Fourthly, If any Squadron or parte of the fleete, by beinge too forwards a-heade, shall be required to shorten sayle, and to attend the comeinge up of the Admirall; a Signe appropriated may be, to heave or wave an Ensigne abroade in the Admiralls Fore-topp, and to give fire to a great piece withall; And on the contrary, whensoever any of them keepe too farre a-sterne, to wave out the same flagge in the Missen-topp.
Fifthly, If upon the discoverye of any straunge fleete or Shyp, the Generall find itt fitt to have any of the Pinnaces, and best saylers of his fleete, to stand in with them, and to require them to come to speake with him; an apte signe may be to give fire to a piece of Ordinance or two out of his own chase, and withall to shewe a flagge in his Bolt sprites Topp.
Sixthly, Whensoever a Fleete shall meet with the Enemies fleete, and after due consultation aborde the Admirall, itt shall be found fitt to fight, the Admirall may take in his ordinary Ensigne from the poope of the shyp and hang out another all redd, which is tearmed the bloudy Colors; that soe all the fleete may dispose and order themselves to fall on upon the Enemie in such forme and fashion as they are before hand to be instructed in.
And thes are such necessary Causes, to require any signalls to be expressed by the Generall himselfe, out of his perticuler Shypp: It followes, to intimate in some other perticulers, wherin every perticuler shypp of the fleete is to doe the like; hereby as well to give notice to the Generall himselfe or any of the rest.
Admiral. And what are thes?
Captain. If any Shyp of a fleete shall discover any straunge fleete, or any Squadron of straunge Shypps, or any single Shyp whatsoever; itt being necessary that not only the Generall, but the whole Armadoe, should with all expedition, receive advertisement hereof. A convenient signall to this purpose may be, to shewe abroade some flagge in that part of that Shyp which pointeth most upon the discovered Straunger; and if it be a fleete that is soe discovered, then to hang out two flagges in the same manner, and withall to give to a great Gunne or two, that so notice may generally be taken of what is done.
Likewise, whensoever a fleete comeinge out of the Sea, expecteth a Landfall: the first Shyp of them that maketh Land is to give present notice therof to all the rest of the fleete; and this she is to doe, if itt be by daye, by shewinge her Colors abroade, though itt be (for the time) in the Maine-topp itt selfe, inclineinge and bendinge them towards that part whence Land is discovered; and if this discovery happen in the night, she is to shoote of two pieces of Ordinance and withall shewe a light abroade; and instantly cast about and stand off, that the residue of the fleete may take notice and beware.
If any Shyp of a fleete shall find her selfe in daunger of founderinge in the Sea, by springeinge of a leake, or any the like mischaunce; if this bee by daye shee maye shoote off three pieces of Ordinance, and withall cause a youncker to goe upp to the Maine-topp and shewe a waft: And if this happen in the night time; then to continue this shooteinge ever and anon of a single piece, and withall to shewe a light, that notice may be taken by the Gunne and her selfe found out by the light, and so relieved. And because ther may be many occasions wherby a fleete may be far dispersed, and yet afterwards gett togither againe, and that itt is fitt, that upon the first ken one of another, they may be knowne one unto another and soe noe mistakeinges ensue, an apt Signall to this purpose, may be by the puttinge out and takeinge in of a flagge soe many times one after another as shall formerly be agreed upon, or by the soe often strikeinge of a Topp-sayle or the like; the which they are to answer one unto another.
Boteler's suggestion of yellow and blue flags as signals for calling a Council is of especial interest as being the earliest proposal to use special flags for making signals. Until the year 1654, signals—at any rate in English fleets—were with two exceptions always made with the flags already in use for other purposes, that is, with the Flags of Command or Colours of Distinction, whose primary uses we have already discussed. These two exceptions are the red flag of war and the white flag of peace.
The red flag, or "bloody colours" as it was often called, and the white flag are not mentioned in any of the early instructions. They were, in fact, international signals and formed part of the traditional "Custom of the Sea" which was never completely codified and, except so far as it was gathered into such collections as the Rooles d'Oléron and the Consolado del Mar, can now only be recovered by the laborious process of collecting precedents.