When was the Canadian flag adopted?

The Canadian flag was adopted on February 15, 1965, replacing the Canadian Red Ensign that had flown over Parliament since the late nineteenth century. The new design is a vertical triband of red, white, red, with a stylised eleven-pointed red maple leaf centred on the white square. Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson made adopting a distinctively Canadian flag a personal goal, and his minority Liberal government tabled the design after the longest single debate in House of Commons history.

Parliament considered nearly 5,900 submissions during the Great Flag Debate of 1964. John Matheson, a Liberal MP and decorated war veteran, chaired the all-party committee that narrowed the choices. Historian George F. G. Stanley sketched the final concept on the back of an envelope, and graphic artist Jacques Saint-Cyr finalised the maple leaf. On December 15, 1964 the House voted 163 to 78 in favour, the Senate concurred on December 17, and Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed the flag two months later.

The first ceremonial raising took place at noon on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on February 15, 1965, with Governor General Georges Vanier and Prime Minister Pearson present. February 15 is now observed each year as National Flag of Canada Day, made official by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien in 1996.

Adopting a flag of Canada's own marked a turning point in the country's identity, pulling Canada visually out of the Union Jack era and signalling a confident, independent nation a hundred years after Confederation. The Maple Leaf flag is now one of the world's most recognisable national symbols and is flown every day from the Peace Tower, on Canadian embassies, and on hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses.