Baroda State had different flags during distinct periods under the reign of the Gaekwads.
Between 1730 – 1874 :
Baroda State had a “Bhagwa”, i.e. the saffron colored flag common for the Marathas emerging from the Maratha empire of Poone (now Pune).
During 1874 – 1936 :
Queen Victoria granted to use flag of Princely Standard from 1875 till 1936.
This flag represented a four-fingered hand clenching a sword emerging from a crown.
During 1936-1949 :
In 1936, the Princely Standard was changed and the new version was used until 1949 till the assimilation of the Baroda State in the Indian Union.
This flag had a Tudor inspired Crown resting on the top of a Scimitar (Tulwar).
Native State Red Ensign or Mechant Flag :
There was also a Native State Red Ensign used during the British Raj for the States that were not directly governed by the British, but by a local ruler through a form of indirect rule, subject to a subsidiary alliance under the paramountcy of the British Crown. Baroda State had a coastline and so used versions of the red ensign on their merchant vessels.
The flag consisted of a mounted trooper and a scimitar and the word BARODA in white on a rectangular field of red ochre with a white margin.
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