British Empire flag

The Indian variant of the flag design described by the Daily Express

In 1902, the Daily Express reported that the new King Edward VII was taking suggestions for a new flag to represent the British Empire in its entirety. The British Empire was nearing its territorial height, and some believed that the Union Jack was no longer enough to represent its many constituent nations on its own. What was proposed at the time was a Cross of Saint George with a crown in the canton, representing the English. Under the crown would be a blue scroll bearing a Latin motto meaning "the empire on which the sun never sets." A large sun would have defaced the centre of the flag to further reinforce that symbolism. The top right would be occupied by the emblem of the territory the flag would be flying in. For example, the Star of India would represent the British Raj. Canadian and Australian variants with their own symbols in that space were also mentioned in the article.[5] It is unknown what the final verdict on this proposal was.

Canada quartered the arms of its founding provinces until 1921[6]

Australia used arms like those of the Bowman flag at the time[7]

There were renewed calls for an Empire flag in 1910, but discussions on this were deferred until the 1911 Imperial Conference. It was ultimately not raised as a topic, with most of the discussion being focused on the potential formation of an Imperial Federation. The president of the Australian Natives' Association called for a "truly union flag of the Empire" featuring representation for the Dominions in 1916. However, the proposal was rejected by association members. Further suggestions were made in 1921 when there was speculation that the partition of Ireland would result in a change to the Union Jack. Nothing came out of these efforts.[4]

Despite the failure in gaining traction for an official Empire flag, an unofficial design with a strong similarity to the proposal originally described by the Daily Express in 1902 became popular among the public in the interwar period. This flag was a White Ensign featuring the symbols of the Dominions. Canada was represented by the shield from its coat of arms in the bottom left. The coat of arms of South Africa was placed in the top right, and the coat of arms of Australia was in the bottom right. Four stars on the cross represented New Zealand, and the Star of India was placed in the centre. Most of these flags were sewn at proportions of 3:5 or 5:8.[4]

It is unknown how this flag came to be. This design could not have been adopted before 17 September 1910, when South Africa was granted its coat of arms. Furthermore, this flag often featured different variants of each coat of arms depending on the time period in which it was printed. This can be seen in the arms of Canada changing in 1921 after a new design was adopted. It is unknown why the Australian coat of arms was never updated after being replaced by the country in 1912, but it did receive a change in colours not seen anywhere else.[8]

• Reconstructions of Empire flag variants
• 
  1910–1921: The original design after South Africa was granted a coat of arms
• 
  1921: A variant with a wreath for Canada from the Dangarsleigh War Memorial
• 
  1921–1930: Canada adopts new arms to replace its four quartered provinces
• 
  1930–?: New coat of arms for South Africa and erroneous colours for Australia

The flag is most often believed to have been used for events such as Empire Day or the British Empire Exhibition as a patriotic display. A specimen is held in the Canadian Flag Collection,[9] and it is attributed to the 1924 edition of the latter.[10] However, it is unclear if the flag was designed specifically for these events. The British Empire Exhibition could have been the place of origin for the 1921 variant, since it occurred after Canada had adopted its new coat of arms, but that particular event aimed "to enable all who owe allegiance to the British flag to meet on common ground and learn to know each other." Introducing a new Empire flag runs counter to that statement, and most flags at the exhibition simply featured Union Jacks defaced by portraits of the monarch. Furthermore, the green compartment of the South African coat of arms often present on flags attributed to the British Empire Exhibition did not see formal adoption until 1930. Given the timing of updates made to the Empire flag, it is much more likely that most were distributed for coronations. The earliest date the Empire flag could have been designed is just before the coronation of King George V in 1911.[4]

A patriotic procession at a school in Australia featuring the Empire flag

Regardless of its unclear origins, the Empire flag continued to show up in many locations. Many households, memorials, and schools throughout the British Empire could be found flying them. The flag was available in a variety of different sizes and formats, and this indicates that numerous manufacturers produced them.

Victorian Collections has an entry for the 1910 variant of the Empire flag listed by Lara branch of the Returned and Services League of Australia as an item from the First World War.[11] However, there is no photographic evidence of the flag ever being used in battle.

A 1919 photograph from Aldgate hosted by the State Library of South Australia demonstrates schoolchildren flying a number of British flags for a patriotic procession. The Empire flag can be seen among them.[12]

The National Maritime Museum in London features a post-1930 Empire flag in a collection containing many other flags historically flown at sea. It is possible that it saw some use as a maritime flag as the museum identifies it as a type of White Ensign.[13]

The Empire flag seen the front page photo of the Daily Mirror on VE Day

On Victory in Europe Day, the Daily Mirror published a photograph on their front page featuring the Empire flag. It is being flown by a woman in Trafalgar Square, celebrating the Allied victory with a large crowd.[14] After the liberation of Singapore from Japanese forces in 1945, prisoners of war who were kept at Changi Prison signed their names on an Empire flag. The prisoners were primarily Australian soldiers.[15] Due to the Empire flag appearing numerous times during the Second World War, it can be inferred that many copies were made during the 1930s. It is likely that the flag saw a revival before the beginning of any conflict to commemorate the coronation of King George VI in 1937.[4]

The Empire flag can still be found in occasional use today at the Dangarsleigh War Memorial. It was first opened in 1921 with the flag hoisted atop of the monument. Below it was the flag of the United Kingdom (representing England) and the royal standards of Scotland and Ireland. On pillars around the monument were the ensigns of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and India. The Empire flag, referred to as a United Empire flag in articles from the time, represented the eight countries on the memorial joined together.[16] A centennial celebration in 2021 saw the Empire flag flying over the memorial once more. It featured older designs for the coats of arms to match what would have been seen at the original unveiling, and the Canadian coat of arms is encircled by a wreath not seen on other variants of the flag. This memorial is likely the only place left in the world where the Empire flag is still flown.[17]

• Flag of the Commonwealth of Nations

• British Empire Flags and Patriotic Decorations at Flags of the World