Blue Ensign Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Blue Ensign


Use	State ensign
Proportion	1:2
Adopted	British Government
Design	Blue with the Union occupying one quarter of the field and placed in the canton.

RFA Brambleleaf flying the square Blue Jack based on the Blue Ensign

The Blue Ensign is a special flag used by certain groups or places connected to the United Kingdom. It's one of several British flags called "ensigns." You might see it as a plain blue flag or with a special badge or symbol added to it.

This flag started way back in the 1600s. Back then, it had the St George's Cross (the flag of England) in the top corner near the flagpole, and the rest of the flag was blue.

When England and Scotland joined together to form the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707, the Union Jack flag changed. The Blue Ensign changed too, to include the new Union Flag in its top corner. Later, in 1801, when Ireland joined to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the St Patrick's Cross was added to the Union Flag. This new Union Flag then appeared on all British ensigns, including the Blue Ensign.

The modern Blue Ensign of the United Kingdom
The British Blue Ensign (1707–1801)
English Blue Ensign as it appeared in the seventeenth century

Plain Blue Ensign: What is it?
Defaced Blue Ensign: What does "defaced" mean?
Flags of Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories
National flags based on the Blue Ensign
Other flags based on the Blue Ensign
See also

Plain Blue Ensign: What is it?

Before 1864, the plain Blue Ensign was used by one part of the Royal Navy called the Blue Squadron. But things changed in 1864. A new rule said that:

The Red Ensign would be for regular merchant ships.
The Blue Ensign would be for ships used by the government or ships commanded by an officer from the Royal Naval Reserve (people who can be called to serve in the Navy if needed).
The White Ensign would be only for the Navy itself.

So, since 1864, the plain Blue Ensign (without any extra symbols) can be flown by three types of civilian ships:

British merchant ships that have a certain number of retired Royal Navy members or Royal Naval Reservists among their crew. The rules for this have changed over the years.
Royal Research Ships, which are vessels used for scientific research.
British-registered yachts that belong to members of certain special yacht clubs. There are many such clubs, including the Royal Thames Yacht Club and the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron. During World War I and World War II, yachts were not allowed to fly this flag.

Defaced Blue Ensign: What does "defaced" mean?

When a flag is "defaced," it means it has an extra badge or symbol added to it. Since 1864, the Blue Ensign has been "defaced" to create flags for different UK government departments or public groups.

Here are some examples of groups that use a defaced Blue Ensign:

	Government Service Ensign (a general flag for government ships)
	His Majesty's Coastguard (who protect our coasts)
	Metropolitan Police (London's police force)
	Ministry of Defence Police (who protect military sites)
	Royal Fleet Auxiliary Service (ships that support the Royal Navy)
	Sea Cadet Corps (a youth organization)

Even the Royal Air Force used a defaced Blue Ensign for their marine vessels, like seaplane tenders. It had an eagle and an anchor on it.

Some yacht clubs also have their own defaced Blue Ensigns with their club's badge. These are now managed by the Royal Yachting Association. Some examples include:

	Bar Yacht Club
	Little Ship Club
	Medway Yacht Club
	Royal Bermuda Yacht Club
	Royal Channel Islands Yacht Club
	Royal Corinthian Yacht Club
	Royal Cornwall Yacht Club
	Royal Forth Yacht Club
	Royal Gibraltar Yacht Club
	Royal Harwich Yacht Club
	Royal Ulster Yacht Club
	The Poole Yacht Club

Flags of Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories

Many British Crown Dependencies (like Jersey and Guernsey) and British Overseas Territories (like the Falkland Islands and Bermuda) use flags based on the defaced Blue Ensign. This means their flags have the Union Jack in the corner and a special symbol for their territory on the blue background.

Current flags:

Government Ensign of Alderney
Government Ensign of Guernsey
Government Ensign of Jersey
Flag of Anguilla
Government Ensign of Bermuda
Flag of the British Virgin Islands
Flag of the Cayman Islands
Flag of the Falkland Islands
Government Ensign of Gibraltar
Flag of Montserrat
Flag of the Pitcairn Islands
Flag of Saint Helena
Flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands

Former flags: The defaced Blue Ensign was also used as the flag for many places that were once part of the British Empire.

The flag of Bengal Presidency in India for many years.

Bengal Presidency flag, 1612–1947

The flag of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony (now Kiribati and Tuvalu) from 1937 to 1976.
The "jack" (a smaller flag flown at the bow of a ship) for the Royal Canadian Navy until 1965.

Blue Ensign worn as a jack by the Royal Canadian Navy 1921–1957 (with green maple leaves in the shield)
Blue Ensign worn as a jack by the Royal Canadian Navy 1957–1965 (with red maple leaves in the shield)

The flag for the Royal Indian Navy for many years.

Blue Ensign worn as an ensign (1879–1928) and a jack (1928–1947) of the Royal Indian Navy

The flag of the United States of the Ionian Islands (a British protectorate in Greece) from 1815 to 1864.
The flag of British Hong Kong from 1870 to 1997.
The flag of Weihaiwei (a British territory in China) from 1903 to 1930.
The flag of Newfoundland (now part of Canada) from 1870 to 1931. This flag had a special badge showing the god Mercury and Britannia with a fisherman.

Newfoundland Blue Ensign, 1870–1904
Newfoundland Blue Ensign, 1904–1931

The Blue Ensign was also flown over the offices of the Union of South Africa abroad from 1910 to 1928.

Blue Ensign flown over the Union's offices abroad, 1910–1928

National flags based on the Blue Ensign

Many countries that were once part of the British Empire have flags that look similar to the Blue Ensign. They often have the Union Jack in the corner and a special symbol for their country on a blue background. These include: