Mark's Personal England - Proposals for change

I intend on this page to put forward proposals for changes that visitors to this site can view and then comment on in the comments page. The current subjects will be; Flag of England, an English anthem for England only occasions, an English Parliament within the parameters of devolution, and joining the European Union or not.

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The Flag of England.                      

The history of many things of importance to us have beginnings in periods of time where such history is uncertain. Non more so than our great flag of England. Based as it is on the legend of St. George the patron saint of soldiers and of England. Yet even his story is more myth than factual. But I am not concerned with the origin of St. George, it is enough for me that he is recognised by the people of England as the Patron Saint of England, and that the flag of England not only confirms this, but is the flag that represents England. Yet the flag of England is not unique. In many cases it will not be called England's flag or the flag of England. It is called St. George's flag or the flag of St. George. You don't see the flag of America being called something else, it is the American flag, or the flag of Germany being called something else not linked directly to Germany.

        In the case of the England flag not being unique, it, as a symbol (plain red cross on a plain white background), also represents the two Italian cities of Milan and Genoa, and the German city of Freiburg without anything else on it, just like the flag of England. As a symbol that is part of another flag or coat of arms, it appears on the flag of Barcelona, Spain and as part of the badge of the car maker Alfa Romeo. Hardly English are they!

I am proud to fly my country's flag upon my home, as I have done so for the past several years or more. But knowing that it is not unique to England, and that it is often called St. George's flag instead of England's flag causes me concern. I have nothing against the good people of Milan or Genoa, or indeed Italians in general, but should we be sharing the symbol of our country with them?  I have nothing against the good people of Freiburg, but should we be using the same symbol that represents two different peoples? At least the country of Georgia and the city of Montreal, Canada have added things to thier flags to make them unique.

It is my proposal for changing the flag of England that we retain the flag as is but add three items to it, so that it can represent England and the English and no one else. The first element is the symbol that is generally agreed represented the old saxon English untill the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It is a white dragon on a red background, this is placed in the upper left quadrant of the St. George flag.This then represents the people of England from Saxon times to the present. The next element is three golden lions on a red sheild. This was part of the royal symbols representing England from about the 13th century to the prensent. The three golden lions on a red backgroung appears on the coat of arms of Queen Elizabeth II today. This is placed in the lower right quadrant of the St. George's flag. Lastly a symbol representing the English rose is placed at the centre of the red cross of St. George. This represents the culmination of the war of the Roses which set the direction of the English Royal household and therefor the people of England to this very day. This then is a flag that not only represents England as a country and a nation in it's own right, but also denotes the history and heratige of the English people.

It is my hope that I have contributed here to discussion about England and what it means to be English. If the majority go for the new flag, then it looks like I will have to put up the new flag. Otherwise, I will not have to change a thing. There should be an English national referendum on this. But I will bow to the majority view. Email me with the words old flag to keep the St. George flag, or the words new flag for the new England flag.

But remember, the flag of England in what ever form it takes is not just for sporting events, it's for life. Fly your country's flag with pride. Any day is a good day to fly the flag of England, I fly mine every day. And if anyone objects just say this;

It is my inalienable human right, to show my love, respect and dedication to my country by flying it's flag on my home, wearing it's symbols upon my person, on my car, or anywhere else I feel the need to, and no one else can tell me otherwise.

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 Proposal for a National Anthem for England

If I were honest, and I hope I can always be so, before 1997 I never once thought of having a separate national anthem for England. For though I knew I was English, I was always as sure of being British and I was glad to sing the British national anthem. Yet since 1997 and the coming of the Scottish led New Labour, I have come to realise that there are those in Britain who would wish to see the repression of England and the English people. Well, I'm just not having that. In any country around the world, part of the cultural identity of a people is the National Anthem they sing that represents that people and their nation as a whole.

         Within the UK there are four distinct peoples, the English ( the largest indigenous population of the British Isles), the Welsh, the Scots and the Northern Irish. Three of these peoples have national anthems that represent them. The Welsh have a recognised national anthem that is played at Welsh only occasions, so do the Scots and the Northern Irish. Yet there is no recognised national anthem for the English to sing on England only occasions. This is clearly wrong.

         Picture this scenario, at an international football tournament, the English and Scottish teams come out and line up before the match. First the Scots sing their national anthem, then the English national anthem is sung, then finally the British national anthem is sung. This last one is sung because both the teams are British and playing at Wembley.

         What would happen today is that the Scots would sing their national anthem, then the British national anthem would be sung. Guess who's national anthem isn't sung? There's no prize for getting the answer right.

It is my proposal that the people of England should have a referendum to decide what national anthem they should have for England. My proposal gives the choice as:

Land of Hope and Glory

There will Always Be an England (some words changed)

Jerusalem

One chosen by the people.

The first three are almost certainly to be voted on by many, the last one is for people to put their own song if they can't choose from the other three. The winner will be the song that gets at least three quarters of the vote of the people of England or close to it.

I am not against having the British national anthem to represent the whole of the UK, or Her Majesty The Queen, but I am passionately in favour of England and us English having our own national anthem for England only events. If you email me let me know what song you would like to see as our national anthem.

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A proposal for an English Parliament. 

I was happy enough to be British, and so were most of the people of the British Isles, so why did the Scottish led, British Government, think it was necessary to implement devolution? Was it at the orders of the European Union? If so I would have told them to "politely", bog off. Was there an overwhelming economical reason for such a move? I don't think so. Did the entire population of Scotland, after seeing Mel Gibson in the role of a Scottish hero, suddenly cry out for freedom? No. So why did this Scottish led, British government, initiate devolution? I just can't get this round my head that the move was so totally unnecessary. I mean, you can forgive the Scottish people for feeling that they are a bit different from the rest of the British population. After all, since the early 1700's when the Act of Union was signed by both the Scottish parliament (Children's History of England, Charles Dickens), in secret for fear of being lynched by the Scottish people, and the English parliament. The Scottish people have always enjoyed a modicum of autonomy, retaining many Scottish laws and customs, and not being fully integrated into the new British Union. That's why, for example, they have a Procurator Fiscal and we have the Department for Public Prosecutions.

However, a state of devolution does exist within Britain and a totally unfair one it is to. In order that their homeland does not suffer too much by this state of affairs, the Scottish led British government implemented the Barnett formula. Which is supposed to dish out great wadds of money to each devolved part of Britain, which is great if it were not for the fact that in a list of the four countries being given money, Scotland is at the top with most money per head of population. Guess where England is! Yes, your right, we are at the bottom. It seems to me that this supposedly impartial Scottish led, British government is not quite so impartial.

It is my belief, although I can't prove any of this, that a core group of movers and shakers in Scottish society, centred around the Scottish claim of Right, have wanted a way to break from the UK for a long time. Perhaps from as far back as the forming of the union. The Scottish Claim of Right is a declaration of independence in all but words to say so. Guess who is a current signatory to the Scottish claim of write?

It is my proposal that the people of England be given a referendum on deciding if they want an English parliament that can protect the rights, privileges, and future of the English people within the limitations of devolution or not as the case may be. If you agree then email me with either the words "we want no parliament" or "we want a parliament" and I will bow to the majority view.