What is the flag of Great Britain called?
Incidentally, the flag is not that of Great Britain… Great Britain has no flag, it is an island comprising of ancient kingdoms and principalities which after a period of a couple of millennia had been distilled into the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England (including the Principality of Wales); each of these constituent parts of the Island of Great Britain has a ‘national’ flag. Northern Ireland, the other constituent part of the UK is on the island of Ireland, and it too has a ‘national flag’. The Union Flag is the official flag (on land) of the United Kingdom.
Whilst commonly called the Union Jack, the national flag when on land, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is correctly called the Union Flag. It is officially only referred to as the Union Jack when flown on the Jack Staff of one of Her Majesties’ Ships of War. The national flag of the UK at sea or on water, is the Red Ensign, a flag of a red field quartered with the Union Flag uppermost in the hoist (top left hand corner). Originally the Red Ensign was one of the Naval Ensigns used to denote the three colours of the Fleet; i.e. Red, White and Blue.
