King's Flag for Australia

The King's Flag for Australia is the flag of Charles III in his role as King of Australia. It is used in a similar way as the Royal Standard of the United Kingdom, by signalling the monarch's presence within a building or vehicle in Australia.

King's Flag for Australia

Use	Other
Adopted	30 August 2024; 59 days ago (2024-08-30)[1]
Design	The six quarters of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, surrounded by an ermine border.

History

Queen's Personal Australian Flag

Use	Other
Adopted	20 September 1962; 62 years ago (1962-09-20)[2]
Relinquished	8 September 2022 (laid up and is no longer flown) [3]
Design	The six quarters of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, surrounded by an ermine border defaced with a gold federation star containing a blue disc
Flag with proportions 22:31[citation needed]

Queen Elizabeth II was the first Australian monarch to adopt a personal flag for Australia. Her flag was approved for use on 20 September 1962, and used for the first time during the 1963 royal tour.^[2] The personal flag of Queen Elizabeth differed from that of Charles III as it was defaced with a gold seven-pointed federation star with a blue disc containing the letter E below a crown, surrounded by a garland of golden roses. The star represented the states and territories. The blue disc was taken from the Queen's Personal Flag, used by her for duties as Head of the Commonwealth of Nations.

King Charles III similarly adopted an Australian flag to acknowledge his role as King of Australia. It was approved on 30 August 2024 and used for the first time on his inaugural royal tour to the country as monarch in October 2024.^[1]

• 
  Elizabeth II's personal flag being used in Brisbane, 1982
• 
  The flag being used by Elizabeth II during the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane
• 
  The flag being used on a vessel carrying Elizabeth II, 1988

Description

The King's Flag is the escutcheon of the coat of arms of Australia in banner form.

The King's Flag consists of a banner of the coat of arms of Australia.

Each of the six sections of the flag represents the heraldic badge of the Australian states, and the whole is surrounded by an ermine border representing the federation of the states:^[1][4]

• The upper left represents New South Wales and bears a red St George's Cross, upon which is a gold lion in the centre and a gold star on each arm.
• The upper middle represents Victoria and contains a crown and five white stars on a blue field.
• The upper right represents Queensland and consists of a blue Maltese cross, bearing a crown, on a white field.
• The lower left represents South Australia and includes a piping shrike on a gold field.
• The lower middle represents Western Australia and consists of a black swan on a gold field with wings up.
• The lower right represents Tasmania and contains a red lion on a white field.

Use

The King's Flag for Australia is used when he is visiting Australia, on Royal Australian Navy vessels, on official buildings, cars and aircraft that the King occupies.^[6] When it is flown on or outside a building, it should be the only flag present.^[2][1]

Coronation standards

During the coronation ceremony of the monarch at Westminster Abbey, the standards of various countries are carried by various officials in the procession inside the abbey. These flags are the country's coat of arms as a banner of arms. For Australia, similar standards based on the current and previous coat of arms were used thrice: at the coronations of King George V, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II in 1911, 1937, and 1953, respectively.^{[citation needed]} The banner of the 1908–1912 coat of arms was used in 1911,^[7][8][9] with the banner of the current arms used in 1937 and 1953.^[10] The banner was in a 3:4 ratio and without defacement. At the 2023 coronation of King Charles III, the Australian national flag was used to represent Australia.^[11]

• Australian coronation standards
• 
  1911 Coronation Standard
• 
  1937 and 1953 Coronation Standard
• 
  2023 Coronation Standard^[12]

See also

• Australia portal
• Heraldry and Vexillology portal

• List of Australian flags
• Flags of Elizabeth II
• Flags of Charles III
• Flag of the governor-general of Australia
• Flags of the governors of the Australian states

References

1. "Royal and Vice-Regal flags". Australian Government: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 14 July 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
2. "Her Majesty the Queen's Personal Flag for Australia". Royal Australian Navy. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
3. https://www.navy.gov.au/about-navy/history/customs-and-traditions/queen-elizabeth-ii-personal-flag-australia
4. Government of Australia: Department of the Environment and Water Resources
5. "Royal and Vice-Regal flags | Australian Flags booklet | PM&C". 14 July 2022. Archived from the original on 7 February 2023.
6. Queen Elizabeth's Personal Flag was also used once in the UK during a church service to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the passage of the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900.^[5]
7. "CORONATION STANDARDS". Northern Star (Lismore, NSW : 1876 – 1954). 15 May 1911. p. 5. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
8. "Alfred Pearse (c.1854–1933) – Coronation of George V: Standard bearers". www.rct.uk. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
9. "Coronation of George V: Standard bearers 1911". www.watercolourworld.org. The Watercolour World. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
10. "Australian Standard For Coronation". Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1931 – 1954). 23 May 1953. p. 2. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
11. "Sam Kerr carries flag for Australia as sport marks King Charles III coronation". The Observer. 6 May 2023.
12. Coronation Roll

• Barraclough, E. M. C. and Crampton, W. G. (1978). Flags of the World. London: Frederick Warne. ISBN 0-7232-2015-8. P. 207

External links

• Queen Elizabeth II's Personal Standard in Australia at Flags of the World. Accessed 8 February 2006.