FLAG, in the marine, a certain banner or standard, by which an admiral is distinguished at sea from the inferior ships of his squadron; also the colours by which one nation is distinguished from another. See Plate CCXVIII.
In the British navy, flags are either red, white, or blue; and are displayed from the top of the main-mast, fore-mast, or mizen-mast, according to the rank of the admiral. When a flag is displayed from the flag-staff on the main-mast, the officer distinguished thereby is known to be an admiral; when from the fore-mast, a vice-admiral; and when from the mizen-mast a rear admiral.
The first flag in Great Britain is the royal standard, which is only to be hoisted when the king or queen are on board the vessel: the second is that of the anchor of hope, which characterizes the lord high admiral, or lords commissioners of the admiralty; and the third is the union flag, in which the crosses of St George and
St Andrew are blended. This last is appropriated to the admiral of the fleet, who is the first military officer under the lord high admiral.
The next flag after the union is that of the white squadron at the main-mast head; and the last, which characterizes an admiral, is the blue, at the same mast head.
For a vice-admiral, the first flag is the red, the second the white, the third the blue, at the flag staff on the fore-mast.
The same order proceeds with regard to the rear admirals, whose flags are hoisted on the top of the mizen-mast: the lowest flag in our navy is accordingly the blue on the mizen-mast.