DO NOT use the 1801 United Kingdom flag (double red cross/saltire) for profiles who lived before 1801! If they lived between 1703-1801 you can use the earlier Great Britain flag (single red cross, white saltire), and if earlier than *that*, try for personal or regional heraldry - worst case scenario it's the Cross of St. George for England (red cross on white) and the Cross of St. Andrew (white saltire on blue) for Scotland. (Wales has "always" had its own flag and been more or less stubborn about it.)
DO NOT use ANY US flag for profiles who lived before 1776! DO NOT use the "War of 1812" flag (15 stars) for profiles who lived before 1795! It's safest to use state flags or county seals (when known), because they change(d) far less often.
DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, use the French Tricolor for profiles who lived before 1791!!!! This borders on *highly offensive*, as the Tricolor was the flag of the Jacobin revolutionaries who *overthrew* the monarchy.
