| Name | Royal Standard of Canada |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted | 1962 |
| Design | Shield of the Royal Arms of Canada defaced with the Queen's Royal Cypher. |
The royal standards of Canada are personal standards, or official flags, employed to mark the presence of the bearer at any building or area or aboard any car, ship, or airplane, both in Canada and abroad. There are three royal standards, one each for the monarch, the Prince of Wales, and the Duke of Cambridge. The flags are part of a larger collection of Canadian royal symbols.[1]
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Informally called the Queen's Personal Canadian Flag, this banner was adopted and proclaimed by Queen Elizabeth II in 1962 and is used by her in her capacity as Queen of Canada. Different standards are used by Elizabeth in the other Commonwealth realms.
The flag consists of the escutcheon of the Royal Arms of Canada in banner form and defaced with a variant of the Royal Cypher of Queen Elizabeth II: a blue disk with the initial E crowned, all within a wreath of roses, all gold-coloured. This cypher is taken from the Queen's personal flag.[2] The standard is protected under the Trade-marks Act; section 9(a) states: "No person shall adopt in connection with a business, as a trade-mark or otherwise, any mark consisting of, or so nearly resembling as to be likely to be mistaken for... the Royal Arms, Crest or Standard."[3]
Variants of the Queen's royal standard are used by two other members of the Canadian Royal Family: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge. These banners were developed in 2011 by the Canadian Heraldic Authority, prior to that year's royal tour by the Duke of Cambridge.[4]
| Name | Prince of Wales' Personal Canadian Flag |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted | June 2011 (previewed)[5] |
| Design | Shield of the Royal Arms of Canada defaced by a blue roundel surrounded by a wreath of gold maple leaves, within which is a depiction of the Prince of Wales' feathers, and a white label of three points. |
| Designed by | Canadian Heraldic Authority |
The Royal Standard of Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, informally called the Prince of Wales's Personal Canadian Flag, is the personal standard, or official flag, of Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, in his capacity as first in the line of succession to the Canadian throne. The flag was adopted and proclaimed in 2011.
The Canadian federal government previewed the designs of this flag, and that of the Duke of Cambridge's Personal Canadian Flag, both on June 29, 2011, the day before the 2011 royal tour of Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The Prince's flag will not be flown until a future visit by Charles.[5] Both flags were developed over a three month period by the Canadian Heraldic Authority.[5]
The Queen's Personal Canadian Flag forms the basis for this flag.[5] It consists of the shield of the Canadian Royal Arms defaced with both a blue roundel surrounded by a wreath of gold maple leaves, within which is a depiction of the Prince of Wales' feathers, and a white label of three points, signifying the eldest son of the monarch.
| Name | Duke of Cambridge's Personal Canadian Flag |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 1:2 |
| Adopted | June 30, 2011[5] |
The Duke of Cambridge's Personal Canadian Flag, or the Royal Standard of Prince William in Canada, is the personal standard, or official flag, of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, in his capacity as second in the line of succession, behind his father, to the Canadian throne. The flag was adopted and proclaimed in 2011, in advance of that year's royal tour of Canada by Prince William and his wife.
Simultaneously, the design of Prince of Wales' Personal Canadian Flag was unveiled, to be flown on a future visit.[5] Both were developed over a three month period by the Canadian Heraldic Authority.[5]
The flag was first previewed by the Canadian federal government on June 29, 2011, the day before the 2011 royal tour of Canada by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The flag was first displayed by the Royals in the cockpit of the Canadian Forces plane that the couple traveled on to Canada.[6] According to a press release, "his personal flag will be flown day and night at any building at which he resides and on all vehicles in which he travels."[7]
The Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, said: "We are proud to be once again honouring members of the Royal Family with their own personal flag for use in Canada. The flag is a testament to the special bond between Canada and the Royal Family and pays tribute to our shared history, traditions and institutions. It will be flown with great pride throughout the upcoming Royal Tour by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge."[7]
Prince William's flag consists of the shield of the Canadian Royal Arms defaced with both a blue roundel surrounded by a wreath of gold maple leaves and shells, within which is a depiction William's cypher (a W surmounted by a coronet of his rank), and a white label of three points, charged with a red shell.
The Queen's Personal Canadian Flag forms the basis for this flag, and that of the Prince of Wales.[5]
The Queen's personal Canadian flag is employed only when the Queen is in Canada or is attending an event abroad as the Canadian head of state; for example, the flag was unfurled at Juno Beach in France when the Queen was present there for commemorations of the Normandy Landings. The flag must be broken immediately upon the sovereign's arrival and lowered directly after her departure from any building, ship, aircraft, or other space or vehicle.[8] On land, as per Department of National Defence protocol, the Queen's standard must be flown from a flagpole bearing as a pike head the crest of the Canadian royal arms.[9] As the monarch is the personification of the Canadian state, her banner also takes precedence above all other flags in Canada, including the national flag and those of the other members of the Canadian Royal Family, and is never flown at half-mast.[8]
No other person may use the flag; the Queen's federal representative, the governor general, possesses a unique personal flag, as does each of the monarch's provincial viceroys. Flags are kept at the Queen's Canadian residence, Rideau Hall, and supplied to Department of Canadian Heritage royal visit staff by the household staff prior to the Queen's arrival.[8]
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