Australian National Flag Day has been celebrated in Australia since 3 September 1996. It commemorates the day in 1901 on which the

Australian National Flag The national flag of Australia is based on the British Blue Ensign—a blue field with the Union Jack in the upper hoist quarter—augmented with a large white seven-pointed star (the Commonwealth Star) and a representation of the Crux, Southe ...

was first flown. Since 2008, the same day has also been commemorated as Merchant Navy Day, which allows the

Australian Red Ensign The Australian red ensign is the civil ensign of Australia, the flag of nationality flown by Australian registered ships. It is a red version of the national flag, which is mainly blue. Both flags resulted from the Commonwealth Government's 19 ...

to be flown on land on the occasion. It is not a

public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, federal holiday, statutory holiday, bank holiday or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Types Civic holiday A ''civic holiday'', also k ...

, nor widely celebrated by the public.

Background

On 3 September 1901, Prime Minister

Edmund Barton Sir Edmund "Toby" Barton (18 January 18497 January 1920) was an Australian politician, barrister and jurist who served as the first prime minister of Australia from 1901 to 1903. He held office as the leader of the Protectionist Party, before ...

announced the winners of the official

1901 Federal Flag Design Competition The 1901 Federal Flag Design Competition was an Australian government initiative announced by Prime Minister of Australia, Prime Minister Edmund Barton to find a flag for the newly federated Commonwealth of Australia. In terms of its essential ...

, and a large flag, , was flown over the dome of the

Royal Exhibition Building The Royal Exhibition Building is a World Heritage Site, UNESCO World Heritage-listed building in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, built in 1879–1880 as part of the international exhibition movement, which presented over 50 exhibitions between ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

. The idea of an annual day specifically celebrating the Australian National Flag dates from 1984. In that year the New South Wales branch of the

Australian National Flag Association The Australian National Flag Association (ANFA) is an organisation that promotes the use of the current Australian National Flag and opposes any changes to it. ANFA was formed at a public meeting held in Sydney on 5 October 1983 to oppose suggesti ...

(ANFA) arranged for 3 September to be observed as "Australian National Flag Day" at a public ceremony held in

Hyde Park, Sydney Hyde Park, Sydney, is an urban park, of , located in the Sydney central business district, central business district of Sydney, in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest public parkland in Aust ...

. The official centenary of federation flag raising event was held at the national maritime museum in 2001. On 28 August 1996, the Governor-General of Australia, Sir

William Deane Sir William Patrick Deane, (born 4 January 1931) is an Australian barrister and jurist who served as the 22nd governor-general of Australia, in office from 1996 to 2001. He was previously a Justice of the High Court of Australia from 1982 to ...

, issued a proclamation that officially established 3 September as Australian National Flag Day. Since 2008, 3 September has also been officially commemorated as Merchant Navy Day which allows the Australian Red Ensign to be flown on land for the occasion as a matter of protocol. Merchant Navy Day is an official recognition of the merchant navy's contribution in wartime, in particular the Pacific campaign in World War II.

Observances and traditions

On Flag Day 1996 an official ceremony took place during the long running event held at Martin Place Amphitheatre in the centre of Sydney. On that occasion

David Jull David Francis Jull (4 October 1944 – 13 September 2011) was an Australian politician. He was a long-serving Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the Division of Bowman, Queensland, from 1975 to 1983 and F ...

, Minister for Administrative Services, made a commemorative address reading a message from the Prime Minister,

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. His eleven-year tenure as prime min ...

, welcoming the proclamation of 3 September as Australian National Flag Day. He then presented the ANFA with a copy of the proclamation signed by Sir William Deane.

References

{{reflist

External links

Australian Flag Society

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Flags of Australia September observances Observances in Australia Spring (season) in Australia