A legend in Poland goes that the founding father hero saw a white eagle flying with the backdrop of a red sunset, and considering it a good sign, made a heraldic emblem of an eagle on a red base. The white eagle heraldic emblem was later added to the flag design. The red and white colors are said to be symbolic of Poland from old days. In 1919, a year after the independence in 1918, the current red and white bi-color flag was made official.