How does an italian flag look like?

An Italian flag is called a 'tricolore' because it is three colors, green, white, and red, patterned the same as the French flag. The design was copied from the French revolution which Italians admired as they were then under control of Austria (in the north), the Papal States (in the center) and the Spanish Bourbons in the south. When northern Italy was 'liberated' by Napolean Bonaparte the 'tricolore' came into popular use. When the country was unified in the 1860s, the flag was adopted and the coat of arms of the Savoy dynasty of kings placed in the central white stripe. That motif was eliminated after WWII when the house of Savoy was overthrown by a popular vote and Italy proclaimed a republic - although the Italian Navy still uses the older version.