| Squadron. | Ships. |
| 1. Battle | St. George at main. |
| 2. Vanwarde | St. George at fore. |
| 3. Wing | St. George at mizzen. |
Eighty years afterwards, in the time of Charles I., we learn of another change, when in 1627 the Duke of Buckingham divided his fleet into squadrons at the Island of Rhe, each designated according to the flag it carried:
"Himself ye admirall and general in chief and admirall particular of the bloody colours," the "vice-admiral of ye fleete bearing a blew flag in his main top and was admiral of the blew colours," and the "rear admiral bearing a white flag in the main top and was admirall of ye squadron of white colours."[181]
The admirals' flags were, in 1627:
| Admiral | Red flag. |
| Vice-Admiral | Blue flag. |
| Rear-Admiral | White flag. |
It was into the upper corner of these red, blue and white flags of the squadrons that the single-cross St. George's English Jack was placed, in 1649, when the "Commonwealth Ensign" (Pl. [IV.], fig. 1) was formed and the red, white and blue ensigns of the navy first appeared.
Difficulties must have been caused by the fact that from the "Restoration," in 1660, the English merchantmen were, without authority, using the Ensign Red at the stern in exactly the same form as the flag of the red squadron, and still more when the general use of the Red Ensign on all ships had been officially authorized by Queen Anne in 1707.
At first the admirals holding the highest position had carried the red, but afterwards the seniority had been changed.
A rank of admiral, vice-admiral and rear-admiral was appointed for each colour. Promotion was made from the rank of captain to that of rear-admiral of the blue, which was the lowest, and upward through the red to admiral of the white, which had become the highest rank.