The practice of hoisting and flying a “Jolly Roger” began in WW1 when Lieutenant Commander Max Horton took umbrage to a remark made by First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson, that submarines were “underhanded, unfair, and damned un-English and that personnel should be hanged as pirates“.

Horton’s response was to fly the flag after returning from successful patrols onboard HMS E9.

The practice restarted during World War II, In October 1941, following a successful patrol by HMS Osiris, during which she sank the Italian destroyer Palestro the submarine returned to Alexandria, but was ordered to remain outside the boom net until the motorboat assigned to the leader of the 1st Submarine Flotilla had come alongside and delivered a "special recognition signal". The flotilla leader wanted to recognise the boat's achievement, which had involved penetrating deep into the heavily guarded Adriatic, so had a Jolly Roger made and delivered to Osiris. After this, the commanders of submarine flotillas began to issue the flags to submarines following the boat's first successful patrol, once handed over, it became the responsibility of the boat's personnel to maintain the flag and update it with new symbols indicating the submarine's achievements.

A submarine was entitled to fly the flag when returning from a successful patrol and it would be hoisted as the submarine passed the boom net, lowered at sunset, and could not be flown again until another successful patrol had occurred. (The Jolly Roger could also be flown on the day a submarine returned to the UK from a successful overseas deployment)

This particular one is in fair weathered & wartime used condition with frayed edges, diesel fume stains and faded but readable issue marks, including the date 1943. Sadly, we cannot ascertain which brave boat this one survived from but it has almost certainly been flown by a British submarine returning from patrol during WW2. (If we could identify the boat, the price would be anywhere between £5-10k.)

It has been freshly & professionally framed behind glass to protect its integrity and has an engraved descriptive brass cartouche mounted to the lower part of the frame. (110xm x 80cm)

£2500

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