A Hawk aircraft from RAF Valley will fly over County Hall, Mold on Monday 10 March as part of a ceremony to raise the Commonwealth flag in the county.
Five hundred flags will be raised throughout the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man at 10am to mark Commonwealth Day.
A message of support from Her Majesty The Queen and a specially written Commonwealth Affirmation will be read out at each ceremony before the raising of the flag.
Chair of the County Council, Councillor Carolyn Thomas said: “It is an honour to be raising the Commonwealth Flag on behalf of Flintshire County Council on Commonwealth Day. The initiative, uniting communities under one event, where flags will be raised in unison will hopefully raise awareness of the Commonwealth and what it represents to everyone, whether through local, nationwide or charitable organisations.”
In London, Her Majesty The Queen will ‘break’ the Commonwealth Flag outside the Great West Door of Westminster Abbey. This will be the last of over 500 Commonwealth Flags raised that day.
It will be the largest, single raising of this flag in the history of the Commonwealth. Shortly after The Queen has ‘broken’ the flag, Her Majesty will attend the annual Commonwealth Observance (service) in Westminster Abbey, which will also be attended by The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and The Earl and Countess of Wessex.
Bruno Peek, LVO, OBE OPR, originator and Pageantmaster of ‘Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth said:”I am delighted and honoured that Her Majesty The Queen has agreed to ‘break’ the Commonwealth Flag outside the Great West Door of Westminster Abbey, and has sent a message to all those taking part in ‘Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth’. Charity teams will mark the day by taking Commonwealth Flags to the top of the UK’s four highest National Peaks, using the occasion to raise funds and profile for their worthy causes: Cancer Research UK – Scafell Pike, England; Help for Heroes – Ben Nevis, Scotland; Walking with the Wounded – Snowdon, Wales; and Fields of Life – Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland.
“Commonwealth Flags will be flown at many locations of special significance including Land’s End, Cornwall, the most westerly point in England; St. David’s in Pembrokeshire: the westernmost city in Wales; Carlisle in Cumbria: the northernmost city in England; Lowestoft in Suffolk: the easternmost town in England; and Unst in the Shetland Islands, the most northerly inhabited island in Scotland.
“Flags will also be raised at the Rothera Research Station on the Antarctic Peninsula, and at the Halley VI Research Station on the Brunt Ice Shelf, as well as King Edward Point and Bird Island in South Georgia”
His Excellency Kamalesh Sharma, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth said:”Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth is a most imaginative way for people in local communities – wherever they live, learn or work – to join together with others throughout the Commonwealth in a spirit of respect and understanding to celebrate the variety and unmatched diversity of our global family. I welcome and commend it.
“All our citizens, particularly the young, can express appreciation for the Commonwealth and the values for which it stands as set out in the Commonwealth Charter, and the rich opportunities it offers for mutual support towards more inclusive social and more equitable economic progress.”
A special Interactive Map has also been produced by Esri UK, to show the location of each flag.
“We are exceptionally proud to support the ‘Fly a Flag’ for Commonwealth initiative and, to help raise awareness of the day, we have built an interactive map www.esriuk.com/flyaflagmap that shows where the individual flag raising events are taking place, throughout the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man,” explained Dr Richard Waite, Managing Director of Esri UK.
“We have strongly encouraged all local authorities and others taking part to post the map on their website, so local citizens and the media can easily find details of their local event and become involved in what will be a most special day.”
