How many stars are on the national flag of New Zealand?
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Star_(heraldry).txt Flag_of_New_Zealand.txt
Star (heraldry) Flag of New Zealand
In heraldry, the term star may refer to any star-shaped charge with any number of rays, which may appear straight or wavy, and may or may not be pierced. While there has been much confusion between the two due to their similar shape, a star with straight-sided rays is usually called a mullet while one with wavy rays is usually called an estoile. 

While a mullet may have any number of points, it is presumed to have five unless otherwise specified in the blazon, and pierced mullets are common; estoiles, however, are presumed to have six rays and (as of 1909) had not been found pierced.  In Scottish heraldry, an estoile is the same as in English heraldry, but it has been said that mullet refers only to a mullet pierced (also called a spur revel), while one that is not pierced is called a star.

Terminology 

The use of the word star in blazons, and how that charge appears in coat armory, varies from one jurisdiction to another. In Scots heraldry, both star and mullet interchangeably mean a star with five straight rays; the official record from 1673 gives Murray of Ochtertyre azur three Starrs argent ... (Public Register, vol 1 p 188), while the Ordinary of Arms produced by a late 19th century Lyon King of Arms 'modernizes' the original as Az. three mullets arg. .... In Canadian heraldry the usual term is mullet, but there is also the occasional six-pointed star (e.g. in Vol. IV, at p. 274 and in online version of the Canadian Public Register), which is what others would blazon as a six-pointed mullet.  The United States Army Institute of Heraldry, the official heraldic authority in the United States, uses the term mullet in its blazons,  but elsewhere, as in US government documents describing the flag of the United States and the Great Seal of the United States, the term star is constantly used, and these nearly always appear with five straight-sided points.

The term mullet  or molet refers to a star with straight sides, typically having five or six points, but may have any number of points specified in the blazon. If the number of points is not specified, five points are presumed in Gallo-British heraldry, and six points are presumed in German-Nordic heraldry. Unlike estoiles, mullets have straight (rather than wavy) rays and may have originally represented the rowel of a spur, rather than a celestial star.  The term is said to be derived from French molette, a spur-rowel, although it was in use in heraldry even before rowel spurs. 

The term estoile refers to wavy-sided stars, usually of six points, though they may also be blazoned with a different number of points, often eight (e.g. "Portsmouth County Council" pictured [http://www.civicheraldry.co.uk/cornwall_wessex.html here]), and many variants feature alternating straight and wavy rays (e.g. "Honford" pictured [http://cheshire-heraldry.org.uk/vale_royal/VRE13.html here]).  The term derives from Old French estoile 'star', in reference to a celestial star (cf. Modern French étoile), from Latin stella 'star'.

File:Étoile d'or.svg|Mullet (English type)
File:Marian star four-tenths.svg| Star (German type)
File:Héraldique meuble Molette.svg| Mullet of six points pierced
File:Héraldique meuble Estoile.svg| Estoile

Classical heraldry 

Stars are comparatively rare in European heraldry during the medieval period. An early reference of dubious historicity is reported by Johannes Letzner, who cites Conradus Fontanus (an otherwise unknown authority) to the effect that one Curtis von Meinbrechthausen, a knight of Saxony,  in 1169 after committing a murder lost his rank and arms, described as an eight-pointed star beneath a chevron.
Examples of stars in a late medieval heraldry of the Holy Roman Empire include those of Wentz von Niederlanstein (1350), Gemm (attested 1352), Geyer von Osterberg (1370), Enolff Ritter von Leyen (d. 1392). 

Under the system of cadency in use in England and Ireland since the late 15th century, a third son bears a mullet (unpierced) as a difference. 

Stars become much more popular as heraldic charges in the early modern era, especially in then-recent family coats of arms of burghers and patricians, as well as in coats of arms of cities (e.g. Maastricht,  Bozen,  Kaufbeuren). 
The coat of arms of Valais originates in 1613, when six stars representing its six districts were added to the party per pale coat of arms of the Bishop of Sion.
Of the higher nobility in Siebmachers Wappenbuch (1605), the landgrave of Hessen and the counts of Waldeck and Erbach have stars in their coats of arms, as do several Swiss knights. 

United States 

Stars are nearly ubiquitous in United States heraldry and vexillology and nearly always appear unpierced with five straight-sided points. In the flag of the United States, each star represents one state.  The flag adopted in 1777 is the attributed origin of the thirteen stars, representing the thirteen United States, appearing on the Great Seal since 1780. 

A mullet "barbed to chief" appears in the arms of the 240th Signal Battalion of the 40th Infantry Division of the California Army National Guard United States Army. 

Modern flags

In the design of modern flags, stars (mullets, usually five-pointed) when standing alone often represent concepts like "unity" or "independence", in the case of the communist star of the flag of the Soviet Union and other communist states the unity of the Communist Party.
When arranged in groups, they often enumerate provinces or other components of the nation (such as ethnic groups). In the flags of Nauru and the Marshall Islands, this enumeration is done by the points of a single star rather than by a number of stars.
Some flags of countries on the southern hemisphere show a depiction of the Southern Cross consisting of four or five stars. 
The star and crescent symbol is found in flags of states succeeding the Ottoman Empire, which used flags with this symbol during 1793-1923.

The twelve stars on the Flag of Europe (1955) symbolize unity.  

As shown on the chart below, the 50 stars of the US flag is the largest number on any national flag. The second-largest number of stars on a current national flag is 27, on the flag of Brazil.

The current national flags featuring stars include:

Not bearing heraldic stars as such, the 1915 Flag of Morocco and the 1996 flag of Ethiopia have a pentagram each, and the 1948 flag of Israel a hexagram or "star of David".
The 1962 Flag of Nepal has what would technically be described as a 12-pointed mullet, but is intended to depict the Sun. The flag of New Zealand is a defaced Blue Ensign with the Union Flag in the canton, and four red stars with white borders to the right. The stars' pattern represents the asterism within the constellation of Crux, the Southern Cross. 

New Zealand's first flag, the flag of the United Tribes of New Zealand, was adopted in 1834, six years before New Zealand became a British colony following the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Chosen by an assembly of Māori chiefs at Waitangi in 1834, the flag was of a St George's Cross with another cross in the canton containing four stars on a blue field. After the formation of the colony in 1840, British ensigns began to be used. The current flag was designed and adopted for use on Colonial ships in 1869, was quickly adopted as New Zealand's national flag, and given statutory  recognition in 1902.

For several decades there has been debate about changing the flag. In 2016, a two-stage binding referendum on a flag change took place with voting on the second final stage closing on 24 March. In this referendum, the country voted to keep the existing flag by 57% to 43%.  

History 

Flag of the United Tribes

The need for a flag of New Zealand first became clear when the trading ship Sir George Murray, built in the Hokianga, was seized by Customs officials in the port of Sydney. The ship had been sailing without a flag, a violation of British navigation laws. New Zealand was not a colony at the time and had no flag. Among the passengers on the ship were two high-ranking Māori chiefs, believed to be Patuone and Taonui. The ship's detention was reported as arousing indignation among the Māori population. Unless a flag was selected, ships could continue to be seized. 

The first flag of New Zealand was adopted 9 (or 20) March 1834 by a vote made by the United Tribes of New Zealand, a meeting of Māori chiefs convened at Waitangi by British resident James Busby. The United Tribes later made the Declaration of Independence of New Zealand at Waitangi in 1835. Three flags were proposed, all designed by the missionary Henry Williams, who was to play a major role in the translation of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. The chiefs rejected two other proposals which included the Union Flag, in favour of a modified St George's Cross or the White Ensign, which was the flag used by Henry Williams on the Church Missionary Society ships.   This flag became known as the flag of the United Tribes of New Zealand  and was officially gazetted in New South Wales in August 1835, with a general description not mentioning fimbriation or the number of points on the stars. The need for a flag was pressing, not only because New Zealand-built ships were being impounded in Sydney for not flying a national flag, but also as a symbol of the independence declared by the Māori chiefs.

The flag is still flown on the flag pole at Waitangi, and can be seen on Waitangi Day. 

Union Flag

After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, the British Union Flag was used, although the former United Tribes flag was still used by a number of ships from New Zealand and in many cases on land. The New Zealand Company settlement at Wellington, for example, continued to use the United Tribes flag until ordered to replace it by Governor William Hobson in May 1840 (following his declaration of British sovereignty). 

Flags based on defaced Blue ensign

The first flag of New Zealand to be based on the British blue ensign was introduced in 1867 following the Colonial Navy Defence Act 1865, which required all ships owned by colonial governments fly the defaced Royal Navy blue ensign with a Colonial badge. New Zealand did not have a Colonial badge, or indeed a Coat of Arms of its own at this stage, and so the letters "NZ" were simply added to the blue ensign. 

In 1869 the First Lieutenant of the Royal Navy vessel Blanche, Albert Hastings Markham, submitted a design to Sir George Bowen, the Governor of New Zealand, for a national ensign for New Zealand. His proposal, incorporating the Southern Cross, was approved.  It was initially used only on government ships, but was adopted as the de facto national flag. To end confusion between various designs of the flag, the Liberal Government passed the Ensign and Code Signals Bill, which was approved by King Edward VII on 24 March 1902,  declaring the flag as New Zealand's national flag. The United Tribes flag design also features on the back of the Second Boer War medals presented to soldiers who served in the war,  which indicates that the United Tribes flag was used widely in New Zealand until around this time.

Flown in battle 

One of the first recorded accounts of the New Zealand national Blue Ensign flag being flown in battle was at Quinn's Post, Gallipoli, in 1915. It was not, however, flown officially. The flag was brought back to New Zealand by Private John Taylor, Canterbury Battalion.  The first time the Flag of New Zealand was flown in a naval battle and the first time officially in any battle, was from the HMS Achilles during the Battle of the River Plate in 1939. 

Legislation

The national flag is defined in legislation as "the symbol of the Realm, Government, and people of New Zealand"  and like most other laws, can be changed by a simple majority in Parliament.

The flag proportion is 1:2 and the colours are red (Pantone 186C), blue (Pantone 280C) and white.

Entrenchment proposal

In March 1994 the Prime Minister of New Zealand Jim Bolger made statements supporting a move towards a New Zealand republic.  In response Christian Democrat MP Graeme Lee introduced a Flags, Anthems, Emblems, and Names Protection Amendment Bill.  If passed, the Bill would have entrenched the Act that governs the flag and added New Zealand's anthems, requiring a majority of 65 percent of votes in Parliament before any future legislation could change the flag. The Bill passed its first reading but was defeated at its second reading, 26 votes to 37.

Debate

Debate on keeping or changing the New Zealand flag started before May 1973, when a remit to change the flag was voted down by the Labour Party at their national conference.  In November 1979 Minister of Internal Affairs Allan Highet suggested that the design of the flag should be changed, and sought an artist to design a new flag with a silver fern on the fly, but the proposal attracted little support.  In 1998 Prime Minister Jenny Shipley backed Cultural Affairs Minister Marie Hasler's call for the flag to be changed. Shipley, along with the New Zealand Tourism Board, backed the quasi-national silver fern flag, using a white silver fern on a black background as a possible alternative flag, along the lines of the Canadian Maple Leaf flag. On 5 August 2010 Labour list MP Charles Chauvel introduced a member's bill for a consultative commission followed by a referendum on the New Zealand flag. 

2015–16 referendums 

On 11 March 2014, Prime Minister John Key announced in a speech his intention to hold a referendum, during the next parliamentary term, on adopting a new flag.   Following National's re-election the details of the two referendums were announced.  The first referendum was set for November 2015 allowing voters to decide on a preferred design from five choices. The second referendum will see the preferred design voted on against the current flag in March 2016. 

Under the New Zealand Flag Referendums Bill, in the event that the flag were to change, the current flag (described as the "1902 flag") of New Zealand may continue to be used, and is "recognised as a flag of historical significance." Official documents depicting the current flag, such as drivers' licences, would continue to be valid and would be replaced through matter of course (e.g., driver licence renewals).

On 11 December 2015, preliminary results were announced for the first referendum. The blue and black design, with a silver fern and red stars, was the winning flag.   This flag design did not win the second referendum, as preliminary results announced on 24 March 2016 showed the current flag was chosen to remain the New Zealand flag. 56.7% were in favour of retaining the flag, with a voter turnout of 67.3%. 43.3% were in favour of changing the flag to the Lockwood design. Only six of the 71 electorates voted in favour of changing the flag. 

Similar flags

The New Zealand flag was the first national flag to incorporate the stars of the Southern Cross constellation, and remains distinctive as the only national flag that includes only those stars from the constellation that actually form the cross itself. 
The Australian flag adopted in 1901 also has the Union Flag in the canton and the Southern Cross on the fly. The cross on the New Zealand flag is composed of the four prime stars of the Southern Cross constellation, each being a red five pointed star with a white outline. The Australian flag has six white stars, five of which have seven points (the Commonwealth Star) and a five pointed star, Epsilon Crucis, the smaller star of the Southern Cross constellation which does not form part of the actual cross itself is also included.  Australia's flag features a large Commonwealth Star below the Union Flag as it is a symbol of Australia.

Many other flags also contain the Southern Cross, some as far back as the 1823/24 National Colonial Flag for Australia.

Other flags of New Zealand 

This gallery presents other flags of New Zealand.
There are also proposed flags for the service flags
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 How many stars are on the National Flag of New Zealand? 

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