A white field defaced with Saint George's Cross and the Union Flag in the canton.
Blue Ensign
Use
State ensign
Proportion
1:2
Adopted
HM Government
Design
A blue field with the Union Flag in the canton.
Red Ensign
Use
Civil ensign
Proportion
1:2
Adopted
British Merchant Navy
Design
A red field with the Union Flag in the canton.
RAF Ensign
Proportion
1:2
Adopted
The Royal Air Force
Design
A sky blue field with the Union Flag in the canton and the RAF Roundel in the fly
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 (the upper corner next to the staff), 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.
Outside the nautical sphere, ensigns are used to designate many other military units, government departments and administrative divisions. These flags are modelled on the red, white, and blue naval ensigns, but may use different colours for the field, and be defaced by the addition of a badge or symbol, for example the sky blue with concentric red, white and blue circles of the Royal Air Force ensign.
The Union Flag (also known as the Union Jack) should be flown as a jack by Royal Navy ships only when moored or at anchor. If flown while underway, the ship must be dressed for a special occasion or celebration with masthead ensigns, otherwise it signals that the Monarch or an Admiral of the Fleet is on board. The Union Flag may also signal that a court martial is in progress.
The use of the Union Flag as an ensign on a civilian craft is still illegal, unless it has a white border,[1] ever since Charles I ordered it be restricted to His Majesty's ships "upon pain of Our high displeasure" in the 17th century, mainly due to its unauthorised use by merchant mariners to avoid paying harbour duties by passing themselves off as Royal vessels.
^"Merchant Shipping Act 1995, section 4". Retrieved 27 February 2022.
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 Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is the civil ensign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is one of the Britishensigns, and it...
The Blue Ensign is a flag, one of several Britishensigns, used by certain organisations or territories associated or formerly associated with the United...
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...
is a British Red Ensign, with the Royal Union Flag in the canton, emblazoned with the shield of the coat of arms of Canada. The Canadian Red Ensign emerged...
the canton, patterned after the Red Ensign. British overseas territories fly the plain Red Ensign or a Red Ensign with the respective colonial arms in...
different from a country's civil ensign or state ensign. It can also be known as a war ensign. A large version of a naval ensign that is flown on a warship's...
formally adopting the Statute of Westminster. BritishensignBritish Empire British Blue EnsignBritish Red Ensign Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Australia...
warships used the British white ensign as their ensign. However, this led to situations where Australian vessels were mistaken for British ships, and when...
rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada Ensign, Kansas Ensign Lake, a lake in Minnesota Ensign Peak, Utah Ensign Township...
based on the traditional British red ensign and featured the Southern Cross and Commonwealth Star. The Australian red ensign is a predominantly red version...
The British civil air ensign is the flag that may be flown at civil aviation establishments in the United Kingdom and be displayed on UK-registered civil...
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...
Michael Ensign is an American actor who mostly played small roles. One of his most-known roles was Benjamin Guggenheim in the 1997 film Titanic. Ensign was...
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...
alone. For example, after achieving self-governance, Canada used a Britishensign emblazoned by its coat of arms as a flag to represent itself internationally...
colonial period. It is a defaced cyan "Blue Ensign" (the actual Blue Ensign version of the flag is the government ensign), with the shield from the national coat...
in battle, they wear the "battle ensign" or multiple ensigns. Tradition dictated that if a ship lowered its ensign it was deemed to have surrendered...
A battle ensign is the name given to a large war ensign (flag) hoisted on a warship's mast just before going into battle. In what could become a very confusing...
being. Once again, as a British dominion the British Union Flag was to continue as the national flag and the standard Britishensign pattern was used as a...
the British government declared the use of a white ensign for use by the Royal Navy, a red ensign for non-government vessels, and a blue ensign for all...
The Royal Air Force Ensign is the official flag which is used to represent the Royal Air Force. The ensign has a field of air force blue with the United...
and water. The civil air ensign is a copy of the British Civil Air Ensign, with the Guyanese flag in the canton. The naval ensign of Guyana is a version...
The flag of Australia 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...
All Nations - British Admiralty 1917 National Geographic Flag Book Blue Ensign Red Ensign White Ensign Green harp flag "Irish green ensign - National Maritime...
administered as part of the British Leeward Islands. The flag of the British Virgin Islands features a defaced Blue Ensign with the Union Flag in the canton...
1708 ordered that all British vessels use the BritishEnsign. This new version would have the flag of the Kingdom of Great Britain in its canton rather...
Global Information
