The national flag of France (French: Drapeau national de la France) is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue (hoist side), white, and red. The design was adopted during the French Revolution and has remained the national flag since then, with only minor variations in shade and proportion. The colours of the French flag may also represent the three main estates of the Ancien RĂ©gime (the clergy: white, the nobility: red and the bourgeoisie: blue). The three colours are occasionally taken to represent the three elements of the revolutionary motto, libertĂ© (freedom: blue), Ă©galitĂ© (equality: white), fraternitĂ© (brotherhood: red); this symbolism was referenced in Krzysztof KieĆlowski's three colours film trilogy, for example. In the aftermath of the November 2015 Paris attacks, many famous landmarks and stadiums around the world were illuminated in the flag colours to honour the victims.