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British state ensign From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Blue Ensign is a British ensign that may be used on vessels by certain authorised yacht clubs, Royal Research Ships and British merchant vessels whose master holds a commission in the Royal Naval Reserve or has otherwise been issued a warrant. Defaced versions with a badge or other emblem are used more broadly; in the United Kingdom by authorised government or private bodies; and internationally by nations or organisations previously a part of the British Empire.
| |
| Use | State ensign   |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted |
|
| Design | A blue field with the Union occupying one quarter of the field and placed in the canton. |
The evolution of the Blue Ensign followed that of the Union Jack. The ensign originated in the 17th century with the St George's Cross (the Flag of England) in the canton, and with a blue field.
The Acts of Union 1707 united England (which included present day Wales) with Scotland in the Kingdom of Great Britain, thus producing a new Blue Ensign with the new Union Flag, containing a saltire, in the canton. With the Act of Union 1800, Ireland became a part of the new United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and St Patrick's Cross was incorporated into the Union Flag and, accordingly, into the cantons of all British ensigns from 1 January 1801.
The modern Blue Ensign of the United Kingdom
The British Blue Ensign (1707–1801)
English Blue Ensign as it appeared in the seventeenth centuryPrior to the reorganisation of the Royal Navy in 1864, the plain blue ensign had been the ensign of one of three squadrons of the Royal Navy, the Blue Squadron. This changed in 1864, when an order in council provided that the Red Ensign was allocated to merchantmen, the Blue Ensign was to be the flag of ships in public service or commanded by an officer in the Royal Naval Reserve, and the White Ensign was allocated to the Navy.
Thus, since 1864, the plain blue ensign (without any defacement or modification) is permitted to be worn, instead of the Red Ensign, by three categories of civilian vessel:[1]
Permission for yachts to wear the blue ensign (and other special yachting ensigns) was suspended during both World War I and World War II.
In addition, prior to WWI, a number of ships (in particular, the RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania) were listed as Royal Navy Reserve Merchant Vessels, receiving an annual subsidy from the navy and were permitted to fly the blue ensign.[3]
Since 1864, the Blue Ensign is defaced with a badge or emblem, to form the ensign of United Kingdom government departments or public bodies. Current defaced Blue Ensigns (besides yacht clubs listed below) are:
Royal Air Force marine vessels (such as seaplane tenders) flew a defaced blue ensign with an eagle and anchor.[4]
Yachting Blue Ensigns defaced by the badge of the club were recorded in the Navy List until 1985, and now they are administered by the Royal Yachting Association for the Ministry of Defence. Current defaced Blue Ensigns are:[5]
Current flags:
Flag of Anguilla
Government Ensign of Bermuda (the flag commonly used on land is Bermuda's Red Ensign)
Flag of the British Virgin Islands
Flag of the Cayman Islands
Flag of the Falkland Islands
Government Ensign of Gibraltar (there is another flag, not based on an ensign, that is commonly used on land)
Flag of Montserrat
Flag of the Pitcairn Islands
Flag of Saint Helena
Flag of the Turks and Caicos IslandsFormer flags:
The defaced blue ensign was formerly used as:
Bengal Presidency flag, 1612–1947.svg)
Blue Ensign worn as a jack by the Royal Canadian Navy 1911–1921 (with four provincial arms in the shield)
Blue Ensign worn as a jack by the Royal Canadian Navy 1921–1957 (with green maple leaves in the shield)
Blue Ensign worn as a jack by the Royal Canadian Navy 1957–1965 (with red maple leaves in the shield)
Flag of the United States of the Ionian Islands (a British amical protectorate, 1815–1864).svg){kind=small}
Flag of Hong Kong (1871–1997)
Flag of Weihaiwei (1903–1930)
Newfoundland Blue Ensign, 1870–1904
Newfoundland Blue Ensign, 1904–1931.svg)
Blue Ensign flown over the Union's offices abroad, 1910–1928These include:
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Flag of Ceylon.svg){kind=small}
George Rex Flag.svg){kind=small}
Tanganyika Territory blue ensign
Fijian government ensign
Fijian customs ensign
Flag of Australasia team at the Olympic games
Flag of the Blood 148 Kainai Nation of Alberta, CanadaSeamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
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