The Maryland state flag is one of the most visually distinctive state flags in the United States. With its quartered design of gold and black vertical bars crossed by a diagonal band, alternating with red and white quarters bearing a cross bottony, the flag stands apart from the simple seals-on-blue-backgrounds that dominate most state flag designs.
Maryland's flag is also the only U.S. state flag based entirely on English heraldry, and its story reaches back to the founding of the colony itself.
Colonial Origins of the Maryland Flag
The colony of Maryland was granted by King Charles I to Cecil Calvert, the 2nd Baron Baltimore, in 1632. Cecil's father, George Calvert, the 1st Baron Baltimore (1579 to 1632), had originally petitioned for the charter but died before it was issued. As the colonial proprietors, the Calvert family used their heraldic coat of arms to represent the territory.
The Calvert arms consisted of six alternating gold and black vertical bars (called a "paly of six" in heraldic language) with a diagonal band on which the colors are reversed. George Calvert's mother, Alicia Crossland, was the heiress of the Crossland family, which entitled the Calverts to incorporate the Crossland arms into their own. The Crossland design featured a quartered field of white and red, charged with a Greek cross whose arms end in trefoils (a cross bottony), with the colors counterchanged, meaning the cross is red on the white quarters and white on the red quarters.
Cecil Calvert quartered both family coats of arms on his banner, placing the Calvert gold and black in the first and fourth quarters and the Crossland red and white in the second and third. That quartered design is what appears on the Maryland state flag today.
What the Colors and Symbols Mean
The Maryland flag's four quarters each carry specific meaning rooted in heraldic tradition.
The Calvert Quarters (Gold and Black)
The first and fourth quarters display the Calvert family's gold and black design. According to heraldic tradition, the pattern is said to represent the crenellations of a palisade wall, possibly referencing a military action by an earlier Calvert ancestor. Gold and black became the "Maryland colors" or "Baltimore colors" in popular usage and remain closely identified with the city of Baltimore and institutions like Johns Hopkins University, whose seal incorporates the Calvert shield.
The Crossland Quarters (Red and White)
The second and third quarters display the Crossland family's red and white design with the cross bottony counterchanged. The cross bottony, whose arms terminate in three rounded lobes, carries religious connotations common in medieval heraldry. The Crossland quarters link the flag to the maternal line of the founding family, a direct acknowledgment of Alicia Crossland's lineage.
The Combined Design as Reconciliation
The quartered combination of both coats of arms took on a powerful new meaning after the Civil War, representing the reunification of a deeply divided state. The flag's four quarters visually merge the two sides of Maryland's wartime split into a single banner.
The Civil War and the Flag's Transformation
During the colonial period, only the gold and black Calvert arms were associated with Maryland. After independence, the state stopped using the heraldic design, and for decades, Maryland was represented by various unofficial banners, most commonly the state seal on a blue background.
An 1854 law reintroduced the Calvert coat of arms on a new state seal. When the Civil War erupted in 1861, Maryland was a border state with citizens fighting on both sides. Union-sympathizing Marylanders identified with the gold and black Calvert colors. Confederate sympathizers adopted the red and white Crossland arms as their emblem, wearing cross bottony pins on uniforms. Federal authorities actively prosecuted people displaying Crossland colors during the war.
After the war, reconciliation demanded a shared identity. A new flag combining alternating quarters of the Calvert and Crossland arms appeared at a Baltimore parade in October 1880. In 1888, Maryland National Guard troops carried the banner at the Gettysburg Battlefield monument dedication. The combined design conveyed a direct message: the colors that had divided Maryland now stood together, symbolizing reunion.
Official Adoption in 1904
On March 9, 1904, the Maryland General Assembly officially adopted the quartered Calvert-Crossland banner as the state flag. The adoption formalized a design that had been gaining public acceptance for more than two decades.
Maryland's flag code, now codified under MD General Provisions Code, Section 7-201 (2024), specifies the precise heraldic description of the flag. Section 7-203 adds a unique requirement: the only permitted ornament atop a flagstaff displaying the Maryland state flag is a gold cross bottony. Maryland is the only state with a regulation governing flagpole ornaments. While government buildings and the State House in Annapolis follow this rule, individual citizens and businesses are not required to do so.
The Maryland Secretary of State also specifies Pantone color standards for the red and gold used in the flag, ensuring consistency across official reproductions.
Maryland's Maritime Connection
Maryland's identity is deeply tied to the water. The Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States, defines the state's geography and economy. The Port of Baltimore is one of the busiest commercial ports on the U.S. East Coast, handling cargo ships, tankers, and bulk carriers from around the world. The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis has trained naval officers since 1845.
For vessels operating in the Chesapeake Bay and mid-Atlantic waters, the Maryland state flag is a common sight aboard recreational boats, charter fishing vessels, and yachts displaying their home state. Proper flag display protocol on vessels requires that state flags occupy a subordinate position to the U.S. national ensign. When flying the Maryland flag alongside the American flag on a vessel, the national ensign holds the position of honor at the stern or highest point, with the state flag displayed on a separate halyard or staff.
Commercial vessels and government craft operating in the region also fly appropriate maritime flags for identification and communication, including national ensigns, courtesy flags, and signal flags required under SOLAS and the International Code of Signals.
The Maryland Flag in Popular Culture
Few state flags have achieved the cultural adoption seen with Maryland's banner. The flag's bold geometric pattern appears on athletic uniforms (the University of Maryland Terrapins prominently feature it), license plates, craft beer labels, and boat wraps. The Baltimore Ravens NFL team incorporates both the Calvert and Crossland designs in an alternate logo.
The flag's popularity stems from its visual distinctiveness. Where most state flags require close inspection to tell apart, the Maryland flag is instantly recognizable from a distance, a practical quality it shares with well-designed maritime country flags built for visibility at sea.
Fly the Flag Right
The Maryland state flag carries nearly four centuries of colonial, military, and civic history in a single heraldic design. Whether displayed at a waterfront home on the Chesapeake, flown aboard a vessel entering Baltimore harbor, or mounted at a government building in Annapolis, the flag tells a story of founding, division, and reunion. For a professionally made Maryland state flag or any state, signal, or international flag, contact American Nautical Services at +1 (954) 522-3321 or sales@amnautical.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What do the colors on the Maryland flag represent?
The gold and black quarters represent the Calvert family, the colonial proprietors who founded Maryland. The red and white quarters represent the Crossland family, the maternal line of George Calvert, the 1st Baron Baltimore. The combined design symbolizes post-Civil War reconciliation.
Q. When was the Maryland state flag officially adopted?
The Maryland General Assembly officially adopted the flag on March 9, 1904, formalizing a design that had been in public use since at least October 1880.
Q. Why is the Maryland flag based on British heraldry?
Maryland was founded as a proprietary colony under the Calvert family, who held the title of Baron Baltimore. Cecil Calvert used his family's heraldic banner of arms to represent the colony. Maryland is the only U.S. state whose flag is based entirely on English heraldic design.
Q. What is the cross bottony on the Maryland flag?
The cross bottony is a Greek cross whose arms end in three rounded lobes (trefoils). The cross appears in the red and white Crossland quarters of the flag with counterchanged colors, meaning the cross is red on white quarters and white on red quarters.
Q. What is the required flagpole ornament for the Maryland flag?
Under the Maryland General Provisions Code, Section 7-203, the only permitted ornament atop a flagstaff displaying the Maryland state flag is a gold cross bottony. Maryland is the only U.S. state that specifies a flagpole ornament by law.
Q. Can the Maryland flag be flown on a boat?
Yes. The Maryland state flag is commonly displayed aboard recreational and commercial vessels in the Chesapeake Bay region. When flown alongside the U.S. national ensign, the state flag must occupy a subordinate position, with the American flag at the position of honor.
