List of English flags facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This is a list of flags used only in England. It includes national flags, royal flags, and flags for different areas and groups.

Flags are important symbols. They can show what a country, a region, or even a group of people stands for. In England, the College of Arms is the official group that keeps track of flags. They were set up in 1484 by the King or Queen. There's also another group called the Flag Institute that keeps a list of flags, but it's not official under English law.

Some flags can be flown without special permission. These include national flags, flags of international groups like the United Nations, and flags of English counties, cities, towns, or villages. Flags of the British Armed Forces and the National Health Service (NHS) can also be flown freely.

England's National Flag
Royal Flags
- Royal Banners
- Royal Standards
Government Flags
Church Flags
Regional Flags
Historic County Flags
Islands Flags
City Flags
Town Flags
Village Flags
University Flags
Other Flags
Historical Flags
- Historical Royal Standards
- Historical National Flags and Ensigns
Images for kids
See also

England's National Flag

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
	1417–Today	Flag of England (also called the St George's Cross)	A red cross in the middle of a white flag.
	1417–Today	A red cross in the middle of a white flag, but shown vertically.

Royal Flags

These flags are linked to the King or Queen and the royal family.

Royal Banners

Royal banners are like personal flags for the monarch. They show the royal coat of arms.

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
	1042–1066	Old Royal Banner of England	A gold cross with fleur-de-lis ends on a blue background. It has five gold birds called martlets around it. This flag was used by Edward the Confessor, an early English king.
	around 1200	Current Royal Banner of England	This flag has three gold lions (sometimes called leopards) walking and facing you, on a red background. It's based on the Royal arms of England. This banner is not a national flag; it only represents the King or Queen when they are in England.

Royal Standards

Royal standards are also flags for the King or Queen, but they often include symbols from other parts of the United Kingdom.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
1837	Royal Standard of the United Kingdom	This flag is split into four parts. The first and fourth parts have three gold lions on red (for England and Wales). The second part has a red lion standing on a gold background (for Scotland). The third part has a gold harp on a blue background (for Ireland).
	Flag of the Duchy of Lancaster	This flag is like the Royal Banner of England, but it has a special three-pointed shape with three fleur-de-lis symbols.
1305	Flag of the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports	This flag shows the coat of arms of the Lord Warden. It has three gold lions joined to three ship hulls.

Government Flags

These flags are used by government groups.

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
	1829	Flag of the Greater London Metropolitan Police	This flag has the badge of the Metropolitan Police on a blue background, with white squares around the edge.

Church Flags

These flags are used by churches and religious groups in England.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
1417–Today	Flag of England (also called the St George's Cross)	A red cross on a white background. Churches in the Church of England can fly this flag. Sometimes, they add their local diocese's symbol in the top left corner.
1954	Flag of the Anglican Communion	A dark blue flag with the symbol of the Anglican Communion. This symbol is a compass rose with a bishop's hat on top. In the middle, there's a St George's cross. It has a Greek saying that means "The truth will set you free."
	Flag of Westminster Abbey	This flag shows symbols from the Tudor dynasty and the arms of Edward the Confessor.
	Flag of the Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey	A blue flag with a gold dragon's head pierced by a cross in the middle. It also has a gold crowned portcullis in the top left corner.
	Flag of Saint Edmund the Martyr	A red St George's Cross on a white flag. In the middle, there's a blue shield with two gold arrows crossed through a gold crown.

Regional Flags

These flags represent older kingdoms or large areas of England.

Date	What it represents	What it looks like
1900s	Kingdom of East Anglia and surrounding areas	This flag has three crowns on a blue shield, placed over a St George's Cross.
Ancient	Kingdom of Essex and Essex county	This flag has three Saxon seax (swords) on a red background.
1605	Kingdom of Kent and Kent county	This flag has a white horse in the middle of a red background.
13th century	Kingdom of Mercia and the Midlands	This flag has a gold diagonal cross on a blue background. It's also called the Cross of St Alban.
Ancient	Kingdom of Northumbria and North England	This flag has eight stripes that switch between gold and burgundy colours.
Ancient	Kingdom of Sussex	This flag has six gold birds called martlets on a blue background. It became official on May 20, 2011.
1974	Kingdom of Wessex and its former areas	This flag has a gold wyvern (a type of dragon) on a red background. It was designed in 1974.

Historic County Flags

England has 39 historic counties, and many of them have their own flags. Some flags are very old, while others are newer designs chosen in competitions.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
Traditional; 12 April 1951	Flag of Bedfordshire	This flag uses red and yellow from an old family's coat of arms. The black stripe with three shells comes from the Dukes of Bedford. Wavy lines show the River Great Ouse.
Traditional; 2 March 2017	Flag of Berkshire	This flag shows a stag (a male deer) under Herne the Hunter's oak tree.
Traditional; 20 May 2011	Flag of Buckinghamshire	This flag is split down the middle, with black on one side and red on the other. It has a white swan in the middle.
19th century	Flag of Cornwall	This flag is called St Pirran's Cross. It has a white cross on a black background.
22 September 2006	Flag of Derbyshire	A green cross with a white border on a light blue background. It has a gold Tudor rose in the middle.
23 July 2006	Flag of Devon, also called St Petroc's Cross	A white cross with a black border on a green background.
16 September 2008	Flag of Dorset – The Dorset Cross	A white cross with a red border on a gold background.
21 November 2013	Flag of County Durham	This flag is split horizontally with gold and blue. It has St Cuthbert's Cross in the middle, with the colours swapped.
Ancient	Flag of Essex	A red flag with three white Saxon swords (called seax) that have gold handles.
12 March 2019	Flag of Hampshire	A gold Saxon crown above a Tudor rose on a red and gold background. This represents the old Saxon kingdom of Wessex.
1605	Flag of Kent	A red flag with a white horse in the middle.
Modern form since 20 November 2008	Flag of Lancashire	This flag has the Red Rose of Lancashire on a yellow background.
24 October 2005	Flag of Lincolnshire	A red cross with yellow edges on a blue and green background. It has a yellow fleur de lys in the middle of the cross.
7th century (modern form 1951)	Flag of Northumberland	This flag has eight yellow rectangles on a red background.
March 2012	Flag of Shropshire	This flag has leopard faces, sometimes called "loggerheads," which are old symbols for Shropshire.
4 July 2013	Flag of Somerset	A red dragon standing on a gold background. This design won a competition.
20 May 2011	Flag of Sussex	Six gold birds (martlets) on a blue background. This is a traditional symbol for Sussex.
1965 or earlier	Flag of Yorkshire	This flag has the White Rose of York (a traditional symbol) on a blue background.

Islands Flags

These flags represent islands or areas that are called islands, even if they aren't completely surrounded by water.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
14 April 2010	Flag of the Isle of Portland	The colours on this flag show the landscape: Portland stone, grass, and the sea. The white tower represents castles, and the naval crown shows its link to the Royal Navy.
January 2009	Flag of the Isle of Wight	A white diamond shape with a cut-out at the top, on a light blue background. Below it are six wavy blue and white stripes.
1954–1969, 2010–today	Flag of Lundy	A blue flag with a white letter "L" near the flagpole.

City Flags

Many cities in England have their own flags, often based on their coat of arms.

	Date	What it's for	Ceremonial County	What it looks like
Official community design	2015	Flag of Birmingham	West Midlands	This flag has a gold zig-zag shape that divides blue and red sections. It has a bull's head in the middle.
Official design	2018	Flag of Coventry	West Midlands	This flag shows a silhouette of Lady Godiva on a white background, with two stripes in a special shade of Coventry Blue.
	1615 (Arms)	Flag of Durham	County Durham	A red cross outlined in white on a black background.
	1620 (Arms)	Flag of Plymouth	Devon	This flag has the coat of arms of Plymouth City Council on a red background.
	1194, 1622, 1686 (Arms)	Flag of Portsmouth	Hampshire	This flag has a gold crescent moon and a blazing eight-pointed star on a blue background.
Recognised design	2017	Flag of Southampton	Hampshire	This flag has an anchor and a Tudor Rose on a red and white background.

Town Flags

Many towns in England also have their own flags.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
2014	Flag of Appleby-in-Westmorland	A gold apple tree on a blue background.
2020	Flag of Bexhill-on-Sea	A red diagonal cross on a background that changes from green to white.
2017	Flag of Bloxwich	This flag has a cross that changes from black to green on a white background. It has a black lion in the top left corner and a green tree near the flagpole.
2013	Flag of Newbury
2020	Flag of Poole

Village Flags

Even some villages in England have their own flags.

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
	2016	Flag of Cromford
	2014	Flag of Evenley
	2012	Flag of Flore
	2014	Flag of Hampton Poyle
	2014	Flag of Pewsey

University Flags

Universities often have flags that show their coat of arms or symbols.

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
		Flag of the University of Bristol
		Flag of the University of Cambridge
		Flag of the University of Oxford	A blue flag with an open book that says "The Lord is my light" in Latin. It has three gold crowns around the book.

Other Flags

These flags represent different groups or ideas in England.

Flag	Date	What it's for	What it looks like
	1998	Flag of the Campaign for an English Parliament
	1984	Flag of English Heritage

Historical Flags

These are flags that were used in the past but are not in common use today.

Historical Royal Standards

These flags were used by kings and queens of England long ago.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
1042–1066	Royal Banner of King Edward the Confessor	A gold cross with fleur-de-lis ends on a blue background, surrounded by five gold martlets.
1066	Banner of King Harold II	This flag is a guess of what King Harold II's military flag might have looked like at the Battle of Hastings.
1198–1340	Royal Banner of King Richard I	A red flag with three gold lions walking and facing you, with blue tongues and claws.
1406–1422 1461–1470 1471–1554 1558–1603	Royal Banner of King Henry IV	This flag combines the English coat of arms with three fleur-de-lis symbols from France.
1603–1689, 1702–1707	Royal Standard of the House of Stuart	This flag combines symbols for England (and its claim to the French throne), Scotland, and Ireland. It was the last royal flag of the Kingdom of England before Great Britain was formed.

Historical National Flags and Ensigns

These flags were used by England as a nation or for its ships in the past.

Date	What it's for	What it looks like
Anglo-Saxon era	Thought to symbolise Anglo-Saxon England	Old stories mention red and white dragons representing different groups. A dragon also appears on the Bayeux Tapestry about the Battle of Hastings.
1620–1707	English Red Ensign	A red flag with the Flag of England in the top left corner. This was used by English ships.
1606–1801	First Union Jack/Flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain	This was the first Union Flag. It combined the Cross of St George with the Flag of Scotland.