
|
While the St Patrick's Cross does not appear to have been used as a flag before the Union, it has been incorporated in a wide range of flags since then. Among these are the flags of the Commissioners of Irish Lights, the Royal Dublin Society, the Irish Rugby Football Union, the Freemasons and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, as well as the former flags of the 'Blueshirts' and of Irish Shipping Ltd. The St Patrick's Cross is used as a neutral emblem on St Patrick's day in Northern Ireland and it forms the central element of the new badge adopted by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in 2001.
Left: the flag of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, first flown on 5 April 2002. | ||