About the Australian Flag

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By Ac Gaughen
eHow Contributing Writer

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The Australian flag features the Union Jack in the upper left quadrant of the flag, with one large star beneath it and five stars of various sizes scattered in the upper and lower right quadrants.

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Design Contest

Australia's flag is the result of a design contest held in 1901 to choose the Australian flag. It was chosen by contingents from the British and Australian government.

Union Jack

The Australian flag features the British flag, or Union Jack, in a corner to show the Australian loyalty to and history with the United Kingdom.

The Commonwealth Star

The Commonwealth Star originally had six points on it, representing the six regions of Australia, but a seventh was added when Australia took over the Territory of Papua.

The Southern Cross

The Southern Cross is a constellation that is prominent in the Southern Hemisphere, and the five stars in the right half of the flag are arranged to hearken back to that constellation.

Dante's Virtues

The use of the Southern Cross also recalls the virtues that Dante said the four stars in the constellation represent: fortitude, temperance, justice and fortitude.