Last modified: 2005-07-16 by rob raeside
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by Graham Bartram
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Whilst the Union Flag has never been officially adopted by law as the national flag of the UK, it has become so by usage (which can count for a lot in the British constitutional/legal system) and the government has stated it is the correct flag for use by British citizens.
Afloat though, the Union Flag has been reserved by the government for specific,
military purposes. It is the jack of the Royal Navy
and the flag of rank for an admiral of the fleet. These are the reasons why it
is illegal for a civilian ship to fly it.
Roy Stilling, 8 February 1996
The "Union Jack" is actually a Royal Flag, used as a national flag by permission
of HM the Queen and on the advice of HM's Ministers (i.e., the government told
us to use it in a parliamentary answer). It is perfectly acceptable to call it
the "Union Jack" - in fact that is the term used by the Government Minister who
stated that it should be used as the national flag. Of course a parliamentary
answer isn't the same as a law or statutory instrument, so legally the UK does
not have a singular national flag, but practically it does. Of course to make up
for this we have more official national flags (of a non singular nature) than
the rest of the world put together. At the last count we had exceeded 500!
Graham Bartram, 7 February 2001
The United Kingdom has two official royal flags; the Royal Standard and the
Union Jack. Since the United Kingdom is a monarchy I reckon they are official
national flags. What was, at one time, not clear was whether private individuals
were entitled to use the official flags. The flags were ratified and confirmed
by the First Article of An Act for the Union of Great Britain and Ireland,
Proclaimed 1st January 1801.
Departmental Blue Ensigns and, before 1894 Colonial Red
Ensigns, were authorised under the Order in Council, July 9th 1864 (Admiralty
Orders In Council, Vol.2, p.46).
Colonial Blue Ensigns were authorised under the Colonial
Naval Defence Act 1865 (28 vic. cap.14)
Colonial Red Ensigns after 1894 were authorised under the
Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (57 & 58 vic. cap.80): 73(1).
David Prothero, 10 June 2005
The Union Jack has never been made an official civil flag by any legal process, but it has been authoritatively stated, on more than one occasion, that on land it may be used as though it were a civil flag. It is also used by the army so I would think that it should be (ooo/xxx)
Some extracts from Public Record Office documents.
"That whereas the Union Flag has recently been declared by authority to be the National one, and therefore available to be hoisted by any British subject, His Majesty should be petitioned to grant a distinctive Flag for the exclusive use of His Majesty's Lieutenants of Counties."As a result of this, the Lord Lieutenants of Counties were, in 1911, granted a special flag; the Union Jack defaced with a horizontal sword.
However there was still uncertainty, particularly in some colonies, as to what flag could be flown on land. It was known that the Blue and Red Ensigns were for use only at sea and widely believed that the Union Jack could be flown on land only by the governor or his representative.
In 1917 the Governor of the Windward Islands wrote to the Colonial Office that,
"Residents of St.Vincent are reluctant to fly the Union Jack because it might
have the appearance of discourtesy to the Administrator who is required by
Colonial Regulations to fly the Union Jack on Government House."
[CO 323/1830/20]
The question was again raised in parliament, and on 27th June 1933 the Home
Secretary, Sir John Gilmour, announced in the House of Commons that, "The Union
Flag is the National Flag and may properly be flown on land by any of His
Majesty's subjects."
Question 34 column 1324 of Hansard [CO 323/1272/21]
Much of the confusion in the colonies was caused by the fact that the governor
flew a Union Jack with the badge of the colony on it when afloat, but a plain
Union Jack when on land. The obvious solution was for the governor to fly the
Union Jack with the colony badge whether he was on land or afloat, thus making
it clear that the plain Union Jack was not the flag of the governor and could
thus be flown by any British subject. In 1941 answers to a circular asking
governors for their opinion on this matter revealed differing practices. The
Governor of Ceylon wrote that the Union Jack was often flown in Hong Kong and
Ceylon but not in Straits Settlements, adding that at the Silver Jubilee of
George V (1935) a large British shipping firm had applied for permission to fly
the Union Jack believing the flag to be the privilege of the governor.
[CO 323/1830/22]
David Prothero, 23 August 2001
When was the Union Jack (Union Flag) first (widely) used as a national flag by private citizens?
Nathan Lamm, 23 July 2002
My guess (for widespread use) would be WW1, 1914-1918. It seems to have been a
slow and lengthy process. It had begun by 1887, Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee,
but was not really completed until the 1930s in Britain, and the 1940s in the
colonies.
David Prothero, 24 July 2002
I used the phrase 'by 1887' to mean 'certainly in 1887, and probably before'.
The use of Union Jacks at a major event such as the Golden Jubilee will be
recorded, but it may be presumed that there will have been some previous limited
use which has gone unrecorded.
In 1887 the Governor of the Isle of Man wrote to the Home Office objecting to
having the badge of the Isle of Man on his Union Flag as he represented the
Crown not the Isle of Man. He noted, "a growing tendency among various places of
amusement to fly flags, and on one occasion I saw a royal standard and sometimes
Union Flags. Uncertain whether I have the right or ought to interfere."
David Prothero, 25 July 2002
The Times : Thursday 18 September 1902.
Editorial.
To judge from the correspondence which we have lately printed, there would seem
to be no little confusion of mind in many quarters concerning the character, the
use, and even the identity of the national flag. There is, indeed, no common
agreement as to what the national flag is. Lord Hawkesbury insists that it is
the Red Ensign and nothing else. No doubt he is right in the sense that the Red
Ensign proclaims the nationality of the unprivileged British merchant vessel,
and is the only flag that can lawfully be displayed by such a vessel as the
recognized symbol of its nationality. But, if the Red Ensign is the