Royal Standard of New Zealand (1962–2022)

The Queen's Personal New Zealand Flag was the personal flag of Queen Elizabeth II in her role as

Queen of New Zealand The monarchy of New Zealand is the constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of New Zealand. The current monarch, King Charles III, ascended the throne following the death of his mot ...

. It was approved for use in 1962, and was used by the Queen when she was in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The Queen’s Representative, the Governor-General of New Zealand, used a separate flag.

Background

On 11 October 1962 the then Queen announced the adoption of a special personal flag for use on her tour of New Zealand between 6–18 February 1963 and for use until her death in 2022.

Description

The flag follows the same basic pattern used by the then Queen across several other realms since the 1960s: it is the escutcheon of a country's coat of arms (e.g. the arms of New Zealand) in banner form defaced with a device taken from her personal flag (a blue roundel surrounded by a garland of roses encircling a crowned letter 'E', all in gold). The flag is divided into four quadrants: The first quadrant includes depicts four stars as representative of the Southern Cross constellation, as depicted on the national flag. The second quadrant consists of a golden fleece on a red field. The third quadrant contains a golden

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

sheaf Sheaf may refer to: * Sheaf (agriculture), a bundle of harvested cereal stems * Sheaf (mathematics), a mathematical tool * Sheaf toss, a Scottish sport * River Sheaf, a tributary of River Don in England * ''The Sheaf'', a student-run newspaper se ...

on a red field. The final quadrant includes two crossed gold hammers on a blue field. The central stripe consists of three

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

s. Superimposed in the centre is a dark blue roundel bearing a Roman E surmounted by a Royal Crown within a chaplet of

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

s, all gold-coloured, obscuring the centre ship. The central blue disc is taken from the then Queen's Personal Flag, which was used by the Queen in relation to her role as

Head of the Commonwealth The head of the Commonwealth is the ceremonial leader who symbolises "the free association of independent member nations" of the Commonwealth of Nations, an intergovernmental organisation that currently comprises 56 sovereign states. There is ...

Usage and protocol

Royal Standard of New Zealand at State Memorial Service for Queen Elizabeth II

The flag was flown continuously on any building in which the Queen was in residence and by a ship transporting the Queen in New Zealand waters. It was also flown whilst the Queen was attending a state or public function, and it could be seen above the saluting base at military parades and open air gatherings when she was present. It was also broken when the Queen set foot on board one of

Her Majesty's New Zealand Ship His or Her Majesty's New Zealand Ship (HMNZS) is the ship prefix used to identify warships and shore facilities commissioned into the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). It derives from "His Majesty's Ship" (HMS) used in the United Kingdom. The Briti ...

s. When flown with the New Zealand Flag, the Queen's Personal Flag for New Zealand took the position of honour. The only occasions on which the Queen's Personal Flag for New Zealand was flown in her absence was at parades in honour of Her Majesty's Official Birthday. The flag was also paraded at the New Zealand State Memorial Service following the Queen's death.

Legal

The flag is protected under the Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981, Section 12(1) states: According to Section 12(2)(c), this applies to, among others, "any representation of the Royal Standard, or the Sovereign’s personal flag for New Zealand".

Coronation Standard

During the coronation ceremony of the monarch at Westminster Abbey, the "standards" of various countries are carried by various officials in the procession inside the abbey. These flags are the country's coat of arms as a

banner of arms A banner of arms is a type of heraldic flag which has the same image as a coat of arms, ''i.e.'' the shield of a full heraldic achievement, rendered in a square or rectangular shape of the flag. The term is derived from the terminology of hera ...

. For New Zealand, unlike

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and Australia, the banner remained the same for the

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II in 1911, 1937, and 1953, respectively.. The banner was in a 3:4 ratio and without defacement.

References

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NZ History - Queen's Personal Flag For New Zealand
legislation.govt.nz {{NZFlags Monarchy in New Zealand