North America · MS / MSR
Flag of Montserrat
The Montserrat flag is a Blue Ensign with the Union Jack in the corner and the territory's coat of arms in the fly. The badge shows a woman with a golden harp and a cross, a reminder of the island's Irish heritage.
What the flag of Montserrat looks like
The flag is a dark blue field with the British Union Jack in the upper hoist corner, called the canton. The flag's ratio is 1:2. In the fly, which is the right half of the flag, sits the coat of arms of Montserrat, shown as a round-edged shield.
The shield shows a woman in a green landscape with the sea behind her. She holds a golden harp in one arm and a cross in the other. Under the badge the colors are light blue for the sky and the sea, green for the land, and gold for the harp.
Montserrat flag colors
Color codes measured from the official design. Use HEX for the web and CMYK for print.
HEX
#012169RGB
1, 33, 105CMYK
99, 69, 0, 59HEX
#C8102ERGB
200, 16, 46CMYK
0, 92, 77, 22HEX
#FFFFFFRGB
255, 255, 255CMYK
0, 0, 0, 0HEX
#00A2DDRGB
0, 162, 221CMYK
100, 27, 0, 13Montserrat flag meaning and symbolism
The woman is Erin, the female personification of Ireland. She wears a green dress and stands for the Irish settlers who came to the island from 1632 onwards, which is why Montserrat is sometimes called the “Emerald Isle of the Caribbean”. The Celtic harp she holds is another emblem of Ireland. The cross alludes to the island's Christian heritage, and her hold on it signifies the Montserratians' love of Christ.
The Blue Ensign and the Union Jack show that Montserrat is a British Overseas Territory. The colors of the Blue Ensign carry no separate meaning beyond this.
History of the Montserrat flag
Christopher Columbus sighted the island in 1493, and it was named after the abbey of Santa Maria de Montserrat in Spain. In 1632 Thomas Warner, the first governor of Saint Christopher, sent Irish Catholics from his island to settle it. Control passed between Britain and France during the 17th and 18th centuries until 1783, when France permanently gave it up.
Montserrat joined the British Leeward Islands in 1871 and was granted its own shield on 10 April 1909. The Blue Ensign with that shield was adopted as the territory's flag in 1960, after the Leeward Islands federation was dissolved. The flag was redesigned in 1999: the shield was enlarged and the white disc behind it was replaced with a white outline. The island's volcano, the Soufrière Hills, erupted from 1995 and buried the capital, Plymouth, so the government now works from Brades.
You can compare this with other flags of the same type, for example the Turks and Caicos Islands flag or the flag of the Cayman Islands.
Montserrat flag facts
| Country | Montserrat |
|---|---|
| Flag adopted | 1999 |
| Proportions | 1:2 |
| Colors | #012169, #C8102E, #FFFFFF, #00A2DD |
| Symbols | coat of arms of Montserrat, Union Jack |
| Flag emoji | 🇲🇸 |
| Country code | MS, MSR (ISO 3166) |
| Capital | Brades, Plymouth |
| Continent | North America |
| Population | 5,440 |
| Area | 102 km² |
| Currency | Eastern Caribbean dollar |
| National anthem | God Save the King |
Montserrat flag: frequently asked questions
What does the flag of Montserrat look like?
It is a blue flag with the Union Jack in the top corner and the coat of arms on the right side. The coat of arms shows a woman with a harp and a cross on a green hill by the sea.
Who is the lady on the Montserrat flag?
She is Erin, the female personification of Ireland. She is shown with a harp and a cross to honor the Irish roots of the island's early settlers.
What country does Montserrat belong to?
Montserrat is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It has its own government and is led by a premier, while the UK is responsible for defense and foreign affairs.
Are Montserratians British citizens?
Yes. People with a connection to Montserrat have had full British citizenship since 2002, in addition to Montserratian belonging.
When was the Montserrat flag adopted?
The Blue Ensign with the territory's coat of arms was adopted in 1960. It was redesigned in 1999, when the shield was enlarged and the white disc replaced with a white outline.
Which flags look like the flag of Montserrat?
Eight other British Overseas Territories also use a Blue Ensign with their own coat of arms, including Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and the Falkland Islands. Only the coat of arms differs.
What is the Montserrat flag emoji?
The Montserrat flag emoji is 🇲🇸, built from the regional indicator letters M and S. Phones show the blue ensign, but it can appear as the letters MS on some Windows systems.
