Government Ensign of Gibraltar

The Government Ensign of Gibraltar is a British Blue Ensign defaced with Gibraltar’s badge in the fly. The badge shows a red three-towered castle and a golden key, symbols derived from Gibraltar’s coat of arms granted in 1502. The key represents Gibraltar’s historic role as the “key to the Mediterranean,” while the castle refers to the fortress associated with the Rock. A government ensign of this type first appeared in 1870 with the badge on a white disc, was changed in 1921 to place the badge directly on the blue field, and the current design was formally adopted in 1982.