In the age of line tactics, the unit colour was an important rallying point for the troop.

Colours of two infantry regiments of the British Army, the Irish Guards (left) and The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) (right)

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In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours or standards, to act both as a rallying point for troops, and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some 5,000 years ago. more...

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It was formalised in the armies of medieval Europe, with standards being emblazoned with the commander's coat of arms.

As armies became trained and adopted set formations, each regiment's ability to keep its formation was potentially critical to its, and therefore its army's, success. In the chaos of battle, not least due to the amount of dust and smoke on a battlefield, soldiers needed to be able to determine where their regiment was.

In the British Army the medieval standards developed into the Colours of the Infantry, the Standards of the Heavy Cavalry, and the Guidons of the Light Cavalry.

As time passed, Regiments were awarded battle honours, which they emblazoned on their Colours, Standards and Guidons. They therefore became a link to the Regiment's past and a memorial to the fallen, and thus took on a more mystical significance than as mere identifying markers on the battlefield: they became the heart of the regiment, in which all of its history was woven. Such became the significance in this context that, for a regiment to lose its colours was (and still is) a major disgrace, with the capture of an enemy's colours (or equivalent) being seen as a great honour. This is why that, whenever the colours are paraded, they are always escorted by armed guards and paid the highest compliments by all soldiers and officers, second only to those paid to the sovereign.

Colours are consecrated. Consequently they can serve as an altar for a drumhead service. They are never capriciously destroyed - when too old to use they are replaced and then laid-up in a regimental chapel to moulder unto dust. Many cathedrals carry old Colours. However, in most modern armies, standing orders now call for the Colours to be intentionally destroyed if they are ever in jeopardy of being captured by the enemy.

Due to the advent of modern weapons, and subsequent changes in tactics, Colours are no longer carried into battle; instead, they are carried in parades and reviews, and displayed in formations and ceremonies in remembrance of their former presence on the battlefield.

Colours

United Kingdom and other Commonwealth nations

The Colours of the Infantry are a set of large flags, unique to each regiment, that the ordinary soldier would be able to identify straight away.

Line infantry and foot guards

In regiments of infantry of the British Army and the armies of other Commonwealth countries, each battalion carries two colours, which collectively are called a stand. These are large flags, usually 36 in Ã— 45 in, and mounted on a pike which is 8 ft 7Â½ in long; the King's/Queen's Colour (or President's Colour in non-Commonwealth Realms) is usually a version of the country's national flag, often trimmed with gold fabric, and with the regiment's insignia placed in the centre. The Regimental Colour is a flag of a single colour, usually the colour of the uniform facings (collar/lapels and cuffs) of the regiment, again often trimmed and with the insignia in the centre. Most regiments that are designated as 'royal' regiments (that is either have the word 'Royal' or the sponsorship of a royal personage in their name) have a navy blue Regimental Colour. Irish regiments - today the Royal Irish Regiment - have a dark green Regimental Colour.