Newfoundland Tricolour
Encyclopedia
The Newfoundland Tricolour, more commonly known as the "Pink, White and Green", is a popular but unofficial flag in use in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador
and is incorrectly believed by many to have once been the Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
, or more usually, of just the island of Newfoundland. Its colours are green
, white
and rose. Its proportions are 1:2 with three pales
of equal width coloured green (hoist side), white, and rose. Originating in the 1880s as the flag of a Roman Catholic fraternal group in St. John's, Newfoundland
, it is one of the very few and perhaps one of the oldest popularly recognized flags in the world to use the colour rose.
Historical evidence indicates that the "Pink, White and Green" flag first appeared in the 1880s to 1890s and was based on the colours of the Roman Catholic fraternal group the Star of the Sea Association, which was formed in St. John's in 1871. As such, and given the political climate in Newfoundland at the time, the design of the "Pink, White and Green" flag was likely based on the nearly identical Irish flag
but with the Protestant representation of the orange panel of King William of Orange
removed and replaced by a pink panel from the Star of the Sea Association's three official colours, which were themselves based on liturgical colours of the Catholic Church. Similarly, it is not uncommon in Ireland for alternate versions of the official Irish flag with the orange panel replaced by another colour to appear publically as symbols of rejection of English influence and Protestantism. This has led the Irish government to officially and actively discourage the defacing of the official Irish flag, specifically the replacement of the orange panel by another related shade (typically yellow).
and is supposedly symbolic of a tradition between local Protestants and Catholics. The annual wood hauls of firewood by sealers, waiting for their vessels to leave the port of St. John's, would get embroiled in a competition to supply wood to the Anglican cathedral
, Roman Catholic cathedral
, schools and other charity institutions. The Protestant English
marked their wood piles with the rose flag of the Natives' Society
, while the Catholic Irish
used green banners. The threat of violence was such that the Speaker of the House, William Carson
, suggested that Bishop Fleming should be enlisted as a peacemaker. Rather than simply preaching sermons, it was decided that Fleming would try to unite the sides. To that end, Bishop Fleming persuaded the two factions to adopt a common flag, tying together the rose and green flags of the two groups with a white handkerchief, which was to symbolize peace. The rose-colour is said to have symbolized the Protestant English
and was taken from the Tudor rose
, though this has been questioned as the Tudor Rose is actually red and white, not pink, while the green symbolized the Catholic Irish
. The white was taken from the Cross
of St. Andrew, the patron saint of fishermen and Scotland
.
This is not the original version of the legend, however, but rather appears to be a modification of an older legend in order to incorporate Protestant English representation into a flag originating within the Roman Catholic Irish community. In 1900 historians Devine and O'Mara told that the concept of the flag was originated by Bishop Fleming in the mid-19th century as a symbolic gesture to quiet tensions between newly arriving Irish settlers and the existing Roman Catholic community in the St. John's area. The Newfoundland 'Bush-borns' and 'Old Country' Irish were embroiled in rivalry to supply the biggest load of wood to the Roman Catholic Basilica during the big yearly wood haul. There was argument over which group had the larger load and violence between them ensued. Upon hearing of this, Fleming induced them to join their pink and green wood slide markers together with neutral white being placed in between, and thus was born the concept which eventually became the pink, white and green flag of the Star of the Sea fraternal association for Catholics. In this version of the story, pink similarly represented Newfoundland-born Catholics, possibly members of a "natives" group, that were supplying wood to Fleming himself, with the Protestant English not included in the proceedings at all. Devine and O'Mara conceded that this story was based on oral tradition with no actual historical evidence to support it.
By 1902, however, the colour pink was redesignated to represent the "rose of England" by then future Roman Catholic Archbishop and Irish nationalist Michael Francis Howley
in the song The Flag of Newfoundland, which he is credited as having written at that time and proposing it as an alternative national anthem to Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle
's Ode to Newfoundland
- Boyle being Newfoundland's British colonial governor from 1901 to 1904. This was a somewhat awkward assertion, however, as there is no reason to believe that the "rose of England", as mentioned in the song and supposedly referring to the ballad written in the fifteenth century, would be pink and not red. Historically, the colour pink has never been used to represent England, its people or any of the Protestant churches of England or Newfoundland, though it is a liturgical colour
of the Roman Catholic Church and was in use by other Catholic organizations in St. John's at the time. Furthermore, the Star of the Sea Association's original flag, predating the pink, white and green tricolour, consisted of a white star and a pink cross on a green background, as specified in their original rules and by-laws. Incidentally, by specifying the colour green in the song as representing "St. Patrick's emblem" Howley also joined many Irish nationalists in rejecting the red saltire of Saint Patrick's Cross
, which they see as a British invention and which forms the diagonal red cross of the Union Jack
meant to represent Ireland. A third version of the story tells that the green represents the flag of Irish King Brian Boru
, specifically.
flag is believed by some historians to have consisted of a green spruce tree on a pink background with two clasped hands and the word "philanthropy" eventually added, though there is no hard evidence to support that this flag ever really existed, that it was ever abandoned, or that the pink, white and green tricolour was ever adopted by the society. The Natives' Society was not a Catholic- or Protestant-only society, but was a nationalist group formed specifically to promote the advancement of careers and interests of native-born Newfoundlanders, no matter what their ethnic origin or religious affiliation. Its first president, elected by members of the society in 1840, was a Roman Catholic physician by the name of Dr. Edward Kielly. During its early days onward it served as a vehicle to allow Newfoundland-born Roman Catholics who opposed Bishop Fleming's political influence to work alongside Protestant reformers (then affiliated with the "Tory" party) and was opening opposed by Fleming. Available history indicates that the society actually used a tricolour flag of red, white and green, raising the speculation that it was this flag that symbolized peace between the Catholics and Protestants within the society - red being a more fitting representation of the Rose of England and the society itself being expressly non-denominational.
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The red, white and green tricolour of the Newfoundland Natives' Society was widely recognized as the flag of Newfoundland during the mid-nineteenth century but after the demise of the society in 1862 it gradually disappeared from use. The pink, white and green colours of the Roman Catholic fraternal group the Star of the Sea Association, as specified in their first published rules and by-laws, appeared sometime after the group's formation in 1871 and may have been confused with the Natives' Society's red, white and green tricolour by reporters and from black-and-white photographs of the period, from which it is impossible to distinguish red from pink. There is no reason to believe that the pink and green colours of the Star of the Sea Association flag were intended as a symbol of union between Catholic groups as in the Devine and O'Mara legend. With the Association's inception in 1871, their by-laws stated “the flag of the Association shall be green ground, white star with pink cross in the centre” and the officers “shall wear, at all processions, sashes of green, white and pink.” The actual tri-colour flag based on these colours, now recognized as the "Pink, White and Green", seems to have surfaced within the Association sometime in the mid-1880s and there is no known historical evidence to indicate its existence before that time. The Star of the Sea Association appeared publicly under these colours, in the form of sashes and green flag with a pink cross, for the first time in 1875 when they marched alongside the Benevolent Irish Society in St. John's during their centenary celebrations parade of Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell
's birth. Newspaper descriptions of this event report the Natives' Society's red, white and green flag being flown prominently as the flag of Newfoundland, alongside the flags of England, Ireland, France and the United States, but make no mention of a pink, white and green tricolour. Sometime thereafter the "Pink, White and Green" tricolour appeared and, with the support of the clergy, was adopted by other Catholic groups in the St. John's and surrounding area in the 1880s and 1890s.
It has been suggested on some websites and commercial tourist items that the Irish flag was based on the "Pink, White and Green" - the basis for this claim being that Irish nationalist, Thomas Francis Meagher
, was the son of Newfoundland-born mayor of Waterford
, Ireland
, Thomas Meagher Jr., and himself designed the Irish flag based on the "Pink, White and Green". Irish history, however, states that the design that would become the Irish flag goes back as far as 1830 and had widespread recognition by 1848. From March of that year Irish tricolours appeared side by side with French ones at meetings held all over the country to celebrate the revolution that had just taken place in France. The following month, in April 1848, Meagher brought a tricolour of orange, white and green to Ireland from Paris, where it is said he received it as a gesture of goodwill from a group of French women, and presented it in a Dublin council meeting - it was likely patterned after the French Tricolour flag
as a symbolic show of solidarity between the two countries. The orange, white and green Irish tricolour was used unofficially by nationalists as a symbol of opposition to the British government until being adopted publicly by the Irish Republican Army
(IRA) during the Easter Uprising
of 1916. Despite the popular myth, the earliest historical evidence supporting the appearance of the "Pink, White and Green" in Newfoundland points to at least 41 years after the first appearance of the then unofficial Irish flag and possibly as late as 60 years thereafter.
Given this, its origin within an Irish Catholic fraternal group and the first public appearance of the colours in a centenary celebration of Daniel O'Connell's birth, the "Pink, White and Green" flag was likely based on the then unofficial Irish nationalist flag with the orange panel representing Protestant King William of Orange
removed and replaced by a pink panel of the Star of the Sea Association - pink being a liturgical colour of the Roman Catholic Church and one of the formal colours of the Association. This effectively removed any symbolic Protestant English representation from the Irish flag and the subsequent use of the "Pink, White and Green" by Catholic Irish groups in the St. John's area as a symbol of Newfoundland nationalism and opposition to confederation with Canada further links the flag to its Irish counterpart by analogy to the IRA's flying of the strikingly similar Irish tricolour in their resistance to union with Britain.
Given the inaccuracy of The Monitor's 1976 legend and the fact that there were heated debates in Newfoundland during the 1970s as to the design of the new provincial flag, the current legend of the "Pink, White and Green" was likely forwarded at that time in an attempt to gain Protestant (60% of the province's population) and province-wide support for an Irish-based flag, rather than the various Union Jack based designs being proposed at the time, but it is not supported as a factual account of history. From 1931 until confederation with Canada in 1949 the Union Jack was legislated as the national flag of Newfoundland, and then from 1952 until 1980 the Union Jack was readopted as the official flag of the province of Newfoundland. Ottawa's refusal to recognize the Union Jack as a unique representation of the province lead to the provinical government seeking a new Newfoundland flag and the eventual design and adoption of Christopher Pratt
's deconstructed Union Jack based design as the Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
on May 28, 1980.
Around the turn of the 20th century the "Pink White and Green" flag gained significant social and possibly commercial use, primarily by Roman Catholic groups in the St. John's and surrounding area. It remained controversial, however, as many Protestants did not accept it as their own flag, feeling that it was, in fact, a Roman Catholic/Irish nationalist flag. Bishop Michael Fleming, credited in popular legend as its creator was, in fact, a self-fashioned leader of the Irish community in Newfoundland and pursued an “Irish nationalistic” agenda in taking on the local British establishment, even to the point of intervening to get particular men elected. In 1904, the "Pink, White and Green" was a central symbol for those opposed to confederation with Canada, a sentiment supported by Roman Catholic Archbishop Michael F. Howley and his clergy, particularly on the east coast, thus further associating the flag with the Catholic Church and Irish nationalism in the eyes of many Protestants.
Contrary to popular myth, photos from Government House
during Murray
's and Boyle
's administrations and during the Prince of Wales
visit to Newfoundland in 1860 show the Union Jack, the governmental ensigns, and various other flags being flown on ships in St. John's harbour, but not the "Pink, White and Green". Captain Robert Bartlett, who captained Admiral Peary
on his ultimate polar expedition in 1909, was claimed by members of his crew to have planted the "Pink, White and Green" within six miles of the North Pole. This was in fact untrue, as Bartlett was never closer than 150 miles (241 km) from the pole, with Peary continuing on sled without Bartlett or his crew from there. The tricolour is said to have been flown alongside the Union Jack
at Government House
during the administrations of Boyle
and Murray
, though there is no photographic evidence from the period to support this, with existing photos showing only the Union Jack and governmental Ensigns. An official mail steamer was to be seen flying the tricolour as late as 1907 but was forced by authorities to replace it with the Newfoundland Red Ensign, the civil flag
of Newfoundland vessels, upon entering St. John's harbour. After the First World War its use diminished and Newfoundlanders generally flew the Union Jack
as their flag - the Union Jack being legislated as the Dominion of Newfoundland's
official flag in 1931, with the Newfoundland Red Ensign designated as "National Colours". In recent years, the "Pink, White and Green" flag has undergone a revival, and has become popular on T-shirts incorrectly referring to it as "the Republic of Newfoundland flag," despite the fact that available history indicates it originated exclusively as a symbol representing Roman Catholic/Irish communities on the island, was never officially recognized as a national or provincial flag, and although Newfoundland was an independent British Dominion
from 1907 to 1949, it was never a republic. See: Dominion of Newfoundland
.
It has been claimed that the colours of the flag were incorporated into the first public performance of Sir Cavendish Boyle's "Ode to Newfoundland" at the Casino Theater in 1901, where a character resembling the Statue of Liberty
clad in a flowing gown of vertical stripes of pink, white and green is said to have appeared on stage. The next day the colours appeared on the cover of the music sheet published by Boyle. These claims are questionable, however, as the "Ode to Newfoundland" was not written until 1902 and was first sung publicly at the Casino Theatre on December 22 of that year as part of the closing of the play Mamzelle - a play in which the French character Marianne
, bearing a strong resemblance to the Statue of Liberty, appears clothed in a tricolour gown of red, white and blue based on the French tricolour
. It would not be unexpected that the French Flag
would appear on the music score of this French themed play as well. Confusion as to the colour of Marianne
's gown and any tricolour on the sheet music was likely the result of black-and-white photos and printings of the era failing to indicate the correct colours. Other early available printings of the "Ode to Newfoundland" show no evidence of a tricolour flag being used.
The flag exists in Canadian heraldry
. Its trice
is present in the flag of the St. John's Fire Department and in the municipal flag of Paradise
, Newfoundland
; it also appears on the crest on some escutcheon
s or armorial bearings portrayed in the Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada
. The tricolour had a resurgence in the province, particularly in the city of St. John's, and there was a popular movement to petition the province to give the flag official status. Premier Danny Williams
announced in late 2005 that he would consider opening debate on the matter, and that he personally preferred the tricolour, but an informal poll commissioned in October 2005 by Williams showed that only 25% of Newfoundlanders supported adopting the tricolour. This is roughly reflective of the 21.5% of the province's population who claim Irish ancestry.
, is the first known reference to the "Pink, White and Green" flag as being the flag of Newfoundland and marks the first redesignation of the pink panel to represent the "rose of England".
The song has since been rearranged and recorded or performed by other Newfoundland artists. One such case is that of Newfoundland Irish folk band Shanneyganock
's "Flag of Newfoundland" released in 2006. The lyrics and music along with their recording may be found on the GEST Songs Of Newfoundland And Labrador website.
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
and is incorrectly believed by many to have once been the Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
The flag of Newfoundland and Labrador was introduced in 1980, and was designed by Newfoundland artist Christopher Pratt. The flag design, with the proportions 2:1, was approved by the House of Assembly of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, on May 28, 1980. It was flown for the first...
, or more usually, of just the island of Newfoundland. Its colours are green
Green
Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...
, white
White
White is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light that stimulates all three types of color sensitive cone cells in the human eye in nearly equal amounts and with high brightness compared to the surroundings. A white visual stimulation will be void of hue and grayness.White light can be...
and rose. Its proportions are 1:2 with three pales
Pale (heraldry)
A pale is a term used in heraldic blazon and vexillology to describe a charge on a coat of arms , that takes the form of a band running vertically down the center of the shield. Writers broadly agree that the width of the pale ranges from about one-fifth to about one-third of the width of the...
of equal width coloured green (hoist side), white, and rose. Originating in the 1880s as the flag of a Roman Catholic fraternal group in St. John's, Newfoundland
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...
, it is one of the very few and perhaps one of the oldest popularly recognized flags in the world to use the colour rose.
Origins
Flag of Ireland
The national flag of Ireland is a vertical tricolour of green , white, and orange. It is also known as the Irish tricolour. The flag proportion is 1:2...
but with the Protestant representation of the orange panel of King William of Orange
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
removed and replaced by a pink panel from the Star of the Sea Association's three official colours, which were themselves based on liturgical colours of the Catholic Church. Similarly, it is not uncommon in Ireland for alternate versions of the official Irish flag with the orange panel replaced by another colour to appear publically as symbols of rejection of English influence and Protestantism. This has led the Irish government to officially and actively discourage the defacing of the official Irish flag, specifically the replacement of the orange panel by another related shade (typically yellow).
Mythical Origins
A popular legend presented in the July 1976 issue of the Roman Catholic archdiocese's newsletter "The Monitor", however, is commonly though incorrectly believed as giving the origins of the flag. The legend tells that the flag was created in 1843 by Bishop Michael Anthony FlemingMichael Anthony Fleming
Michael Anthony Fleming was Catholic bishop of St. John's, Newfoundland. He was principally responsible for changing a small mission with several priests in four parishes into a large diocese with over 40,000 congregants and was the single most influential Irish immigrant to come to Newfoundland...
and is supposedly symbolic of a tradition between local Protestants and Catholics. The annual wood hauls of firewood by sealers, waiting for their vessels to leave the port of St. John's, would get embroiled in a competition to supply wood to the Anglican cathedral
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (St. John's)
The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is located in the city of St. John's, Newfoundland. This parish in the Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador was founded in 1699 in response to a petition drafted by the Anglican townsfolk of St. John's and sent to the Bishop of London, the Rt. Rev....
, Roman Catholic cathedral
Basilica of St. John the Baptist
The Basilica-Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador is the metropolitan cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. John's, Newfoundland and the mother church and symbol of Roman Catholicism in Newfoundland....
, schools and other charity institutions. The Protestant English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
marked their wood piles with the rose flag of the Natives' Society
Natives' Society
The Natives' Society of Newfoundland refers to several, now defunct, non-denominational organizations in Newfoundland established to protect the rights and privileges of Newfoundland-born citizens against the flood of newcomers to the island in the mid-nineteenth century...
, while the Catholic Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
used green banners. The threat of violence was such that the Speaker of the House, William Carson
William Carson
Sir William Carson , often called "The Great Reformer", was an important doctor and businessman in Newfoundland. Carson's primary contribution to Newfoundland was the application of modern agricultural principles....
, suggested that Bishop Fleming should be enlisted as a peacemaker. Rather than simply preaching sermons, it was decided that Fleming would try to unite the sides. To that end, Bishop Fleming persuaded the two factions to adopt a common flag, tying together the rose and green flags of the two groups with a white handkerchief, which was to symbolize peace. The rose-colour is said to have symbolized the Protestant English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and was taken from the Tudor rose
Tudor rose
The Tudor Rose is the traditional floral heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the Tudor dynasty.-Origins:...
, though this has been questioned as the Tudor Rose is actually red and white, not pink, while the green symbolized the Catholic Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The white was taken from the Cross
Flag of Scotland
The Flag of Scotland, , also known as Saint Andrew's Cross or the Saltire, is the national flag of Scotland. As the national flag it is the Saltire, rather than the Royal Standard of Scotland, which is the correct flag for all individuals and corporate bodies to fly in order to demonstrate both...
of St. Andrew, the patron saint of fishermen and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
This is not the original version of the legend, however, but rather appears to be a modification of an older legend in order to incorporate Protestant English representation into a flag originating within the Roman Catholic Irish community. In 1900 historians Devine and O'Mara told that the concept of the flag was originated by Bishop Fleming in the mid-19th century as a symbolic gesture to quiet tensions between newly arriving Irish settlers and the existing Roman Catholic community in the St. John's area. The Newfoundland 'Bush-borns' and 'Old Country' Irish were embroiled in rivalry to supply the biggest load of wood to the Roman Catholic Basilica during the big yearly wood haul. There was argument over which group had the larger load and violence between them ensued. Upon hearing of this, Fleming induced them to join their pink and green wood slide markers together with neutral white being placed in between, and thus was born the concept which eventually became the pink, white and green flag of the Star of the Sea fraternal association for Catholics. In this version of the story, pink similarly represented Newfoundland-born Catholics, possibly members of a "natives" group, that were supplying wood to Fleming himself, with the Protestant English not included in the proceedings at all. Devine and O'Mara conceded that this story was based on oral tradition with no actual historical evidence to support it.
By 1902, however, the colour pink was redesignated to represent the "rose of England" by then future Roman Catholic Archbishop and Irish nationalist Michael Francis Howley
Michael Francis Howley
Michael Francis Howley was a Roman Catholic priest and Archbishop of Saint John’s, Newfoundland from 1904 to 1914.-External links:*...
in the song The Flag of Newfoundland, which he is credited as having written at that time and proposing it as an alternative national anthem to Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle
Charles Cavendish Boyle
Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle, KCMG was a British colonial administrator. He joined the British Colonial Office and was made magistrate in the Leeward Islands in 1879. He served as Colonial Secretary in Bermuda from 1882 to 1888 and in Gibraltar from 1888 to 1894 and was granted a knighthood for his...
's Ode to Newfoundland
Ode to Newfoundland
"Ode to Newfoundland" is the official provincial anthem of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was composed by Governor Sir Cavendish Boyle in 1902. as a four-verse poem entitled Newfoundland. On December 22, 1902 it was sung by Frances Daisy Foster at the Casino Theatre of St. John's during the closing...
- Boyle being Newfoundland's British colonial governor from 1901 to 1904. This was a somewhat awkward assertion, however, as there is no reason to believe that the "rose of England", as mentioned in the song and supposedly referring to the ballad written in the fifteenth century, would be pink and not red. Historically, the colour pink has never been used to represent England, its people or any of the Protestant churches of England or Newfoundland, though it is a liturgical colour
Liturgical colours
Liturgical colours are those specific colours which are used for vestments and hangings within the context of Christian liturgy. The symbolism of violet, white, green, red, gold, black, rose, and other colours may serve to underline moods appropriate to a season of the liturgical year or may...
of the Roman Catholic Church and was in use by other Catholic organizations in St. John's at the time. Furthermore, the Star of the Sea Association's original flag, predating the pink, white and green tricolour, consisted of a white star and a pink cross on a green background, as specified in their original rules and by-laws. Incidentally, by specifying the colour green in the song as representing "St. Patrick's emblem" Howley also joined many Irish nationalists in rejecting the red saltire of Saint Patrick's Cross
Saint Patrick's Flag
Saint Patrick's Cross is a red saltire on a white field. In heraldic language, it may be blazoned Argent, a saltire gules. Saint Patrick's Flag is a flag composed of Saint Patrick's Saltire....
, which they see as a British invention and which forms the diagonal red cross of the Union Jack
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
meant to represent Ireland. A third version of the story tells that the green represents the flag of Irish King Brian Boru
Brian Boru
Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, , , was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill. Building on the achievements of his father, Cennétig mac Lorcain, and especially his elder brother, Mathgamain, Brian first made himself King of Munster, then subjugated...
, specifically.
Historical Origins
In actual historical record there is no evidence of Bishop Fleming ever creating the pink, white and green flag. The first published complete telling of the now popularly accepted "legend" incorporating the Protestant English was in a Catholic church archdiocese newsletter during the provincial flag debates of the 1970s and was not presented as actual fact at that time. The St. John's Newfoundland Natives' SocietyNatives' Society
The Natives' Society of Newfoundland refers to several, now defunct, non-denominational organizations in Newfoundland established to protect the rights and privileges of Newfoundland-born citizens against the flood of newcomers to the island in the mid-nineteenth century...
flag is believed by some historians to have consisted of a green spruce tree on a pink background with two clasped hands and the word "philanthropy" eventually added, though there is no hard evidence to support that this flag ever really existed, that it was ever abandoned, or that the pink, white and green tricolour was ever adopted by the society. The Natives' Society was not a Catholic- or Protestant-only society, but was a nationalist group formed specifically to promote the advancement of careers and interests of native-born Newfoundlanders, no matter what their ethnic origin or religious affiliation. Its first president, elected by members of the society in 1840, was a Roman Catholic physician by the name of Dr. Edward Kielly. During its early days onward it served as a vehicle to allow Newfoundland-born Roman Catholics who opposed Bishop Fleming's political influence to work alongside Protestant reformers (then affiliated with the "Tory" party) and was opening opposed by Fleming. Available history indicates that the society actually used a tricolour flag of red, white and green, raising the speculation that it was this flag that symbolized peace between the Catholics and Protestants within the society - red being a more fitting representation of the Rose of England and the society itself being expressly non-denominational.
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847; often referred to as The Liberator, or The Emancipator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the 19th century...
's birth. Newspaper descriptions of this event report the Natives' Society's red, white and green flag being flown prominently as the flag of Newfoundland, alongside the flags of England, Ireland, France and the United States, but make no mention of a pink, white and green tricolour. Sometime thereafter the "Pink, White and Green" tricolour appeared and, with the support of the clergy, was adopted by other Catholic groups in the St. John's and surrounding area in the 1880s and 1890s.
Thomas Francis Meagher
-Young Ireland:Meagher returned to Ireland in 1843, with undecided plans for a career in the Austrian army, a tradition among a number of Irish families. In 1844 he traveled to Dublin with the intention of studying for the bar. He became involved in the Repeal Association, which worked for repeal...
, was the son of Newfoundland-born mayor of Waterford
Waterford
Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Thomas Meagher Jr., and himself designed the Irish flag based on the "Pink, White and Green". Irish history, however, states that the design that would become the Irish flag goes back as far as 1830 and had widespread recognition by 1848. From March of that year Irish tricolours appeared side by side with French ones at meetings held all over the country to celebrate the revolution that had just taken place in France. The following month, in April 1848, Meagher brought a tricolour of orange, white and green to Ireland from Paris, where it is said he received it as a gesture of goodwill from a group of French women, and presented it in a Dublin council meeting - it was likely patterned after the French Tricolour flag
Flag of France
The national flag of France is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured royal blue , white, and red...
as a symbolic show of solidarity between the two countries. The orange, white and green Irish tricolour was used unofficially by nationalists as a symbol of opposition to the British government until being adopted publicly by the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
(IRA) during the Easter Uprising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
of 1916. Despite the popular myth, the earliest historical evidence supporting the appearance of the "Pink, White and Green" in Newfoundland points to at least 41 years after the first appearance of the then unofficial Irish flag and possibly as late as 60 years thereafter.
Given this, its origin within an Irish Catholic fraternal group and the first public appearance of the colours in a centenary celebration of Daniel O'Connell's birth, the "Pink, White and Green" flag was likely based on the then unofficial Irish nationalist flag with the orange panel representing Protestant King William of Orange
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
removed and replaced by a pink panel of the Star of the Sea Association - pink being a liturgical colour of the Roman Catholic Church and one of the formal colours of the Association. This effectively removed any symbolic Protestant English representation from the Irish flag and the subsequent use of the "Pink, White and Green" by Catholic Irish groups in the St. John's area as a symbol of Newfoundland nationalism and opposition to confederation with Canada further links the flag to its Irish counterpart by analogy to the IRA's flying of the strikingly similar Irish tricolour in their resistance to union with Britain.
Given the inaccuracy of The Monitor's 1976 legend and the fact that there were heated debates in Newfoundland during the 1970s as to the design of the new provincial flag, the current legend of the "Pink, White and Green" was likely forwarded at that time in an attempt to gain Protestant (60% of the province's population) and province-wide support for an Irish-based flag, rather than the various Union Jack based designs being proposed at the time, but it is not supported as a factual account of history. From 1931 until confederation with Canada in 1949 the Union Jack was legislated as the national flag of Newfoundland, and then from 1952 until 1980 the Union Jack was readopted as the official flag of the province of Newfoundland. Ottawa's refusal to recognize the Union Jack as a unique representation of the province lead to the provinical government seeking a new Newfoundland flag and the eventual design and adoption of Christopher Pratt
Christopher Pratt
For other uses, see Christopher Pratt .John Christopher Pratt CC is a Canadian painter.Pratt moved to New Brunswick in 1953 to attend Mount Allison University, where he met his future wife, the artist Mary West. They married in 1957. They have 4 children, John, Barbara, Anne and Edwin...
's deconstructed Union Jack based design as the Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
Flag of Newfoundland and Labrador
The flag of Newfoundland and Labrador was introduced in 1980, and was designed by Newfoundland artist Christopher Pratt. The flag design, with the proportions 2:1, was approved by the House of Assembly of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, on May 28, 1980. It was flown for the first...
on May 28, 1980.
Use and Popular Myth
Government House (Newfoundland and Labrador)
Government House is the official residence of the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. Government House was a by-product of the wave of administrative initiatives that took place during the 1820s. The royal charter of 1825 bestowed official colonial status for Newfoundland.The first...
during Murray
Herbert Harley Murray
Sir Herbert Harley Murray KCB was a Scottish colonial governor.A member of Clan Murray headed by the Duke of Atholl, he was born in Bromley, the son of the Right Reverend George Murray, Bishop of Rochester, by Lady Sarah Maria, daughter of Robert Hay-Drummond, 10th Earl of Kinnoull...
's and Boyle
Charles Cavendish Boyle
Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle, KCMG was a British colonial administrator. He joined the British Colonial Office and was made magistrate in the Leeward Islands in 1879. He served as Colonial Secretary in Bermuda from 1882 to 1888 and in Gibraltar from 1888 to 1894 and was granted a knighthood for his...
's administrations and during the Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
visit to Newfoundland in 1860 show the Union Jack, the governmental ensigns, and various other flags being flown on ships in St. John's harbour, but not the "Pink, White and Green". Captain Robert Bartlett, who captained Admiral Peary
Robert Peary
Robert Edwin Peary, Sr. was an American explorer who claimed to have been the first person, on April 6, 1909, to reach the geographic North Pole...
on his ultimate polar expedition in 1909, was claimed by members of his crew to have planted the "Pink, White and Green" within six miles of the North Pole. This was in fact untrue, as Bartlett was never closer than 150 miles (241 km) from the pole, with Peary continuing on sled without Bartlett or his crew from there. The tricolour is said to have been flown alongside the Union Jack
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
at Government House
Government House (Newfoundland and Labrador)
Government House is the official residence of the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. Government House was a by-product of the wave of administrative initiatives that took place during the 1820s. The royal charter of 1825 bestowed official colonial status for Newfoundland.The first...
during the administrations of Boyle
Charles Cavendish Boyle
Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle, KCMG was a British colonial administrator. He joined the British Colonial Office and was made magistrate in the Leeward Islands in 1879. He served as Colonial Secretary in Bermuda from 1882 to 1888 and in Gibraltar from 1888 to 1894 and was granted a knighthood for his...
and Murray
Herbert Harley Murray
Sir Herbert Harley Murray KCB was a Scottish colonial governor.A member of Clan Murray headed by the Duke of Atholl, he was born in Bromley, the son of the Right Reverend George Murray, Bishop of Rochester, by Lady Sarah Maria, daughter of Robert Hay-Drummond, 10th Earl of Kinnoull...
, though there is no photographic evidence from the period to support this, with existing photos showing only the Union Jack and governmental Ensigns. An official mail steamer was to be seen flying the tricolour as late as 1907 but was forced by authorities to replace it with the Newfoundland Red Ensign, the civil flag
Civil ensign
The civil ensign is the national flag flown by civil ships to denote nationality...
of Newfoundland vessels, upon entering St. John's harbour. After the First World War its use diminished and Newfoundlanders generally flew the Union Jack
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
as their flag - the Union Jack being legislated as the Dominion of Newfoundland's
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...
official flag in 1931, with the Newfoundland Red Ensign designated as "National Colours". In recent years, the "Pink, White and Green" flag has undergone a revival, and has become popular on T-shirts incorrectly referring to it as "the Republic of Newfoundland flag," despite the fact that available history indicates it originated exclusively as a symbol representing Roman Catholic/Irish communities on the island, was never officially recognized as a national or provincial flag, and although Newfoundland was an independent British Dominion
Dominion
A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, beginning in the latter part of the 19th century. They have included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland,...
from 1907 to 1949, it was never a republic. See: Dominion of Newfoundland
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...
.
It has been claimed that the colours of the flag were incorporated into the first public performance of Sir Cavendish Boyle's "Ode to Newfoundland" at the Casino Theater in 1901, where a character resembling the Statue of Liberty
Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
clad in a flowing gown of vertical stripes of pink, white and green is said to have appeared on stage. The next day the colours appeared on the cover of the music sheet published by Boyle. These claims are questionable, however, as the "Ode to Newfoundland" was not written until 1902 and was first sung publicly at the Casino Theatre on December 22 of that year as part of the closing of the play Mamzelle - a play in which the French character Marianne
Marianne
Marianne is a national emblem of France and an allegory of Liberty and Reason. She represents the state and values of France, differently from another French cultural symbol, the "Coq Gaulois" which represents France as a nation and its history, land, culture, and variety of sport disciplines in...
, bearing a strong resemblance to the Statue of Liberty, appears clothed in a tricolour gown of red, white and blue based on the French tricolour
Flag of France
The national flag of France is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured royal blue , white, and red...
. It would not be unexpected that the French Flag
Flag of France
The national flag of France is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured royal blue , white, and red...
would appear on the music score of this French themed play as well. Confusion as to the colour of Marianne
Marianne
Marianne is a national emblem of France and an allegory of Liberty and Reason. She represents the state and values of France, differently from another French cultural symbol, the "Coq Gaulois" which represents France as a nation and its history, land, culture, and variety of sport disciplines in...
's gown and any tricolour on the sheet music was likely the result of black-and-white photos and printings of the era failing to indicate the correct colours. Other early available printings of the "Ode to Newfoundland" show no evidence of a tricolour flag being used.
The flag exists in Canadian heraldry
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
. Its trice
Trice
Trice or TrICE may refer to:* Trice , a family name and persons with it* Track Imaging Cherenkov Experiment, a cosmic ray telescope...
is present in the flag of the St. John's Fire Department and in the municipal flag of Paradise
Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador
Paradise is a town on the Avalon Peninsula in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The town is a part of the St. John's Metropolitan Area. The town borders the City of St. John's, the City of Mount Pearl, the Town of Portugal Cove-St. Philip's, and the town of Conception Bay South...
, Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
; it also appears on the crest on some escutcheon
Escutcheon
In heraldry, an escutcheon is a shield which forms the main or focal element in an achievement of arms. The word is used in two related senses....
s or armorial bearings portrayed in the Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada
Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada
The Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges of Canada contains the heraldic emblems that have been granted, registered, approved or confirmed by the Canadian Heraldic Authority since its inception on June 4, 1988. In 2005, the Canadian Heraldic Authority began the process of creating a digital...
. The tricolour had a resurgence in the province, particularly in the city of St. John's, and there was a popular movement to petition the province to give the flag official status. Premier Danny Williams
Danny Williams (politician)
Daniel E. "Danny" Williams, QC, MHA is a Canadian politician, businessman and lawyer who served as the ninth Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador between November 6, 2003, and December 3, 2010. Williams was born and raised in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador...
announced in late 2005 that he would consider opening debate on the matter, and that he personally preferred the tricolour, but an informal poll commissioned in October 2005 by Williams showed that only 25% of Newfoundlanders supported adopting the tricolour. This is roughly reflective of the 21.5% of the province's population who claim Irish ancestry.
Song
The following song, entitled The Flag of Newfoundland written by Roman Catholic Archbishop Michael F. Howley in 1902 and proposed as an alternative national anthem to Sir Charles Cavendish Boyle's Ode to NewfoundlandOde to Newfoundland
"Ode to Newfoundland" is the official provincial anthem of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was composed by Governor Sir Cavendish Boyle in 1902. as a four-verse poem entitled Newfoundland. On December 22, 1902 it was sung by Frances Daisy Foster at the Casino Theatre of St. John's during the closing...
, is the first known reference to the "Pink, White and Green" flag as being the flag of Newfoundland and marks the first redesignation of the pink panel to represent the "rose of England".
| 1 |
The pink, the rose of England shows, The green St. Patrick's emblem, bright While in between, the spotless sheen of Andrew's cross displays the white. |
3 |
Fling out the flag, o'er creek and cragg, Pink, white and green, so fair, so grand. Long may it sway o'er bright and bay, Around the shores of Newfoundland! |
5 |
Should e'er the hand of fate demand Some future change in our career: We ne'er will yield: on flood or field The flag we honour and revere! |
| 2 |
Then hail; the pink, the white, the green, Our patriot flag' long may it stand. Our sirelands twine, their emblems trine, To form the flag of Newfoundland! |
4 |
What'er betide, our Ocean Bride That nestles 'midst Atlantic's foam Still far and wide, we'll raise with pride Our native flag, o'er hearth and home. |
6 |
Fling out the flag, o'er creek and cragg; Pink, white and green, so fair, so grand. Long may it sway, o'er bight and bay, Around the shores of Newfoundland! |
The song has since been rearranged and recorded or performed by other Newfoundland artists. One such case is that of Newfoundland Irish folk band Shanneyganock
Shanneyganock
Shanneyganock is folk-based band from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.Loosely translated from Gaelic, their name means "creature of the night". Their music is heavily Irish/Celtic influenced....
's "Flag of Newfoundland" released in 2006. The lyrics and music along with their recording may be found on the GEST Songs Of Newfoundland And Labrador website.