It’s really not that great.
It’s not a proper country,
It doesn’t even have a patron saint.
It’s just an economic union,
That’s past its sell-by date”
— from Take Down the Union Jack by Billy Bragg.
On Sept. 18, the people of Scotland will vote on the break-up of Britain.
The ripple effects of a vote for independence will be felt around the globe and one of the most visible would be to render obsolete one of the world’s most recognizable flags, the Union Jack.
For two centuries, the iconic Union Flag has fluttered from the flagpoles of Royal Navy ships — in the form of the battle flag, the White Ensign — as Britain ruled the waves."
