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The flag represents the Anglican church in Wales.

In 1919 the Church of England was disestablished in Wales, partly to assert national identity. It was replaced the following year by a body called the Church in Wales, which is both independent of the state and an independent member of the Anglican Communion.

By the 1930s it had become customary in England to add the shield of the diocese to the canton (upper left) of the patron saint flag. In 1938 this was enshrined when a warrant of the Earl Marshal compelled the use of a shield.

This idea captured the popular imagination in Wales, which led to the development of a new design, a yellow flag with a black cross, reversing the colours of the flag of St David. It was unofficially used at churches across Wales until 1954.

That year, the church's governing body passed a motion to approve a design for a new flag for the Church in Wales. The flag, white flag with a blue cross, with a Celtic emblem at the centre, was developed in negotiation with the College of Arms.

The new design was granted official status by the church on 9 December 1954, from which time all six diocese across Wales have flown it.