Naval Ensign has evolved over centuries; red stripes dropped in new design

Indian Navy on Friday got a new ensign, shedding a trace of its colonial past on the representational flag of the force that has evolved over the centuries, drawing from symbols of the British rule to the emblem of the Republic.

An ensign is essentially a flag bearing a particular design that is carried by vessels or formation of a naval force, indicating its identity and denotes nationality, especially in the high seas.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the ensign during a ceremony held in Kochi to commission India's maiden indigenously-built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.


"Today on the historic date of September 2, 2022, India has taken off a trace of slavery, a burden of slavery. The Indian Navy has got a new flag from today. Till now the identity of slavery remained on the flag of Indian Navy. But from today onwards, inspired by Chhatrapati Shivaji, the new Navy flag will fly in the sea and in the sky", Modi said as he dedicated it to the legendary Maratha king.




The new ensign has dropped the horizontal and vertical red stripes that symbolised the Cross of Saint George, reminiscent of the colonial era, which existed in its previous version. An octagonal shape with twin golden borders in its fly area that draws inspiration from the seal of the Maratha ruler has been incorporated.

The blue octagonal shape encompasses the National Emblem sitting atop an anchor depicting steadfastness. It is superimposed on a shield with the Navy's motto "Sam no Varunah", meaning: 'Be auspicious unto us Oh Varuna', according to a video released by Navy.

The octagonal represents the eight directions symbolising the Indian Navy's multi-directional reach and multi-directional operational capability it said.

Indian Navy also tweeted to hailed the unveiling of the new ensign as "a momentous day in the history of #IndianNavy".

The Indian Navy draws its origin to the colonial period, and before assuming its identity as a naval force of an independent India, its nomenclature has undergone multiple changes over the last few centuries, spanning the rule of the British East India Company to the direct rule under the Crown after the 1857 Mutiny and eventually the country earning Independence in 1947 and becoming a Republic three years later.

The ensign carried by these naval forces over the centuries have also evolved along.

"In India, the East India Company commenced its activities in Surat in 1612 and her ships known as the Honourable East India Company's Marine flew the Striped Ensign with St George's Cross in the canton. With the shifting of the activities from Surat to Bombay, the Bombay Marine was formed in 1686," according to information displayed on a panel in the Legacy Gallery at Naval Dockyard Mumbai (NDM) housed in a historic building.

In 1707, the British Union flag replaced the St George's Cross in the canton, and in 1801 the British flag was modified to include red stripes along the diagonal.

In 1830, the Bombay Marine was renamed Her Majesty's Indian Navy. While the Navy's strength continued to grow, it underwent numerous changes of nomenclature over the next few decades. It was renamed the Bombay Marine from 1863 to 1877, after which it became Her Majesty's Indian Marine, according to official website of the Navy.

In recognition of the services rendered during various campaigns, its title was changed to Royal Indian Marine in 1892, by which time it consisted of over 50 vessels.

In 1934, the Royal Indian Marine was re-organised into the Royal Indian Navy, and was presented the King's Colour in 1935 in recognition of its services, ir said.

The evolution of both the Navy and its ensign has been depicted in the Legacy Gallery at NDM and designs of ensigns flown over these centuries have also been put on display, said Kamalika Bose, founder of Heritage Synergies India, which had worked on the gallery.

The Admiralty had in 1879 authorised the Blue Ensign with a badge (Star of India) in the centre of the fly as the ensign, which was in use till 1928. In November 1928, the White Ensign of Royal Navy became the ensign of the Royal Indian Marine, which on October 2, 1934 was reconstituted as a combatant force and rechristened the Royal Indian Navy, with its headquarters at Bombay (now Mumbai).

With the partition of India in 1947, post-independence, the Royal Indian Navy was divided into the Royal Indian Navy and the Royal Pakistan Navy. With India becoming a Republic on January 26, 1950, the prefix 'Royal' was dropped and it was rechristened as the Indian Navy.

From January 26, 1950 until 2001, the Indian Navy used a modified version of the British Naval Ensign, and the Union flag was replaced with the Indian tricolour in the canton. With effect from August 15, 2001, this flag was replaced with a white ensign bearing the Indian Naval Crest, as the previous ensign was thought to reflect India's colonial past, which remained till 2004, according to the panel on display at the gallery.

From 2004 onwards, the ensign was changed back to the St George's Cross design, with the addition of the Emblem of India in the intersection of the cross, and in 2014 the national motto -- Satyamaev Jayate -- in Devanagari script, was added below the emblem, and this ensign was in use until the adoption of the new one on September 2, 2022.

During the commissioning of INS Vikrant, the Prime Minister will also unveil the new Naval Ensign (Nishaan), "doing away with the colonial past, and befitting the rich Indian maritime heritage", the PMO had said earlier.