Flag Description

three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; design inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797; colors are those of Milan (red and white) combined with the green uniform color of the Milanese civic guard

Background:Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the regional states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy is a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include sluggish economic growth, high youth and female unemployment, organized crime, corruption, and economic disparities between southern Italy and the more prosperous north.

Total Area: 301,340 sq km

Land Area:294,140 sq km

Water Area:7,200 sq km

Land Boundries Total:1,836 km

Border Countries:Austria 404 km, France 476 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3 km, San Marino 37 km, Slovenia 218 km, Switzerland 698 km

Coastline:7,600 km

Lowest Point:Mediterranean Sea 0 m

Highest Point:Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) de Courmayeur 4,748 m (a secondary peak of Mont Blanc)

Population:61,680,122 (July 2014 est.)

Population Growth Rate:0.3% (2014 est.)

Religion:Christian 80% (overwhelmingly Roman Catholic with very small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses and Protestants), Muslim (about 800,000 to 1 million), Atheist and Agnostic 20%

Literacy(%):0.99

Literacy(%) Male:0.992

Literacy(%) Female:98.7% (2011 est.)

Independence Day:17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)

National Holiday:Republic Day, 2 June (1946)

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