British Flags

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A Ship of Henry VIII, circa 1545

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BRITISH FLAGS

THEIR EARLY HISTORY, AND THEIR DEVELOPMENT AT SEA; WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE ORIGIN OF THE FLAG AS A NATIONAL DEVICE

BY

W. G. PERRIN

ADMIRALTY LIBRARIAN

SECRETARY OF THE NAVY RECORDS SOCIETY

FELLOW OF THE ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY

ILLUSTRATED IN COLOUR

BY

HERBERT S. VAUGHAN

CHEVALIER OF THE LEGION

OF HONOUR

CAMBRIDGE

AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS

PREFACE

It might have been expected that the attempt to trace to their origin in the past the institutions and customs in common use upon the sea would from an early date occupy the attention of a seafaring people, but for some obscure reason the British nation has always been indifferent to the history of its activities upon that element on which its greatness was founded, and to which it has become more and more dependent for its daily bread and its very existence. To those who are alive to this fact it will hardly come as a surprise, therefore, to learn that the first sustained attempt at a detailed investigation into the history of the flag at sea was made under the patronage of the German Admiralty by a German Admiral. Vice-Admiral Siegel's Die Flagge, published in 1912, was the first book to deal with the development of the flag at sea in a scientific spirit, and although the earlier chapters contain some mistakes due to his employment of translations of early works instead of original texts, and the accounts of the British flags in the later chapters suffer because he had no access to original records, it is a worthy piece of work.

The present book is an attempt to remove the reproach to the British nation which this implies. Its plan is somewhat different from that of the work referred to above. Instead of dealing with the flags of all maritime nations of the world-a task that (if it was to be more than a mere copying or compilation) would entail much work in foreign archives-it seemed more profitable to concentrate upon the history of British Naval Flags, for researches made so far back as 1908 had taught me how much that is inaccurate about their history had received acceptance. But first it seemed necessary to devote some time and space to the inquiry into the origin of the flag and how it became the honoured symbol of nationality that it now is, and for this a general view had to be taken in order that a firm foundation might be laid for the early history of our own flags.

In the first chapter the ground worked over by Admiral Siegel has been solidified by examination of the original authorities, with the result that a few errors have been detected and some new facts brought to light, and the investigation has also been extended further; the most important of the additions being those relating to the standards in the Phoenician and Greek ships of war, forms of the early "standard" and "gonfanon," and the Genoese Standard of St George and the Dragon. For the deduction that the use of a national flag arose in the Italian city states I take the entire responsibility, well aware that further investigations may possibly bring to light fresh facts which will overthrow it.

The chapter on early English, Scottish and Irish flags serves as an introduction to the history of our national flag, which was invented for the use of the mercantile marine, though it was very soon appropriated by the Royal Navy for its sole use. It is very improbable that further research will enable the gap left by the unfortunate destruction of the early 17th century records to be filled, so that the story of the Union Flag may be taken as being substantially complete, but there is still room for further work upon the history of its component crosses. It will be seen that I have been unable to find any solid ground for the common belief that the cross of St George was introduced as the national emblem of England by Richard I, and am of opinion that it did not begin to attain that position until the first years of the reign of Edward I.

The chapters on the flags used to indicate distinctions of command and service at sea give an account of the use (now obsolete) of the Royal Standard at sea by naval commanders-in-chief; of the history of the Admiralty anchor-flag; and of the steps by which the present Admirals' flags were evolved. The history of the ensigns from their first adoption at sea about the end of Elizabeth's reign has been set out in some detail, but further research may bring to light more details of interest in the years between 1574 and 1653. The causes which led to the adoption of a red ensign as the most important British ensign and the steps which led to its appropriation to the Mercantile Marine, and not the Royal Navy, are stated as far as the records availed, though here again further research is needed in the late Elizabethan and early Stuart periods among records that may still survive in private ownership. These chapters may, perhaps, appeal rather to the seaman and the student of naval history than to the general reader, but it is hoped that they may also prove of service to artists who wish to avoid the anachronisms into which some of their brethren have been betrayed.

In order that the development of flag signals may be properly appreciated it has been necessary, when dealing with the earlier years, to take into account what had happened outside the narrow circuit of British waters. The earlier matter, though here examined solely from the point of view of the flags used, offers considerable interest to the student of naval tactics, with which indeed the art of signalling is inseparably connected.

The last chapter, on Ceremonial and other usages, is, from the author's point of view, the least satisfactory. From the nature of the subject, the official records contain very little information about it. It is only by the slow and laborious process of examining contemporary journals, diaries, accounts of voyages, and similar material that facts can be found for any exhaustive treatment of these matters. Something of this has been done, but more remains to do.

In concluding the work which has occupied a large portion of the leisure hours of many years, it is my pleasant duty to express my gratitude to the numerous friends whose encouragement and assistance have enabled me to persevere in what has proved a somewhat arduous task; especially to Sir Julian Corbett, who has read the proofs and given me the benefit of his criticisms; to the officials of the Pepysian Library, Public Record Office, British Museum and London Library for the facilities afforded me; and not least to my friend Mr Vaughan who has spared no pains in the preparation of the coloured plates.

W. G. PERRIN.

January 1922

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CONTENTS

The Origin of the Flag and its Development up to the end of the Thirteenth Century

A flag may be defined as a piece of pliable material, attached at one end so as to move freely in the wind, serving as a sign or a decoration. This word is now common to the nations of north-western Europe[1], but it does not appear to have come into use in this particular meaning until the sixteenth century, and the etymology of it is obscure. Perhaps the most satisfactory of the derivations hitherto put forward is that of Professor Skeat, who derives it from the Middle English "flakken" to fly, one of a number of similar onomatopoeic words suggestive of the sound of something flapping in the wind. Its first appearance with a meaning coming within the above definition is as a specific term denoting a rectangular piece of material attached by one vertical edge, flown at the masthead of a ship, as a symbol of nationality or leadership. It was not until towards the end of the seventeenth century that the word began to take on the more general meaning it now has, and indeed the restricted meaning still partially survives in the German language, in which the word "Flagge" is properly applicable only to flags flown at sea, those on land being called "Fahnen." Before the seventeenth century there was no generic term in the English language that covered the various forms-banners, ensigns, streamers, pendants, etc.-that are now generally included under the term "flag."

A somewhat similar change in meaning has, during the course of centuries, affected nearly every flag name, and constitutes one of the great difficulties in the way of a clear exposition of the early history of flags. Moreover, the early writers are neither consistent in their use of terms nor accurate in their application. This renders the correct interpretation of many passages a matter requiring caution and discrimination and, it may be added, experience. As a guide to the reader we shall set down the principal terms to be met with, and indicate the extent to which their meaning has changed, but before doing so it is desirable to explain one or two technical or semi-technical terms employed in connection with the parts of a flag. The part next the staff or line to which it is attached is called the "hoist" by seamen, or heraldically the head or "chief"; the remainder of the flag is the "fly." The fly may be forked or swallow-tailed. If the end of the fly is divided by a simple incision which does not remove material, it is said to be "slit." The fly may be produced into a number of pointed or round-ended tails, to which the Crusaders gave the name of tongues (linguae, lingulae). The British and many other ensigns have in the upper part next the staff a rectangular compartment containing a national device. In modern flags this usually occupies one-fourth of the flag, but in early flags it was much smaller. This is called a "canton." The other terms that need explanation at this stage are as follows:

Σημε?ον (Semeion). This word appears to have been first used in the abstract meaning of "sign" or "signal"; to have been then applied to the object by which the signal was made, or which signalised the presence of the commanding officer. In the early period of Greece this was not a flag, but a staff-like object.

Insigne, pl. Insignia. The Latin equivalent of the above, denoting a sign, signal, or staff of office.

Signum. A token or sign, especially the distinctive sign of a division of the Roman army. Also used to denote "signal" in the abstract.

Vexillum. A square flag hung from a transverse bar at the head of a staff; the principal form of flag in use in the classical period. In late writers this word is used to cover any form of flag, and from the eighth century onwards will be found applied as well to objects that were not flags, for which the word insigne should have been used.

Banner (late Latin bandum, bannum). A rectangular flag attached laterally to its staff. Originally of much greater depth than length, a "band" of coloured material attached to a lance by one of its longer sides, it gradually became square. The banner was primarily the personal flag of an emperor, king, lord or knight, and served to mark his presence in the army or fleet, and as a rallying point for his retainers. On the introduction of heraldic devices these were inserted upon it. It was also employed by religious or civic bodies for a similar purpose. In modern language this term is usually applied to flags hung from transverse bars, displayed in religious or political processions, but we shall not employ it in this meaning.

PLATE I - Early Flags

Gonfanon, Gonfalon. This word appears in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as guefana, and in the Chanson de Roland as gunfanun. It is apparently derived from the Norse gunn-fane (war-flag) and in its earlier forms was probably of the shape shown on the Northumbrian coins about 925 a.d. [2] Among the Normans two centuries later it had a square body and ended in three or more long tails, a form handed on to the Italian Communes. Some writers apply this name (inaccurately) to flags of vexillum form, with or without tails at the base.

Standard. This word presents great difficulty, and it has undergone a radical change in meaning which (so far as I am aware) has never been explained. As no historical survey of the development of the flag can fairly ignore the need for such an explanation it will be necessary to treat it at some length. At different periods in history since the eleventh century the word under one or more of its many forms (e.g. estandart, standart, standardum, standarz, standarum, standalem), has had the following meanings:

(i) A tall pole or staff supporting some object that was not a flag.

(ii) A tall pole or mast set in a four-wheeled chariot, supporting various objects, including one or more flags.

(iii) An elongated tapering flag containing the arms or badges of a king or noble.

(iv) A rectangular banner containing the royal arms.

One of the earliest appearances of the word is in the Chanson de Roland. The oldest existing ms. of this poem was, it is true, not written before the latter part of the twelfth century, but it is well known that the poem itself is much older. In this long poem of some 4000 lines the word occurs thrice only, and is confined to the episode which relates to Baligant, Emir of Babylon, which M. Gaston Paris considers to be the work of another author. The passages in question are: