Grand Union Flag

Grand Union Flag
The Continental Colors
(Grand Union flag)
A replica flag flying outside San Francisco City Hall
"First National Flag", School Text, A Brief History of the United States, 1880

The Grand Union Flag (also the Continental Colors, the Congress Flag, the Cambridge Flag, and the First Navy Ensign) is considered to be the first national flag of the United States. This flag consisted of 13 red and white stripes with the British Union Flag of the time (prior to the inclusion of St. Patrick's cross of Ireland) in the canton.

In the first year of the American War for Independence, the Continental Congress authorized the creation of a navy. A new flag was required representing the Congress and fledgling nation, and distinguishing from the Red Ensign flying from British vessels.

The Continental Colours were first hoisted on the Alfred, in Philadelphia on December 2, 1775, by Lt. John Paul Jones. The event had been documented in letters to Congress.[1] The Continental Colors were used by the American Continental forces as both naval ensign and garrison flag through 1776 and early 1777.

It is not known for certain when, or by whom, the Continental Colors' design was created, though the flag could easily be produced by adding white stripes to the previous British Red Ensigns.[2] The Alfred flag has been credited to Margaret Manny.[3]

It was widely believed that the flag was raised by George Washington's army on New Year's Day 1776 at Prospect Hill in Charlestown (now part of Somerville), near his headquarters at Cambridge, Massachusetts, and that the flag was interpreted by British observers as a sign of surrender.[4] Some scholars dispute this traditional account, concluding that the flag raised at Prospect Hill was likely a British union flag. [5]

The name "Grand Union" is contemporary to Reconstruction-era historians, having been first applied to the Continental Colors by George Preble in his 1872 History of the American Flag.[6]

The design of the Grand Union flag is similar to the flag of the British East India Company (BEIC). Indeed, certain BEIC designs in use since 1707 (when the canton was changed from the flag of England to that of Great Britain) were nearly identical, though the number of stripes varied from 9 to 15. That BEIC flags were potentially well known by the American colonists has been the basis of a theory of the origin of the Grand Union flag's design.[7]

The Flag Act of 1777 authorized a new official national flag of a design similar to that of the Colors, with thirteen stars (representing the thirteen States) on a field of blue replacing the British Union flag in the canton. The combined crosses in the union flag symbolized the union of the kingdoms of England and Scotland; the symbolism of a union of equal parts was retained in the new American flag.

References

  1. ^ Delegates to Congress . Letters of delegates to Congress, 1774-1789, Volume 2, September 1775-December 1775
  2. ^ Ansoff (2006)
  3. ^ Leepson, 51
  4. ^ Preble (1880) p. 218
  5. ^ Ansoff (2006)
  6. ^ Ansoff (2006)
  7. ^ see Fawcett (1937)
  • Ansoff, Peter. (2006). The Flag on Prospect Hill. Raven: A Journal of Vexillology, 13, 77–100, ISSN 1071-0043, LCCN 94-220
  • Fawcett, Charles. (1937). Mariners Mirror, October. The Striped Flag of the East India Company, and its Connexion with the American "Starts and Stripes".
  • Hamilton, Schuyler. (1853). History of the National Flag of the United States of America
  • Leepson, Marc Flag: An American Biography 2004. ISBN 0-312-32308-5
  • Preble, George Henry. (1880). History of the Flag of the United States of America
  • Grand Union Flag at Flags of the World

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Grand Union Flag — Le Grand Union Flag Le Grand Union Flag, aussi connu sous les noms de Congress flag, the First Navy Ensign, the Cambridge Flag, et the Continental Colors, est traditionnellement considéré comme le premier drapeau national des États Unis. Il était …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Grand Union Flag — ▪ historical United States flag also called  Great Union Flag, or Cambridge Flag,         American colonial banner first displayed by George Washington on Jan. 1, 1776. It showed the British Union Flag of 1606 in the canton. Its field consisted… …   Universalium

  • Grand Union — may refer to: * Grand Union (dance group), a New York dance group * The Grand Union Canal in England * The Grand Union Flag, the first flag of the United States * Skewbald (band), a band also known as Skewbald/Grand Union * Grand Union (stores),… …   Wikipedia

  • Union Flag — Union Jack[1] Vexillologisches Symbol …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Union flag (disambiguation) — Union flag may refer to:* Flag of the African Union * Flag of the European Union * Flag of the Kalmar Union * Flag of the Soviet Union * Flag of the United Kingdom * Grand Union Flag, the first national flag of the United States of America *… …   Wikipedia

  • Union Flag — The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Historically, the flag was used throughout the former British Empire. It retains an official or semi official status… …   Wikipedia

  • Grand union — This article is about a type of tram/railway junction. For the canal, see Grand Union Canal, for the supermarket, see Grand Union (stores), for the rail operator, see Grand Union Railway, for the flag, see Grand Union Flag. A grand union is a… …   Wikipedia

  • Flag of the United States — American Flag redirects here. For the Arizona ghost town, see American Flag, Arizona. Flag of Columbia redirects here. For the flag of the South American country, see Flag of Colombia. Flag of the United States of America Name …   Wikipedia

  • Union Square (Somerville) — Coordinates: 42°22′47″N 71°05′47″W / 42.3797°N 71.0964°W / 42.3797; 71.0964 …   Wikipedia

  • Flag of the United States Marine Corps — Official Colors of the Marine CorpsThe Flag of the United States Marine Corps (also known as a standard or battle color) is scarlet with the Corps emblem in gray and gold. It was adopted on January 18, 1939, although Marine Corps Order 4 had… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”