History of the Union Jack and Flags of the Empire. Barlow Cumberland
field, which form the national flag of Greece (Pl. II. , fig. 3), still preserve the blue and white colours of Bavaria, from whence the Greeks had obtained their first king.
The Tri-colour as displayed by the present Republic in France (Pl. II. II., fig. 6) has been credited with widely differing explanations of its origin, as its plain colours of blue, white and red admit of many different interpretations.
One story of its origin is, that its colours represent those of the three flags which had been carried in succession in the early centuries of the nation. The early kings of France carried the plain blue banner of St. Martin. To this succeeded, in A.D. 1124, the flaming red flag, or Oriflamme, of St. Denis, to be afterwards superseded, in the fifteenth century, by the white "Cornette Blanche," the personal banner of the heroic Joan of Arc.
It was under this royal white flag (Pl. II., fig. 5), bearing upon it the lilies of ancient France, that Cartier, in 1534, had sailed up the St. Lawrence, and Champlain, in 1608, had founded Quebec. Under this flag Canada was colonized; to it belonged the glories of the Jesuit Fathers and Dollard; with it La Salle and Marquette explored the far West, planting three fleur-de-lis as the sign of their discoveries. Under it Frontenac, Montcalm and Levis[4] achieved their renown, and all the annals of early Canada are contained under its régime until, in 1759, after the assault by Wolfe, it was exchanged, at the cession of Quebec, for the British Union Flag.
The tri-colour of Republican France was never carried by the forefathers of the French Canadians of the Province of Quebec, nor has it any connection with the French history of Canada. In fact, it did not make its appearance as an emblem until the time of the revolution in France in 1789, or thirty years after the original French régime in Canada had closed its eventful period.
More detailed evidence of the origin of this flag states that the creation of the tri-colour arose from the incident that, when the revolutionary militia were first assembled in the city of Paris, at the revolution of 1789, they had adopted blue and red, which were the ancient colours of the city of Paris, for the colours of their cockade; between these they placed the white of the soldiery of the Bourbon régime, who afterwards joined their forces, and thus they had combined the blue, white and red in the "tri-colour" as their revolutionary signal.[5]
Whether or not its colours record those of the three ancient monarchical periods, or those of the revolution, the tri-colour as a French ensign for use by the people of France, as their national flag both on land and sea, was not regularly established until a still later period, in 1794. Then it was that the Republican Convention passed the first decree[6] authorizing an ensign and directing that the French national flag (Pl. II. , fig. 6) shall be formed of the three colours placed vertically in equal bands—that next the staff being blue, the centre white, and the fly red.
This was the flag under which Napoleon I. won his greatest victories, both as General and Emperor; but whatever glories may have been won for it by France, yet many years before it had been even designed, or the prowess of Napoleon's armies had created its renown, the French Canadian had been fighting under the Union Jack as his patriotic ensign and adding to the history of its valiant glory by victory won by himself in defence of his own Canadian home.[7] When in Canada the tri-colour is seen flying it is raised solely out of compliment and courtesy to the French-speaking friends in modern France. The fact that the tri-colour has received any acceptance with the French-speaking Canadian may have arisen from the reason that, side by side with the Union Jack, it had participated in all the struggles and glories of the Crimea, when the two flags, the tri-colour and the Union Jack, were raised together above Sebastopol.
It is interesting to note how it is stated to have first arrived.[8] The Canadiens-Français being, by lineage and temperament, Monarchists, had shown no regard or liking for the early Revolutionary and Republican emblem, and had never raised it in Canada.
In 1853, under Victoria and Napoleon III., an entente cordiale had been established between England and France, and in that same year arrangements had been completed with the Allan Line to build new steamers and perform a regular service direct between Liverpool and Montreal. Actuated, no doubt, by the prevailing fervour, they had selected as the distinguishing, or "house," flag of their line one of the same shape and colours as the French flag, but with the broad bands reversed, the red being next the mast instead of the blue as in the French ensign.
In the spring of 1854, as their first steamer was seen entering the St. Lawrence, this flag so nearly resembled the French ensign as to cause surprise to be expressed. "What," said the older heads, "the flag of the Revolution on an English ship!" It was a novel sight, but great were the rejoicings over the establishment of the new line.
Their second ship came in dressed with many French and English flags, for war had been declared by the alliance of England and France against Russia, this being the first announcement in Canada, for there were no telegraph cables in those days.
Following this came the exploits of the allied armies in the Crimea, bringing with them the consequent profusion and intertwining of the English and French flags with which ships and business buildings were decorated to celebrate their combined victories.
Such was the entry of the tri-colour into Canada, not being introduced by the Canadians, speaking French, but by their English friends.
A quaint suggestion has been made to the writer by no less an authority than Sir James Le Moine, the historian of Quebec: "The French Canadian is very partial to display, but is primarily economical. While the simple colours of the tri-colour can be conveniently made by the most inexperienced, the details of the Union Jack are very difficult to cut and to correctly sew together. The bonne mère can easily provide out of her household treasures the materials for the one, but she must purchase the other, and this, therefore, is the reason why the tri-colour is so frequently seen in French-speaking Quebec."
The tri-colour, having never been the flag of his forefathers, carries neither allegiance nor loyalty to the French Canadian. His people have never fought under it, while many a gallant French Canadian son has poured out his blood for the Union Jack at home in defence of Canada or upon foreign shores in service in the British armies. It has never brought him liberty or protection as has his Union Jack, which has been his British flag for a century and a half, and for more than a quarter of a century before the tri-colour of the European French ever came into existence.
Another flag—although it has ceased to be a national flag, and is now the flag of a possession of the United States—should yet be mentioned by reason of the history which was told in its folds.
The Hawaiian national ensign (5) was at first composed of nine horizontal stripes of equal width, alternating white, red and blue, the top stripe being white and the bottom blue.[9]
Afterwards the lowest stripe was taken off and the new flag (Pl. II. , fig. 4) adopted, in which there are eight stripes, the bottom stripe being red and the British Union Jack placed in the upper corner.
The Sandwich Islands, made known to the world mainly by the tragic death of Captain Cook, in 1778, and now known as the Hawaiian Islands, had been fused into a single monarchy by the impetuous valour of King Kamehama, who, in 1794, admitted Christian missionaries to his kingdom. Its existence as an independent monarchy was thereafter maintained and was recognized by the great powers.
Internal difficulties having arisen in the kingdom and an insult been given to a British consul, the islands were ceded and the sovereignty offered to Great Britain in 1843, when, on 12th February, the Union Jack was raised on all the islands, the understanding being that the natives were to be under the protection of the flag of Great Britain, and internal order to be guaranteed