The British Union Jack represents the historical origins of the Australian flag. The Southern Cross represents the geographic position of Australia in the Southern Hemisphere. The seven pointed star represents the six states, with an additional point to represent the federal territories of Australia.
During the war, Australians fought under the British Union Flag and both the Australian Blue and Red Ensigns. The Blue Ensign was intended for official and Royal Australian Navy purposes, while the Red Ensign was the official flag for Australian registered merchant ships.
The Australian Red Ensign is an official flag of Australia and is proclaimed under the Flags Act 1953. The Australian Red Ensign is generally only flown at sea by Australian registered merchant ships or on land by organisations and individuals for ceremonial purposes such as Merchant Navy Day.
Any person may fly the Australian National Flag. However, the flag should be treated with the respect and dignity it deserves as the nation's most important national symbol. Flag protocol is based on longstanding international and national practice.
Australian Aboriginal Flag
The top half of the flag is black to symbolise Indigenous people. The red in the lower half stands for the earth and the colour of ochre, which has ceremonial significance. The circle of yellow in the centre of the flag represents the sun.
The Man-in-Service Flag was used in both World War I and World War II. It is also known as the Blue Star Flag. Each family was entitled to hang a small Man-in-Service Flag in a window to signify they had a family member in service. The flag was about a foot long and was hung vertically.
Since the 1854 miner's revolt, the Eureka Flag, born out of adversity, has gained wider notability in Australian culture as a symbol of democracy, egalitarianism, and a general-purpose symbol of protest.
Captain John Bingle and Captain John Nicholson are credited with the first recorded attempt to design a 'national' flag for Australia. Their flag featured four stars of the Southern Cross on a red cross, against a white background, with the Union Jack in the canton.
A flag is a piece of cloth or other material that carries a design. A flag is often attached on one side to a pole or a stick, called a staff. Every country and state has its own flag. Some cities, groups, and people have flags as well. A flag is a powerful symbol.
ANZAC Day flags are available for purchase from our online store in a range of sizes and styles, including knitted polyester, banner flags and more.
The Australian Aboriginal Flag and Torres Strait Islander Flag were proclaimed flags of Australia under section 5 of the Flags Act 1953 on 14 July 1995.
The Royal Australian Navy ensign
The white ensign of the British Royal Navy had been used since 1911, when the Royal Australian Navy was formed. The Australian white ensign is usually flown from the stern of a navy vessel, while the Australian National Flag is flown from the bow of the vessel.
The flag – officially known as the Vietnamese American Freedom and Heritage Flag – has three red stripes on a yellow background to represent the three regions of Vietnam.
Flag Fact Friday: Rwanda
The flag of Rwanda consists of three horizontal stripes. The top stripe is blue, the middle one yellow and the bottom stripe is green.
The Eureka flag is considered a union symbol under the federal building code. Companies that tender for federally funded construction projects cannot allow the flag to be flown on work sites.
Is the Eureka flag banned? No, the Eureka flag is not banned.
Summary. Since it fluttered above a group of rebellious gold miners at the 1854 Eureka Stockade, the flag of the Southern Cross has become a symbol of democracy and defiance.
A war flag, also known as a military flag, battle flag, or standard, is a variant of a national flag for use by a country's military forces when on land. The nautical equivalent is a naval ensign.
Red: Signifies war, vibrancy, revolution, and power.
In more recent history, the white flag has become an internationally recognized symbol not only for surrender but also for the wish to initiate ceasefires and conduct battlefield negotiations.
Australia has three official flags: the Australian National Flag, the Australian Aboriginal Flag and the Torres Strait Islander Flag. Each state of territory also has its own flag.
There is no one Aboriginal word that all Aborigines use for Australia; however, today they call Australia, ""Australia"" because that is what it is called today. There are more than 250 aboriginal tribes in Australia. Most of them didn't have a word for ""Australia""; they just named places around them.
The Menzies government introduced the Flags Act to encourage the public to use the Blue Ensign instead of the Union Jack and the Red Ensign, with the latter only to be used on merchant ships. The Flags Act explains that the Blue Ensign is Australia's National Flag. It defines flag dimensions protocols around use.