Flag of Hawaii in command of the H.M.S. Discovery. During the Visit Vancouver met with Kamehameha I and presented him with a Red Ensign. At this time Ireland was not part of a united kingdom which meant the union jack did not contain Saint Patrick's Cross. This version of the Red Ensign, as well as the current version which added the cross in 1801, was the unofficial flag of the Kingdom of Hawaii until 1816. An adviser to Kamehameha noted that the Union Flag could draw Hawaii into international conflict, as his kingdom could be seen as an ally of the United Kingdom,
Union Jack The claim that the term "Union Jack" properly refers only to naval usage has been disputed, following historical investigations by the Flag Institute in 2013. The origins of the earlier flag of Great Britain date back to 1606. James VI of Scotland had inherited the English and Irish thrones in 1603 as James I, thereby uniting the crowns of England, Scotland, and Ireland in a personal union, although the three kingdoms remained separate states. On 12 April 1606, a new flag to represent this regal union between England and Scotland was specified in a royal decree, according to which the