Last modified: 2004-01-17 by dov gutterman
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by Paige Herring, 23 April 1998
This is a flag with a very interesting history. It was
originally the flag of a trading company, but evolved into the
ensign used by ships belonging to the Ministry for Greenland. The
flag was first introduced in 1781, and had two white harpoons in
saltire in the canton. From 1795 the letters "K.G.H.",
meaning Kongelig Gro/nlandske Handel (Royal Greenland Trading
Company) in gold/yellow were added to the centre of the cross.
The letters later disappeared and a Royal resolution of 28 June
1846 confirmed the harpoons only. Closer to our time, the flag
was used by the Ministry for Greenland and its subdivisions (for
instance the Royal Greenland Trading Company). Presumably it
became obsolete when Greenland got its own flag and the home rule
authorities took over the responsibility for the services
formerly run by the Ministry for Greenland and the Royal
Greenland Trading Company.
Unknown
Greenland (Swalow tail danish flag with two crossed white
spears on the canton) - 28x53,5
Ole Andersen, 1 April 2001
Royal Greenland Trading Company - Danish swallow-tailed
national flag with two white harpoons crossed in saltire in
canton. I guess the source of Paige Herring's image is
Flaggenbuch. Joseph Nüsse shows a flag with the harpoons
slightly different (shorter and thicker), which is probably of
little significance.
Ivan Sache, 1 September 2002
According to Jan Oskar Engene presantaion at ICV 20
(Stockholm, 2003), this company operated between 1795-1986, and
also used this flag with gold initials on the meeting points of
the cross's hands. See photo.
Dov Gutterman, 12 August 2003
Royal Greenland Trading Co. - Until the latter 1970s', Lloyds
listed them under this name then changing to Den Kongelige
Gronlandske Handel and then to Den Kongelige Gronlandske Handel
Trafikkavdelingen, which, going by later information, appears to
be their original title. This changed in 1986 to Gronlands Handel
and then in 1993 it became Royal Arctic Line A/S.
Neale Rosanoski, 19 October 2003
(this flag is probably wrong - see below)
by Ivan Sache, 1 September 2002
Royal Arctic Line A/S (Nuuk) - Flag diagonally divided (per
bend) yellow-blue.
Ivan Sache, 1 September 2002
I hereby inform you that the information regarding the house
flag of Royal Arctic Line is wrong. Further more Royal Arctic
Line is a Greenlandic owned shipping company. It is been 100%
owned by the Home rule Government of Greenland for the
last 10 years. To your information our flag's colors are white
and red. See our web site at <www.ral.gl>.
Nini Biilmann, Marketing departement, Royal Arctic Line
A/S, 18 October 2002
My source is Joseph Nüsse's website at <josef.nuesse/114.htm>
. Joseph Nüsse shows on his website colour pictures of several
house flags of shipping companies. The site is a very good source
since it shows pictures of real flags. It is clear from his
website that Joseph served (and maybe still serves) in the
merchant navy and most probably regrets the decline in merchant
shipping. The website disclaimer says that most of the companies
whose house flags are shown there are gone out of business.
Ivan Sache, 2 November 2002
I am not surprised that Nini Biilman is aggrieved as Ivan
seems to getting crossed wires and a different view of Josef
Nüsse's site to me. Josef does show the diagonal biband shown
but in his section on Netherlands Dredging companies where it is
correctly listed under Royal [or Koninklijke] Boskalis
Westminster N.V. (although Brown 1995 defines it for their
subsidiary Baggermaatschappij Boskalis B.V.). Josef DOES show the
proper flag for Royal Arctic
A/S, referred to be Nuuk, in his Danish section Seite 7.
Neale Rosanoski, 19 October 2003
