King George V recorded in his diary that he presented this flag to Shackleton just before the departure of the Imperial Transantarctic Expedition: ’Recevd Sir Ernest Shackleton & took leave of him, he starts at once for his Antartic [sic] Expedition, I gave him a union jack’. It was flown at various important points during the Endurance expedition, as a spur to morale. It was given back to the King on Shackleton's return from the south, 30 May 1917.