White Ensign
E16917
The White Ensign is the distinctive white naval flag with a red St George’s Cross and Union Flag in the canton flown by commissioned warships and shore establishments of the Royal Navy.
Observed surface forms (6)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Australian White Ensign | 3 |
| Royal Navy White Ensign | 2 |
| Canadian Naval Ensign | 1 |
| Flags of the Royal Navy | 1 |
| White Ensign (historical) | 1 |
| White Ensign of the Royal New Zealand Navy | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
maritime flag
ⓘ
national flag variant ⓘ naval ensign ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Battle of Trafalgar
ⓘ
Royal Navy battle honours ⓘ Royal Navy traditions ⓘ |
| category |
British maritime flags
ⓘ
White Ensign self-linksurface differs ⓘ
surface form:
Flags of the Royal Navy
|
| country | United Kingdom ⓘ |
| designElement |
Union Jack in upper hoist quarter
ⓘ
red cross on white field ⓘ |
| displayLocation |
flagstaff at Royal Navy shore establishments
ⓘ
gaff or ensign staff at sea ⓘ stern of Royal Navy ships when in commission ⓘ |
| featuresCanton | Union Flag in the canton ⓘ |
| featuresCross | red St George’s Cross ⓘ |
| fieldColor | white ⓘ |
| flagType | war ensign ⓘ |
| historicalUse |
British naval shore bases
ⓘ
Royal Navy ships of the line ⓘ |
| inspired | ensigns of some Commonwealth navies ⓘ |
| legalStatus | protected emblem under UK law ⓘ |
| prohibitedUse | civilian vessels (without specific warrant) ⓘ |
| protocol |
flown continuously at sea except when replaced by battle ensigns in action
ⓘ
hoisted at 0800 (or sunrise) and lowered at sunset on Royal Navy ships in harbour ⓘ |
| regulatesUse |
Board of Admiralty
ⓘ
surface form:
Admiralty (historically)
United Kingdom Ministry of Defence ⓘ
surface form:
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
|
| relatedFlag |
Blue Ensign
ⓘ
British Red Ensign ⓘ
surface form:
Red Ensign
Union Flag ⓘ |
| restrictedTo | commissioned vessels of the Royal Navy ⓘ |
| standardizedDesign | 19th century ⓘ |
| symbolizes |
British naval service
ⓘ
authority of the Royal Navy ⓘ |
| timeInUse | in continuous use in various forms since the 17th century ⓘ |
| usedAs | jack by some Commonwealth navies historically ⓘ |
| usedBy |
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
ⓘ
surface form:
Royal Fleet Auxiliary (in certain contexts historically)
Royal Navy Reserve ⓘ
surface form:
Royal Naval Reserve
Royal Navy ⓘ |
| usedIn |
Royal Navy ceremonial occasions
ⓘ
naval funerals ⓘ naval parades ⓘ naval remembrance services ⓘ |
| usedOn |
Royal Navy small boats
ⓘ
commissioned warships of the Royal Navy ⓘ shore establishments of the Royal Navy ⓘ |
Referenced by (35)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Flags of the Royal Navy
this entity surface form:
Canadian Naval Ensign
this entity surface form:
Royal Navy White Ensign
subject surface form:
HMS Sikh
this entity surface form:
Australian White Ensign
this entity surface form:
Australian White Ensign
this entity surface form:
Royal Navy White Ensign
subject surface form:
Royal Canadian Navy
this entity surface form:
White Ensign (historical)
this entity surface form:
White Ensign of the Royal New Zealand Navy
this entity surface form:
Australian White Ensign