Editing Union Jack (section)

===Canada===
{{further|List of Canadian flags}}
[[File:North-West Mounted Police standing next to American and British flags marking the boundary between Alaska and British Columbia (HEGG 446).jpeg|thumb|The Union Flag and the [[flag of the United States|U.S. flag]] at the [[Canada–United States border|Canada-U.S. border]], 1899. The Union Flag was the formal flag of Canada until 1965.]]
The Union Jack was the official national [[flag of Canada]] until 1965 when it was replaced in that role by the Maple Leaf flag.<ref name=pch>{{cite web|url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-history.html|title=History of the National Flag of Canada|publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage|access-date=27 November 2019|date=4 February 2019|website=canada.ca|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190912202105/https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-history.html|archive-date=12 September 2019}}</ref><ref name=can3>{{cite web|url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-etiquette/foreign-flags.html#a1|title=The Royal Union Flag|publisher=Government of Canada|work=www.canada.ca|access-date=5 March 2020|date=8 May 2018}}</ref> Since 1965, the Union Jack in Canada is used as an authorised symbol to represent Canada's "membership in the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] and its allegiance to [[the Crown]]".<ref name=ruf2>{{cite web|url=https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/military-identity-system/heritage-manual/chapter-4/section-8.html|title=Section 8: Other Flags|publisher=Department of National Defence|access-date=27 November 2019|date=4 February 2019|website=canada.ca|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200122141521/https://www.canada.ca/en/services/defence/caf/military-identity-system/heritage-manual/chapter-4/section-8.html|archive-date=22 January 2020}}</ref>

====History====
The Union Jack has been used in a variety of colonies in [[British North America]] since its official adoption in 1707, In 1867, the British North American colonies of [[New Brunswick]], [[Nova Scotia]], and the [[Province of Canada]] were united to form the [[Canadian Confederation]]; with the Union Jack being retained as the official flag of the new "confederation".<ref name=pch/>

In addition to the Union Jack, during the late 19th century, a red ensign defaced with the [[arms of Canada]] was also used as an informal flag of Canada. The defaced red ensign, later known as the [[Canadian Red Ensign]], was eventually authorised for official use as the country's civil ensign in 1892. Although the Canadian Red Ensign was only formally authorised as a civil ensign, it was also viewed as a ''de facto'' national flag, as it was a uniquely Canadian symbol.<ref name=pch/>
[[File:VE Day celebrations on Bay Street 1945.jpg|thumb|left|[[VE Day]] celebrations in [[Toronto]] in 1945, with several buildings flying the Union Jack and several people waving the flag.]]
In 1964, Canadian Prime Minister [[Lester B. Pearson]] introduced plans to replace the Union Flag with a new national flag, spurring the [[Great Canadian flag debate]].<ref name=pch/> A new national flag, the ''Maple Leaf'', was approved by the [[parliament of Canada]] on 17 December 1964.<ref name=pch/> However, on the following day, the Canadian parliament passed another resolution that designated the Union Flag as the ''Royal Union Flag'' and authorised its official use as the symbol of the country's membership in the Commonwealth of Nations and its allegiance to the Crown.<ref name=ruf2/> On 15 February 1965, the maple leaf flag formally replaced the Union Flag as the flag of Canada following an official proclamation by [[Elizabeth II]],<ref name=pch/> with the Royal Union Flag becoming an official ceremonial flag.<ref name=ruf2/>

The Union Flag was also legislated as the national flag for the [[Dominion of Newfoundland]] in 1931, a separate [[dominion]] of the British Empire. [[Newfoundland and Labrador|Newfoundland]] retained the Union Flag as a provincial flag after it joined the Canadian confederation in 1949, reaffirmed through the 1952 Revised Statutes of Newfoundland. In 1980, the [[Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador|flag of Newfoundland]] was adopted as the new provincial flag, with the design for the new flag of Newfoundland being derived from the Union Flag.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/society/post-confederation-flags.php|website=www.heritage.nf.ca|publisher=Heritage Newfoundland and Labrador|title=Post-Confederation Flags|access-date=17 November 2024|year=2024}}</ref>

====Protocol====
[[File:Ottawa on Commonwealth Day (March 14) 2022.jpg|thumb|upright|left|The Royal Union Flag flown in [[Ottawa]] during [[Commonwealth Day]], 2022]]
The parliamentary resolution passed on 18 December 1964 assigned two purposes for the Royal Union Flag: a flag representing the United Kingdom and an official ceremonial flag of Canada.<ref name=can3/> When used to represent the United Kingdom, the flag takes precedence before the flag of a Canadian province or territory. However, when the flag is used as a ceremonial flag of Canada, the flag of a Canadian province or territory takes precedence before the Royal Union Flag.<ref name=can3/>

The parliamentary resolution requires the Royal Union Flag to be flown alongside the national flag of Canada (if there are at least two flag poles available) on federal properties on [[Commonwealth Day]], [[Victoria Day]] (the [[King's Official Birthday#Canada|monarch's official birthday]] in Canada), 11 December (the anniversary of the enactment of the [[Statute of Westminster 1931|Statute of Westminster, 1931]]), and when otherwise instructed to do so by the [[National Defence Headquarters]].<ref name=ruf2/><ref name=can3/> The Royal Union Flag may also be formally flown alongside the flag of Canada at federal locations in Canada for ceremonies, anniversaries, and other events relating to the [[Canadian Armed Forces]] or other forces in the Commonwealth.<ref name=ruf2/><ref name=can3/>
[[File:Hartland covered bridge 2008.jpg|thumb|The Royal Union Flag atop the [[Hartland Covered Bridge]]. It is positioned right of the national and provincial flags, per protocol.]]
Items and properties that the parliamentary resolution applies to includes buildings operated by the federal government, military installations, federally-operated airports, at the masthead of [[Royal Canadian Navy]] ships within Canadian waters, and other appropriate establishments. The requirement for federal properties to fly the Royal Union Flag applies only when there are two or more flagpoles on the property, to ensure that the national flag of Canada is not taken down in place of the Royal Union Flag.<ref name=ruf2/><ref name=can3/><ref>{{cite web|author=Evan Dyer |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/we-stand-on-guard-for-whom-union-jack-at-crossing-sends-mixed-message-1.2648862 |title=We Stand on Guard for Whom? Union Jack at crossing sends mixed message – Ottawa – CBC News |website=Cbc.ca |access-date=3 December 2015}}</ref>