood of Byzantine churchmen and nobles fleeing the Ottomans ended up in Moscow, center of the last free major Orthodox polity. This more or less coincided with the adoption of the title of czar (Caesar, or Emperor) by the former Princes of Suzdal who had been ruling from Moscow and had united much of the Russian-speaking world. Moscow began to be referred to as "the Third Rome" (Constantinople being the second), and the Czars saw themselves as successors in the Orthodox world to the Byzantine emperors. Thus the adoption of the double-headed eagle by them.

Josh Fruhlinger, 27 January 1999

The double-headed eagle is much older than Paleologues and Christianity, but in that time it became the symbol of entire Empire. Different colors of eagle had different rank. Some authors said that the gold eagle was reserved for royal family. Silver represented the second rank (despots, sevastokrators - the highest feudal title). Black eagles were used during the war. There again, yellow (gold) was reserved for the Emperor, all other ranks and units had different colors.

Zoran Nikolić, 14 July 2004

The Greek book entitled I Istoria tis Ellinikis simaias The History of the Hellenic Flag) mentions clearly the origin of the Double-headed eagle. The first double-headed eagle flag was made by Emperor Comninos. In the Emperor's region of birth (Cappadocia), a local superstition mentions a beast whose name was Hagka (pronounced "haga") and which was a gigantic eagle with two heads. Hagka would strike in the night stealing the livestock of the farmers and kill their owners.
Emperor Comninos, bringing some sort of superstition with him, or maybe just to show a fierce ruling dynasty, as well as an eagle that would protect both the eastern and westren borders of the Empire, addopted it for his Empire.

Yannis Natsinas mentions above that before the conquest of Constantinople there were no flags in use. This is both true and wrong. Flags were in use like today, but were banners. The banner with a porphyr red background and golden eagle was the war flag of the Empire, whereas the yellow-black was the Imperial flag used in peacetime.
In the beginning the eagle had no crown and her mouth, wings and claws were open, showing the eagle ready to attack. The eagle looked like that of today's Albanian flag. Later a sword (romfaia) and the Globe of Orthodoxy were added.
The Crowns were added by the Paleologue dynasty, one crown for Nikaia (the original royal City of the Dynasty) and one for Constantinople (after its liberation from the Latins).

Kleonikos Tsakiris, 23 October 2005