The state flag of Western Australia consists of a Blue Ensign defaced with the badge of the state. Adopted in 1953 to replace a similar design used from the time when the state was still a British colony, it has been the flag of Western Australia since 3 November of that year. The design of the present flag entailed reversing the direction of the black swan so that it faced towards the hoist. This was done in order to adhere to vexillological convention. Western Australia's flag is similar to the flags of the other five Australian states, which are also Blue Ensigns with their respective state badges. When flown with those state flags and the national flag, it is sixth in the order of precedence. This is indicative of its position on the Commonwealth Coat of Arms.
History
The first confirmed European sighting of the western coast of Australia was made by the Dutch East India Company in the early 1600s. During an expedition in January 1697 to what is now Cottesloe, Willem de Vlamingh observed black swans in habitation at the estuary of the river there. He consequently named this body of water the Swan River (Zwaanenrivier in Dutch). However, the Dutch abandoned aspirations to annex the area, having discerned poor prospects for trade or colonisation. which is the "point of honour". However, the figures are divided by a factor of 900 so that both are whole numbers.|group=upper-alpha
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| #FFD100 The black swan alludes to the state of Western Australia itself. It is native to the state, and lent its name to the Swan River Colony (the precursor to modern-day Western Australia). When flown together with the flag of Australia and the other state and territorial flags, the flag of Western Australia is sixth in the hierarchical order (after the national flag and, in descending order of precedence, the flags of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia). This reflects the position of its state badge on the shield of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, where it appears as the fifth quarter on the second row.
The guidelines state that the flag is not to touch the ground, nor should it be flown on the same flagpole that displays another flag. It ought to be hoisted not before first light and lowered not later than dusk, unless the flag is illuminated at night. The only exception to this is if the state flag is flown at half-mast, in which case it is never to be flown throughout the night, regardless of whether it would be illuminated. It is not to be displayed in an inverted manner, even if this is intended to serve as a distress signal.
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|Proposed flag of the "Dominion of Westralia" (1934)
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See also
- Flags of the governors of the Australian states
- List of Australian flags