Flags of the Seagoing World, 1904

Patrick Harris - 
    I recently purchased a reprint of the 1904 Manual of Seamanship for Boys and Seaman of the Royal Navy by Lieutenant Cecil H. Fox, R.N. Inside this unique spyglass into history, I delved into the chapter on signals. In it is displayed the Naval Ensign of the world's navies which were deemed important enough to be taught to the 13 year old raw recruits of the Royal Navy (Could you imagine going to sea at 13 for the rest of your working life).








   Many of these flags have since changed (ex: China, Germany). Some of the countries also no longer exist (Hawaii is now part of the United States, not an independent nation). This diagram also reflects the contempt the British had for many other nations (Serbia is spelt Servia, Romania as Roumania), misspellings like these are common in Imperial Era Literature, and it reflects the Anglo-Centric patterns of British society at the time. 


   Overall, this book is fast becoming one of my favourites, expect to see more from it in the future!


P.S. To my readers: Sorry for the inactivity in the last few weeks. I have been busied with other commitments, but I hope to prioritize Napoleonic & Naval History and the @NapoleonicWars Twitter feed in the future. The blog will post as often as I can, and I will always make sure that it is quality, not quantity. 



Edit: Some of the Naval Ensigns contained in this post are of landlocked nations. This arises from most landlocked countries having fresh water (riverine and lake) navies.