Last updated 16 March 2004

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Flags

see how Australians see a new flag

Vexillology is the study of the history and symbolism of flags. Like any field of study, it has its own jargon and technical terms

Terms used in these pages are defined here

Click on a flag to see which part of Australia it represents

The Australian Flag In the upper hoist (canton) of the flag is the Union Flag (i.e. the State and Civil Flag of the United Kingdom, popularly called the Union Jack). On the fly are 5 white stars, representing the Southern Cross, a constellation of stars generally only visible in the southern hemisphere. Each of these stars has 7 points except for the smallest star which has only five.

Directly below the Union Flag is a large 7 pointed white star called the Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia on 1 January 1901. There is one point for each of the six original states, and one to represent all of Australia's internal and external territories.

The flag of New South Wales  is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the state badge. The badge depicts the Cross of St George in red on a white disc. At the extremity of each arm of the cross is an eight pointed gold star.  In the centre of the cross is a golden lion passant guardant. 
The State badge of New South Wales was designed by James Barnet, the Colonial Architect, and Captain Francis Hixson, retired of the Royal Navy who was president of the Marine Board.  No meaning of the design was given when it was submitted to London for approval, although it may have been a simplified version of what was then the semi-official arms of NSW. The flag was adopted in response to British Admiralty criticisms that the previous flag was too similar to that of Victoria.

The flag of Victoria is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the State badge. The badge depicts the Southern Cross surmounted by the St Edwards Crown. The stars in the Southern Cross range from five to eight points. As in Queensland, the design of the flag is changed in accordance with the style of Crown chosen by the reigning monarch, with the last such change occurring in 1953, after Queen Elizabeth II adopted the St Edwards Crown upon her Coronation in 1952.

The flag of Queensland is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the state badge. The badge depicts a light blue Maltese cross with a St Edwards Crown in the centre of the cross, all on a white disc. The original badge was designed by the then Queensland Colonial Secretary and Treasurer William Hemmant.  No one knows why the Maltese cross was chosen.  The design of the Royal Crown in the state badge is altered whenever there is a change in the style of crown chosen by the reigning Monarch. The last such change occurred in 1953 after Queen Elizabeth II adopted the St Edwards Crown upon her Coronation in 1952.

The flag of South Australia is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the state badge. The badge depicts a white-backed piping shrike (magpie) with wings outstretched on a yellow disc. The state badge is believed to have been designed by Robert Craig of the Adelaide School of Arts with the flag being adopted in 1904.  The impetus for a new state badge appears to date back to 1901 in response to the former British Colonies becoming states of the Australian federation. Also, the former badge was extremely elaborate and no doubt proved to be cumbersome and difficult to reproduce on a regular basis.

The flag of Tasmania is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the state badge. The badge depicts a red lion passant on a white disc.  The exact symbolism of the badge is unknown, other than to indicate historical ties with England. The badge was approved by the British Colonial office in 1875 and the design of the Tasmanian flag has remained unchanged since then, save for a slight alteration in the rendition of the lion in 1975 when the flag was officially proclaimed as the "Tasmanian Flag".

The flag of Western Australia which was adopted in 1953 is a British Blue Ensign defaced with the state badge. The badge depicts the native Black Swan on a yellow disc, with the swan swimming towards the hoist. A variant to this design renders the swan more artistically and includes water ripples.  The black swan has long been a symbol of Western Australia. The original colony was in fact called the Swan River Settlement, and in 1870 Governor Weld suggested that the black swan would be the obvious choice of badge for the colony 

The flag for the Australian Capital Territory uses Canberra's city colours of blue and gold. In the centre of the gold fly is a modified form of the arms of the City of Canberra, whilst the Southern Cross appears in the blue bar at the hoist.

The  Australian Capital Territory was founded as a Federal Territory on 1 January 1911, and attained self-government on 4 March 1989, however until the 25th March 1993 it did not have a flag of its own.  This flag  was adopted by the ACT Legislative Assembly after competitions were held in 1988 and 1992 in which artists and other interested ACT residents provided a large range of designs for a proposed ACT flag with the winner being designed by Ivo Ostyn

The flag for the Northern Territory was designed by Robert Ingpen, a Victorian illustrator, and incorporates both the Territorian colours and floral emblem. In the centre of the fly is a stylised Sturt's Desert Rose with seven petals on an ochre field. At the hoist is the Southern Cross in white on a black panel.  Note that the Southern Cross is of the Victorian form, with the number of points on the stars ranging from five to eight.

The Northern Territory was founded as a Federal Territory on 1 January 1911, but its first flag was not hoisted until self government was attained on 1 July 1978.

The Aboriginal Flag was designed by Harold Thomas, an artist and an Aboriginal activist from Central Australia, in 1971.   The Flag was first displayed on the 12th July 1971 on National Aborigines’ Day in Adelaide and subsequently at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra.
The Aboriginal Flag was legislated by the Federal Government in 1995 and is made up of three sections, the black half representing the Aboriginal people, the red representing the Earth and the yellow circle represents the Sun.

 

Vexillology is the study of the history and symbolism of flags. Like any field of study, it has its own jargon and technical terms, some of which are defined here