The White Ensign (correctly the St George's Ensign) consists of a red St George's Cross on a white field with the Union Flag in the upper canton. The ensign is flown on Royal Navy and at land bases operated by the navy. It is also flown by the Royal Yacht Squadron and ships escorting the Queen.

In addition to the United Kingdom, several Commonwealth nations also use the White Ensign with their own flags in the canton. The Flag of the British Antarctic Territory and the Commissioners' flag of the Northern Lighthouse Board are also White Ensigns.

History

The first recognisable White Ensign appears to have been in use during the 16th century, consisting of a white field with a broad St George's cross, and a second St. George's cross in the canton. By 1630 the white ensign consisted of simply a white field, with a small St George's cross in the canton, which was consistent with the red and blue ensigns of the time. In 1707, the St. George's cross was reintroduced to the flag as a whole, though not as broad as before, and the Union Flag was placed in the canton. There was also a version of this flag without the overall St George's cross, which appears to have been for use in home waters only, though this flag appears to have fallen out of use by 1720. In 1801, after the Act of Union 1800, the flag was updated to include the new Union Flag in the canton, and so took on the form as used today. The blue field of the Union Flag was darkened at this time at the request of the Admiralty, in the hope that the new flags would not require replacing as often as the previous design, due to fading of the blue. Throughout this period, the proportions of the flags changed. In 1687, the then Secretary of the Admiralty, Samuel Pepys, instructed that flags be of the ratio 11:18 (18 inches long for each breadth, 11 inches at the time). In the early 18th century, the breadth of cloth had been reduced to 10 inches, so the flags became 5:9. In 1837, the breadth was reduced for the final time to 9 inches, giving the current ratio of 1:2.

Throughout this period, the Royal Navy used the White Ensign in conjunction with the Red and Blue, due to the rank structure employed at the time. Each grade of admiral (rear-, vice- and full) was sub-divided into levels of seniority: red, white, and blue. Ships attached to an admiral's squadron would then fly the ensign appropriate to that particular admiral.

In 1864 the Admiralty decided to end the ambiguity caused by the Red Ensign being both a civil ensign and a naval ensign, and the White Ensign became the sole ensign of the Royal Navy.

During the Falklands War, British forces transmitted the following message to London to announce the liberation of South Georgia- Be pleased to inform Her Majesty that the White Ensign flies alongside the Union Flag in South Georgia. God Save the Queen^[1].

Current use

United Kingdom

Commissioned ships and submarines wear the White Ensign at the stern whilst alongside during daylight hours and at the main-mast whilst under way. When alongside, the Union Jack (as distinct from the Union Flag, often referred to as the Union Jack) is flown from the jackstaff at the stem, and can only be flown under way either to signal a court-martial is in progress or to indicate the presence of an Admiral of the Fleet on-board (including the Lord High Admiral, the Monarch).^[2]. Ships of the Royal Yacht Squadron and ships escorting Queen Elizabeth II can also fly the White Ensign. Brunel's SS Great Britain, although a merchant ship, flew (and still flies, in dry dock) the White Ensign, apparently because its first master (an ex-Royal Navy man) brought it with him.

On land, the White Ensign is flown at all naval shore establishments (which are commissioned warships). Permission has been granted to some other civilian buildings with naval connections to fly the White Ensign. ^[3] This includes the St Martin-in-the-Fields church in Trafalgar Square, London, which is the church of the parish of the Admiralty. The Ensign is also displayed on the Cenotaph alongside the Union Flag (for the British Army) and the Royal Air Force Ensign.

Special permission was granted to any individual or body to fly the White Ensign to mark Trafalgar Day in 2006. ^[4]

The White Ensign is also used by some football supporters, who write the name of their football club along the horizontal arm of the St. George's cross. This is technically illegal, as the White Ensign can only be used with the permission of the Royal Navy.

Commonwealth of Nations

The White Ensign was historically used, in its unaltered form, by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), with the Blue Ensign of each of these Dominions (as they were then known) as a jack.

However, in 1965, with the adoption of the Canadian Flag, Canada stopped using the White Ensign on its naval vessels in favour of the new flag. In 1968, the RCN was incorporated into the unified Canadian Forces and the new Canadian Forces Maritime Command adopted a distinctive White Ensign incorporating the Canadian Flag in the canton and the badge of Maritime Command in the fly. This flag, however, is used not as the ensign but as the jack and also as the basis of the Queen's colour of Maritime Command. Many Canadian veterans' organisations still use the White and Blue Ensigns unofficially as symbols of history and heritage.

During their involvement in Vietnam, the RAN and RNZN modified the White Ensign so as to avoid confusion with British vessels, which were not involved in the conflict. The modified RAN and RNZN White Ensigns still incorporate the Union Flag in the canton, but with the Southern Cross designs from each national flag (blue stars for the RAN and red stars for the RNZN) replacing the St. George's Cross.

Several other Commonwealth navies also use naval ensigns with a visual connection to the White Ensign. For example the Indian Navy and the South African Navy both have both retained a cross on a white field, with their own national flag in the canton, in place of the Union Flag.

Flag	Name	Country	Use
	Royal Australian Navy Ensign	Australia	Royal Australian Navy
	Barbados Naval Ensign	Barbados	Barbados Coast Guard
	Canadian Forces Naval Jack	Canada	Canadian Forces Maritime Command
	Fijian Naval Ensign	Fiji	Military of Fiji
	Indian Navy Ensign	India	Indian Navy
	Jamaican Naval Ensign	Jamaica	Military of Jamaica
	Royal New Zealand Navy Ensign	New Zealand	Royal New Zealand Navy
	South African Navy Ensign	South Africa	South African Navy

Non military usage

The Flag of the British Antarctic Territory is a white ensign defaced with the territory's coat of arms. This is the only white ensign in use by a British Overseas Territory.

A White Ensign, without the St. George's Cross, defaced with a blue lighthouse in the fly, is the Commissioners' flag of the Northern Lighthouse Board. This flag is unique as it uses a pre-1801 Union Flag in the canton.

See also

• British ensigns
• Maritime flags
• Gallery of White Ensigns

References

External links

• United Kingdom:White Ensign from flagspot.net

•  • [ e] Flags of the United Kingdom
UK	Flag of the United Kingdom (Union Flag)
Home Nations	England • Wales • Scotland
Historical	Northern Ireland (1953-1972)
Royal	Royal Standard • Royal Standard for use in Scotland • Royal Standard of Scotland
Ensigns	Blue Ensign • Red Ensign • White Ensign • Royal Air Force Ensign • Civil Air Ensign