The flag of the Commonwealth of Nations is the official flag used by and representing the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...

. Its current design dates to 2013, a modification of a design adopted in 1976.

Description

The flag consists of the Commonwealth symbol in gold on a blue

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

. The symbol centres on a

globe A globe is a spherical model of Earth, of some other celestial body, or of the celestial sphere. Globes serve purposes similar to maps, but unlike maps, they do not distort the surface that they portray except to scale it down. A model glo ...

, representing the global nature of the Commonwealth and the breadth of its membership.

History

The flag developed from car pennants produced for the first time at the 1973 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, held in Ottawa,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. The initiative for its design is credited to two Canadians: the first

Commonwealth Secretary-General The Commonwealth secretary-general is the head of the Commonwealth Secretariat, the central body which has served the Commonwealth of Nations since its establishment in 1965, and responsible for representing the Commonwealth publicly. The Commo ...

Arnold Smith Arnold Cantwell Smith (January 18, 1915 – February 7, 1994) was a Canadian diplomat. He was the first Commonwealth Secretary-General, serving from 1965–1975. A talented student, he won a Rhodes Scholarship to Christ Church, Oxford. ...

; and

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Pierre Trudeau. It was officially adopted on 26 March 1976.

Original design

The original design featured a globe surrounded by 64 radiating, approximately quadrilateral, sunrays, which form a 'C' for 'Commonwealth'. The number of sunrays did not represent the number of member states (there have never been 64 members); instead, the large number represented the many ways in which the Commonwealth cooperates around the world.

2013 redesign

In 2013, the globe was tilted, and the number of sunrays reduced to 34. The colourings used in the flag were also slightly modified. The standard proportions of the flag are 3:5, however a 1:2 version appears in countries whose flags use a 1:2 ratio, such as Australia and the UK.

Usage

The flag of the Commonwealth of Nations is flown at

Marlborough House Marlborough House, a Grade I listed mansion in St James's, City of Westminster, London, is the headquarters of the Commonwealth of Nations and the seat of the Commonwealth Secretariat. It was built in 1711 for Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marl ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, the headquarters of the

Commonwealth Secretariat The Commonwealth Secretariat is the main intergovernmental agency and central institution of the Commonwealth of Nations. It is responsible for facilitating co-operation between members; organising meetings, including the Commonwealth Heads o ...

, throughout the year, and for a limited period at other venues where Commonwealth meetings, events, or visits are taking place (for example, Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings). The

Canadian federal government The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

does not stipulate that the flag be flown for Commonwealth Day, instead directing that the British

Union Jack The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

(officially called the Royal Union Flag) be flown at federal installations which have a second flagpole. Former Commonwealth Secretary-General

Don McKinnon Sir Donald Charles McKinnon (born 27 February 1939) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 12th deputy prime minister of New Zealand and the minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand. He was the secretary-general of the Commonwealth of ...

encourages the flying of the Commonwealth flag on Commonwealth Day, and the Office of the Secretary-General notes that "it is not the case that the Union Jack – or the flag of any other member country for that matter – is a substitute for the Commonwealth flag which represents the association of 53 members and their peoples." Elsewhere, the Commonwealth flag is flown at the

Scottish Parliament Building ; sco, Scots Pairlament Biggin , native_name_lang = , former_names = , alternate_names = Holyrood , image = Scottish Parliament building - geograph.org.uk - 2469654.jpg , image_alt = , caption ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

on Commonwealth Day, from the fourth flagpole in addition to the

Union Flag The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

, the Scottish saltire and the

European Union flag The Flag of Europe or European Flag consists of twelve golden stars forming a circle on a blue field. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the Council of Europe (CoE) as a symbol for the whole of Europe. Since 1985, the flag has also been ...

which all fly daily. Since 2002 the Commonwealth flag has been flown alongside the Union Flag, over the Northern Ireland Assembly's home at Parliament Buildings Stormont every Commonwealth Day. It is also flown on Commonwealth Day in the territory of Gibraltar, from the third flagpole alongside the Union Flag and the Flag of Gibraltar, which fly on the roof of No. 6 Convent Place, the office of the Chief Minister of Gibraltar. On 28 September 2016, the Welsh Conservative AM in the

National Assembly for Wales The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Go ...

Mohammad Asghar Mohammad Asghar (30 September 1945 – 16 June 2020), known as Oscar, was a Welsh politician who was a Member of the Senedd for South Wales East. He was a member of the Welsh Conservatives, and previously of Welsh Labour, and Plaid Cymru. ...

suggested that once the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

leaves the European Union, the Welsh Assembly should replace the EU Flag alongside the

and the

Welsh Flag The flag of Wales ( cy, Baner Cymru or , meaning 'the red dragon') consists of a red dragon passant on a green and white field. As with many heraldic charges, the exact representation of the dragon is not standardised and many renderings e ...

. It has been suggested that the Flag of the Commonwealth be the replacement. On 31 January 2020 Brexit was marked at the Gibraltar border with the lowering of the EU flag and the raising of the Commonwealth flag in its place.

Gallery

File:Commonwealth Day 2017 (33414478655).jpg, The Commonwealth Flag flying above the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on Commonwealth Day 2017 File:Commonwealth Day 2017 (32545205223).jpg, The Commonwealth Flag, as well as the flags of Commonwealth members, flying in

Parliament Square Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and it contai ...

on Commonwealth Day 2017

Commonwealth Games

File:Ceremonial flag of the British Empire Games (1930–1950).svg, Ceremonial flag used at the British Empire Games from

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...

. File:Ceremonial flag of the British Empire and Commonwealth Games (1954–1966).svg, Ceremonial flag used at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966. File:Ceremonial flag of the British Commonwealth Games (1970–1974).svg, Ceremonial flag used at the British Commonwealth Games from

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

to 1974. File:Ceremonial flag of the Commonwealth Games (1978–1998).svg, Ceremonial flag used at the Commonwealth Games from 1978 to

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

References

External links

Commonwealth Secretariat webpage on the Commonwealth Symbol and Flag
{{Flags of International Organization Flag

Commonwealth Of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...