The commission pennant is said to date from 1652 when Dutch Admiral Van Tromp, upon defeating an English fleet, hoisted a broom at his masthead to indicate his sweeping the English from the seas. The following year the fortunes of war were reversed and the English Admiral hoisted a horsewhip at his masthead in declaration of his "whipping" the enemy. Later this whip evolved into a long pennant and was flown on all men-of-war. These pennants reached great lengths but, over the years, changing ship designs dictated their being shortened. The modern United States Navy commission pennant is blue at the hoist with a horizontal red and white stripe at the fly and varies in length with the size of the ship. At one time there were thirteen white stars in the blue field representing the original states but in 1933 seven white stars became standard.