The Department of Canadian Heritage lays out protocol guidelines for the display of flags, including an order of precedence; these instructions are only conventional, however, and are generally intended to show respect for what are considered important symbols of the state or institutions.[1] The Sovereign's Flag for Canada is supreme in the order of precedence, followed by those for the monarch's representatives (depending on jurisdiction), the personal flags of other members of the Royal Family,[2] and then the national flag and provincial flags.
A field party per fess, green and yellow, with the shield of the coat of arms of Saskatchewan in the canton and western red lily emblem charged in the fly
A blue and white field party per pale (at nombril point) with a white border, white ordinary cross and white saltire, two triangular divisions in the fly lined in red, a golden arrow between two triangular divisions
A vertical tricolour triband of green, white, blue with the shield of the coat of arms of Yukon above a wreath of fireweed charged in the pale, with pale ratio of 1 to 1.5 to 1
A banner of the royal arms of Canada differentiated by a white three-pointed label; the first and third labels bearing a red cross, the centre label bearing a red heart; and defaced with a royal cypher of Princess Anne
The badge of the Cadet Instructors Cadre, with the traditional colours of the Navy, Army and the Air Force. The golden border represents the young people that CIC officers work for.
Used as the ensign of the Royal Canadian Navy and some Royal Canadian Sea Cadets corps. Used throughout the entire British Empire by the Royal Navy and by several former British colonies even after they became independent and established their own navies.
Naval Service of Canada / Royal Canadian Navy (1910–1911, as ensign; 1911-1921 as jack) RCSCC (1910–1922)
The Blue Ensign, worn as ensign then jack by the Naval Service of Canada/Royal Canadian Navy
Blue Ensign defaced with the 1868 Great Seal of Canada. Worn as ensign from 1910 to 1913, then jack from 1913 to 1921, after Navy authorized to fly the British White Ensign.[5][6]
A banner of the arms of the Canadian Coast Guard: vertical diband of white and blue, a red maple leaf emblem charged in the hoist and a pair of dolphins in gold and facing opposite directions charged in the fly. Features current 11-point maple leaf designed by Jacques St-Cyr.[7]
A white field with blue flank/side one third length of flag at the fly; field charged with a red maple leaf emblem and side at fly charged with a pair of heraldic dolphins in gold, one above the other and facing opposite directions.[nb 1] Features original 13-point maple leaf designed by Alan Beddoe.[9]
A white flag with a Union Flag at the canton, with the badge of the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets at the fly. This is the basis of the current flag of the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets.
A banner of the shield of the arms of the Army Cadet League of Canada. According to the heraldic grant, the shield of the arms of the Army Cadet League of Canada is "Argent two swords in saltire Argent fimbriated Gules hilted and pommelled Or surmounted by a maple leaf Gules veined Or all within an orle of twelve maple leaves stems inward Gules."[14] The web site of the Governor General of Canada explains this description as follows: "The white shield, bearing a maple leaf and crossed broad swords, alludes to a central Canadian entity with direct connection to the military. The twelve smaller maple leaves show singleness of purpose but at the Branch level.[14]
Based on the design of Queen's Colour for the Royal Canadian Air Force, with the badge of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets replacing the maple leaf. At the canton, the cypher of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, as former air commodore in chief of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets. On the bottom fly, the first badge of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets, a golden maple leaf above an eagle.
An Air Force blue flag, with the badge of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets and a scroll stating the squadron's name and number (this example, 643 St-Hubert Squadron.
A 1/3 red and 2/3 green flag with the badge of the Junior Canadian Rangers on the fly.
Civil
Flag
Date
Use
Description
1922–1923
Canadian Civil Aviation Ensign, briefly used by the Air Board.
A field of light blue with the Union Flag in the canton and a shield with white albatross superimposed upon three maple leaves in the middle of the fly.
A white field with a royal blue symmetric cross cantoned with four green maple leaves and charged with a golden fleur-de-lis, all enclosed with a dark crimson border. Designed by Maurice Brodeur for the 400th anniversary of Cartier's claiming of Canada for France.[16][17]
1943-present
Flag of the 4-H Clubs of Quebec
A gold field charged with a dark green maple leaf voided by a gold disc inscribed with the numeral '4' and letter 'H' of the dark green of the leaf, all enclosed with a dark green border of the same dark green. Designed by Maurice Brodeur.[18]
A white field party per pale by a bar gemelles and dancetty, a fleur-de-lys and Pacific Dogwood emblem charged in the fly; Dogwood is the floral emblem of British Columbia, the blue stripes evoke the Pacific Ocean and the rising mountains beside, the yellow centre of the Dogwood flower represents the sun
A field party per bend sinister, blue and white, by a bend cotised white and blue with a white fleur-de-lys in the upper hoist and a red wild rose in the lower fly
A blue field and three diagonal stripes set from lower hoist to upper fly. The colours of the stripes are white and golden yellow. The effect created by the arrangement of the stripes is meant to represent Yukon's many mountains. Blue is for the French people and the sky. White is for winter and snow. Yellow represents the gold rush and the Franco-Yukonnais contributions to history of the territory.
1986–present
Flag of the Fédération des Francophones de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador (Franco-Terreneuviens)
Three unequal panels of blue, white, and red, with two yellow sails set on the line between the white and red panels. The sail on top is charged with a spruce twig, while the bottom sail is charged with a pitcher flower.
A polar bear on a snowy hill, looking forward towards a snowflake/Fleur-de-lis combined, representing the French community of the Northwest Territories of Canada.
Blue that represents the Arctic sky and white recalls the snow, abundantly present on the territory. The principal shape represent an igloo, and under this one, the inukshuk which symbolise the human presence. A single dandelion flower grows from beneath it.
Adopted by the Comhairle na Gàidhlig (The Gaelic Council of Nova Scotia), the salmon represents the gift of knowledge in the Gaelic storytelling traditions of Nova Scotia, Scotland and Ireland and the Isle of Man. The "G" represents the Gaelic language and the ripples are the manifestations of the language through its rich culture of song, story, music, dance and custom and belief system.[20]
The red represents blood and sacrifice. The gold conveys cultural richness. The green symbolizes fertility and growth. The black stands for the people.
The wave in the bottom centre has a dual meaning, representing the ocean and movements as well as honouring the journey of African Nova Scotian ancestors through the middle passage during the
slave trade.
On the left is half of a stylized heart (a version of the Sankofa symbol) with a yin and yang-like symbol embedded to represent heartbreak balanced with awareness.
The image is encompassed with an incomplete circle representing those
things absent but yet to come.[21]
United Empire loyalist flag which was similar to the earlier version of the Union Jack but had slight changes in the fimbriation width. The United Empire Loyalists brought this flag to British North America when they left the United States. In present-day Canada, the flag continues to be used as symbol of pride and heritage for loyalist townships and organizations.[27]
1801–1964
Union Flag(1801–1964); Canadian Royal Union Flag (1964–present)
Canadian Red Ensign as authorized for use as a civil ensign through Admiralty warrant. Informal use of the Canadian Red Ensign as a symbol of Canada began as early as 1868.
1907–1922
1907 informal version of the Canadian Red Ensign commonly used in western Canada. Note the inclusion of all the provincial emblems.
1922–1957
1922 version of the Canadian Red Ensign used from 1922 to 1957, which was also used as a de facto national flag.
1957–1965
1957 version of the Canadian Red Ensign that had evolved as the de facto national flag until 1965.
Government ensigns
Flag
Date
Description
Use
1868–1922
A British colonial Blue Ensign defaced with the 1868 Great Seal of Canada
Since Confederation, worn by Canadian federal government ships, including of the Department of Marine and Fisheries, involved in tending lighthouses, performing search and rescue, ice-breaking, resupply of isolated outposts, and other services. Worn by Canadian government warships prior to formation of Naval Service of Canada/Royal Canadian Navy.[32][33] (Also from 1910-1911 as naval ensign, then 1911-1922 as naval jack.)
Used by ships of various Canadian federal departments, including Canadian Marine Service (1959-1962), and Canadian Coast Guard (as ensign) from 1962-1965.[35] (Also as naval jack 1957-1965.)
This flag was created by Marie-Louise Félix, Émilie Berthelot and Marie-Louise-Zéphirine Labrie in 1837, also involved in the Association of Patriotic Ladies of the Deux-Montagnes County. We see a maple branch surmounted by a muskellunge, surrounded by a crown of cone and pine branches. The C would mean "Canada" (in the sense that this term had for the Patriots at the time) and JB would mean "Jean-Baptiste", the patron saint of "Canadians" since the creation of the Société Saint-Jean- Baptiste in 1834. The original is in Château Ramezay, in Montreal.
The proposed flag for the Republic of Lower Canada (1838). It is still used today by some souverainists, in mostly 4 variants: the original, and three versions with the yellow star in the top left corner. Of which, two of them have Henri Julien's Patriot painting of 1904, one in colour and the other stylised in black and white.
A blue-white-red vertical tricolour with two white stars representing the colonies of Upper and Lower Canada and a crescent moon representing the "hunter's clubs" that organized and led the insurrection affixed at the hoist.[37]
Often mistaken as the flag used in the 1885 resistance, the flag used by the Provisional Government of Rupert's Land and the North-West was described in various ways. Most descriptions mention a fleur-de-lys, shamrock and a white background.[38][39]
The day of the provisional government's proclamation, Father Vital Fourmond, a witness, wrote "As a flag [Riel] chose the white flag of ancient France [with a royal blue shield bearing three golden fleurs de lys], saying that he was called to renew its ancient glories. On it he placed a large image of Mary's immaculate heart."[40]
Other
Flag
Date
Use
Description
1827
Flag of the short lived Republic of Madawaska which was situated between Canada and the US.
An unofficial flag of the British Empire featuring symbols of its constituent dominions and India. The Canadian coat of arms are present in the bottom left. It was flown by civilians as a display of patriotism on special occasions such as Empire Day. A surviving specimen from the British Empire Exhibition in 1924 is kept in the Canadian Flag Collection.[42]
A white field with four narrow horizontal stripes at the bottom, blue over green over yellow over gray with a narrow black fimbriation. Toward the fly, the green bar rises to silhouette a hill or island. Toward the hoist is a green, stylized eagle in flight.
Despite not being widely used, the Eagle flag was officially recognized and adopted by the Nova Scotian government in 1994.[43]
A field party per fess, green and yellow, with a red-bordered grey ordinary cross; green represents the region's forests, yellow its agriculture, grey its industry and commerce, and red the vitality of the population
A field tierced per forest green and white, with a green saltire and yellow circle reading "Cape Breton Island" on the top, and "Canada" on the bottom, with a green stylized map of Cape Breton Island in the middle. The green is taken from the island's tartan.
Though being the most commonly used flag it is not the official flag and is disputed by supporters of the officially recognized 1993 flag designed by Kelly Gooding[43]
A Blue Ensign defaced with the great seal of the Colony of Vancouver Island. Used informally today.[44] This unofficial flag was designed in the 1980s to retroactively represent the colony (1849–1866). In 1865 the Crown gave colonies permission to place their badges on the fly of the Blue Ensign; thus vexillologists could argue that this flag is official.[45]
^The official blazon of the jack reads: "Argent senestré Azure on the Argent a maple leaf Gules on the Azure two dolphins naiant Or the lower one contourné."[8]
^"Confirmation of the blazon of a Flag". Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada. Official website of the Governor General. Retrieved 19 March 2025.
^Government of Canada/Gouvernement du Canada. "History of Canadian naval flags". Canada.ca. Government of Canada/Gouvernement du Canada. Retrieved 16 March 2025.
^Canadian Heraldic Authority. "Canadian Coast Guard". The Public Register of Arms, Flags, and Badges of Canada. The Governor General of Canada. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
^McWilliam, Yvonne (November–December 1963). "The Story Behind Our Flags". News on the DOT. 14 (6): 6–8. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
^ abDepartment of National Defence (2001-01-05). A-AD-200-000/AG-000 The Honours, Flags and Heritage Structure of the Canadian Forces Chap 4 Annex A. Directorate of History and Heritage.
^"Fleur-de-lys | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. At the time of New France (1534 to the 1760s), two flags could be viewed as having national status. The first was the banner of France — a blue square flag bearing three gold fleurs-de-lys. It was flown above fortifications in the early years of the colony. For instance, it was flown above the lodgings of Pierre Du Gua de Monts at Île Sainte-Croix in 1604. There is some evidence that the banner also flew above Samuel de Champlain's habitation in 1608. ..... the completely white flag of the French Royal Navy was flown from ships, forts and sometimes at land-claiming ceremonies.
^"INQUINTE.CA | CANADA 150 Years of History ~ The story behind the flag". inquinte.ca. When Canada was settled as part of France and dubbed "New France," two flags gained national status. One was the Royal Banner of France. This featured a blue background with three gold fleurs-de-lis. A white flag of the French Royal Navy was also flown from ships and forts and sometimes flown at land-claiming ceremonies.
^W. Stewart Wallace (1948). The Encyclopedia of Canada, Vol. II, Toronto, University Associates of Canada. pp. 350–351. During the French régime in Canada, there does not appear to have been any French national flag in the modern sense of the term. The "Banner of France", which was composed of fleur-de-lys on a blue field, came nearest to being a national flag, since it was carried before the king when he marched to battle, and thus in some sense symbolized the kingdom of France. During the later period of French rule, it would seem that the emblem...was a flag showing the fleur-de-lys on a white ground.... as seen in Florida. There were, however, 68 flags authorized for various services by Louis XIV in 1661; and a number of these were doubtless used in New France
^McWilliam, Yvonne (November–December 1963). "The Story Behind Our Flags". News on the DOT. 14 (6): 6–8. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
^"History of icebreaking in Canada". Canadian Coast Guard. Government of Canada/Gouvernement du Canada. 16 May 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
^McWilliam, Yvonne (November–December 1963). "The Story Behind Our Flags". News on the DOT. 14 (6): 6–8. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
^McWilliam, Yvonne (November–December 1963). "The Story Behind Our Flags". News on the DOT. 14 (6): 6–8. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
^Begg, Alexander. "The Red River Troubles". The Globe (Letter to the Editor).
^Osler, Edmund Boyd (1961). The Man Who Had to Hang Louis Riel. Longmans Green. p. 69.
^Payment, Diane P (February 2009). "A National Feast Day, a Flag, and Anthem". The Free People - Li Gens Libres: A History of the Métis Community of Batoche, Saskatchewan (2 ed.). Calgary, AB, Canada: University of Calgary Press. ISBN 978-1-55238-239-4.
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