Before the red maple leaf, Canada, being a dominion of the British Commonwealth used the familiar 'Union Jack' for a national flag, followed by 'the red ensign' containing the union jack and a crest of maple leaves.
Pearson sought to create a unique new Canadian identity, free of the union jack, though this met with much opposition from groups who wanted to retain the symbol as a sign of Canadian ties to the United Kingdom (though this very symbol had caused issues on foreign peace-keeping missions in the past!)
A committee of 15 members of parliament from different political parties was struck to weigh in on the submissions for the new flag and what the artwork should include and exclude. 3,541 submissions from the general public were received, many of which surprisingly consisted of the same elements:
• 2,136 contained maple leaves,
• 408 contained Union Jacks,
• 389 contained beavers, and
• 359 contained Fleurs-de-lys.
Even when the committee decided on the current maple leaf (a last minute submission!) there was still much debate until the House of Commons finally voted in favour of the new design. The red ensign was lowered and replaced with the new Maple leaf on February 15, 1965 - now known as our annual Flag Day.
The lengthy debates reflect the importance and emotional connection a design can have, especially when representing a nation, its people and their ideals.
Here are some of the proposed flag designs:
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