A country's flag is one of its most recognizable national symbols. Overcoming the barriers of language and culture, flags represent the history, character, and ideals of a nation through their design. Though ubiquitous today, national flags can generally trace their origin back to the use of emblazoned banners to direct troops on the field of battle. Before the 17th century, the idea of a 'state' having it's own flag that represented it beyond the context of war was (with few exceptions) unheard of, but during the Age of Revolutions flags representing the citizenry and everything the state encompassed, not just the military, were developed, spurred on by new ideas of citizens' rights and a nation/monarch's duty to upload them. Most countries of Europe adopted a national flag by the middle of the 19th century, a practice that would diffuse into the wider world during the upheavels and colonial revolutions of the 20th century.