The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows, where rows of six stars alternate with rows of five stars. The 50 stars on the flag represent the 50 U.S. states, and the 13 stripes represent the thirteen British colonies that declared independence from Great Britain, and became the first states in the U.S. Nicknames for the flag include the Stars and Stripes, Old Glory, and the Star-Spangled Banner.
The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the de facto national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Jack the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. It is sometimes asserted that the term Union Jack properly refers only to naval usage, but this assertion was dismissed by the Flag Institute in 2013 following historical investigations. The flag has official status in Canada, by parliamentary resolution, where it is known as the Royal Union Flag. It is the national flag of all British overseas territories, being localities within the British state, or realm, although local flags have also been authorised for most, usually comprising the blue or red ensign with the Union Flag in the canton and defaced with the distinguishing arms of the territory. These may be flown in place of, or along with the national flag. Governors of British Overseas Territories have their own personal flags, which are the Union Flag with the distinguishing arms of the colony at the centre. The Union Flag also appears in the canton of the flags of several nations and territories that are former British possessions or dominions, as well as in the flag of the US State of Hawaii, which has no such connection.
The flag of England is derived from Saint George's Cross. The association of the red cross as an emblem of England can be traced back to the Late Middle Ages when it was gradually, increasingly, used alongside the Royal Banner. It became the only saint's flag permitted to be flown in public as part of the English Reformation and at a similar time became the pre-eminent maritime flag referred to as a white ensign. It was used as a component in the design of the Union Jack in 1606.
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 British ensigns, and it is used either plain or defaced with a badge or other emblem, mostly in the right half.
Baron Baltimore, of Baltimore, County Longford, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1625 and ended in 1771, upon the death of its sixth-generation male heir, aged 40. Holders of the title were usually known as Lord Baltimore for short.
The national flag of Switzerland displays a white cross in the centre of a square red field. The white cross is known as the Swiss cross or the federal cross. Its arms are equilateral, and their ratio of length to width is 7:6. The size of the cross in relation to the field was set in 2017 as 5:8.
The flag of the state of Maryland is the 17th-century heraldic banner of arms of Cecil, 2nd Baron Baltimore. It consists of the escutcheon of his father George, 1st Baron Baltimore (1579–1632), with the charges and fields from his coat of arms quartered with those of his grandmother, heiress of the Crossland family in the Kingdom of England. The flag was officially adopted by the General Assembly of Maryland in 1904.
The flag of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the flag of Massachusetts. It has been represented by official but limited-purpose flags since 1676, though until 1908 it had no state flag per se to represent its government. A variant of the white flag with blue seal was carried by each of the Massachusetts volunteer regiments during the American Civil War alongside the National Colors. An exception were the two "Irish regiments", each of which was permitted to carry an alternative green flag with a harp symbol.
In vexillography, the canton is a rectangular emblem placed at the top left of a flag, usually occupying up to a quarter of a flag's area. The canton of a flag may be a flag in its own right. For instance, British ensigns have the Union Jack as their canton, as do their derivatives such as the national flags of Australia and New Zealand.
The White Ensign, at one time called the St George's Ensign due to the simultaneous existence of a cross-less 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.
The flag of Great Britain, commonly known as King's Colours, the first Union Flag, the Union Jack, or the British flag, was used at sea from 1606 and more generally from 1707 to 1801. It was the first flag of Great Britain. It is the precursor to the Union Jack of 1801.
The "Grand Union Flag" is considered to be the first national flag of the United States of America. Like the current U.S. flag, the Grand Union Flag has 13 alternating red and white stripes, representative of the Thirteen Colonies. The upper inner corner, or canton, featured the flag of the Kingdom of Great Britain, of which the colonies had been subjects.
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.
This article is a vexillological summary of all flags and symbols in current use by the island nation of Malta. More information on the history of the various flags and emblems, as well as on their equivalents which are no longer in use, is found on the specific articles, linked to in the subtitle headings.
The flags of New York City include the flag of New York City, the respective flags of the boroughs of The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island, and flags of certain city departments. The city flag is a vertical tricolor in blue, white, and orange and charged in the center bar with the Seal of New York City in blue. The tricolor design is derived from the flag of the Dutch Republic—the Prince's Flag (Prinsenvlag)—as used in New Amsterdam in 1625.
Collington is a now defunct settlement in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, dating from colonial times. Collington has been subsumed by the city of Bowie.
The Star of India refers to a group of flags used during the period of the British Raj in the Indian subcontinent. India had a range of flags for different purposes during its existence. The Princely states had their own flags which were to be flown alongside the British flag as a symbol of suzerainty. The official state flag for use on land was the Union Flag of the United Kingdom and it was this flag that was lowered on Independence Day in 1947. The flag of the governor-general of India was defaced with the Star of India. The civil ensign and naval ensign were the Red Ensign or Blue Ensign, respectively, defaced with the Star of India emblem.
New England has no official flag. However, there have been many historical or modern banners used to represent the region in its history. While there are some variations, common designs include a plain colored field with a pine tree in the canton. The eastern white pine is the most common and prominent symbol of New England and is featured on many of the region's flags.
The current flag of Montgomery County, Maryland, was adopted on October 5, 1976. It was designed by the British College of Arms. It is commonly flown outside of the Montgomery County's governmental facilities, such as fire stations.
The New Zealand White Ensign is a naval ensign used by ships of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) from 1968. Based on the Royal Navy's White Ensign, it features the Southern Cross from the New Zealand national flag in place of the Saint George's Cross. One of the earliest flags associated with the country, that used by the United Tribes of New Zealand, was a white ensign. This was replaced by the Union Flag when New Zealand became a British colony. A blue ensign with the Southern Cross was introduced for ships of the colonial government in 1867 and this soon became a de facto national flag. Ships in New Zealand naval service wore the Royal Navy's White Ensign until 1968 when the distinct New Zealand White Ensign was introduced. The ensign was implemented out of a desire to distinguish New Zealand vessels from those of the Royal Navy and this decision is regarded as an important step in the development of the RNZN.
