Acivil ensign is anensign (maritime flag) used by civilian vessels to denote theirnationality. It can be the same or different from thestate ensign and thenaval ensign (or war ensign). It is also known as themerchant ensign ormerchant flag. Some countries have special civil ensigns foryachts, and even for specificyacht clubs, known asyacht ensigns.
Most countries have only onenational flag and ensign for all purposes. In other countries, a distinction is made between the land flag and the civil, state and naval ensigns. TheBritish ensigns, for example, differ from the flag used on land (theUnion Flag) and have different versions of plain and defacedRed andBlue ensigns for civilian and state use, as well as the naval ensign (White Ensign) that can also be used by yachts of theRoyal Yacht Squadron.
The civil ensigns that are different from the general national flag can be grouped into a number of categories.
Several countries use red flags with, in most cases, either the respective national flag or the Union Flag in thecanton, patterned after the Red Ensign.British overseas territories fly the plain Red Ensign or a Red Ensign with the respective colonial arms in the fly.Saudi Arabia puts its national flag in the canton of an otherwise-green flag (theSaudi Arabian flag is hoisted with the flagpole to its right so the canton is in the upper right corner of the flag).Ghana stopped using its Red Ensign in 2003 with the adoption of a new merchant shipping act, which made theGhanaian flag the proper national colors for Ghanaian ships. Similarly,Sri Lanka stopped using its Red Ensign in 1969 and uses theSri Lankan flag as the civil ensign. Under the relevant shipping law for theSolomon Islands, the Shipping Act 1998, (No. 5 of 1998), the national flag of the Solomon Islands and not a Red Ensign is the appropriate flag: "The National Flag of Solomon Islands shall be the national colours for a vessel registered under this Act." Nevertheless, the Solomon Islands Red Ensign is still used in some cases.
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TheRed Ensign Group is a collaboration of United Kingdom shipping registries including British Overseas Territories and Crown dependencies. A ship registered in any country within the Red Ensign group is entitled to fly the Red Ensign, or it can choose to fly the Red Ensign defaced with its home port national colors.
In some cases, theBlue Ensign may be flown in lieu of the Red Ensign if a number of merchant vessels crew are formerRoyal Navy personnel or current Royal Navy Reservists, or commanded by an officer of theRoyal Navy Reserve. India and Sri Lanka enact similar laws.
Several countries have civil ensigns that are very different from the national flag.
The Philippines (inland only)
Well-known examples are theItalian civil ensign showing the shield with the arms of the sea republics, and thePolish civil ensign with the arms of Poland. Most of these emblems were added to distinguish the ensign from similar flags of other countries (e.g. Colombia/Ecuador) or from other signal flags (e.g. Malta/ H signal flag).
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United States (Yacht ensign; unofficial)
Spain (Yacht ensign)
In several countries (such as Spain and much of Hispanic America, and some European countries), there are two main versions of the flag, a simpler one (usually a striped flag) and a more elaborate one with the national arms. The simpler one is used as a civil ensign (and in most cases also as a civil flag), whereas the version with the arms is mainly used by the government and the military. InEl Salvador, the civil ensign also differs from the national flag in the proportions.
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Some civil ensigns have had their coat of arms modified with an additional feature or features to distinguish them.
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Several former British colonies use 1:2 as a proportion for their ensigns and 3:5 for flags ashore, whereas Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary have it the other way around, with ensigns at 2:3 and flags ashore at 1:2.France is a special case: the overall proportion is the same, but the bands on the ensign differ in width slightly.
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Albania
(1945–1992)
Anconine Republic
(1797–1798)
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Anguilla
(1967–1969)
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Australia
(1901–1903)
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Australia
(1903–1908)
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Austria-Hungary
(1869–1918)
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The Bahamas
(1869–1904)
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The Bahamas
(1904–1923)
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The Bahamas
(1923–1953)
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The Bahamas
(1953–1964)
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The Bahamas
(1964–1973)
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Barbados
(1870–1966)
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British Guiana
(1906–1919)
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British Guiana
(1919–1955)
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British Guiana
(1955–1966)
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British Honduras
(1870–1919)
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British Honduras
(1919–1981)
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British Leeward Islands
(1871–1952)
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British Leeward Islands
(1952–1958)
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British Somaliland
(1903–1950)
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British Somaliland
(1950–1952)
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British Somaliland
(1952–1960)
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British Windward Islands
(1903–1953)
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British Windward Islands
(1953–1958)
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Burma
(1952–1974)
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Burma
(1974–2010)
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Canada
(1868–1922)
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Canada
(1907–1922)
(Unofficial)
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Canada
(1922–1957)
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Canada
(1957–1965)
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Cayman Islands
(1988–1999)
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Ceylon
(1875–1948)
Ceylon
(1955–1969)
Croatia-Slavonia
(1868–1918)
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Croatia
(1939–1941)
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Croatia
(1941–1945)
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Cyprus
(1922–1960)
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Egypt
(1914–1922)
England
(1674–1707)
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Ethiopia
(1975–1987)
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Ethiopia
(1991–1996)
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Etruria
(1803–1807)
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Etruria
(1803–1807)
(Smaller ships)
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Falkland Islands
(1999)
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Fiji
(1908–1970)
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Finland
(1918–1920)
Florence
(1251–1569)
France
(1600's–1789)
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France
(1689–1789, 1814–1830)
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French Algeria
(1848–1910)
French Indochina
(1923–1949)
French Morocco
(1912–1956)
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The Gambia
(1889–1965)
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Germany
(1896–1918)
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Germany
(1919–1933)
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Germany
(1933–1935)
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Germany
(1935–1945)
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East Germany
(1959–1973)
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East Germany
(1959–1973)
(Alternative)
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West Germany
(1949–1990)[9]
Ghana
(1963–1964, 1966–2003)
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Ghana
(1964–1966)
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Gold Coast
(1877–1957)
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Great Britain
(1707–1801)
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Greece
(1774–1821)
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Greece
(1822–1828)
Greece
(1828–1970)
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Haiti
(1964–1986)
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Hanover
(1816–1837)
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Hong Kong
(1876–1955)
(Unofficial)
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Hong Kong
(1955–1959)
(Unofficial)
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Hong Kong
(1959–1997)
(Unofficial)
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Hungary
(1921–1946)
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Hungary
(1950–1957)
India
(1880–1947)
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Iran
(1933–1964)
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Iran
(1964–1980)
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Ireland
(1701–1801)
Ireland
(1801–1922)
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Piedmont-Sardinia and laterItaly
(1851–1946)
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Jamaica
(1906–1957)
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Jamaica
(1957–1962)
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Jamaica
(1962)
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British East Africa and laterKenya
(1895–1963)
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Lucca
(1200's-1799)
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Lucca
(1801–1805)
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Lucca
(1818–1824)
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Lucca
(1819–1820)
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Lucca
(1820–1847)
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Malaya
(1957–1963)
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Malta
(1898–1943)
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Malta
(1943–1964)
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Mauritius
(1906–1968)
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
(1863–1918)
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Modena and Reggio
(1830–1859)
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Montenegro
(1905–1918)
Newfoundland
(1904–1949)
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Nigeria
(1914–1952)
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Nigeria
(1952–1960)
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North Borneo
(1882–1902)
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North Borneo
(1902–1942, 1945–1946)
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North Borneo
(1948–1963)
Ottoman Empire
(1774–1793)[10]
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Pakistan
(1956–1958)
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Palestine
(1927–1948)
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Parma and Piacenza
(1851–1859)
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Piedmont-Sardinia
(1720–1799)
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Piedmont-Sardinia
(1799–1802)
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Piedmont-Sardinia
(1802–1814)
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Piedmont-Sardinia
(1814–1816)
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Piedmont-Sardinia
(1816–1848)
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Poland
(1919–1928)
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Poland
(1955–1980)
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Poland
(1980–1990)
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Prussia
(1823–1863)
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Prussia
(1863–1892)
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Prussia
(1892–1918)
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Prussia
(1918–1935)
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Ryukyu Islands
(1952–1967)
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Ryukyu Islands
(1967–1972)
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Sarawak
(1870–1946)
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Sarawak
(1947–1963)
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Saxony-Anhalt
(1991–2017)
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Serbia
(1835–1918)
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Serbia
(2006–2010)
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Seychelles
(1903–1961)
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Seychelles
(1961–1976)
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Sierra Leone
(1916–1961)
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Singapore
(1946–1952)
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Singapore
(1952–1959)
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Solomon Islands
(1906–1947)
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Solomon Islands
(1947–1956)
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Solomon Islands
(1956–1977)
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South Africa
(1910–1912)
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South Africa
(1912–1951)
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South Australia
(1870–1876)
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Spain
(1785–1927)
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Spain
(1931–1939)
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Spanish Morocco
(1937–1956)
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Straits Settlements
(1874–1904)
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Straits Settlements
(1904–1942, 1945–1946)
Tangier International Zone
(1953–1957)
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Trinidad and Tobago
(1889–1958)
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Trinidad and Tobago
(1958–1962)
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Turks and Caicos Islands
(1968–1999)
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Tuscany
(1600's-1737)
Tuscany
(1781–1800, 1815–1848, 1849–1860)
Tuscany
(1824–1848, 1849–1860)
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Venezuela
(1863–1905)
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Venezuela
(1905–1930)
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Venezuela
(1930–2006)
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Victoria
(1870–1877)
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Yugoslavia
(1919–1943)
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Yugoslavia
(1950–1992)
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Yugoslavia and laterSerbia and Montenegro
(1992–2006)
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