PortCities London
UK Bristol Hartlepool Liverpool London Southampton
You are here:  PortCities London home > The working Thames
Text Only About this Site Feedback
Explore this site
Browse the site by time
About maritime London
Early port
Tudor and Stuart port
18th-century port
19th-century port
20th-century port
Browse the site by topic
People and places
Port communities
Crime and punishment
Leisure, health and housing
Thames art, literature and architecture
The working Thames
London's docks and shipping
Trades, industries and institutions
Port of science and discovery
Historical events
Ceremony and catastrophe
London in war and conflict
Fun and games
Things to do
Timeline games
Matching games
Send an e-card

Trinity House

Introduction
The origins of Trinity House
Pilotage
Ballast and buoys
Lighthouses
Lightvessels
Charitable activities
A military role
Flags
 *
Send this story to a friend Send this story to a friend
Printer-friendly version Printer-friendly version
View this story in pictures View this story in pictures

Flags

The Master's flag

It is appropriate that an ancient and honourable Corporation like Trinity House has several flags that represent its various functions.

The first is the Master's own flag. It consists of a St George's Cross that separates four ships, with the Trinity House coat of arms at its centre.

· Image (Trinity House Master's Flag. 3028. AAA0831. ND).

The Trinity House Jack

Trinity House Jack.
View full size imageTrinity House Jack. © NMM
The Trinity House Jack is similar to the Master's flag, but does not have the coat of arms at the centre. An Elder Brother of the Corporation is allowed to fly the jack at the masthead of any vessel in which he is sailing. It also flies over the Trinity House at Tower Hill on flag days.

The ensign

Leader pilot vessel on Southampton Water.
View full size imageLeader pilot vessel on Southampton Water, June 1957. © NMM
The most common Trinity House flag is the ensign. It is flown from all its pilot boats, lighthouses, lightships and support vessels.

It consists of a red background with the Union flag in the top left hand corner and the four-ship Trinity House design in the middle. This photograph shows it flying from the mast of the Leader pilot vessel on Southampton Water.

 

Useful links

 

Page 9 of 9. Previous page

Search

Advanced Search
*
*
Glossary
Mast

Find out more
GalleriesMasters and Deputy Masters of Trinity House
*
*
*
StoriesThe Tudor and Stuart port
London becomes a gateway to the markets and products of the world
*
*
*
StoriesThe 18th-century port
London becomes a centre of finance, commerce and industry
*
*
*
StoriesThe 19th-century port
Docks and industry transform the Thames
*
*
*
StoriesThe 20th-century port
The changing fortunes of Docklands and the port
*
*
*
Fact fileHenry VIII
The king who had six wives
*
*
*
Fact fileSir Thomas Spert
The first and longest serving Master of Trinity House
*
*
*
Fact fileElizabeth I
Queen of England, 1558-1603
*
*
*
Fact fileSamuel Pepys
Diarist and Master of Trinity House
*
*
*
Fact fileDuke of Wellington
One of the finest soldiers in British history
*
*
*
Fact fileGrace Darling
A Victorian heroine
*
*
8
National Maritime Museum/Royal Observatory Greenwich New Opportunities Fund  
Legal & Copyright Partner sites: Bristol Hartlepool Liverpool Southampton About this Site Feedback Text Only