The story of the United Kingdom and the Union Flag
Picture 01-- A flag containing three other flags.
The Union Flag, popularly known as the *Union Jack, is the national
flag of the United Kingdom. It is the British flag.
It is called the Union Flag because it symbolises the administrative
union of the countries of the United Kingdom. It is made up up of the
individual Flags of three of the Kingdom's countries all united under
one Sovereign - the countries of 'England, of 'Scotland' and of
'Northern Ireland' (since 1921 only Northern Ireland has been part of
the United Kingdom). As Wales was not a Kingdom but a Principality it
could not be included on the flag.
****"'Union Jack' was officially acknowledged as an alternative name
for the Union Flag by the Admiralty and Parliament in the early 20th
century. The term 'jack' refers to the flag that is flown from the
bowsprit of a ship, often denoting nationality."
****The Union Flag is commonly known as the Union Jack, although the
exact origin of the name is unclear. One explanation is that it gets
its name from the "jack staff" of naval vessels from which the
original Union Flag was flown.
****Historian David Starkey said that the Union Flag is called 'Jack'
because it is named after James l of Great Britain (Jacobus , Latin
for James), who introduced the flag following his accession to the
throne.
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The Making of the Union Flag
St George - England
Picture 02 -- The National Flag of England
England is represented by the flag of St. George
In 1194 A.D., Richard I of England introduced the Cross of St. George,
a red cross on a white ground, as the National Flag of England.
At this point in the story on the United Kingdom, England, Scotland,
Wales and Ireland were separate countries. However, this was soon to
change....
In 1536, under Henry VIII, an Act of Union was passed making Wales, in
effect a province of England.
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Picture 03 -- The Making of the Union Flag
St Andrew - Scotland
The National Flag of Scotland
Scottish flag
Scotland is represented by the flag of St. Andrew
(a diagonal white cross form (called a saltire) on a blue field)
After Queen Elizabeth I of England died in 1603, King James VI of
Scotland inherited the English throne and became King James I of
England. It was a Union of the Crowns, but not yet of the nations.
Each country still kept their own parliaments.
Early in his reign James attempted to combine England and Scotland in
a united kingdom of 'Great Britain'. This was the policy he presented
to his first Parliament, called on 22 March 1604. The union was
resisted.
James defied them. On 20 October 1604 he proclaimed a new title for
himself as 'King of Great Britain'.
But what flag should be used?
A problem arose, which flag should be hoisted on the king's ships.
English sailors resented the Scottish colours scotand the Scots
scorned the cross of St. George England.
In 1606 the problem was solved ........
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....... A compromise was the answer and it led to the creation of the
first Union Flag.
On 12 April 1606, the National Flags of Scotland and England were
united for use at sea, thus making the first Union 'Jack'. Ashore
however, the old flags of England and Scotland continued to be used by
their respective countries.
A royal decree declared that the ships of the Kingdom of Great Britain
"shall bear on their maintops the red cross, commonly called St.
George's cross, and the white cross, commonly called St. Andrew's
cross."
English flag + Scottish flag
Picture 04 -- The Union Flag of 1606
The first Union Flag (1606)
When the red cross of England was put onto the flag of Scotland, a
white border was added around the red cross for reasons of heraldry.
(The rules of heraldry demanded that two colours must never touch each
other.)
On 28th July, 1707, during the reign of Queen Anne, this flag was by
royal proclamation made the National flag of Great Britain, for use
ashore and afloat.
The Act of Union of 1707, joined England and Scotland together,
creating a single kingdom with a single Parliament called 'United
Kingdom of Great Britain'.
England Wales and Scotland were now united together under one monarch
and one parliament.
The Royal Navy christened the British flag " The Union".
Interesting Fact:
When the 'Union Flag' was first introduced, in 1606, it was known
simply as 'the British flag' or 'the flag of Britain'.
Nearly one hundred years later, another country was added to the Union
flag ....
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Northern Ireland - St Patrick
Picture 05 -- Ireland is represented by the cross of St. Patrick
(a diagonal red cross on a white background.)
On 1 January 1801, Ireland was united with Great Britain and it became
necessary to have a new National Flag in which Ireland was
represented. The cross St Patrick was combined with the Union Flag of
St George and St Andrew, to create the Union Flag that has been flown
ever since.
Picture 06 -- Union Flag
The cross of St. Patrick was inserted so the position given to St.
Andrew's Cross in one quarter was the same as that given to the Irish
one in the diagonally opposite quarter; in heraldry this is known as
"counterchanging"
The Union Flag with the St. George's Cross removed showing how the
saltires (diagonal crosses) are counterchanged.
The 'new' British flag is not symmetrical because of the
counterchange.
As Scotland joined the Union nearly two hundred years before Ireland,
St Andrew's Cross was placed uppermost in the top quarter nearest the
flagstaff, this being the most honourable position according to
heraldry, while the Irish Cross was given the second most honourable
position, the top quarter of the fly.
In order to avoid having the red of the Irish Cross directly upon the
blue field of the Scottish one an edging of the white field of the
Irish Cross is used.
The symbols of Scotland and Ireland are placed sided by side on the
Union Flag.
England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland were now all joined together and
called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The name was
later changed to United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
when the greater part of Ireland left the United Kingdom in 1921.
NB. The St. Patrick's Cross remains in the flag even though today only
Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom.
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To summarize...
The formation of the Union Flag (Union Jack) came about as the result
of the progressive merging of the inhabitants of the British Isles
under one throne.
1603 - King James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne and
became King James I of England.
1606 - the National Flags of Scotland and England were united for use
at sea, thus making the first Union Flag
The Union Flag of 1606
The first Union Flag (1606)
1707 - during the reign of Queen Anne, the first Union Flag was by
royal proclamation made the National flag of Great Britain, for use
ashore and afloat.
1801 - Ireland was united with Great Britain and the present Union
Flag was formed.
The Union Flag consists of the three heraldic crosses of St George, St
Andrew and St Patrick.
The flags of the Patron Saints of England, Scotland and Ireland are
represented on the Union Flag. But, why is Wales not represented on
the Union Flag?
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Why doesn't the Welsh dragon appear on the Union Flag?
Picture 07 -- Welsh Flag
The Welsh dragon does not appear on the flag because when the first
Union Flag was created in 1606, Wales was already united with England
from the 13th century. This meant that Wales was a Principality
instead of a Kingdom and as such could not be included.
In 1536, under Henry VIII, the Act of Union joined England and Wales
officially.
Please note:
Wales has never been conquered (forcibly take control and possession
of a foreign land) not by the Romans and certainly not the English or
anyone. Partial invasion took place but possession was never fulfilled
because of the geography and terrain allowed the native population an
ideal base to operate a very effective resistance. There was always a
Picture 08 -- What would the Union Flag look like if Wales was
represented?
In November 2007, a Welsh MP, Ian Lucas, asked parliament why Wales is
not represented in the Union Jack. Of course, we have the answer here
on our website, but what if Wales was represented, what would the flag
look like?
Below you can see Ian Lucas' version of the Union flag with Wales
represented:
Union Flag with Wales represented
Does the Union Flag as we know it, have a future?
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The Future of the UK's Flag
At the moment, the countries representing the UK, are still united
under one flag. How long this will be so, no one knows. Even now, each
of the countries which form the United Kingdom, is fighting for its
own independence.
For the first time since 1707, the Scots now have their own Parliament
in Edinburgh, and the Welsh their own national assembly in Cardiff. As
a result, the Scottish saltire and the red dragon of Wales are much
more in evidence.
Is the Union Flag (Union Jack) on its way out?
In 1997, British Airways decided to scrub the Union Flag off the tails
of its airliners and replace it with pictures of jackals from Africa
and other ethnic designs. Its chief executive, Bob Ayling, said that
the airline was no longer a British company with global operations,
we want to show Britain as modern, not imperial...We still have our
Picture 07 -- Nigel Turner's proposed new multicultural union flag,
shown here
In 2003, a campaign was launched to try and modernise the red, white
and blue flag by adding a touch of black to reflect multicultural
Britain in the 21st Century. The proposed new flag (see right) was the
work of Nigel Turner, an enthusiastic fan of the UK's transformation
into a multiracial society over the past 50 years. The campaign was
NOT successful.
2007
More teenagers see themselves as English, Scottish or Welsh rather
than British
A YouGov poll carried out by the Daily Telegraph in 2007 found that
fewer than one third of today's teenagers instinctively think of
themselves as British rather than English, Scottish or Welsh. But,
pressed to say whether they also think of themselves as British, the
great majority say yes. Only 10 per cent of the teenage sample, many
of them Scots, reject a British identity altogether.
Most people want the United Kingdom broken up
An ICM poll published by the Daily Mail in 2007 suggested that
majorities of voters in both Scotland and England now want the
countries to split.
The Future?
Will the Union flag be replaced by four separate flags or will all the
flags and the Union Jack, be replaced by something else?
Only time will tell.
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When is the Union Flag Flown?
The Union Flag is flown on government buildings on days marking:
* the birthdays of members of the Royal family,
* Commonwealth Day,
* Coronation Day,
* The Queen's official birthday,
* Remembrance Day and
* on the days of the State Opening and prorogation of Parliament.
It is also flown on St David's Day (Wales), St George's Day (England),
St Andrew's Day (Scotland), and St Patrick's Day (Northern Ireland).
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