George Rex Flag facts for kids

This is what the George Rex Flag might have looked like.

The George Rex Flag was a special protest flag used in New York when the American Revolutionary War was just beginning. People started using this flag after a law called the Quebec Act was passed in 1774. This law gave more rights to French Canadian Catholics in Quebec. It also made Catholicism the official religion of the Province of Quebec.

We don't know exactly what the flag looked like. But the most common idea is that it was a Red Ensign or Blue Ensign flag that was changed. It had the words "George III Rex (which means 'King' in Latin) and the Defender of the Liberties of America. No Popery" written on it. "No Popery" meant "no Catholicism."

Why the Flag Was Made

In the Province of New York, the Church of England was the official church. When the Quebec Act was passed, it gave more freedom to Catholics in Quebec. This made many New Yorkers very upset. They worried that Catholicism would spread across British North America, especially into the Anglican colonies.

Because of this, groups of American Patriots created the George Rex Flag. It was a symbol to protest against the Quebec Act and Catholicism. They first raised it on a tall liberty pole in the middle of New York City. This happened at a meeting outside the New York Royal Exchange.

The flag then became popular throughout the colony. Some British Army officers and customs officers saw the meeting. But the protest continued peacefully after people explained what the meeting and the flag were about. The flag was also flown from the Liberty Tree in Boston Common.

The Flag's Message

The flag's design showed that the New York colonists were still loyal to King George III. As the head of the Church of England, King George III had worried about Catholic freedom. He thought it might go against his coronation oath.

At first, New York patriots saw the King as a symbol that could unite them. But this changed after the Battles of Lexington and Concord. People like Isaac Low started saying that the King had broken his oath. They believed he allowed Catholicism in Quebec to try and break New Yorkers' loyalty to him.

Even with these concerns, the George Rex Flag became the unofficial flag of New York during the war. This continued until 1777. That's when George Washington and the Continental Congress chose the Grand Union Flag. This new flag was meant to unite all the states fighting in the war.

Images for kids

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  Blue version

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  Red version

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