Flag
The flag of the United Tribes of New Zealand was originally created in 1834. It features a St George's Cross throughout, with a canton featuring a smaller red cross on a blue background fimbriated in black, and with a white eight-pointed star in each quarter of the canton. When officially gazetted in New South Wales in 1835, some of these features were altered, to fit with more standard heraldic patterns - the fimbriation was made white, and the eight-pointed stars were changed to five-pointed stars. This altered version of the flag served as the de facto national flag of New Zealand from 1835 until the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in February 1840.
The earlier version of the flag, with black fimbriation and eight-pointed stars, is widely used today as a flag by Māori groups throughout New Zealand, who also refer to it as the He Whakaputanga flag. In July 2009 it was proposed as one of four possible designs for an official Māori flag at a series of hui around New Zealand. The flag is also occasionally encountered with black or white fimbriation and six-pointed stars.
Read more about this topic: United Tribes Of New Zealand
Famous quotes containing the word flag:
“Hath not the morning dawned with added light?
And shall not evening call another star
Out of the infinite regions of the night,
To mark this day in Heaven? At last, we are
A nation among nations; and the world
Shall soon behold in many a distant port
Another flag unfurled!”
—Henry Timrod (1828–1867)
“Up rose old Barbara Frietchie then,
Bowed with her fourscore years and ten;
Bravest of all in Frederick town,
She took up the flag the men hauled down;”
—John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892)
““Justice” was done, and the President of the Immortals, in Æschylean phrase, had ended his sport with Tess. And the d’Urberville knights and dames slept on in their tombs unknowing. The two speechless gazers bent themselves down to the earth, as if in prayer, and remained thus a long time, absolutely motionless: the flag continued to wave silently. As soon as they had strength they arose, joined hands again, and went on.
The End”
—Thomas Hardy (1840–1928)