Flag of England: what is its history?

A England's flag It is one of the national symbols of that country. It is represented by a rectangle on a white background with a red cross stamped on it, called the Cruz de São Jorge.

The elements of the English flag were united with those of the Scottish flag to give rise to the first flag of the UK, in the year 1606, and remains today in the current configuration of the symbol of that political union.

Read too: What is the difference between United Kingdom, England and Great Britain?

Topics of this article

  • 1 - Summary about the flag of England
  • 2 - Meaning of the flag of England
  • 3 - Differences between the flag of England and the flag of the United Kingdom
  • 4 - History of the flag of England
  • 5 - England
  • 6 - Curiosities about England

Summary about the flag of England

  • The flag of England is represented by a white background on which the Cross of Saint George is stamped in red, in reference to the patron saint of the country.

  • The flag of the United Kingdom, known as the Union Jack, is formed by the combination of symbols that represent all the countries that make up this political union.

  • The Cross of Saint George has already been used to identify soldiers in battles and also the ships of the English navy.

England flag meaning

The flag of England represents the Cross of Saint George, considered the patron saint of the country since at least the fourteenth century. In addition to being official as the patron saint of England, the figure of Saint George is attributed to the protection of soldiers, which is based both on the heroic stories behind of the figure of this saint and in the use of a symbol similar to the one stamped on the English flag by the country's soldiers during the Third Crusade movement in the 17th century XII.

A white rectangle with the design of a cross made of red stripes represents the flag of England. In this national symbol, the white color carries the meaning of peace. The color red represents bravery and courage.

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Differences between the flag of England and the flag of the United Kingdom

The flag of the United Kingdom is known as the Union Jack, or Union Flag. It is a symbol that represents all countries that are part of of that state sovereignO, that are:

  • England;

  • Scotland;

  • Northern Ireland;

  • Wales.

It was initially composed of junction of the crosses of Saint Andrew, symbol of Scotland, and Saint George, which represents England. At the time of its formation, in 1606, it also represented Wales, which then formed a political union with the English territory. The Scottish cross is represented diagonally on a blue background, which is where this color in the flag of the United Kingdom derives from.

In the year 1801, after the union of the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, the St Patrick's cross was incorporated into the flag of the United Kingdom, which is a diagonal red cross, representing Northern Ireland. In this way, the current configuration of the flag of the United Kingdom was arrived at, which we can see in the image below.

UK flag in front of the Palace of Westminster
The flag of the United Kingdom represents the union of the national symbols of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

History of the Flag of England

There is, in the literature, some difficulty in determining what are the origins of the symbol present on the flag of England and what actually determined its use. In addition, the red cross is widely used on flags of other nations, entities and territories that are not restricted to European continent.

To the legendsabout Saint George and its religious representativeness are incorporated by several matrices of beliefs around the world, including in Brazil. It is believed that he was a Roman soldier who was born in what is now Turkey and lived between the years 280 and 303 of the Modern Era. He was killed on April 23, 303, because of his refusal to renounce Christianity, his religion, in the midst of persecution ordered by the Roman Emperor Diocletian.

The main story about the adoption of the so-called Cross of Saint George tells that it initially occurred with the beginning of England's participation in the Wcrosses, in the twelfth century, and with the use that King Henry II made of this symbol. In the 13th century, this same cross was used to identify English soldiers during the Battle of Evesham.

Furthermore, Saint George became an important figure for England with King Edward III, who attributed to him a military victory won by the country and named him patron saint of the Order of the Garter, in the 14th century. The cross was more widely used from then on, being used as a royal maritime ensign in the 16th century. From 1606, the symbol was incorporated into the cross of Saint Andrew and gave rise to the flag of the United Kingdom.

Read too: Big Ben — the story of one of London's most famous postcards

England

England is one nation belonging to the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, the largest island on the European continent, and its capital is the city of London. It is there where the Industrial Revolution began in the 18th century, and currently the country is considered the economic and financial center of the United Kingdom, with a strong economy based notably on the tertiary sector, with great emphasis on banking services and financial.

Around 84% of the entire UK population lives in England, which is equivalent to 56.5 million inhabitants. The country is very culturally rich, with a wide tradition in various sectors of the arts, such as the arts plastic arts, literature and music, being the place of origin of great renowned personalities International.

Although the population has ample infrastructure and a good quality of life index in the country, which includes its cultural options, the England has the highest cost of living in the UK.

Read too: Princess Diana — the third most influential woman in the English monarchy

Facts about England

  • It is the largest country in the United Kingdom by area and population. It houses the headquarters of monarchy british.

  • England, along with the United Kingdom, formally left the European Union in 2020. The outgoing movement became known as Brexit.

  • The country has a physical connection with France through the Eurotunnel, an underwater tunnel that passes under the English Channel.

  • Football is an English sport.

  • Per capita consumption of tea by the British is higher than anywhere else in the world, but it has been falling in recent years.

By Paloma Guitarrara
Geography Teacher

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Do you know the difference between United Kingdom, England and Great Britain? Read and find out!

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