About the Canadian Flag

February 15, 1965 – February 15, 2015

The National Flag of Canada, also known as the Maple Leaf and l'Unifolié (French for "the one-leafed"), is a flag consisting of a red field with a white square at its centre, in the middle of which is featured a stylized, 11-pointed, red maple leaf Adopted in 1965 to replace the Union Flag.

Before 1763

Before 1763, Canada had the Royal Coat of Arms of France, and the pure white flag of the French kings was used in battle.

The Royal Union Flag 1763-1801

After the arrival of the British in the early 1760s, The two-crossed jack or the Royal Union flag (known more commonly as the Union Jack) was used in Canada.

Royal Union Flag (1801 - 1965)

• Following the Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland in 1801, the diagonal Cross of St. Patrick was incorporated with England's St. George's Cross and Scotland's Cross of St. Andrew.

• This gave the Royal Union flag its present-day configuration. This flag was used across British North America and in Canada even after Confederation from 1867 until 1965.

The Red Ensign

By the War of 1812 the Union flag was supplanted by the Red Ensign. Originally a flag of the merchant marine, the Red Ensign became Canada’s Flag by usage rather than official decree.

The Red Ensign (1871-1957)

• The official flag was still the Union Jack• In 1945, a federal Order-in-Council Red

Ensign on all government buildings, both at home and abroad

(1871-1921) (1921-1957)

The Red Ensign (1957-1965)

In 1957, the approved artistic interpretation of Canada’s arms changed the maples leave on the Canadian Red Ensign from green to red.

Canadian Peacekeepers In Egypt

• Canadian peacekeepers were sent to Egypt in 1957 following the Suez canal crisis of 1956.

• Egyptians objected to Canadian troops because they looked too much like British troops.

• One of the reasons was their Union Jack-daubed Red Ensign

The Pearson Pennant

• Prime Minister Lester Pearson had always wanted a flag that had no reference to either Britain or France.

• In June 1964, Pearson introduced his choice for a new flag design – dubbed the “Pearson pennant” into Parliament

Staunch Opposition

• John Diefenbaker was not a fan. Diefenbaker, the Tory Opposition leader, fought bitterly against Lester Pearson's plans to adopt a new flag, even losing a party member in the process.

• Leon Balcer, a Tory MP from Trois-Rivieres, broke ranks with Diefenbaker over the flag and left the party to sit as an Independent.

Quebec

Quebec no fan, either. Liberal MP Pierre Trudeau suggested much of Quebec was apathetic about the flag. "Quebec does not give a tinker's damn about the new flag,'' he said. "It's a matter of complete indifference.''

The Three Finalists 1964

The Red Maple Flag

On January 28, 1965, a royal proclamation was signed, and the red Maple Leaf replaced the Red Ensign on February 15, 1965.