Red Ensign

“ We therefore most humbly submit that Your Majesty may be pleased by Your Order in Council to prescribe the discontinuance of the division of Flag Officers into Red, White and Blue Squadrons, and to order and direct that the White Ensign with its broad and narrow pendant be henceforward established and recognised as the colours of the Royal Naval Service, reserving the use of the Red and Blue colours for such special occasions as may appear to us or to officers in command of Fleets and Squadrons to require their adoption. ”

“ If the world combine to brave thee, ⁠English hearts will dare the fight, English hands will glow to save thee, ⁠Strong for England and the right!" [27] The Red Ensign, represented in Fig. 97, is the special flag of the ordinary merchantman. ”

“ They were further forbidden to wear "any Flags, Jacks, Pendants or Colours made in imitation of ours, or any kind of Pendant whatsoever, or any other ensign than the ensign described." This did not prohibit the use of the St George's jack on the bowsprit, which was expressly recognised by the King's Regulations for the navy [333] as being, together with the red ensign, the appropriate colours for a British merchant ship. ”

“ With his own hands the young lieutenant hauled the rolled-up ensign to the masthead, and then, with a slight twitch, he broke the stops and there blew out in the morning breeze, before the eyes of the commodore, his officers, the men of the ships, and the delighted spectators on shore, the first flag that ever flew from a regularly commissioned war ship of the United Colonies. The grand union flag, a red and white striped ensign with the English cross in the canton, was also hoisted. ”

“ ENSIGN (through the Fr. enseigne from the Latin plural insignia) , a distinguishing token, emblem or badge such as symbols of office, or in heraldry, the ornament or sign, such as the crown, coronet or mitre borne above the charge or arms. The word is more particularly used of a military or naval standard or banner. In the British navy, ensign has a specific meaning, and is the name of a flag having a red, white or blue ground, with the Union Jack in the upper corner next the staff. ”

“ Figs. 47 and 50 explain themselves; it is evident that in one case the decorator started with a white ensign and in the other with a blue one, and then, feeling that they were a little small and insignificant looking, tacked on a goodly amount of red material to bring them up to their notion of what would be sufficiently conspicuous in size. ”

“ Observe the Red-and-blue Ensign. The White Ensign with St. George's Cross did not become universal in the Royal Navy till 1864.
I have a vivid recollection of a visit to the Minotaur when a boy. Possibly a few extracts from notes made at the time may be of interest. "She has five masts and is a tremendous length. Her upper deck is furnished with a good many small guns for repelling boat attacks. ”

“ The drawing shows the Ensign Red flying at the stern. There had not been sufficient opportunity for the obtaining of new flags, and, therefore, those which they had in use were altered on board the ships, as Pepys has told, and this flag is a Commonwealth "Ensign Red," with the Irish harp cut out (Pl. IV., fig. 3) .
A very great deal of dependence cannot, as a rule, be placed on the form of the flags introduced into their pictures by artists even of the highest rank. ”

“ The Blue Ensign is conferred on certain Yacht Clubs by special Admiralty warrant. The Royal Eastern, Royal Barrow, Royal Clyde, Royal Highland, Royal Northern, Royal Western of England, Royal Cinque Ports, Royal Albert, Royal Dorset, etc., fly the Blue Ensign pure and simple; others have a distinguishing badge on the fly, thus the Royal Irish has a golden harp and crown, the Royal Ulster a white shield with the red hand, the Royal Cornwall the Prince of Wales' Feathers, the Royal Harwich a golden rampant lion, and so forth. ”

“ FLAGS Till comparatively quite recent times the Japanese naval ensign was the same as the present jack and mercantile flag. The first battleships flew this white flag with the red ball, and the now well-known Japanese naval ensign only dates from the Itsukushima. It is very rarely correctly represented. The accompanying illustration shows it as it actually is; usually the sun is put in the centre instead of in its proper place. ”

“ An Ensign is the boy of the colours—the page to regimental victory, whose chin should never bear a beard while he holds the post—a youthful soldier,—a Mars of fifteen, with the staff of his country’s flag fixed firmly in the earth, supporting and supported by him, while the rough mustachioed band like rocks surround and shield him from the tempest of the fight. ”

“ Besides the ensigns, she had flying at the fore a large white flag, inscribed with the words: 'Sailors' Rights and Free Trade,' with the idea, perhaps, that this favourite American motto would damp the energy of the 'Shannon's' men. The 'Shannon' had a Union Jack at the fore, an old rusty blue ensign at the mizzen peak, and two other flags rolled up, ready to be spread if either of these should be shot away. ”

“ The term flag is a generic one, and covers all the specific kinds. It is suggested that the word is derived from the Anglo-Saxon verb fleogan, to fly or float in the wind, or from the old German flackern, to flutter. Ensign is an alternative word formed on the idea of the display of insignia, badges, or devices, and was formerly much used where we should now employ the word colours. The company officers in a regiment who were until late years termed ensigns were at a still earlier period more correctly termed ensign-bearers. ”

“ If anything could enhance to me the value of this representation of our national ensign, so elegantly executed and so gracefully bestowed, it would be the consideration that its price has been devoted to the comfort and restoration of those heroic men who have suffered and bled in our flag’s defense. We never should, and I am sure, never shall be niggard of gratitude and benefaction to the soldiers who have endured toil, privations and wounds, that the nation may live. ”

“ From the above, we cannot fail to perceive, in the past as well as in the present, the tendency, throughout the world, to imitation, in the adoption of national ensigns; also, that the adoption of a particular ensign marked some epoch in the history of the particular nation which adopted it.
Thus the various changes in the Roman standard marked the epochs of their conquest, first of the Greeks, then of the Barbarians. The adoption of the eagle by the Franks, their conquest of the Romans. The cross, the era of the Crusades. ”

“ I rejoice to see the flags and pennants gracefully waving from the masts of the outward or the inward bound ship; to see our beautiful national ensign,—the ensign that is destined sooner or later, so all loyal and patriotic men and women hope and believe, triumphantly to float over the largest, the freest, the happiest, the most prosperous country in the whole wide world,—to see the stars and stripes fluttering in the breeze from the city flag-staff and the village liberty-pole ”

“ A small swallow-tailed flag.
Ensign (corruptly written "ancient" during the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries) . This word was borrowed from the land service in the sixteenth century to denote the striped flag then introduced on the poop of ships. In explaining the meaning of this word in the Army, Barret [8] remarks: "We Englishmen do call them (Ensigns) of late Colours, by reason of the variety of colours they be made of, whereby they be the better noted and known to the companie." ”

“ THE RED ARMY
The day I joined my regiment I donned my Red army uniform, consisting of a khaki shirt, yellow breeches, putties, a pair of good boots which I bought from another soldier (the army at that time was not issuing boots) , and a grey army overcoat. On my cap I wore the Red army badge—a red star with a mallet and plough imprinted on it. ”

“ As long as the colours were flying, and a piece of the standard left, the soldiers were to follow the Ensign to the death, till all should lie in a heap on the battle-field, that no evildoer or blameworthy person should be sheltered by the flag; if any one should transgress against the banner oath, the Ensign was to furl the banner, and forbid the transgressor to march under it or mount guard, and he was obliged to go among the bad women and children with the baggage till the affair was arranged: the Ensign was not to leave the colours a single night without permission ”

“ Chapter V Colours of Distinction Boteler, in his Dialogues, reminds us that "Flaggs (to speake properly) are only those which are borne out in the Topps of Shyps, and they serve as Badges, and that as well for the distinguishing of Nations as Commanders ... the others are named the Colours or Ensigns and Pendants." To these was added in 1633, while he was writing these Dialogues, the jack, or small Union flag flown at the bowsprit, which, with the ensign and pendant, completed the "suit of colours" for a ship of war. ”

“ These colours, first the pendant, then from 1634 to 1864 the pendant and jack, and finally all three of them together, have served to distinguish ships "of war" from ships not fitted out for war, but the pendant and ensign, with occasional assistance from a masthead flag, have also served for a secondary distinction within the main category "of war," namely, that tactical distinction of lesser groups among a collected body of ships of war which may be termed squadronal distinction. ”

“ Just about this time Van Zandt and Manada go below and reappear a few moments later with a closely rolled silken flag, which Van Zandt hands to the captain with the command that it be hoisted to the breeze. Without even examining the emblem, the imperturbable executive officer bends the silken roll upon the halyards. A few hearty pulls by a stalwart blue-jacket and the ensign reaches the masthead, where the stiff breeze quickly breaks it out. ”

“ Roma White.
↑ As the ensign is hoisted in the morning, the band plays the National Anthem and all officers and men on deck face the ensign and salute. As the ensign is hauled down at sunset, the bugles sound the "Sunset call" and all officers and men on deck face the ensign and salute. The white ensign is laid over the coffins of naval men during funerals. ”

“ I also plainly saw that a blue ensign was hoisted, but this was no proof that the vessel belonged to the squadron of Sir Horatio Nelson, for blue was also the colour of Lord St. Vincent’s flag. My attention was instantly distracted from my book, and my dear mother was rather displeased with my evident preoccupation, for I did not venture to confess my hopes lest I should raise hers too high, and cause her the pain of disappointment. ”

“ A few moments afterward, a bright-cheeked and erect-looking ensign entered the room, and saluted us in military fashion. I had forgotten that Rontheim's only son was also named Ernst, and I now recalled the fact of his being in my son-in-law's regiment. The ensign referred to the fact, and also told me that all of his comrades had regretted my son's leaving the army. His constant flow of spirits and fertility of invention, had won him the admiration of all of his companions. ”

“ A little, muscular fellow picked up the fallen flag, and sprang with it to my side, while the others rushed pell-mell after us.
I had purposely avoided Von Arnstein, who was to the right of me; but, like a true leader, he soon scented where the danger was greatest, and cut a way to that part of his stronghold where the red, white, and green proudly waved.
Twice we went back to the very edge of the barrier, and once the colours were snatched from our grasp by a grizzled veteran, who laughed defiantly as a Magyar cut him down. ”

“ Additionally, all ground forces personnel and some air force enlisted men wear insignia of rank on the front of their service caps immediately below the cap insignia; general officers of the ground forces, except brigadier generals, and general officers of the air force wear diamond-shaped emblems denoting their respective rank on the coat collar. Branch insignia of the ground forces are distinctive designs displayed on diamond-shaped devices having a red background, and are worn on the collar of the coat or jacket. ”

“ At a church we occasionally pass, the living being in the gift of the Queen, the Royal Standard is hoisted on such Church festivals as Christmas Day, while at other times, for no apparent reason, the white Ensign is substituted—the special flag of the War Navy. ”

“ As was the custom in the army, the divisions in each Corps were distinguished by the color of the badges—the First's being red, the Second's white, and the Third's blue. There was a time when this explanation was hardly necessary, but now eighteen years have elapsed since the Acorn flags fluttered victoriously over the last field of battle, and a generation has grown up to which they are but a tradition. ”

“ This ensign, which is called their "old colors," must have been the ensign spoken of and described in Queen Anne's proclamation. (See Fig. 7, Plate I.) Since we have seen one ensign prescribed 1707, for the merchant ships and vessels of Great Britain, and the dominions thereunto belonging, and that no change was made until 1801. This being the case, the ensign of the colonial cruisers, inasmuch as they were armed merchant vessels, must have been the British ensign displayed at the maintopping lift. ”

“ Prior to 1889 it was usual in the Royal navy for one of the junior officers to draw up a scheme for "dressing ship" on ceremonial occasions for the approval of the captain, but since that date the order of the signal flags, some 60 in number, has been laid down in the Signal Manual so that uniformity is secured, the national ensign (or ensign of a foreign power if the occasion warrants the use of this) being exhibited only at a masthead. ”