In 1984 Victoria followed the example of most other States and replaced the Governor's Union Jack [see below] with an ensign. Other States had differentiated between the State Flag and the Governor's flag by adding a crown to the latter. Since Victoria's badge already had a crown the difference was made by giving the ensign a gold field. The State Governor of Victoria flies a personal flag similar to the State Flag only with a gold (yellow) field and the stars in red.
The new Governor's flag was announced by the following official press release:
Governor's Flag
GOVERNMENT HOUSE PRESS RELEASE
18 APRIL 1984
His Excellency the Governor, Rear Admiral Sir Brian Murray, today announced that Her Majesty The Queen had graciously approved of a change in the Personal Standard of the Governor of Victoria. From this day, the Governor's Personal Standard will be the State Flag of Victoria with the blue of the flag being replaced by gold. The new Standard will be flown at Government House and on vehicles conveying the Governor. The old Standard used by all Victorian Governors has been, since 1870, the Union Jack with the Badge of the State emblazoned in the centre thereof.
The designer of the flag said that the flag shows the stars as all having 7 poitns, unlike the Victorian flag. The only states to not use the state flag with crown above the badge are Victoria and Queensland, which both already have a crown in the their badge.
It has been suggested that the inclusion of a yellow field in the Victorian State Governor's Flag (adopted 18 April 1984) was "a private joke". This is wrong. The golden-yellow field represents Victoria's gold rush past and its promise for a golden future. The field's colour was chosen by the then State Governor, Rear-Admiral Sir Brian Murray, and approved by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. I have a copy of the official Government House Press Release in my file about this flag. Since then this flag is flown from the top of Government House, in the Kings Domain Gardens, Melbourne, every day that the Governor is in residence, and on the Governor's Car when travelling.
