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Viçosa, Minas Gerais (Brazil)

image by Dirk Schönberger, 4 October 2010
Source: http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viçosa_(Minas_Gerais)

About the flag

About the Flag

A white over green bicolor, a small red triangle centred, arched above it a blue band, bearing CULTURA E CIVISMO and two stars in white, and below it a large yellow V extending to the outer edge of the blue arch.

Official website at http://www.vicosa.mg.gov.br/
Dirk Schönberger, 4 October 2010

The municipality of Viçosa (64,854 inhabitants in 2000; 300.15 sq. km) is located in southeastern Minas Gerais, 225 km of Belo Horizonte. The town was first incorporated in 1871, when the parish of Santa Rita do Turvo was granted the status of "vila"; erected the "cidade" of Viçosa de Santa Rita in 1884, as a tribute to Antônio Ferreira Viçoso,
Bishop of Mariana, the municipality was renamed Viçosa in 1911.

Artur da Silva Bernardes (1876-1955), born in Viçosa, was elected Mayor of Viçosa in 1906, Federal Representative in 1909-1910 and 1915-1917, and President of Minas Gerais in 1918-1922. Bernardes was President of Brazil in 1922-1926, suppressing insurrections in Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo. Under his presidency, Brazil left the League of Nations in 1926 and the Constitution was amended the same year. Elected Senator in 1927, Bernardes took part to the 1930 Revolution and exiled to Portugal; back to Brazil in 1934, he was elected Representative in 1934, expelled by the 1937 coup, and elected again Representative from 1954 to his death.

Bernardes created on 30 March 1922 (State Decree No. 6,053) the Agricultural and Veterinary Higher School ("Escola Superior de Agricultura e Veterinaria", ESAV) and inaugurated it on 28 August 1926. Renamed in 1948 the Minas Gerais State Rural University ("Universidade Rural do Estado de Minas Gerais", UREMG), the university was made a federal university on 15 June 1969 as the Viçosa Federal University ("Universidade Federal de Viçosa, UFV).

The municipal website has a page dedicated to the symbols: http://www.vicosa.mg.gov.br/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=54&Itemid=64.

The flag is horizontally divided white-green with a red triangle in the middle, in the white stripe a blue, semi-circular stripe charged with the white writing "CULTURA E CIVISMO" flanked by two white stars, in the green stripe a yellow V-shaped stripe. The municipal flag was designed by Pr. Arlindo de Paula Gonçalves, in harmony with the symbol represented on the monument commemorating the centenary of the town. As said in the explaining text appended to the flag bill, "the green, yellow and blue colors are those of the national flag, while the white and red colors are those of the Minas Gerais flag." The yellow "V" stands for "Viçosa". The two stars represent the two districts of Viçosa, Silvestre and Cachoeira de Santa Cruz (while the town has now four districts, adding Viçosa proper and São José do Triunfo).
Ivan Sache, 6 October 2010