Flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1801)

The Union Flag or Union Jack of Great Britain is one of the most famous and recognisable flags in the world. It was officially adopted on the 1st of January 1801 and has remained in constant use since then.

The Union Flag symbolises three countries united under one Sovereign and is a combination of their heraldic flags: England - the red cross on a white field of St George, Scotland - the white diagonal cross on a blue field of St Andrew and Ireland - the red diagonal cross on a white field of St Patrick.

The first Union Flag dates from 1606; it combined the flags of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland. The inclusion of Ireland's flag of St Patrick, in 1801, completed the Union Flag as we know it today.

Wales has no representation in the flag because it had already been united with England by the time the first Union Flag was formed in 1606.

The Symbolic Meaning

The centrally placed red cross outlined in white is the red cross of St George, the patron saint of England and represents England and Wales. 

The white diagonal cross on a blue field is the cross of St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland and represents Scotland.

The red diagonal cross on a white field is the cross of St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. When the cross of St Patrick was introduced in 1801, it represented all of Ireland. 

However, early in the 1920s most of Ireland became a free state and since then it has only represented Northern Ireland.