Obscure Australian flags and where to find them
A tribute to Australian National Flag Day
Today, the third of September, is Australian National Flag Day. The day commemorates the flag’s first flying in 1901, following a national competition won in joint by Melbourne teenage schoolboy Ivor Evans, Sydney teenage apprentice Leslie John Hawkins, Melbourne architect Egbert John Nuttall, Perth artist Annie Dorrington and New Zealand ship’s officer William Stevens.
The day was instituted by Governor-General Sir William Deane in 1996 and has been marked since.
In addition to Australia’s national flag, state and territory flags, Aboriginal flag and Torres Strait Islander flag, there are a plethora of less common flags belonging to Australia, which can be found if one seeks them out.
City flags
Numerous Australian cities have flags of their own. These include Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Darwin (which officially has two), Launceston, Newcastle, Toowoomba and Wagga Wagga, which has a square flag.
City flags may be found flying on town hall buildings. They may represent their city’s heritage or early industries, or the city’s coat of arms. While the Sydney flag was designed based on the arms of the city, Perth’s flag features them in the centre atop a St George’s Cross. Maritime themes are common.
Melbourne’s flag is in fact flown from a replica of the 1829 ship Enterprize, which led the first settlers to what became Melbourne. It’s also flown at Enterprise Park, on the Lord Mayor’s car and at Melbourne Town Hall.
Most city flags are specific to particular council areas — such as the City of Sydney — which only cover the city centre and not the rest of a city’s metropolitan area. A curious exception is the Greater Sydney flag, an unofficial one designed by John Vaughan owing to the council’s refusal to permit private citizens to fly the City of Sydney flag. It can be seen on the eastern end of Circular Quay at the intersection of Alfred, Phillip and Albert streets.
First Union Jack
A short walk to the western side of the Customs House takes one to the first Union Jack, representing the union between the kingdoms of England (which included Wales as well as England) and Scotland. The flag was used from 1707 to 1801, when under the Acts of Union 1800 the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland were merged, ushering in the present Union Jack.
The flag was raised on the 26th of January 1788 — Australia Day — marking the establishment of the New South Wales colony. The flag today commemorates that event.
Murray River flags
Three flags – the upper, lower and combined Murray River flags – are in use along the Murray-Darling in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
Another place one may find them is Explorers Park in Sydney’s Inner West, situated at the intersection of Parramatta Road and Liverpool Road. The park features it next to the National, Aboriginal and New South Wales flags. It also features a number of plaques telling the stories of the exploits of various pioneering explorers who contributed greatly to Australia’s subsequent development.
Queen’s flag
The Queen’s Personal Australian Flag is the flag of the Queen of Australia, and features of banner of the Australian coat of arms. The heraldic badge of each state is represented within.
It has been flown in the presence of the Queen, as well as at parades celebrating her birthday.
Lord Howe Island flag
This flag, which lacks official status, is based on the first Union Jack with a Kentia palm in the middle. John Vaughan, the flag’s designer, explains the significance of the old Union Jack in relation to Lord Howe Island:
It is Lord Howe’s Command Flag, which flew victoriously during the “Glorious First of June Battle”, in 1794, that forms the basis of the design of the Island’s flag. Consequently, the rays of the sun also depict the crosses of St George and St Andrew.
Other flags
The house flag of Sydney Ferries may be seen on ferries in Sydney, which also – in common with vessels across Australia – fly the Australian Red Ensign. Though the Red Ensign is not obscure, given its common maritime use and greater civil usage prior to the Flags Act 1953, it is a nice sight nonetheless and offers an interesting comparison to the predominant Blue Ensign.
A number of ethnic flags exist. These include tribal flags as well as flags for demographics such as English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish Australians.
Historical flags, such as the Australian Federation Flag and the Australian Colonial Flag — both variants of the White Ensign depicting the Southern Cross — also have a colourful story to tell, and easily deserve their own article. One can certainly find information about each of them online.
