One symbol of the American Revolution (and French Revolution) that dates back to the ancient times is the “liberty hat” (Phrygian Cap or bonnets rouges in French). This soft, usually red, brimless conical cap with top bending forward gets its name from Phrygia, an ancient kingdom in Anatolia (modern Turkey).
In the Roman Empire, a similar hat called a pileus was given to freed slaves to indicate they were now citizens of the Roman Empire. Down through the years, this hat became a symbol of freedom and liberty throughout Europe, especially in the later 1700s.
After the assassination of the dictator Julius Caesar, Romans placed a pileus on a staff, rod or spear and called it a liberty pole. The Great Seal of New York State includes both the staff and cap.
The woman representing Liberty on the left (on the right is Justice) holds a liberty pole with a liberty hat at the top. The Seal of the US Senate also prominently features a liberty cap, as do those of Iowa and Hawaii.
“In the city of New York, the Sons of Liberty had a tradition of erecting ‘liberty poles’ to voice opposition to British oppression,” writes Orange County Historian .
Supporters of the British crown often tore down liberty poles which sparked conflicts with pole-raisers.
“In 1766 they erected on the New York commons to celebrate the repeal of the Stamp Act. When British soldiers chopped it down, the Sons of Liberty put a second one up, which was chopped down again.” (You can read about New York City’s liberty pole creating bloodshed here.)
In 1771, a liberty pole, “well bound with iron bars, twenty foot above the ground in about the center of our town and spiked… with a great many iron nails with the flag at the top,” was erected in Schenectady to protest the taking of common lands.
During the run-up to the American Revolution, liberty poles became widespread and identified places to gather to protest and discuss freedom from the British monarchy. Raising a liberty pole was a public declaration of support for the Patriot cause and American liberties.
By the time of the Revolutionary War, liberty poles (and the associated liberty trees) had been erected around the colonies to protest British actions or mark Patriot efforts.
For example, as a response to the Boston Port Act, residents of Farmington, Connecticut erected a Liberty Pole on May 19, 1774. Shutesbury, Massachusettes, raised a Liberty Pole on September 5, 1774, the date of the first meeting of the Continental Congress.
Robert Aiken’s “A Map of the Present Seat of War on the Borders of Canada,” published in Philadelphia in 1775, includes a liberty pole and cap at the top of its cartouche.
A Symbol of the 250th Anniversary
It seems appropriate as we celebrate the 250th Anniversary of our country, that we add these symbols back to our celebration of the 250th. Fortunately, liberty hats are easy to make with some simple sewing. (Here are some easy-to-follow directions.)
For those who knit, you can download a free pattern here.
For teachers and parents, there are several websites showing how children can make a liberty hat. Here is a site showing how to make a simple one with construction paper, or a more difficult one with yarn.
Dr. Lynda Karig Hohmann is a member of the Commission for the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution, Warren County, NY. John Warren contributed to this essay. A version of this essay first appeared in the newsletter of the Commission for the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution, Warren County, NY.
Read more about liberty poles in New York.
Illustrations, from above: John Archibald Woodside, “We Owe Allegiance To No Crown,” 1814; the current Great Seal of the State of New York; painting of the fifth Liberty Pole erected on New York Commons by Charles MacKubin Lefferts (ca. 1910, New-York Historical Society); and the cartouche from “A Map of the Present Seat of War on the Borders of Canada” by Robert Aiken, Philadelphia, 1775 (Barry Lawrence Ruderman Map Collection courtesy Stanford University Libraries).
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