At the formation of the South African Naval Service in 1922, South Africa used the British White Ensign as its naval ensign, with a
Union Jack in the canton and a red St George's Cross. Meanwhile, the
South African national flag was flown as a
jack. In 1946, following the
Second World War, South Africa began to use a solid white ensign without the cross and with the then-current South African flag in the canton. This design was recommended by Chief of the General Staff General
Sir Pierre van Ryneveld to Prime Minister
Jan Smuts and accepted on 6 December 1945, with notice of the new ensign appearing in the
Government Gazette on 26 July 1946. The new flag was, unlike the national flag, in the 1:2 proportion, meaning the national flag had to be stretched. The ensign was found to be difficult to identify. On 5 March 1981, the proportions of the ensign were changed to 2:3 and the naval badge (featuring the crest of the
South African coat of arms on a dark blue representation of the layout of the
Castle of Good Hope) was added to the lower quarter. The ensign was updated to its current form in 1994, with the national flag in the canton updated and the naval badge removed. The colour of the cross was modified slightly to match the green on the national flag. == Historical ensigns, jacks and colours ==