National- and command flags of the early US Navy

[Marcus.K.]

1.     Overview

In the early years of the U.S. Navy, there were no formally codified regulations for identifying naval vessels. The processes and traditions of the fledgling service were still in the making. Standardization was not yet the primary concern—rather, the focus lay on establishing procedures and organizational structures.

Undoubtedly, there existed unwritten customs rooted in British naval practice and those of other maritime nations, though concrete documentation is scarce. Nevertheless, some sense of what was common practice can be gleaned from period illustrations—particularly the many works of American maritime painter Felice Cornè, among others—as well as from occasional primary sources, such as a 1803 inventory recorded by Midshipman Henry Wadsworth aboard the U.S. frigate New York (Langley, 2003–2004).

Wadsworth records the following items:

·       4 american Ensigns

·       4 commission pennants and 1 Jack

·       2 american Burgees

·       3 american Broad Pendants

The Ensign was the national flag, typically flown from the flagstaff at the stern. In battle, it was often hoisted on additional masts or spars to ensure it always remained visible — since lowering the flag during combat was interpreted as a sign of surrender. To avoid any such misunderstanding in the event the main flagstaff was shot away, it was both common and critically important to display at least one additional, redundant flag.

The Jack was a smaller flag used to indicate a ship’s nationality. It was flown at the bow—typically from a short staff mounted on the bowsprit or foredeck, known as the ‘jackstaff’—but only while the ship was at anchor or moored..

Commission Pennants  (historically also spelled 'pendants') are long, narrow, triangular flags that were to be flown from the highest mast of every officially commissioned warship. Their purpose was to distinguish naval vessels from merchant shipping.

American Burgees were smaller flags bearing national symbols—such as the ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ flag or various designs featuring stars and/or stripes. In modern usage, burgees are typically triangular pennants, most commonly recognized in the sailing world as flags denoting membership in a yacht club.  

Broad Pennants — also referred to as command pennants — were used to indicate the rank of a squadron commander aboard a particular vessel. Importantly, when a squadron leader or higher authority was present on board, the broad pennant would replace the long, narrow commissioning pennant at the masthead.

2.     The Ensign

In its early years, the American national flag was not yet standardized as it is today. Since the United States was still in a formative and expansionist phase, and new territories continued to join the Union, both the number and the arrangement of stars and stripes on the flag varied over time. What remained consistent, however, was the general layout: a blue canton (the upper hoist-side quarter) bearing white stars, and horizontal red and white stripes—varying in number—filling the remaining three quarters of the flag.

In those early years, as is still the case today, each state was represented by a star in the canton. However, at the time, each state was also symbolized by a stripe—distributed across the rest of the flag. Only in 1818 was the number of stripes officially limited to thirteen, in honor of the original thirteen founding states, as it had become increasingly difficult to distinguish the red and white colors clearly when the number of stripes exceeded fifteen.

Above section illustrates that, at least in 1804/05, ships in active service could still be seen flying different versions of the national ensign side by side. With the admission of Vermont and Kentucky, the flag at that time displayed 15 stars and 15 stripes. In the following section, we will take a closer look at these flags:

 

In this view the U.S. frigate Constitution displays the classic '15-state flag' variant, with the 15 stars arranged in three rows of five.

To the left of USF Constitution the U.S. schooner Enterprise is shown flying a different variant, the so-called 'Maryland pattern,' which typically featured white border stripes and 14 stars arranged in a circle with one central star. However, it seems that Felice Cornè simplified the design somewhat, as we can only count 12 stars and 14 stripes. While the missing stars might be explained by a possible fold in the flag, the complete absence of the lower white stripe appears rather peculiar.

That Cornè was capable of greater precision becomes evident in the following illustration, which is in fact even older.

Here in above picture, we can clearly see all 15 stars and 15 stripes—just as they appear on the original shown in the next photo. However, even at this stage, it becomes apparent that having 15 stripes makes it increasingly difficult to distinguish them individually from a distance, and the red and white begin to blur into a washed-out pink hue.

This photo shows an original national flag in the Maryland pattern: 14 stars arranged in a circle around a central 15th star—and 15 red and white stripes, with a white stripe at both the top and bottom.

Felice Cornè’s well-known side view of the U.S. frigate Constitution from 1803, the earliest known depiction of the ship, shows a version with apparently 17 stars. This may indicate Ohio and Tennessee, which had already joined the Union at that time but were not yet officially represented on the flag. The number of stripes is somewhat puzzling again—there are only 16—and the top stripe is white while the bottom one is red.

Cornè’s effort to depict such a large number of stars can certainly be seen as an attempt at accuracy. Had he been merely imprecise, the more logical outcome would have been to show fewer stars rather than striving to cram more stars into such a small space!

It was not until 1818 that it was legally mandated: one star per state, and 13 stripes representing the founding states. This rule remains in effect to this day. However, this also shows that flags in the early years of the new nation still allowed for certain liberties—a topic that alone could easily fill an entire book.

3.     The Commissioning Pennant

British, American (and likely other nations’) warships flew a long, narrow, triangular pennant at their main mast—the so-called commissioning pennant—as a symbol of their active (military) service status.

The American version displayed at the hoist a blue field with vertical red and white stripes. Today it bears seven stars - in earlier times, thirteen, symbolizing the founding states.

The origin of this flag and tradition can be traced back to ancient Egypt and has been in continuous use through the Middle Ages to the present day. The commissioning pennant was only replaced by the flag of an admiral or high-ranking civilian official when such a person was aboard.

However, it was both possible and customary to fly another flag beneath the commissioning pennant—for example, as a salute or for signaling purposes.

This image possibly depicts the early Old Ironsides. However, Cornè may have intended it merely as a ‘typical’ frigate, since the entire painting centers on the theme of the East India Marine Hall, and the frigate serves only as the central focal point. What can be observed, however, is that beneath the long commissioning pennant another rectangular flag is flown. Could this be a salute to the honorable East India Marine Society?

4.     The Jack

The so-called 'Jack' is also a national flag, displayed only when the ship is at anchor or moored, flown on a short staff at the bow. This allowed for identification of the ship’s nationality when approached from the bow. Such identification was often necessary when the ship was at anchor and the stern had turned into the wind, rendering the ensign at the stern invisible.

Typically, the Jack is a simplified version of the national flag, displaying only the ‘canton’ — that is, the upper left field of the U.S. national flag: a blue field adorned with the appropriate number of stars.

The so-called "First Navy Jack" featured the rattlesnake and stripes motif, inspired by the 1775 Continental Army flag—a symbol of resistance and independence from the British Crown. However, this flag was only officially used between 1975 and 1976 (in preparation for the Bicentennial celebrations) and again from 2002 to 2019. There is no evidence that it was flown during the early years of the still young U.S. Navy.

5.     American Burgees

There is little information available today about the "American Burgees." Burgees—typically smaller, triangular flags—have historically served and continue to serve as identifiers and communication signals between vessels. In addition to the ensign, these “American burgees” were evidently intended to mark a ship as distinctly American.

Flags bearing inscriptions such as “Don’t give up the ship” might also be understood as burgees—a powerful symbol directed at both friend and foe. Captain Perry referenced the last words of his friend, Captain James Lawrence, during Lawrence’s engagement aboard the USS Chesapeake against HMS Shannon in late May 1813, and successfully used the motto to rally his own squadron during the Battle of Lake Erie in late summer 1813.

This representation again depicts national flags on the foremast and mizzenmast of the USS Constitution, as Cornè portrayed them in one of his paintings of the battle against HMS Guerriere. Once more, it is evident that the arrangement of stars in the blue field had not yet been standardized, and different patterns could even be flown simultaneously on the same ship.

6.     The Broad Pennant

Up until shortly before the Civil War, "Captain" was the highest permanent rank in the U.S. Navy. Captains commanding a squadron were honorarily titled "Commodore" and flew a broad pennant. These pennants came in blue, red, or white depending on seniority and displayed stars representing each state:

·       Blue with white stars for the senior-most commodore

·       Red with white stars for the second-ranking commodore

·       White with blue stars for all others

Therefore, Wadsworth likely recorded “3 broad pennants” in his midshipman’s logbook.

The large U.S. frigates such as the Constitution, United States, and President were the biggest ships in the Navy until the War of 1812 and often served as squadron flagships. With the arrival of a senior (in service) commodore aboard his flagship, it was clearly necessary to adjust one’s own squadron rank by changing the color of the broad pennant. Hence, all three colors were surely needed on board.

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Commodore Preble, for example, flew a blue broad pennant with 13 stars—symbolizing the founding states—during his operations off Tripoli in 1804. The shape of this pennant was a wide, truncated triangle. It was only years later that the now-standard swallowtail design became common. Signal flags are also displayed on the mizzenmast in above´s picture.

In Cornè’s 1803 depiction, a broad pennant is being hoisted that appears to show the American ensign instead of stars. This again indicates that flag usage in the early U.S. Navy was not yet strictly standardized.

7.     Other depictions done by other artists

The rigging and flag display of American frigates can, of course, also be observed in other paintings. The already mentioned exquisite French artists lead the way, of course! But other depictions naturally also show the common practices already in use.

In the storm, only the broad pennant remains hoisted on the main mast. All other flags were likely taken down for safety.

This is a magnificent painting by Antoine Roux that reveals an incredible number of details about the large American frigates.

Studying this work — as well as the painting of the President in the harbor of Toulon — comes highly recommended for anyone interested in the American 44-gun frigates.

Here, we again see the commissioning pennant and the national ensign at the stern. The jack is not yet hoisted, indicating the ship is not at anchor.

A very fine example of the long commissioning pennant, still showing clearly more than the seven stars commonly seen today at its hoist.

8.     Conclusion

It is important to keep in mind that, in addition to the lack of standardization of flags at the time, there were also inaccuracies in the artists’ depictions. However—despite all criticism regarding precision and the contradictions found, for example, in Cornè’s works—a closer examination reveals remarkable accuracy and attention to detail. Even the apparent contradictions can be explained, and the accusations of “errors” or “simplifications” often seem exaggerated when considering how many intricate details he managed to depict in the tiniest areas of his paintings. Compared to his French contemporaries like Roux or Baugean, Cornè may have lacked a bit of precision. Yet he was capable of rendering minute details and indeed did so. Therefore, when he chose to depict small details deviating from today’s expected “norms,” such as adding a miniature national flag to the broad pennant instead of the often used 13 white stars only, it is unlikely that this was done on a whim. Rather, it can be attributed to the still undefined rules concerning the exact design of official flags.

Based on the many beautiful illustrations and some scarce written records, the early national and command flags and their usage can be fairly well reconstructed. As with any historical research, one must carefully study the customs and practices of the era to achieve a more realistic representation of the original. The lack of standardization complicates this somewhat—but nevertheless, certain rules can be identified that allow for an accurate depiction of an early US frigate.

 

Edited 15 hours ago by Marcus.K.

[Chapman]

I also find it worth mentioning that Corné depicts the USF Constitution's farewell salute here, possibly to a US battery from the home port. The ship's flag is lowered halfway and then raised again, accompanied by a simultaneous cannon salute.

[Marcus.K.]

Ah - that´s interesting !! Sure!! I did not realize this salute process! THANKS @Chapman