Name | Severn Cross |
---|---|
Proportion | 1:2 |
Adopted | March 2008 |
Design | Cross of mid-blue, outlined in cream, against an apple green background |
Designed by | Jeremy Bentall |
The Gloucestershire flag, also known as the Severn Cross, was the winning entry in a competition held by the then High Sheriff of Gloucestershire, Jonathan Carr, to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the county in March 2008. Prior to 2008, the banner of arms for Gloucestershire County Council was used as the de facto flag for the county. The new flag is coloured blue, cream and green, representing the River Severn, Cotswold stone and the Golden Valley, Stroud respectively.
Prior to 2008, there was a flag of Gloucestershire available, but was actually the banner of arms for Gloucestershire County Council and therefore not the county flag. The new flag was registered in March 2008, and is named the Severn Cross. [1]
The design was the winning entry in a 2008 competition, judged by High Sheriff of Gloucestershire, Jonathan Carr, in celebration of a millennium of the county's existence. [1] In addition, Carr stated that many counties of the West Country had their own flags and this anniversary presented the opportunity to add Gloucestershire's flag. In addition, the winner would take home a prize of £250. [2]
The competition had over 1000 entries, and the winning entry was designed by Jeremy Bentail, a mental health worker. [3] The 80 best entries were then displayed at the Shire Hall. Once the winner had been chosen, the first thirty flags produced were flown by district councils and University of Gloucestershire. [3]
The flag comprises a cross of mid-blue, outlined in cream, against an apple green background. The blue represents the River Severn, the green represents the Golden Valley, Stroud and the cream represents Cotswold stone. [3]
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean.
The Thames and Severn Canal is a canal in Gloucestershire in the south of England, which was completed in 1789. It was conceived as part of a canal route from Bristol to London. At its eastern end, it connects to the River Thames at Inglesham Lock near Lechlade, while at its western end, it connects to the Stroudwater Navigation at Wallbridge near Stroud, and thence to the River Severn. It has one short arm (branch), from Siddington to the town of Cirencester. It includes Sapperton Tunnel, which when built was the longest canal tunnel in Britain, and remains the second-longest complete tunnel. There were always problems with water supply, as no reservoirs were built, while the summit section near the tunnel ran through porous limestone, and there were constant difficulties with leakage. Competition from the railways took much of the canal's traffic by the end of the 19th century, and most of the canal was abandoned in 1927, the remainder in 1941.
Stroud is a market town and civil parish in the centre of Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District.
The Cotswold Way is a 102-mile (164 km) long-distance footpath, running along the Cotswold Edge escarpment of the Cotswold Hills in England. It was officially inaugurated as a National Trail on 24 May 2007 and several new rights of way have been created.
North Nibley is a village in Gloucestershire, England about 1.9 miles (3 km) northwest of Wotton-under-Edge.
The Flag of the Isle of Wight was adopted and registered in January 2009. It shows a diamond shape hovering over ocean waves. The indentation of the top corner of the diamond represents the River Medina, which is the largest river on the island.
Chalford is a large village in the Frome Valley of the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. It is to the southeast of Stroud about four miles upstream. It gives its name to Chalford parish, which covers the villages of Chalford, Chalford Hill, France Lynch, Bussage and Brownshill, spread over two square miles of the Cotswold countryside. At this point the valley is also called the Golden Valley.
The Stroudwater Navigation is a canal in Gloucestershire, England which linked Stroud to the River Severn. It was authorised in 1776, although part had already been built, as the proprietors believed that an Act of Parliament obtained in 1730 gave them the necessary powers. Opened in 1779, it was a commercial success, its main cargo being coal. It was 8 miles (13 km) in length and had a rise of 102 ft 5 in (31.22 m) through 12 locks. Following the opening of the Thames and Severn Canal in 1789, it formed part of a through route from Bristol to London, although much of its trade vanished when the Kennet and Avon Canal provided a more direct route in 1810. Despite competition from the railways, the canal continued to pay dividends to shareholders until 1922, and was not finally abandoned until 1954.
The flag of Dorset is the flag of the English county of Dorset. It was chosen as the flag of Dorset on 16 September 2008 following a vote open to all Dorset residents, and organised by Dorset County Council. The unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole declined an invitation to participate. The flag has subsequently been registered at the Flag Institute and added to their UK Flags Register.
The Flag of Sussex is the flag of the traditional and historic county of Sussex. The flag was registered by the Flag Institute on Friday 20 May 2011 as a 'traditional' county flag as a result of a campaign started in August 2010, by Sussex resident Brady Ells, with support from his father, David. The Flag was certified by Chief Vexillologist, Graham Bartram. It was first flown officially on Saturday 28 May 2011 at Lewes Castle. and was flown from the Department of Communities and Local Government at Eland House, London on Sussex Day, 16 June 2011.
The flag of Hertfordshire is the flag of the English county of Hertfordshire. The flag is a banner of the arms of Hertfordshire County Council. On 19 November 2008 the Council passed a resolution that the design is a fitting and proper emblem for the county and its people. The council subsequently registered the banner of arms as the flag of the county with the Flag Institute and it now appears on the latter's registry of local flags.
The flag of Nottinghamshire is the flag of Nottinghamshire, a historic county of England. It was registered with the Flag Institute in 2011. The flag includes a white-fimbriated red St George's Cross on a green background, and a green silhouette of James Woodford's bronze statue of Robin Hood on a white shield located close to Nottingham Castle.
The Oxfordshire flag is the flag of the historic county of Oxfordshire in England. It was registered with the Flag Institute on 9 October 2017.
The Worcestershire flag is the flag of the county of Worcestershire. It was registered with the Flag Institute on 8 April 2013 as the winning entry of a BBC Hereford & Worcester competition. It was first flown in a ceremony at Worcester Cathedral on the same day.
The flag of Birmingham is the flag of the city of Birmingham in England. A flag for the city that is freely flyable by the community was adopted following a public competition in 2015. It is distinct from the flag flown exclusively by Birmingham City Council which is a banner of arms derived from the city's coat of arms. A competition to design a new flag for public use was held during early 2015 with 470 proposed designs being entered into the competition.
The Flag of County Durham is the flag of the historic county of Durham. It was registered with the Flag Institute as the flag of the county in 2013, after winning an online competition to decide a flag for the county.
The Bedfordshire flag is the flag of the English county of Bedfordshire. It is based on the banner of the arms of the former Bedfordshire County Council, which was granted the arms in 1951 by the College of Arms. This design was adopted as the flag of the historic county in September 2014, with the support of the High Sheriff of the county.