flag of Canada

{{about|the national flag of Canada|other Canadian flags|Flags of Canada}}

{{Infobox flag

| Name = Canada

| Image = Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg

| Nickname = The Canadian Flag

{{hlist|The Maple Leaf|{{lang|fr|l'Unifolié}} (French)}}

| Use = 111110

| Symbol = {{FIAV|111110}} {{FIAV|normal}} {{FIAV|Vertical normal}}

| Proportion = {{ratio|1:2}}

| Adoption = {{start date and age|1965|2|15}}

| Design = A vertical triband of red (hoist-side and fly-side) and white (double width) with one red maple leaf centred on the white band.

| Designer = George F. G. Stanley

}}

The National Flag of Canada ({{langx|fr|Drapeau national du Canada}}),{{Cite web |date=September 11, 2017 |title=National flag of Canada |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/services/culture/canadian-identity-society/anthems-symbols/national-flag.html |publisher=Government of Canada}} often referred to simply as the Canadian flag, consists of a red field with a white square at its centre in the ratio of {{ratio|1:2:1}}, in which is featured one stylized, red, 11-pointed maple leaf charged in the centre.{{harvnb|Matheson|1980}}, p. 177 It is the first flag to have been adopted by both houses of Parliament and officially proclaimed by the Canadian monarch as the country's official national flag.{{Cite web|date=August 28, 2017 |title=The history of the National Flag of Canada |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-history.html |publisher=Government of Canada}} The flag has become the predominant and most recognizable national symbol of Canada.

In 1964, Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson formed a committee to resolve the ongoing issue of the lack of an official Canadian flag, sparking a debate about a flag change to replace the Union Flag. Out of three choices, the maple leaf design by Mount Allison University historian George Stanley,{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/the-stanley-flag/|author=Richard Foot|title=The Stanley Flag|encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia|date=February 13, 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725140437/http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/the-stanley-flag/|archive-date=July 25, 2017}} based on the flag of the Royal Military College of Canada, was selected. The flag officially appeared on February 15, 1965; the date is now celebrated annually as National Flag of Canada Day.

Before 1965, the Canadian Red Ensign had been in unofficial use since the 1860s and was later officially approved by a 1945 Order in Council for use "wherever place or occasion may make it desirable to fly a distinctive Canadian flag".{{cite book|title=Historical documents of Canada|editor=Stacey, C. P.|publisher=St. Martin's Press|location=New York City|year=1972|volume=5|page=28|chapter=19. Order in Council on the Red Ensign, 1945|isbn=0-7705-0861-8}}{{cite web|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df5-eng.cfm|title=First "Canadian flags"|date=September 24, 2007|publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220170258/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df5-eng.cfm|archive-date=December 20, 2008}} Also, the Royal Union Flag remains an official flag in Canada, to symbolize Canada's allegiance to the monarch and membership in the Commonwealth of Nations.{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/royal-union-flag-union-jack |author=Ken Reynolds|title=Royal Union Flag (Union Jack)|encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia|date= April 21, 1965}} There is no law dictating how the national flag is to be treated, but there are conventions and protocols to guide how it is to be displayed and its place in the order of precedence of flags, which gives it primacy over the aforementioned and most other flags.

Many different flags created by Canadian officials, government bodies, and military forces contain the maple leaf motif in some fashion, either by having the Canadian flag charged in the canton or by including maple leaves in the design. The Canadian flag also appears on the government's wordmark.

Origins and design

File:Flag of Canada (construction sheet - leaf geometry).svg

The flag is horizontally symmetric, so the obverse and reverse sides appear identical. The width of the Maple Leaf flag is twice the height. The white field is a Canadian pale (a central band occupying half the width of a vertical triband flag, rather than a third of the width, named for its use in this flag);{{cite web|url =https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/vxt-dvc1.html#canadianpale|title = Dictionary of Vexillology|first = Phil|last = Nelson|date = January 2, 2010|work= Flags Of The World website|at= CANADIAN PALE }} each bordering red field is exactly half its size{{cite web|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df11-eng.cfm |publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage |title=The National Flag of Canada: Colours Specification |date=January 1, 2003 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220170248/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df11-eng.cfm |archive-date=December 20, 2008 }} and it bears a stylized red maple leaf at its centre. In heraldic terminology, the flag's blazon as outlined on the original royal proclamation is "gules on a Canadian pale argent a maple leaf of the first".{{cite web| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1385134851075| publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage| title=Description of the Proclamation by Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second which formalized the National Flag of Canada in 1965| date=December 13, 2013| access-date=February 15, 2015| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150215172105/http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1385134851075| archive-date=February 15, 2015}}{{refn|The flag was later registered with the Canadian Heraldic Authority on March 15, 2005 as "Gules on a Canadian pale Argent a maple leaf Gules".{{cite web| url=http://reg.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=462| title=Registration of the National Flag of Canada| date=March 15, 2005| work=The Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=May 18, 2010| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160727211226/http://reg.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=462| archive-date=July 27, 2016| df=mdy-all}}}}

The maple leaf has been a Canadian emblem since the 19th century.{{cite book|author=James Minahan|title=The Complete Guide to National Symbols and Emblems: Volume 2|year= 2009|publisher=Greenwood Press|isbn=978-0-313-34500-5|page=17}} It was first used as a national symbol in 1868 when it appeared on the coat of arms of both Ontario and Quebec.{{cite book|author1=Jeanette Hanna|author2=Alan C. Middleton|title=Ikonica: A Field Guide to Canada's Brandscape|url=https://archive.org/details/ikonicafieldguid0000hann|url-access=registration|year=2008|publisher=Douglas & McIntyre|isbn=978-1-55365-275-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/ikonicafieldguid0000hann/page/79 79]–}} In 1867, Alexander Muir composed the patriotic song "The Maple Leaf Forever", which became an unofficial anthem in English-speaking Canada.{{cite book|author=Caren Irr|title=The Suburb of Dissent: Cultural Politics in the United States and Canada During the 1930s|url=https://archive.org/details/suburbofdissentc0000irrc|url-access=registration|year=1998|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=0-8223-2192-0|page=[https://archive.org/details/suburbofdissentc0000irrc/page/69 69]}} The maple leaf was later added to the Canadian coat of arms in 1921. From 1876 until 1901, the leaf appeared on all Canadian coins and remained on the penny after 1901.{{cite book|author=W. K. Cross|title=Canadian Coins: Collector and Maple Leaf Issues|year=2011|publisher=Charlton Press|isbn=978-0-88968-342-6|page=intro}} The use of the maple leaf by the Royal Canadian Regiment as a regimental symbol extended back to 1860.{{cite book|author=Tim Herd|title=Maple Sugar: From Sap to Syrup: The History, Lore, and How-To Behind This Sweet Treat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lxFBT5mLhJkC&pg=PA69|year=2012|publisher=Storey Publishing, LLC|isbn=978-1-61212-211-3|page=69|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704222522/http://books.google.com/books?id=lxFBT5mLhJkC&pg=PA69|archive-date=July 4, 2014}} During the First and Second World Wars, badges of the Canadian forces were often based on a maple leaf design.{{cite book|author=J. L. Granatstein|title=Canada's Army: Waging War and Keeping the Peace|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z7E-j1UWuOMC&pg=PA39|year=2011|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=978-1-4426-1178-8|page=39|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704223418/http://books.google.com/books?id=z7E-j1UWuOMC&pg=PA39|archive-date=July 4, 2014}} The maple leaf would eventually adorn the tombstones of Canadian military graves.{{cite web|url=http://canadianmilitaryhistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Understanding-the-Cemeteries-and-Monuments.pdf|title=Understanding the Cemeteries and Monuments|publisher=Canadian Military History (Wilfrid Laurier University)|year=2005|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140418233747/http://canadianmilitaryhistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Understanding-the-Cemeteries-and-Monuments.pdf|archive-date=April 18, 2014}}

{{Multiple image|total_width = 270

| direction = horizontal

| image1 = Arms of Ontario.svg

| alt1 =

| caption1 = Arms of Ontario

| image2 = Coat of arms of Québec (1867-1939).svg

| alt2 =

| caption2 = Arms of Quebec

| footer = Maple leaves have been used on the arms of Ontario and Quebec since 1868.

}}

By proclaiming the Royal Arms of Canada, King George V in 1921 made red and white the official colours of Canada; the former came from Saint George's Cross and the latter from the French royal emblem since King Charles VII.{{cite web| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df3-eng.cfm| publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage| title=Birth of the Canadian flag| access-date=December 16, 2008| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100224005050/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df3-eng.cfm| archive-date=February 24, 2010| df=mdy-all}} These colours became "entrenched" as the national colours of Canada upon the proclamation of the Royal Standard of Canada (the Canadian monarch's personal flag) in 1962.{{cite book| last=Tidridge| first=Nathan| title=Canada's Constitutional Monarchy| editor-last=Thompson| editor-first=Allister| page=222| publisher=Dundurn Press| location=Toronto| year=2011| isbn=9781554889808}} The Department of Canadian Heritage has listed the various colour shades for printing ink that should be used when reproducing the Canadian flag; these include:

FIP red: General Printing Ink, No. 0-712;
Inmont Canada Ltd., No. 4T51577;
Monarch Inks, No. 62539/0
Rieger Inks, No. 25564
Sinclair and Valentine, No. RL163929/0.

The number of points on the leaf has no special significance;{{cite web| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df7-eng.cfm| publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage| title=You were asking...| access-date=April 13, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430022232/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df7-eng.cfm|archive-date=April 30, 2010|url-status=dead}} the number and arrangement of the points were chosen after wind tunnel tests showed the current design to be the least blurry of the various designs when tested under high-wind conditions.{{harvnb|Matheson|1980}}

The image of the maple leaf used on the flag was designed by Jacques Saint-Cyr;{{Harvnb|Archbold|2002}} Jack Cook claims that this stylized eleven-point maple leaf was lifted from a copyrighted design owned by a Canadian craft shop in Ottawa.{{cite web|access-date=March 9, 2012|url=http://www.canadasfourcorners.com/cfc/index.html|title=The Eleven Point Maple Leaf|publisher=Canada's Four Corners|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120211115022/http://www.canadasfourcorners.com/cfc/index.html|archive-date=February 11, 2012}} The colours 0/100/100/0 in the CMYK process, PMS 032 (flag red 100%), or PMS 485 (used for screens) in the Pantone colour specifier can be used when reproducing the flag. For the Federal Identity Program, the red tone of the standard flag has an RGB value of 255–0–0 (web hexadecimal #FF0000).{{cite web|url=http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/pt-te.nsf/eng/00132.html |title=Government of Canada FIP Signature |publisher=Industry Canada |access-date=August 7, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120728214522/http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/pt-te.nsf/eng/00132.html |archive-date=July 28, 2012 }} In 1984, the National Flag of Canada Manufacturing Standards Act was passed to unify the manufacturing standards for flags used in both indoor and outdoor conditions.{{Cite web |url=http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/N-9/ |title=National Flag of Canada Manufacturing Standards Act |date=December 31, 2002 |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=December 3, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220032246/http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/N-9/ |archive-date=December 20, 2016}}

The Flag of Canada is represented as the Unicode emoji sequence {{unichar|1F1E8|REGIONAL INDICATOR SYMBOL LETTER C}}, {{unichar|1F1E6|REGIONAL INDICATOR SYMBOL LETTER A}}.{{Cite news|url=https://emojipedia.org/flag-for-canada/|title=🇨🇦 Flag for Canada Emoji|work=Emojipedia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170606084242/http://emojipedia.org/flag-for-canada/|archive-date=June 6, 2017|url-status=live|language=en}}

History

=Early flags=

{{see also|Historical flags of the British Empire and the overseas territories|Canadian Red Ensign|Union Jack}}

File:Jacques Cartier rencontre les indiens de Stadacone, 1535.jpg meeting with Iroquoians at Stadacona. Another member of Cartier's party is holding the royal banner of France.]]

The Saint George's Cross was carried by John Cabot when he reached the later-named Newfoundland in 1497. In 1534, Jacques Cartier planted a cross in Gaspé bearing the French royal coat of arms with the fleurs-de-lis. The Royal Banner of France or "Bourbon Flag" held a position of some prominence in New France, with the evolving variations of French military flags being used over time.{{cite book|author=New York State Historical Association|title=Proceedings of the New York State Historical Association with the Quarterly Journal: 2nd-21st Annual Meeting with a List of New Members|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Eog-AAAAYAAJ|year=1915|publisher=The Association|quote=It is most probable that the Bourbon Flag was used during the greater part of the occupancy of the French in the region extending southwest from the St. Lawrence to the Mississippi, known as New France... The French flag was probably blue at that time with three golden fleur - de - lis .... }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/national-flag-of-canada|title=Fleur-de-lys | The Canadian Encyclopedia|website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca|quote=At the time of New France (1534 to the 1760s), two flags could be viewed as having national status. The first was the banner of France — a blue square flag bearing three gold fleurs-de-lys. It was flown above fortifications in the early years of the colony. For instance, it was flown above the lodgings of Pierre Du Gua de Monts at Île Sainte-Croix in 1604. There is some evidence that the banner also flew above Samuel de Champlain’s habitation in 1608. ..... the completely white flag of the French Royal Navy was flown from ships, forts and sometimes at land-claiming ceremonies.}}{{Cite web|url=https://inquinte.ca/story/canada-150-years-of-history-the-story-behind-the-flag|title=INQUINTE.CA | CANADA 150 Years of History ~ The story behind the flag|website=inquinte.ca|quote=When Canada was settled as part of France and dubbed "New France," two flags gained national status. One was the Royal Banner of France. This featured a blue background with three gold fleurs-de-lis. A white flag of the French Royal Navy was also flown from ships and forts and sometimes flown at land-claiming ceremonies.}}{{cite book| author =W. Stewart Wallace |title=The Encyclopedia of Canada, Vol. II, Toronto, University Associates of Canada|year=1948|pages=350–351|quote=During the French régime in Canada, there does not appear to have been any French national flag in the modern sense of the term. The "Banner of France", composed of fleur-de-lys on a blue field, came nearest to being a national flag, since it was carried before the king when he marched to battle, and thus in some sense symbolized the kingdom of France. During the later period of French rule, it would seem that the emblem...was a flag showing the fleur-de-lys on a white ground.... as seen in Florida. There were, however, 68 flags authorized for various services by Louis XIV in 1661; and a number of these were doubtless used in New France}}{{cite web|url=http://www.gouv.qc.ca/portail/quebec/pgs/commun/portrait/drapeau/?lang=en|title=National Flag and Emblems|date=October 12, 2006|work=Portrait of Québec|publisher=Government of Quebec|access-date=April 20, 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611165104/http://www.gouv.qc.ca/portail/quebec/pgs/commun/portrait/drapeau/?lang=en|archive-date=June 11, 2008}}

File:Flag of the United Empire Loyalists.svg flag, which is similar to but wider than the flag of Great Britain. The flag is still used in loyalist settlements within Canada.]] As the de facto British national flag, the Union Flag (commonly known as the "Union Jack") was used similarly in Canada from the time of British settlement in Nova Scotia after 1621.{{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-etiquette/foreign-flags.html#a1 |title=Foreign flags in Canada |work=Government of Canada |date=May 8, 2018 |access-date=2021-01-15}}{{cite web |url=http://fraser.cc/FlagsCan/Nation/Union.html |title=Royal Union Flag |work=The Flags of Canada |access-date=2021-01-15}} Its use continued after Canada's legislative independence from the United Kingdom in 1931 until the adoption of the current flag in 1965.{{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-history.html#a2 |title=Early flags |work=Government of Canada |date=August 28, 2017 |access-date=2021-01-15}} The United Empire Loyalist flag, that is very similar to the Union Jack, was used by immigrants who remained loyal to the British crown during the American Revolutionary War. In present-day Canada, the United Empire Loyalist flag continues to be used as symbol of pride and heritage for loyalist townships and organizations.{{cite web | title=The Loyalist Flag | website=UELAC | date=2021-12-06 | url=https://uelac.ca/monuments/loyalist-flag/ | access-date=2024-12-26}}

Shortly after Canadian Confederation in 1867, the need for distinctive Canadian flags emerged. The first Canadian flag was then used as the flag of the governor general of Canada, a Union Flag with a shield in the centre bearing the quartered arms of Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, surrounded by a wreath of maple leaves.{{cite book |last=Fraser |first=Alistair B. |title=The flags of Canada |url=http://fraser.cc/FlagsCan/index.html |access-date=April 20, 2008 |date=January 30, 1998 |chapter=A Canadian Flag for Canada |chapter-url=http://fraser.cc/FlagsCan/Nation/CanFlag.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915061016/http://fraser.cc/FlagsCan/index.html |archive-date=September 15, 2008}} In 1870, the Red Ensign, with the addition of the Canadian composite shield in the fly, began to be used unofficially on land and sea{{cite encyclopedia| url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/flag-of-canada/| title=National Flag of Canada| encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia| publisher=Historica Canada| access-date=February 13, 2015| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150214012206/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/flag-of-canada/| archive-date=February 14, 2015| df=mdy-all}} and was known as the Canadian Red Ensign. As new provinces joined the Confederation, their arms were added to the shield. In 1892, the British admiralty approved the use of the Red Ensign for Canadian use at sea.

File:Postcard of Maisonneuve Monument and Coronation.JPG and Queen Mary in 1911, depicting a Canadian Red Ensign with a crowned composite shield of Canada in the fly, and the Union Flag below it]]

The composite shield was replaced with the coat of arms of Canada upon its grant in 1921, and in 1924, an Order in Council approved its use for Canadian government buildings abroad. In 1925, Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King established a committee to design a flag to be used at home, but it was dissolved before the final report could be delivered. Despite the failure of the committee to solve the issue, public sentiment in the 1920s was in favour of fixing the flag problem for Canada.{{harvnb|Archbold|2002|p=61}} New designs were proposed in 1927,{{cite web| url=http://archive.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=1261&ProjectElementID=4787| publisher=Office of the Governor General of Canada: Canadian Heraldic Authority| title=Proposed Flag for Canada: Anatole Vanier, 1927| date=March 20, 2008}} 1931,{{cite web| url=http://archive.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=1262&ProjectElementID=6507| publisher=Office of the Governor General of Canada: Canadian Heraldic Authority| title=Proposed Flag for Canada: Gérard Gallienne, 1931| date=March 20, 2008}} and 1939.{{cite web| url=http://archive.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=1263&ProjectElementID=6427| publisher=Office of the Governor General of Canada: Canadian Heraldic Authority| title=Proposed Flag for Canada: Ephrem Côté| date=March 20, 2008}}

By the Second World War, the Red Ensign was viewed as Canada's de facto national flag. A joint committee of the Senate and House of Commons was appointed on November 8, 1945, to recommend a national flag to officially adopt. It received 2,409 designs from the public and was addressed by the director of the Historical Section of the Canadian Army, Archer Fortescue Duguid, who pointed out that red and white were Canada's official colours and there was already an emblem representing the country: three joined maple leaves seen on the escutcheon of the Canadian coat of arms. By May 9 the following year, the committee reported back with a recommendation "that the national flag of Canada should be the Canadian red ensign with a maple leaf in autumn golden colours in a bordered background of white". The Legislative Assembly of Quebec had urged the committee not to include any of what it deemed as "foreign symbols", including the Union Flag, and Mackenzie King, then still prime minister, declined to act on the report;{{cite web|access-date=April 17, 2008|url=http://www.mta.ca/about_canada/study_guide/debates/flag_debate.html|title=The Flag Debate |publisher=Mount Allison University|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080424150641/http://www.mta.ca/about_canada/study_guide/debates/flag_debate.html |archive-date=April 24, 2008}} fearing it may lead to political instability. As a result, the Union Flag was kept as a national flag, and the order to fly the Canadian Red Ensign at government buildings was maintained.{{cite web|url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-history.html|title=The history of the National Flag of Canada|website=www.canada.ca|publisher=Government of Canada|date=4 February 2020|access-date=13 June 2022}}

=Great Flag Debate=

By the 1960s, the debate for an official Canadian flag intensified and became controversial, culminating in the Great Flag Debate of 1964.{{cite news|access-date=April 13, 2008|url=http://history.cbc.ca/history/?MIval=EpisContent&series_id=1&episode_id=16&chapter_id=1&page_id=2&lang=E|title=The Great Flag Debate|publisher=CBC|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081223234953/http://history.cbc.ca/history/?MIval=EpisContent&series_id=1&episode_id=16&chapter_id=1&page_id=2&lang=E|archive-date=December 23, 2008}} In 1963, the minority Liberal government of Lester B. Pearson gained power and decided to adopt an official Canadian flag through parliamentary debate. The principal political proponent of the change was Pearson. He had been a significant broker during the Suez Crisis of 1956, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.{{harvnb|Thorner|2003|p=524}} During the crisis, Pearson was disturbed when the Egyptian government objected to Canadian peacekeeping forces because the Canadian flag (the Red Ensign) contained the same symbol (the Union Flag) also used as a flag by the United Kingdom, one of the belligerents. Pearson's goal was to create a Canadian flag that was distinctive and unmistakably Canadian. The main opponent to changing the flag was the leader of the opposition and former prime minister, John Diefenbaker, who eventually made the subject a personal crusade.{{cite news|access-date=March 31, 2008|url=http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/language_culture/topics/80/|title=The Great Canadian Flag Debate|publisher=CBC|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080404225104/http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/language_culture/topics/80/|archive-date=April 4, 2008}}

File:Canada Pearson Pennant 1964.svg, and dubbed the Pearson Pennant, being Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson's favoured design]]

In 1961, Leader of the Opposition Lester Pearson asked John Ross Matheson to begin researching what it would take for Canada to have a new flag. By April 1963, Pearson was prime minister in a minority government and risked losing power over the issue. He formed a 15-member multi-party parliamentary committee in 1963 to select a new design, despite opposition leader Diefenbaker's demands for a referendum on the issue.{{cite news|url=http://www.torontosun.com/2013/06/30/flag-designer-recalls-how-he-came-up-with-the-maple-leaf-design|title=Flag designer recalls how he came up with the Maple Leaf design|author=Ron Corbett|date=June 30, 2013|newspaper=Toronto Sun|access-date=October 4, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005002250/http://www.torontosun.com/2013/06/30/flag-designer-recalls-how-he-came-up-with-the-maple-leaf-design|archive-date=October 5, 2013}} On May 27, 1964, Pearson's cabinet introduced a motion to parliament for the adoption of his favourite design, presented to him by artist and heraldic advisor Alan Beddoe, of a "sea to sea" (Canada's motto) flag with blue borders and three conjoined red maple leaves on a white field. This motion led to weeks of acrimonious debate in the House of Commons and the design came to be known as the "Pearson Pennant",{{cite web|access-date=April 13, 2008|url=http://www.peak.sfu.ca/the-peak/2007-2/issue3/fe-flags.html|title=Wrong turns on the road of symbolism|publisher=The Peak|date=May 21, 2007|author=Iain Reeve|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225123851/http://www.peak.sfu.ca/the-peak/2007-2/issue3/fe-flags.html|archive-date=February 25, 2012}} derided by the media and viewed as a "concession to Québec".

File:Flag of Canada (1964).svg and selected by the parliamentary committee]]

A new all-party committee was formed in September 1964, comprising seven Liberals, five Conservatives, one New Democrat, one Social Crediter, and one Créditiste, with Herman Batten as chairman, while John Matheson acted as Pearson's right-hand man. Among those who gave their opinions to the group was Duguid, expressing the same views as he had in 1945, insisting on a design using three maple leaves; Arthur R. M. Lower, stressing the need for a distinctly Canadian emblem; Marcel Trudel, arguing for symbols of Canada's founding nations, which did not include the maple leaf (a thought shared by Diefenbaker); and A. Y. Jackson, providing his own suggested designs. A steering committee also considered about 2,000 suggestions from the public, in addition to 3,900 others that included, according to Library and Archives Canada, "those that had accumulated in the Department of the Secretary of State and those from a parliamentary flag committee of 1945–1946". Through six weeks of study with political manoeuvring, the committee took a vote on the two finalists: the Pearson Pennant (Beddoe's design) and the current design. Believing the Liberal members would vote for the Prime Minister's preference, the Conservatives voted for the single leaf design. The Liberals, though, all voted for the single leaf design, as did the members from the other two parties, giving a unanimous 15 to 0 vote for the option created by George Stanley and inspired by the flag of the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) in Kingston, Ontario.{{cite web |url=http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/ |title=Canadian Heritage Flags |publisher=Canadian Heritage |access-date=October 31, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111102014648/http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/ |archive-date=November 2, 2011}}

File:Flag of the Royal Military College of Canada.svg]]

There, near the parade square, in March 1964, while viewing the college flag atop the Mackenzie Building, Stanley, then RMC's Dean of Arts, first suggested to Matheson, then Member of Parliament for Leeds, that the RMC flag should form the basis of the national flag. The suggestion was followed by Stanley's memorandum of March 23, 1964, on the history of Canada's emblems,{{cite web|url=http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/flagmemo2.htm|title=George F.G. Stanley's Flag Memorandum to John Matheson, 23 March 1964 (includes Dr. Stanley's original sketches for the Canadian Flag)|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140309045945/http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/flagmemo2.htm|archive-date=March 9, 2014|access-date=March 26, 2008}} in which he warned that any new flag "must avoid the use of national or racial symbols that are of a divisive nature" and that it would be "clearly inadvisable" to create a flag that carried the Union Flag or a fleur-de-lis. According to Matheson, Pearson's "paramount and desperate objective" in introducing the new flag was keeping Quebec in Canada.{{cite book|author=Eva Mackey|year= 2002|title=The House of Difference|location=Toronto|publisher= University of Toronto Press|page=56}} It was Stanley's idea that the new flag should be red and white and that it should feature the single maple leaf; his memorandum included the first sketch of what would become the flag of Canada. Stanley and Matheson collaborated on a design that was, after six months of debate and 308 speeches, passed by a majority vote in the House of Commons on December 15, 1964. Just after this, at 2:00 am, Matheson wrote to Stanley: "Your proposed flag has just now been approved by the Commons 163 to 78. Congratulations. I believe it is an excellent flag that will serve Canada well."{{cite web|url=http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/postcard.htm|title=Dr. George F.G. Stanley|publisher=St Francis Xavier University|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303232416/http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/postcard.htm|archive-date=March 3, 2016|access-date=March 10, 2012}} The Senate added its approval two days later.

=Proclamation=

After the resolutions proposing a new national flag for Canada were passed by the two houses of parliament, a proclamation was drawn up for signature by the Queen of Canada. This was created in the form of an illuminated document on vellum, with calligraphy by Yvonne Diceman and heraldic illustrations. The text was rendered in black ink, using a quill, while the heraldic elements were painted in gouache with gilt highlights. The Great Seal of Canada was embossed and secured by a silk ribbon.{{Cite journal| last=Grace| first=John| year=1990| title=Conserving the Proclamation of the Canadian Flag| journal=The Archivist| editor-last=Library and Archives Canada| editor-link=Library and Archives Canada| publisher=National Archives of Canada| url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/publications/archivist-magazine/015002-2021-e.html| access-date=February 16, 2011| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021133944/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/publications/archivist-magazine/015002-2021-e.html| archive-date=October 21, 2012| df=mdy-all}}

File:Proclamation of the National Flag of Canada (January 1965).jpg

This parchment was signed discreetly by the calligrapher but was made official by the signatures of Queen Elizabeth II (given on January 28, 1965), Prime Minister Lester Pearson, and Attorney General Guy Favreau. In order to obtain these signatures, the document was flown to the United Kingdom (for the Queen's royal sign-manual) and to the Caribbean (for the signature of Favreau, who was on vacation). This transport to different climates, combined with the quality of the materials with which the proclamation was created and the subsequent storage and repair methods (including the use of Scotch Tape), contributed to the deterioration of the document: The gouache was flaking off, leaving gaps in the heraldic designs, most conspicuously on the red maple leaf of the flag design in the centre of the sheet, and the adhesive from the tape had left stains. A desire to have the proclamation as part of a display at the Canadian Museum of Civilization marking the flag's 25th anniversary led to its restoration in 1989. The proclamation is today stored in a temperature and humidity-controlled plexiglass case to prevent the vellum from changing dimensionally.

=Adoption=

File:The Parliament of Canada (41122504821).jpg. An official ceremony inaugurating the flag was held on Parliament Hill in 1965.]]

The new national flag was inaugurated on February 15, 1965, at an official ceremony held on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, in the presence of Governor General Major-General Georges Vanier, the Prime Minister, other members of the Cabinet, and Canadian parliamentarians. The Red Ensign was lowered at the stroke of noon, and the new maple leaf flag was raised. The crowd sang "O Canada" followed by "God Save the Queen".{{cite web|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df1-eng.cfm|title=The National Flag of Canada; A symbol of Canadian Identity|publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage|access-date=February 15, 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415070739/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/symbl/df1-eng.cfm|archive-date=April 15, 2012}} Of the flag, Vanier said "[it] will symbolize to each of us—and to the world—the unity of purpose and high resolve to which destiny beckons us".{{cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-s-flag-debate-flaps-on-50-years-later-1.2957192| last=Milewiski| first=Terry| title=Canada's flag debate flaps on, 50 years later| date=February 15, 2015| publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation| access-date=February 15, 2015| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150215135050/http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-s-flag-debate-flaps-on-50-years-later-1.2957192| archive-date=February 15, 2015| df=mdy-all}} Maurice Bourget, Speaker of the Senate, said: "The flag is the symbol of the nation's unity, for it, beyond any doubt, represents all the citizens of Canada without distinction of race, language, belief, or opinion." Yet there was still opposition to the change, and Stanley's life was even threatened for having "assassinated the flag". Despite this, Stanley attended the flag-raising ceremony.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTMdH9-kmDk&t=3m40s|title=The real story behind the Canadian Flag|work=The National|date=February 16, 2015|via=YouTube|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160331191605/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTMdH9-kmDk|archive-date=March 31, 2016}}

At the time of the 50th anniversary of the flag in 2015, the government—held by the Conservative Party—was criticized for the lack of an official ceremony dedicated to the date; accusations of partisanship were levelled. Minister of Canadian Heritage Shelly Glover denied the charges, and others, including Liberal Members of Parliament, pointed to community events taking place around the country. Governor General David Johnston did, though, preside at an official ceremony at Confederation Park in Ottawa, integrated with Winterlude. He said, "[t]he National Flag of Canada is so embedded in our national life and so emblematic of our national purpose that we simply cannot imagine our country without it."{{cite web| url=http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=15945&lan=eng| publisher=Office of the Governor General of Canada| title=Governor General to Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the National Flag of Canada| date=February 15, 2015| url-status=live| archive-url=https://archive.today/20150216073904/http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=15945&lan=eng| archive-date=February 16, 2015| df=mdy-all}} Queen Elizabeth II stated: "On this, the 50th anniversary of the National Flag of Canada, I am pleased to join with all Canadians in the celebration of this unique and cherished symbol of our country and identity."{{cite web| url=http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=15946&lan=eng| publisher=Office of the Governor General of Canada| title=Message from Her Majesty The Queen on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the National Flag of Canada| date=February 15, 2015| url-status=deviated| archive-url=https://archive.today/20150216073916/http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=15946&lan=eng| archive-date=February 16, 2015| df=mdy-all| access-date=September 9, 2023}} A commemorative stamp and coin were issued by Canada Post and the Royal Canadian Mint, respectively.

Alternative flags

File:Cartwright cenotaph.jpg]]

As a symbol of the nation's membership in the Commonwealth of Nations and allegiance to the Crown, the Royal Union Flag is an official Canadian flag and is flown on certain occasions.{{cite web| date=January 1, 2003| url=http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp/etiquette/4_e.cfm| publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage| title=The Royal Union Flag| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060506083650/http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/progs/cpsc-ccsp/etiquette/4_e.cfm| archive-date=May 6, 2006}} Regulations require federal installations to fly the Royal Union Flag beside the national flag when physically possible, using a second flagpole, on the following days: Commonwealth Day (the second Monday in March), Victoria Day (the same date as the Canadian sovereign's official birthday), and the anniversary of the Statute of Westminster (December 11). The Royal Union Flag can also be flown at the National War Memorial or at other locations during ceremonies that honour Canadian involvement with forces of other Commonwealth nations during times of war. The national flag always precedes the Royal Union Flag, with the former occupying the place of honour.File:Royal Standard of Canada.svg, King of Canada)]]

The Royal Union Flag is also part of the provincial flags of Ontario and Manitoba, forming the canton of these flags; a stylized version is used on the flag of British Columbia and the flag of Newfoundland and Labrador. Several of the provincial lieutenant governors formerly used a modified union flag as their standard. The last to abolish this design was the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia in 2024.{{Cite web |last=admin |date=2014-08-06 |title=Symbols of Office |url=https://lt.gov.ns.ca/lieutenant-governor/symbols-office |access-date=2025-02-14 |website=Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia |language=en}}

The Royal Standard of Canada (banner of arms) is an official flag introduced May 6, 2023, and first flown at Government House, Halifax, that day.| url= https://www.canadiancrown.com/did-you-know.html }}

The Red Ensign is occasionally still used, including official use at some ceremonies. It was flown at the commemorations of the Battle of Vimy Ridge in 2007. This decision elicited criticism from those who believed it should not have been given equal status to the Canadian flag and received praise from people who believed that it was important to retain the ties to Canada's past.{{cite news|date=March 31, 2007 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070331.weensign31/BNStory/VimyRidge/home |title=Globe Editorial: Red Ensign |work=The Globe and Mail |access-date=March 2, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080109191107/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070331.weensign31/BNStory/VimyRidge/home |archive-date=January 9, 2008 }}{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/dallaire-slams-decision-to-fly-red-ensign/article962783/|title=Dallaire slams decision to fly Red Ensign|last=Peritz|first=Ingrid|work=The Globe and Mail|date=July 9, 2007|access-date=April 13, 2008}} The Royal Union Flag and Red Ensign are still flown in Canada by veterans' groups and others who continue to stress the importance of Canada's British heritage and the Commonwealth connection.

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In Quebec, the provincial flag (a white cross on a field of blue with four fleurs-de-lis) can be considered a national flag along with the Maple Leaf flag, as is the Acadian flag in the Acadian regions of the Maritime provinces.{{cite web|access-date=March 25, 2008|url=http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/d-12.1/20040901/whole.html|title=Flag and emblems of Québec, An Act respecting the, R.S.Q. D-12.1|publisher=CanLii|date=September 1, 2004|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307073647/http://www.canlii.org/qc/laws/sta/d-12.1/20040901/whole.html|archive-date=March 7, 2008}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/why-dont-more-canadians-fly-the-flag/article585211/|title=Why don't more Canadians fly the flag?|work=The Globe and Mail|access-date=July 6, 2012|date=2011|quote=Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams ordered Canadian flags taken down from provincial government buildings to protest against a deal with the federal government on sharing offshore royalties.|first=Dave|last=McGinn|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120706060224/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/why-dont-more-canadians-fly-the-flag/article585211/ |archive-date=July 6, 2012 }} Public display of Canadian flags is rare in Quebec, with most Quebecers preferring to fly the flag of Quebec instead.{{cite web|url=https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/pellerin-when-the-quebec-and-canadian-flags-fly-together-at-a-protest-theres-something-strange-in-the-wind|first=Brigitte|last=Pellerin|work=The Ottawa Citizen|location=Ontario|date=February 25, 2022|title=When the Quebec and Canadian flags fly together at a protest, there's something strange in the wind |quote=I’m from Quebec City and I can tell you how rare it is to see a Canadian flag there.}}{{cite web|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/1998/03/14/quebecs-athletes-blame-flag-for-olympic-distress/|quote=Quebeckers have never particularly warmed to the Maple Leaf, which is not widely displayed in the province dominated by French-speakers.|title=QUEBEC'S ATHLETES BLAME FLAG FOR OLYMPIC 'DISTRESS'|date=March 14, 1998|work=South Florida Sun-Sentinel|location=Florida|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230717201417/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/1998/03/14/quebecs-athletes-blame-flag-for-olympic-distress/ |archive-date=July 17, 2023 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.ulethbridge.ca/lib/digitized_collections/ourheritage/rant/canada_day_flag21.html|title=Am I the only one ...|access-date=July 17, 2023|quote=In some parts of quebec you can't fly a canadian flag,that's okay|location=Canada|publisher=University of Lethbridge |work=Our Heritage|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230717204246/https://www.ulethbridge.ca/lib/digitized_collections/ourheritage/rant/canada_day_flag21.html |archive-date=July 17, 2023 }} Display of the flag is also contentious, with the Quebec provincial government ordering that the Quebec flag be given seniority over the Canadian one in the province,{{cite web|url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-etiquette/position-honour.html|quote=Quebec has decreed that on all buildings under its authority within the province of Quebec, whether it be those of government departments, boards, schools or others, as well as on city halls, the provincial flag of Quebec is given precedence over the National Flag of Canada and must occupy the place of honour.|title= Position of honour of the National Flag of Canada|date=August 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912005935/https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-etiquette/position-honour.html |archive-date=September 12, 2017 }}{{Cite web|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/4259280/montreal-isnt-properly-following-quebecs-flag-protocol-complainants/|title=Montreal isn't properly following Quebec's flag protocol: complainants|work=The Canadian Press|publisher=Global News|location=Canada|date=June 7, 2018}} and many Quebec government facilities, such as the Quebec City Hall, the headquarters of the Sûreté du Québec and SAAQ, and the Quebec Parliament, refusing to fly the Canadian flag at all.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/surete-du-quebec-pride-flag-first-time-headquarters-1.5239811|title=Sûreté du Québec flies pride flag outside their headquarters for first time|work=CBC News|first=Franca G.|last=Mignacca|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810072237/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/surete-du-quebec-pride-flag-first-time-headquarters-1.5239811 |access-date=August 9, 2019|archive-date=August 10, 2019 }}{{Cite web |last=DePalma |first=Anthony |author-link=Anthony DePalma (author) |date=November 26, 1997 |title=Quebec Journal; To Some Canadians, the Maple Leaf Is a Red Flag |url=http://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/26/world/quebec-journal-to-some-canadians-the-maple-leaf-is-a-red-flag.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150527070958/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/11/26/world/quebec-journal-to-some-canadians-the-maple-leaf-is-a-red-flag.html |archive-date=May 27, 2015 |website=The New York Times |quote=Jean-Paul L'Allier, has prohibited the Canadian Maple Leaf from officially flying in front of City Hall since 1990. It was a symbolic retaliation for the defeat, by the rest of Canada, of a constitutional amendment that would have recognized Quebec's special place within the Canadian confederation. |location=New York}}{{cite web | url=https://www.google.com/maps/place/1701,+rue+Parthenais/@45.5279857,-73.5529544,3a,75y,20.65h,90t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sdIX0urV3SKwGRMYkvjggtw!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x4cc91bbc9af1268f:0xd1eeb361733f369d?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi33r-01ZaAAxWCEVkFHV4WCFEQxB16BAgbEAA | title=1701 Rue Parthenais · 1701 Rue Parthenais, Montréal, QC H2K 4S8, Canada }}

Protocol

File:NB - Hartland Bridge2.jpg, with the Canadian flag on its tallest flagpole]]

No law dictates the proper use of the Canadian flag. Canadian Heritage has released rules for flying the National Flag of Canada alone and with other flags. The rules deal with the order of precedence in which the Canadian flag is placed, where the flag can be used, how it is used, and what people should do to honour the flag. The suggestions, titled National Flag of Canada Etiquette, were published by Canadian Heritage online and last updated in 24 February 2022.{{Cite web |date=24 February 2022 |title=National Flag of Canada etiquette |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/flag-canada-etiquette.html |website=Canada.ca}} Canadian Forces also have a unique protocol for folding the Canadian flag for presentations, such as during a funeral ceremony; CF does not recommend this method for everyday use.{{cite web |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/pub/oth-aut/pcf-cpd/index-eng.asp |title=Process for the Ceremonial Folding of the National Flag of Canada |access-date=September 17, 2009 |date=April 23, 2008 |publisher=Directorate of History and Heritage – National Defence Canada |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111118200202/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/pub/oth-aut/pcf-cpd/index-eng.asp |archive-date=November 18, 2011}}

The flag can be displayed on any day at buildings operated by the Government of Canada, airports, military bases, diplomatic offices, and citizens during any time of the day. When flying the flag, it should be flown using its pole and should not be inferior to other flags, save for, in descending order, the King's standard, the governor general's standard, any of the personal standards of members of the Canadian Royal Family, or flags of the lieutenant governors.{{cite web|access-date=March 25, 2008 |url=http://www.saskd.ca/heritage.pdf |title=The Honours, Flags and Heritage Structure of the Canadian Forces |publisher=Department of National Defence |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325162006/http://www.saskd.ca/heritage.pdf |archive-date=March 25, 2009 }} The Canadian flag is flown at half-mast in Canada to indicate a period of mourning.

Promoting the flag

File:Items from the Canadian Parliamentary Flag Program.jpg

Since the Canadian flag was adopted in 1965, the Canadian government has sponsored programs to promote it. Examples include the Canadian Parliamentary Flag Program of the Department of Canadian Heritage and the flag program run by the Department of Public Works. These programs increased the exposure of the flag and the concept that it was part of the national identity. To raise awareness of the new flag, the Parliamentary Flag Program was set up in December 1972 by the Cabinet and, beginning in 1973,{{cite web| date = January 1, 2003| url = http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/actvt/111-eng.cfm| title = Administration of the Parliamentary Flag Program| publisher = Department of Canadian Heritage| access-date = May 20, 2006| url-status = live| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081220170228/http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/actvt/111-eng.cfm| archive-date = December 20, 2008| df = mdy-all}} allowed members of the House of Commons to distribute flags and lapel pins in the shape of the Canadian flag to their constituents. Full-size flags that have been flown on Peace Tower and four other locations on Parliament Hill are packaged by the Department of Public Works and offered to the public free of charge. As of March 2019, the program has a waiting list of over 100 years for both Peace Tower flags, which are {{convert|7.5|by|15|ft|m|order=flip}} in size, and for flags from the other four locations (one on each side of Centre Block and one each over East and West Blocks), which are {{convert|4.5|by|9|ft|m|order=flip}}.{{cite web|date=March 21, 2019|access-date=March 21, 2019|url=http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/citeparlementaire-parliamentaryprecinct/decouvrez-discover/drapeaux-demander-flags-request-eng.html|title=Request a flag online (new request) - Canada's Parliamentary Precinct|publisher=Government of Canada}}

Since 1996, February 15 has been commemorated as National Flag of Canada Day. In 1996, Minister of Canadian Heritage Sheila Copps instituted the One in a Million National Flag Challenge.{{cite web|url=http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/newsroom/index_e.cfm?fuseaction=displayDocument&DocIDCd=6NR032|title=Heritage Minister Sheila Copps Launches "One In A Million National Flag" Campaign|publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage|date=February 19, 1996|author=Dee, Duncan|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312015242/http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/newsroom/index_e.cfm?fuseaction=displayDocument&DocIDCd=6NR032|archive-date=March 12, 2007}} Canadian Heritage put the expenses at $15.5 million, with approximately a seventh of the cost offset by donations.{{cite web|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/newsroom/index_e.cfm?fuseaction=displayDocument&DocIDCd=7NR233|title=Canadians Meet the "One in a Million National Flag" Challenge|publisher=Department of Canadian Heritage|date=February 15, 1997|author=Arnsby, Julia|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070516122456/http://www.pch.gc.ca/newsroom/index_e.cfm?fuseaction=displayDocument&DocIDCd=7NR233|archive-date=May 16, 2007}}

In February 2025, in the lead up to the 60th anniversary of the Canadian maple leaf flag, former prime ministers Kim Campbell, Jean Chrétien, Joe Clark, Stephen Harper and Paul Martin encouraged Canadians to show national pride and fly the flag "like never before" in the light of "threats and insults" to Canadian sovereignty by United States President Donald Trump.{{Cite web |last=Colley |first=Mark |date=2025-02-12 |title=Five Former Prime Ministers Say Canada Is Worth Fighting for in Face of Donald Trump’s ‘Threats and Insults’ Ahead of Flag Day |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/five-former-prime-ministers-say-canada-is-worth-fighting-for-in-face-of-donald-trumps/article_dcb6345c-e960-11ef-a114-6735bac14f39.html |access-date=2025-02-15 |website=Toronto Star |language=en}}

References

Bibliography

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Levine, Allan. "The Great Flag Debate" Canada’s History 94#6 (2014–15): 32–37
{{Cite book|title=Canada's Flag: A Search for a Country | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Lz1mAAAAMAAJ |last=Matheson|first=Col. John R.|year=1980 |publisher=Mika Publishing Company |isbn=0-919303-01-3}}
{{Cite book|title= The Story of Canada's Flag: A Historical Sketch | url=http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/welcome2.htm | last=Stanley|first=George F.G.|year=1965 |publisher=Ryerson Press}}
{{Cite book|title=Canada|first=Hugh|last=Thompson|publisher=Dorling Kindersley|year=2002|isbn=0-7894-9561-9|url=https://archive.org/details/canada00dkpu}}
{{Cite book|title=A Country Nourished on Self-Doubt: Documents in Post-Confederation Canadian History|last=Thorner|first=Thomas|publisher=Broadview Press|year=2003|isbn=1-55111-548-4|url=https://archive.org/details/countrynourished00thor}}

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20160822190835/http://canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1444133230724 National Flag of Canada] – Department of Canadian Heritage
[https://web.archive.org/web/20160630004226/http://canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1444133232507 National Flag of Canada etiquette] – Department of Canadian Heritage
[https://www.historicacanada.ca/content/heritage-minutes/flags?media_type=41& Flags (Heritage Minutes)] – Historica Canada
[http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/flagmemo2.htm George F.G. Stanley's Flag Memorandum to John Matheson] – St. Francis Xavier University
[http://people.stfx.ca/lstanley/stanley/postcard.htm John Matheson's postcard to George Stanley] – St. Francis Xavier University
[http://data2.collectionscanada.gc.ca/ap/c/c135374.jpg Royal Proclamation] – Library and Archives Canada
{{FOTW|id=ca|title=Canada}}
[http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/politics/language-culture/the-great-canadian-flag-debate/topic-the-great-canadian-flag-debate.html The Great Canadian Flag Debate] – CBC Digital Archives
[http://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/w5-seeking-the-origins-of-the-maple-leaf-flag-finding-the-soul-of-our-nation-1.1738784 "The People's Choice: Seeking the origins of the Maple Leaf flag, finding the soul of our nation"] – W5 (CTV)
[https://web.archive.org/web/20150220053822/http://theagenda.tvo.org/episode/210723/the-maple-leaf-forever%3F "The Maple Leaf Forever?"] – The Agenda (TVO)