Many Canadians had become attached to the Canadian Red Ensign , which they believed to be their national flag. Others still clung to the Union Jack.
In , artist and heraldic advisor Alan B. Beddoe presented Pearson with a flag design. It depicted a sprig of three red maple leaves on white flanked by two vertical blue bars. He introduced the design to Parliament in June All parties agreed that Canada should have a flag, but there was no agreement on its design. Feelings ran high among many English-speaking Canadians. French Canadians followed the debate with keen interest. Pearson insisted on a design that was free of colonial association and represented allegiance to Canada.
It was generally viewed as a concession to Quebec. When Pearson saw that it could not be adopted in Parliament , he appointed an all-party committee in September They were given six weeks to decide on a final design.
John Diefenbaker was elated with this outcome. Herman Batten, MP from Newfoundland , acted as chairman. Duguid again testified at length, presenting essentially the same views he expressed in His insistence on three leaves was viewed by some as a message of division. The views of the historians brought before the committee, Arthur Lower and Marcel Trudel , were in stark contrast. Lower stressed the need for a new distinctly Canadian emblem. His preferred candidate was the maple leaf. Trudel thought the flag should contain the symbols of the founding nations, something which had been done in the arms of Canada.
He did not think the maple leaf was a significant symbol, a position akin to that of Diefenbaker. Another witness before the committee was Group of Seven painter A. Jackson , who submitted designs of his own. Over the course of six weeks, the committee held 35 meetings and pored over thousands of suggestions submitted by the public. Three flags remained after a process of elimination: the Pearson Pennant, the present flag with a differently styled leaf, and the same flag with the Union Jack on the upper left red band and the banner of France on the other.
The final vote was between the Pearson Pennant, designed by Alan Beddoe, and the single leaf flag, designed mostly by George Stanley and inspired by the flag of the Royal Military College of Canada. When the time to vote came on 22 October , the Conservatives believed that the Liberals on the committee would surely vote for the Pearson Pennant. So they voted for the single-leaf design instead. The result was unanimous: a vote of 14—0 for the single-leaf design the chairman of the committee abstained from voting.
The ensuing debate in the House lasted another six weeks and involved speeches. See also: The Great Flag Debate. This limited speeches to 20 minutes and forced a vote. On 15 December at a. Senate approval followed on 17 December. The Canadian Red Ensign was taken down, and the national flag officially unfurled on 15 February at Parliament Hill.
His letter to Matheson on 23 March contains two drawings. One is divided vertically, with red, white and red in equal parts and a red maple leaf in centre.
Another is divided horizontally in the same colours and proportions with three maple leaves on one stem. Commemorate Canada. Explore Podcast. Gear Reviews. Map archive. Ocean Bridge. Ocean Supercluster. The Franklin Expedition. The North. The Polar Blog. The Terror. Canadian Geographic Challenge.
The National Bird Project. Classroom Energy Diet Challenge. Energy IQ. Canada's Coolest School Trip. A Developing World. Canadian Hydropower Interactive Map. A Nation Soars. Drawn to Victory. Wings of Courage. A member all-party committee was formed to review the suggestions and make a recommendation. Pearsons preferred design of three maple leaves was finally rejected in favour of a design proposed by the historian George Stanley that featured a single leaf flanked by red bars.
Diefenbaker dismissively said that it looked like the Peruvian flag. Canadians were invited to use their imagination and talent and submit ideas for a new flag.
National Archives of Canada. The parliamentary debate on the flag was lengthy and ugly. Pearson eventually used the rules of closure to limit speeches to 20 minutes and force a vote. That vote was taken on December 15, and the committee's recommendation was accepted to However, Canada's new flag was generally well received by the public.
The large generation of Canadians born after the Second World War took to the country's new symbol. The government used Canada's th anniversary celebrations in to promote the new flag throughout the country.
Expo 67 Canada welcomes the world but reveals a tear in its national fabric read more The Great Flag Debate Canadians respond with passion and dissension as the country seeks a new national symbol In , Canada embarked on a seemingly harmless attempt to create its own flag but the issue revealed a nation hotly divided on what symbol should unite the country.
The parliamentary debate on Canada's proposed flag was lengthy and ugly.
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