Civil ensign

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Civil ensign

The civil ensign
Ensign

An ensign is a distinguishing flag of a ship or a military unit; or a distinguishing token, emblem, or badge, such as a symbol of office. The word has also given rise to the military Ensign , a rank of junior officer once responsible for bearing the ensign of his unit....
(also known as merchant flag or merchant ensign) is the national flag

National flag

File:dannebrog.jpgA national flag is a flag that symbolises a country. The flag is flown by the government, but usually can be flown by citizens of that country as well....
flown by civil ships (merchant ships and others) to denote nationality.

Beside the naval ensign, the civil ensign is one of the two original types of the national flag. In most countries there was originally no distinction between the flag for armed state ships (navy

Navy

A navy is the branch of a nation's military forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions....
) and civilian-owned, unarmed ships (merchant marine).

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Encyclopedia

National flag

Navy

Flag of the United States

The flag of the United States consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the Flag terminology bearing fifty small, white, Star s arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars alternating with rows of five stars....
and France

Flag of France

The national flag of France is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue , white, and red. It is known to English language speakers as the French tricolour or simply, the tricolour....
in having only one flag for all or most purposes of the national flag.

In several countries, however, this distinction has developed and was later adopted by other countries as well. Most notable for the elaborate flag system is the United Kingdom

British ensigns

This article concerns the ensigns flown by vessels and aircraft of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, and by certain nations of the Commonwealth of Nations....
, that has (inter alia) the Red Ensign

Red Ensign

The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as a British ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British merchantmen....
for civilian ships and the White Ensign

White Ensign

The White Ensign is an ensign flown on British Royal Navy Royal Navy ships and shore establishments. It consists of a red St George's Cross on a white field with the Union Flag in the upper canton....
for the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British Armed Forces . From the mid-18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early 1940s....
.

Countries having specific civil ensigns

The civil ensigns that are different from the "general" national flag, can be grouped in five main categories.

Red Ensign
Red Ensign

The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as a British ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British merchantmen....
s after the British pattern

These are red flags with, in most cases, the respective national flag or Union Flag

Union Flag

The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the national Flag of the United Kingdom. Historically, the flag was used throughout the former British Empire....
in the canton, patterned after the British Red Ensign

Red Ensign

British overseas territories

The British Overseas Territories are fourteen territories that are under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom, but which do not form part of the United Kingdom itself....
either fly the plain Red Ensign or a Red Ensign with the respective colonial arms in the fly.

Civil ensign that vary greatly from the national flag

Several countries have civil ensign that are very different from the national flag, for instance Malta

Flag of Malta

File:Flag of Malta.svgFile:Civil Ensign of Malta.svgThe Flag of Malta is a basic bi-colour, with white in the hoist and red in the fly: colours from the blazon of the arms of Malta....
and Luxembourg

Flag of Luxembourg

File:Flag of Luxembourg.svgFile:Flag of Luxembourg wide.svgThe flag of Luxembourg consists of three horizontal stripes, red, white and blue, and can be in 1:2 or 3:5 ratio....
.

Civil ensigns consisting of the national flag with an additional emblem

Well-known examples are the Italian civil ensign

Flag of Italy

The flag of Italy is a tricolour featuring three equally sized vertical Pale of green, white and red, with the green at the hoist side. In its current form it has been in use since 19 June 1946 and was formally adopted on 1 January 1948....
showing the shield with the arms of the sea republics or the Polish civil ensign

Flag of Poland

The flag of Poland consists of two horizontal stripes of equal width, the upper one white and the lower one red. The two colors are defined in the Constitution of Poland as the national colors....
with the arms of Poland. Most of these emblems were added to distinguish the ensign from similar flags of other countries.

Simplified national flags

In several (mostly Latin American) countries there are two main versions of the flag, a simpler one (usually a striped flag) and a more elaborated one with the national arms. The simpler one is used as civil ensign (and in most cases also as civil flag), whereas the version with the arms is mainly used by the government and the military. Interestingly this is similar to the practice in Germany

Flag of Germany

The flag of Germany is a tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal bands displaying the national colours of Germany of Germany: black, red and Gold ....
, Austria

Flag of Austria

File:2003 Austria 20 Euro The Post-War Period front.jpgThe flag of Austria has three equal horizontal bands of red , white, and red.The Austrian flag is possibly the oldest national flag design in the world....
. In Spain

Flag of Spain

File:Bandera pza Colon.jpgThe flag of Spain , as it is defined in the Spanish Constitution of 1978, consists of three horizontal stripes: red, yellow and red, the yellow stripe being twice the size of each red stripe....
the flag without the arms is only a variant for civil use; the national flag is used also as a civil ensign.

Civil ensigns differing from the national flag in the proportions

Several former British colonies use 1:2 as a proportion for their ensigns, whereas 3:5 is used for flags ashore. The countries of former Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia

File:LocationYugoslavia2.pngYugoslavia is a term that describes three political entities that existed successively on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century....
have it the other way round: the ensigns are 2:3, flags ashore are 1:2. France

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
is a special case: the overall proportion is the same, but the bands on the ensign differ in width slightly.

Civil ensign

Countries having specific civil ensigns

Red Ensign
Red Ensign

The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as a British ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British merchantmen....
s after the British pattern

Civil ensign that vary greatly from the national flag

Civil ensigns consisting of the national flag with an additional emblem

Simplified national flags

Civil ensigns differing from the national flag in the proportions

See also

Remarks

Civil ensign

Countries having specific civil ensigns

Red EnsignRed EnsignThe Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as a British ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British merchantmen....s after the British pattern

Civil ensign that vary greatly from the national flag

Civil ensigns consisting of the national flag with an additional emblem

Simplified national flags

Civil ensigns differing from the national flag in the proportions

See also

Remarks

Red Ensign
Red Ensign

The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as a British ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British merchantmen....
s after the British pattern