Why is Australia's flag designed the way it is?

Answer 1

In a nutshell: After the Commonwealth of Australia was proclaimed on 1 January 1901, the Commonwealth government held a design competition for a new national flag. There were 32,000 entries in the competition, and most featured the Union Jack, the Southern Cross, or native animals.

Five almost identical entries were selected to share the 200 pound prize. The entries belonged to Ivor Evans, a fourteen-year-old schoolboy from Melbourne; Leslie John Hawkins, a teenager apprenticed to an optician from Sydney; Egbert John Nuttall, an architect from Melbourne; Annie Dorrington, an artist from Perth; and William Stevens, a ship's officer from Auckland, New Zealand.

On 3 September 1901, the new Australian flag flew for the first time from the top of the Exhibition Building in Melbourne. The flag was simplified, and approved by King Edward VII in 1902.

See the related links below for the story of the selection of the flag and its design.

Answer 2

Well ya gotta understand what all of the symbols mean to understand our flag. What "On the Wallaby" said is a great history of our flag but I don't think she made it clear what the Commonwealth Star or the Southern Cross is. The Commonwealth Star is the big star on the flag, under the union jack. Each point on the star represents one of six states, with a seventh point added on to represent the territories. The Southern Cross is a constellation that can always be seen from Australia. So there you go.

Answer 3

The design of the Australian flag came about following Federation of the Australian states on 1 January 1901. On 29 April 1901, the new Commonwealth Government announced a Federal Flag design competition which attracted over 30,000 entries. The idea for the competition was initiated by Melbourne journal Review for Australiasia in 1900.

Five almost identical entries were selected to share the prize, and there were two designs selected: two designs were announced as the competition winners - a blue flag which would be used by the government, and an identical design on a red background, to be used by merchant ships.

The five entries came from Ivor Evans, a fourteen-year-old schoolboy from Melbourne; Leslie John Hawkins, a Sydney teenager who was apprenticed to an optician; Melbourne architect Egbert John Nuttall; Annie Dorrington, an artist from Perth; and ship's officer William Stevens who was from Auckland, New Zealand.

On 3 September 1901, the new Australian flag flew for the first time from the top of the Exhibition Building in Melbourne. The flag was slightly modified by the British Admiralty in 1903, with the stars of the Southern Cross being simplified, and the design was approved by King Edward VII in 1902. In 1908, the Australian Government increased the number of points on the Commonwealth star from six to seven points, with the seventh point representing Australia's mainland and offshore territories.

Answer 4

The British flag