Use | Civil and state flag |
---|---|
Proportion | 1:2 |
Adopted | 6 March 1870 |
Design | A state badge of a white Southern Cross surmounted by St Edward's Crown, on a defaced British Blue Ensign. |
Use | Other |
Proportion | 1:2 |
Adopted | 1984 |
Design | The flag of Victoria with a gold field and red Southern Cross surmounted by St Edward's Crown |
The flag of Victoria is a British Blue Ensign defaced by the state badge of Victoria in the fly. The badge is the Southern Cross surmounted by an imperial crown, which is currently the St Edward's Crown. The stars of the Southern Cross are white and range from five to eight points with each star having one point pointing to the top of the flag. The flag dates from 1870, [1] with minor variations, the last of which was in 1953. It is the only Australian state flag not to feature the state badge on a round disc.
In 1844, John Harrison, the father of H. C. A. Harrison, designed a flag for the Separation Society, an organisation advocating for the separation of the Port Phillip District (present-day Victoria) from the Colony of New South Wales. The flag, featuring "a white star centred on a crimson ground", was flown at a large open-air meeting on Batman's Hill in June 1844. [2] It was described more fully in the Port Phillip Gazette : [3]
The flag will in size be about seven feet by five, of a deep crimson ground, with a white five pointed star in the middle; on one side the device is a sheep suspended with the words "Squatters, guard your rights," as an inscription, on the counter side are two pillars to represent commerce and agriculture based on the blocks of honor and truth; suspended over and midway between the columns, is a crown supported by a ribbon upon which the word "loyalty" is inscribed; a pair of sheep shears bearing the word "tyranny," cross the ribbon above the crown. The union is pictured in the form of clasped hands between the two pillars, under which is the motto "Keep yourselves and God will keep you." On the point of the pole will he formed gilded kangaroo.
Harrison flew the flag again in 1851 at a meeting of miners on the goldfields at Bendigo. [4]
The first flag of Victoria was adopted in 1870 and was first flown from HMVS Nelson on 9 February 1870. [5] It too was a defaced British Blue Ensign with the Southern Cross located in the fly. The stars of the Southern Cross were white and had 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 points with only the leftmost and rightmost stars having one point pointing to the top of the flag. The adoption of the flag came about when Victoria became the first Australian colony to acquire a warship, and thus under the British Colonial Naval Defence Act 1865 Victoria needed a flag to distinguish its ships from other British ships. At the same time, the red ensign was incorrectly authorised for use by civil vessels registered in the colony of Victoria. Despite the invalid authorisation, the flag continued to be used, and was flown alongside the Union flag during federation celebrations in 1901. The red ensign did not track changes to the blue ensign, and so no crown was added, nor did the stars rotate to point upwards facing the flag.
Victoria then adopted the current flag in 1877 with the stars of the southern cross from then on having 5, 6, 7, 7 and 8 points. The depictions of the crown have varied in accordance with heraldic fashion and the wishes of the monarch of the time. During Queen Victoria's reign, the crown had slightly dipped arches. From c. 1901–1952, during the reigns of Kings Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII and George VI the depiction of the crown known as the "Tudor Crown", with domed arches, was used. In 1953 the Tudor Crown was replaced with the St Edward's Crown.
Unlike the national flag, the flag of Victoria is not enshrined and protected by any acts of state or Commonwealth government. As a result, there are no official legal requirements for the construction of the flag of Victoria. However, tradition and decorum dictate that is should be:
The governor of Victoria is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in the Australian state of Victoria.
The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is the civil ensign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is one of the British ensigns, and it is used either plain or defaced with either a badge or a charge, mostly in the right half.
The flag of Western Australia consists of a Blue Ensign defaced with the badge of the state. Adopted in 1953 to replace a similar design used from the time when the state was still a British colony, it has been the flag of Western Australia since 3 November of that year. The design of the present flag entailed reversing the direction of the black swan so that it faced towards the hoist. This was done in order to adhere to vexillological convention. Western Australia's flag is similar to the flags of the other five Australian states, which are also Blue Ensigns with their respective state badges. When flown with those state flags and the national flag, it is sixth in the order of precedence. This is indicative of its position on the Commonwealth Coat of Arms.
The current state flag of Tasmania was officially adopted following a proclamation by Tasmanian colonial Governor Sir Frederick Weld on 25 September 1876, and was first published in the Tasmanian Gazette the same day. The governor's proclamation here were three official flags, they being the Governor's flag, the Tasmania Government vessel flag, and a Tasmania merchant flag. Up until 1856 when Tasmania was granted responsible self-government, the Union flag and the British ensign were primarily used on state occasions.
The current state flag of South Australia, was officially adopted in 1904.
In British maritime law and custom, an ensign is the identifying flag flown to designate a British ship, either military or civilian. Such flags display the United Kingdom Union Flag in the canton, with either a red, white or blue field, dependent on whether the vessel is civilian, naval, or in a special category. These are known as the red, white, and blue ensigns respectively.
The flag of New Zealand, also known as the New Zealand Ensign, is based on the British maritime Blue Ensign – a blue field with the Union Jack in the canton or upper hoist corner – augmented or defaced with four red stars centred within four white stars, representing the Southern Cross constellation.
The Blue Ensign is a flag, one of several British ensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated or formerly associated with the United Kingdom. It is used either plain or defaced with a badge or other emblem.
The White Ensign, at one time called the St George's Ensign because of the simultaneous existence of a crossless version of the flag, is an ensign worn on British Royal Navy ships and shore establishments. It consists of a red St George's Cross on a white field, identical to the flag of England except with the Union Flag in the upper canton.
The current state flag of New South Wales was officially adopted in 1876. The flag is based on the defaced British Blue Ensign with the state badge located in the fly. The badge, based on the coat of arms, is a white disc with the cross of St George, a golden lion passant guardant in the centre of the cross and an eight-pointed gold star on each arm of the cross.
The state flag of Queensland is a British Blue Ensign with the state badge on a white disc added in the fly. The badge is a light blue Maltese Cross with a Saint Edward's Crown in the centre of the cross. The flag dates from 1876, with minor variations, and the badge was designed by William Hemmant, the Colonial Secretary and Treasurer of Queensland in 1876.
The Australian red ensign is the civil ensign of Australia, the flag of nationality flown by Australian registered ships. It is a red version of the national flag, which is mainly blue. Both flags resulted from the Commonwealth Government's 1901 Federal Flag Design Competition which required two entries: an ensign for Commonwealth Government use and another for the merchant navy. The winning design for the merchant ensign was based on the traditional British red ensign and featured the Southern Cross and Commonwealth Star.
The governors of the Australian states, who represent their respective head of state, have a personal flag in that role. With the exception of Queensland's, the current design of these flags originate from the 1970s and 1980s.
The flag of the governor-general of Australia is an official flag of Australia and is flown continuously on buildings and other locations when the governor-general of Australia is present.
The Australian Border Force Flag is the flag flown by Australian Border Force vessels and sometimes on ABF buildings. Any vessel acting in a customs capacity must fly this flag. The current version is an Australian National Flag with the words "AUSTRALIAN BORDER FORCE" added in bold between the Commonwealth Star and the lower part of the Southern Cross. This flag was adopted by regulations coming into force on 1 July 2015.
The flag of Australia, also known as the Australian Blue Ensign, is based on the British Blue Ensign—a blue field with the Union Jack in the upper hoist quarter—augmented with a large white seven-pointed star and a representation of the Southern Cross constellation, made up of five white stars. Australia also has a number of other official flags representing its people and core functions of government.
The flag of the governor-general of New Zealand is an official flag of New Zealand and is flown continuously on buildings and other locations when a governor-general is present. The flag in its present form was adopted in 2008 and is a blue field with the shield of the New Zealand coat of arms royally crowned. The official heraldic description is "A flag of a blue field thereon the Arms of New Zealand ensigned by the Royal Crown all proper".
The Star of India refers to a group of flags used during the period of the British Raj in the Indian subcontinent. India had a range of flags for different purposes during its existence. The Princely states had their own flags which were to be flown alongside the British flag as a symbol of suzerainty. The official state flag for use on land was the Union Flag of the United Kingdom and it was this flag that was lowered on Independence Day in 1947. The flag of the governor-general of India was defaced with the Star of India. The civil ensign and naval ensign were the Red Ensign or Blue Ensign, respectively, defaced with the Star of India emblem.
New England has no official flag. However, there have been many historical or modern banners used to represent the region in its history. While there are some variations, common designs include a plain colored field with a pine tree in the canton. The eastern white pine is the most common and prominent symbol of New England and is featured on many of the region's flags.
The Tudor Crown, also known as the Imperial Crown, is a widely used symbol in the heraldry of the United Kingdom. In use officially from 1902 to 1953 and again from 2022, it represents both the British monarch personally and "the Crown", meaning the sovereign source of governmental authority. As such, it appears on numerous official emblems in the United Kingdom, British Empire and Commonwealth.