Back when I lived there, It was called Dominion Day.
I was in high school when the pictured flag was adopted. The former flag was called The Red Ensign, and consisted of the Union Jack in the upper left corner, on a red field, with the Canadian Coat of Arms in the lower right.
My dad always saw himself as an Englishman first, and Canadian, second. Mom, too, really, though to a lesser extent, as she was raised in Canada. They both deplored the change in flags, and saw it (rightly so) as a step to total independence from England.
That independence was not achieved until 1982, according to this article in Wikipedia. I was down here by then, and missed all the fun.
Anyway, the simple flag adopted back in 1965 or '66, is a recognizable symbol of Canada in a way that the Red Ensign could have never been.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_flag
ReplyDeleteRonni, did you know that The Red Ensign was never officially approved by government hence was never our official national flag? ["The Canadian Red Ensign had been unofficially used since the 1890s and was approved by a 1945 Order-in-Council for use "wherever place or occasion may make it desirable to fly a distinctive Canadian flag".]
So, while The Red Ensign was approved for use on certain occasions, in 1965, the Maple Leaf officially replaced the Union Jack. ["Its adoption in 1965 marked the first time a national flag had been officially adopted to replace the Union Flag."]
What spurred me on to look this up was the fact I could never recall anything but the Union Jack being used at government functions. In fact, I can't ever recall even seeing The Red Ensign until today.
Happy 141st Birthday, Canada!
I didn't know that! It was everywhere, though, and I'm sure most folks thought it was official...
ReplyDeleteI was raised on the east coast - I truly never remember seeing The Red Ensign -- maybe it was an east/west thing? The flag over our post office was the Union Jack and it was used at all school functions too -- as was singing God Save the Queen.
ReplyDeleteI learned something new today tho:)