A maritime flag is a flag designated for use on ships, boats, and other watercraft. Naval flags are considered important at sea and the rules and regulations for the flying of flags are strictly enforced. The flag flown is related to the country of registration: so much so that the word "flag" is often used symbolically as a metonym for "country of registration".
The ensign is the national identification of a ship and hoisted up in a national flag world-wide. They are required to be worn when entering and leaving harbour, when sailing through foreign waters, and when the ship is signalled to do so by a warship.
Ensigns are part of seafaring traditions of private and naval forces and have their origins in the era of sailing vessels. Flag dipping is done with the ensign. Ships usually wear their ensigns between the morning colours ceremony and sunset when moored or at anchor. Warships wear it at all times when underway, and when engaged in battle, wear the "battle ensign" or multiple ensigns.
Tradition dictated that if a ship lowered its ensign it was deemed to have surrendered. Masts were targets of gunfire, and the second and subsequent ensigns were worn in order to keep the ensign flying even after a mast hit.
Jacks are flown on the bow and placed upon a jackstaff, and used when the vessel is in a port or dressed on special occasions, and not while being underway. The origin of the jack was on warships only. However, it became an additional flag for certain other vessels and is sometimes identical with the ensign on merchant ships, depending on the ships origin.
Jacks in the Royal Navy must be run up when the first line is ashore when coming alongside.
On 16 January 1899, commissioned ships of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey were authorized to wear their own flag to distinguish them from ships of the United States Navy, with which they shared a common ensign. Although they continued to wear the same ensign as U.S. Navy ships, ships of the Survey flew the Coast and Geodetic Survey flag as a "distinctive mark" until the newly created National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) took over control of the Survey's ships in 1970. Since then, commissioned ships of the NOAA fleet, which also wear the same national ensign as U.S. Navy ships, have worn the flag of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as a distinctive mark.
Similarly, all ships of the United States Lighthouse Service wore the U.S. Lighthouse Service flag until the service merged into the United States Coast Guard on 1 July 1939, [1] and ships of the United States Bureau of Fisheries wore the Bureau of Fisheries flag until the bureau was merged into the United States Fish and Wildlife Service on 30 June 1940. the Fish and Wildlife service subsequently has flown its flag as a distinctive mark on its ships.
The rank flag or distinguishing flag is the flag worn by a superior officer on their flagship or headquarters (hence the term flagship). The origins of this are from the era before radiotelegraphy and radiotelephony, when orders were given by flag signals. The flag denotes the ship which must be watched for signals designating orders. Such flags are also worn when leaders of the government (presidents, prime ministers or defense secretaries) are aboard Navy ships, showing the ship to hold the headquarters of highest level of authority for the Armed Forces. Today, with the progress in communications, this flag indicates the obligation of the other Naval vessels to pay the relevant honours (Manning the rails, firing cannon salute, attention, etc.) according to nautical etiquette. In a group of naval ships all commanded by superior officers, only the commander of the group or the officer of the highest rank can wear his flag.
The pennant, historically called a pennon , is a long narrow flag, conveying different meanings depending on its design and use. Examples:
Merchant ships often fly a flag identifying which company owns the vessel. This was formerly flown from the mainmast but is now usually flown from the jackstaff.[ citation needed ]
Private signals are custom designed flags used to symbolize and identify the owner of a boat.
Members belonging to a yacht club or sailing organization may fly their club's unique burgee both while underway and at anchor (however, not while racing). Sailing vessels may fly the burgee from the main masthead or from a lanyard under the starboard spreader on the mast. [2] Power boats fly the burgee off a short staff on the bow.
Warships of various navies may be awarded a unit citation, for which a burgee (tapering flag with swallow-tail fly) is flown when in port.
There is a system of International maritime signal flags for each letter of the alphabet, and pennants for the numerals. Each flag (except the R flag) has an additional meaning when flown individually, and they take other meanings in certain combinations.
A courtesy flag (or courtesy ensign) is flown by a visiting ship in foreign waters as a token of respect. It is often a small (that is, smaller than the ship's own national ensign) national maritime flag of the host country, although there are countries (such as Malta) where the national, rather than the maritime flag is correct. The flag is customarily worn at the foremasthead of multi-masted vessels, the dockside yardarm or crosstree of the mast of single-masted vessels, while the house flag would be outboard. It may be flown from the jackstaff of vessels without masts.
The position of honour on a ship is the quarterdeck at the stern of the ship, and thus ensigns are traditionally flown either from an ensign staff at the ship's stern, or from a gaff rigged over the stern.
The rule that the highest flown flag takes precedence does not apply on board a ship: a flag flown at the stern is always in a superior position to a flag flown elsewhere on the ship, even if the latter is higher up.
The priority of hoisting locations depends on the rig of the vessel. With sloops, ketches and schooners the starboard yardarm or spreader of the highest or main mast is the second most honoured position (that is, after the ensign at the stern). Next after the starboard spreader is the port spreader. House flags (those defining the owner) are usually flown from the mainmast truck. When a club burgee is flown, it will normally be hoisted to the truck of the most forward mast. On a sloop, then, not having a foremast, the house flag could be moved to the port spreader if the starboard spreader was in use, and a burgee was being flown. On a ketch, the house flag would be moved to the mizzen.
When in port, the ensign should always be flown from the staff at the stern. This is traditional, because in former times the gaff was then lowered along with the mizzen sail. The only ensign ever flown from the starboard spreader or yardarm is that of a nation being visited. This is known as a courtesy hoisting or a courtesy flag.
At sea, it used to be that the ensign was flown from the mizzen gaff. When Bermudian sails came into general use, some skippers started to fly the ensign from two-thirds the way up the main-sail leech. Many consider this an affectation with the past. Others have taken to flying the ensign from a backstay. These are not good locations because the flag does not fly out well when hoisted raked forward.
The Canadian Heritage web page[ citation needed ] states:
whenever possible, the proper place for a vessel to display the national colours is at the stern, except that when at sea, the flag may be flown from a gaff; when in harbour the flag should be hoisted at 0800 hours and lowered at sunset.
Another recent custom has been to fly a burgee and/or a cruising or power squadron flag from the starboard spreader. This custom has arisen because many sailboats today place a racing flag or wind indicator at the masthead.
Motor boats without masts should always fly the ensign from an ensign staff at the stern. Conventionally, courtesy flags are flown from the jackstaff at the bow. This seems to some landsmen as being a reversal of priorities. However, a boat is steered by the stern and this gives it pride of place.
Nautical etiquette requires that merchant vessels dip their ensigns in salute to passing warships, which acknowledge the salute by dipping their ensigns in return. Contrary to popular belief the United States Navy does dip the Stars and Stripes in acknowledgement of salutes rendered to it. Merchant vessels traditionally fly the ensign of the nation in whose territorial waters they are sailing at the starboard yard-arm. This is known as a courtesy flag, as for yachts.
The flying of the ensigns of two countries, one above the other, on the same staff is a sign that the vessel concerned has been captured or has surrendered during wartime. The ensign flying in the inferior, or lower, position is that of the country the ship has been captured from; conversely, the ensign flying in the superior, or upper position, is that of the country that has captured the ship.
As a sign of celebration, ships in harbour may be dressed overall.
Flag terminology is the nomenclature, or system of terms, used in vexillology, the study of flags, to describe precisely the parts, patterns, and other attributes of flags and their display.
An ensign is a maritime flag that is used for the national identification of a ship. It is the largest flag and is generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. Depending on the ship's origin, it may sometimes be identical with a jack on the bow of the ship when in a port. Jacks are more common on warships than on merchant ships.
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 several branches of the United States Armed Forces are represented by flags. Within the U.S. military, various flags fly on various occasions, and on various ships, bases, camps, and military academies.
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.
A jack is a flag flown from a short jackstaff at the bow (front) of a vessel, while the ensign is flown on the stern (rear). Jacks on bowsprits or foremasts appeared in the 17th century. A country may have different jacks for different purposes, especially when the naval jack is forbidden to other vessels. The United Kingdom has an official civil jack; the Netherlands has several unofficial ones. In some countries, ships of other government institutions may fly the naval jack, e.g. the ships of the United States Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the case of the US jack. Certain organs of the UK's government have their own departmental jacks. Commercial or pleasure craft may fly the flag of an administrative division or municipality at the bow. Merchant ships may fly a house flag. Yachts may fly a club burgee or officer's flag or the owner's private signal at the bow. Practice may be regulated by law, custom, or personal judgment.
The commissioning pennant is a pennant flown from the masthead of a warship. The history of flying a commissioning pennant dates back to the days of chivalry with their trail pendants being flown from the mastheads of ships they commanded. Today, the commissioning pennants are hoisted on the day of commissioning and not struck until they are decommissioned. Some navies have a custom of flying a "paying off" or "decommissioning pennant," the length of which often reflects the length of service of the warship.
The First Navy Jack was the naval jack of the United States from 1975 to 1976 and again from 2002 to 2019. It was authorized by the U.S. Navy and was flown from the jackstaff of commissioned vessels of the U.S. Navy while moored pierside or at anchor. Since then, it is used only as a naval jack by the oldest active warship in the U.S. Navy. The design is traditionally regarded as that of the first U.S. naval jack, flown soon after independence, but this is not supported by the historical record.
This glossary of nautical terms is an alphabetical listing of terms and expressions connected with ships, shipping, seamanship and navigation on water. Some remain current, while many date from the 17th to 19th centuries. The word nautical derives from the Latin nauticus, from Greek nautikos, from nautēs: "sailor", from naus: "ship".
A pennon, also known as a pennant or pendant, is a long narrow flag which is larger at the hoist than at the fly, i.e., the flag narrows as it moves away from the flagpole. It can have several shapes, such as triangular, tapering or triangular swallowtail, etc. In maritime use, pennants are to be hung from the main truck.
A battle ensign is the name given to a large war ensign (flag) hoisted on a warship's mast just before going into battle.
The jack of the United States, referred to as the Union Jack by the U.S. Navy, is a maritime jack flag flown on the bow of U.S. vessels that are moored or anchored. In addition to commissioned U.S. Navy ships, the jack is used by the U.S. Coast Guard, the Military Sealift Command, the ships of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other U.S. government entities. While anchored or moored, the jack is flown on the bow of a ship, and the ensign is flown on the stern. Once under way, the jack is lowered.
A burgee is a distinguishing flag, regardless of its shape, of a recreational boating organization. In most cases, they have the shape of a pennant.
A French ensign is the flag flown at sea to identify a vessel as French. Several such ensigns have existed over the years as well as terrestrial flags based on the ensign motif.
A broad pennant is a triangular swallow-tailed naval pennant flown from the masthead of a warship afloat or a naval headquarters ashore to indicate the presence of either:
The ensign of the United States is the flag of the United States when worn as an ensign. International maritime law—see International Treaty on Law of the Sea, articles 91 and 92—provides that vessels have a "national character" and thus should display a flag (ensign) that corresponds to this national character, especially when in international or foreign waters. Vessels that are formally documented under the federal vessel documentation act, vessels owned by government bodies in the United States, and vessels in the U.S. military unquestionably have U.S. national character, and thus properly hoist a U.S. ensign to show their national character. Vessels that are numbered by the states and small, non-registered craft owned by U.S. citizens and not registered in other countries may also hoist a U.S. ensign to show their national character.
There are many customs and traditions associated with the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. Many of these traditions have carried on to other Commonwealth navies, such as Canada, India, Australia and New Zealand. These include formal customs such as separate crests associated with ships, ensigns and fleet reviews. There are also several less formal customs and traditions, including Naval slang commonly referred to as Jack Speak and the traditional games of Uckers and Euchre.
Dressing overall consists of stringing international maritime signal flags on a ship from stemhead to masthead, from masthead to masthead and then down to the taffrail. It is a sign of celebration, and is done for celebratory occasions, anniversaries and events, whether national, local or personal.
The gin pennant is a maritime flag. When flown aboard ship, it indicates an open invitation to other ships' officers to come aboard for drinks.
