National Flag of the Commonwealth of Australia (1954)

Before Federation, Australia’s colonies flew the flags of the Great Britain. From 1870, the separate colonies adopted different badges which they superimposed on the British Blue Ensign, but there was no uniting flag for Australia, other than those of the Great Britain.

With Federation on the 1st of January 1901 and the joining of all Australians under the Commonwealth of Australia, a new flag was needed for the new nation.  

A worldwide competition was held and more than 30,000 designs were submitted, from which five almost identical designs were chosen. Prize money of £200 was divided among the winners and a flag embodying the designs was first flown in Melbourne on the 3rd of September 1901.  

Over the next few years, changes were made to the number of points shown on the Federation Star and the stars of the Southern Cross.  

At this time the Australian national flag was known as the Commonwealth Blue Ensign.  

It wasn't until 1953 that the name of the flag was officially proclaimed the Australian National Flag, under the Flags Act 1953.  

This Act was signed into law by Queen Elizabeth II on the 14th of February 1954.

The current flag dates from the 15th of April 1954.

The Symbolic Meaning

The Federation Star located beneath the Union Jack represents unity, with a point for each of the six states and a seventh point representing the territories.

The five stars in the fly of the flag symbolise the constellation the Southern Cross, representing the stars Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta each with seven points and Epsilon with five points because it doesn't shine as brightly as the other stars in the constellation. 

The Southern Cross is a prominent constellation of the southern hemisphere. It denotes Australia's geographical position in the world.

Thus, the flag represents Australia's history, its unity and its place in the universe.