The Red Ensign or "Red Duster" is a flag that originated in the early 17th century as an English ensign flown by the Royal Navy and later specifically by British Merchant Seamen (The British Merchant Navy). The precise date of its first appearance is not known, but surviving receipts indicate that the Navy was paying to have such flags sewn during the 1620s. It is currently used as the civil ensign of the United Kingdom.
Read more about Red Ensign: History, Australia, Bermuda, Canada, India, Isle of Man, Newfoundland, New Zealand, South Africa, The Scout Association, Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States
Famous quotes containing the words red and/or ensign:
“The poppy that my heart was,
formed to bind all mortals,
made to strike and gather hearts
like flame upon an altar,
fades and shrinks, a red leaf
drenched and torn in the cold rain.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)
“Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;”
—Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809–1894)