Which 1777 law established the first official national flag of the United States?

The Flag Act of 1777 established the first official national flag of the United States.

The Continental Congress passed the measure on June 14, 1777. It specified thirteen alternating red and white stripes and thirteen white stars on a blue field, representing the thirteen states. The resolution did not prescribe a star arrangement, which allowed early flags to display the stars in different patterns.

The flag’s design evolved as new states joined the Union. Congress added stars and stripes for Vermont and Kentucky in 1795, but later returned to thirteen stripes while continuing to add stars for new states.

The Flag Act is the reason June 14 is observed as Flag Day in the United States. The law is often confused with later legislation, including the 1818 act that fixed the number of stripes at thirteen and established the continuing star-addition principle.