Ontario's official flag since 1965

The current Flag of Ontario was proclaimed the official flag of the Canadian province of Ontario by the Flag Act on May 21, 1965. The flag is a defaced Red Ensign, with the Union Flag in the upper left corner and the Ontario shield of arms in the fly. Image File history File links Flag_of_Ontario. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ontario. ... Canada consists of ten provinces and three territories. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Official languages English Flower White Trillium Tree Eastern White Pine Bird Common Loon Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant-Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 106 24 Area Total... May 21 is the 141st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (142nd in leap years). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... Defacement is a term used in heraldry and vexillology to refer to the addition of a symbol to a background. ... The Red Ensign, as currently used by the United Kingdoms Merchant Navy The Red Ensign is a flag that originated in the early 1600s as an ensign flown by the Royal Navy. ... Flag Ratio: 1:2 Flag Ratio: 3:5 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland uses as its national flag the Royal Banner commonly known as the Union Flag or, popularly, Union Jack (although officially this title should only be given to the flag when its flown at... The Coat of Arms of Ontario, formally The Arms of Her Majesty in Right of Ontario, was begun when the shield was granted by Royal Warrant of Queen Victoria in 1868. ... The design and description of flags typically uses specialised flag terminology with precise and technical meanings (a form of jargon). ...

Before 1965, the Canadian Red Ensign had flown outside the legislature and government buildings. That year, the federal government, after a long and acrimonious debate, decided to replace the Red Ensign with the current flag of Canada. This decision was especially unpopular among rural Ontarians, who were the political base of Premier John Robarts' Ontario Progressive Conservatives. The Canadian Red Ensign, this design was used from 1957 until 1965. ... The National Flag of Canada, popularly known as the Maple Leaf and lUnifolié (French for the one-leaved), is a base red flag with a white square in its centre featuring a stylized, 11-pointed, red maple leaf. ... For the recipient of the Victoria Cross see John Robarts (VC). ... The Ontario Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party of Ontario) is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. ...

Robarts thus proposed that Ontario would have its own flag and that it would be a Red Ensign like the previous Canadian flag. The only difference was that the Canadian coat of arms would be replaced by the Ontario one. While Robarts insisted that he supported the new national flag, he felt the Ensign was an important symbol that reflected Ontario's British heritage and the sacrifices made by Canadian troops under the Red Ensign.

Canadians were exhausted by the long debate over the national flag and leaders of both the Ontario Liberal Party and the Ontario New Democratic Party decided to support the design. The only opposition came from Sudbury Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament Elmer Sopha who was fervently opposed to the flag, arguing that it failed to reflect Ontario's diverse character and that it was "a flag of revenge" against the new national flag. However, he was only joined by one other MPP, Liberal Leo Troy, in voting against the flag, and it was passed by the Legislative Assembly on March 17. The Ontario Liberal Party is a center-right provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. ... The Ontario New Democratic Party (formerly known as the Ontario Cooperative Commonwealth Federation) is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. ... Motto: Template:Unhide = Location City Information Established: 1883 (as Sudbury) 2001 (as Greater Sudbury) Area: 3,354 km² Population:  - City (2001)  - CD Rank  - Municipal Rank 155,219 20th in Canada 26th in Canada Population density: 46. ... A Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) is an elected member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada. ... Elmer Sopha was a Canadian politician, who represented the electoral district of Sudbury in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1959 to 1971. ... The Ontario Legislature Building at Queens Park The Legislative Assembly of Ontario, is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario. ...

See also

• List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols
• The Franco-Ontarian Flag

This is a list of the symbols of Canadian provinces and territories. ... Franco-Ontarians (French: Franco-ontarien) are French Canadian or francophone residents of the Canadian province of Ontario. ...

External links

• Government of Ontario, About Ontario: Emblems and Symbols
• Flags of Canada - Ontario book chapter by Alistair B. Fraser
• Rebellion of 1837-1839 in Upper Canada from Flags of the World

List of Canadian flags

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