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American Revolution Flags
Learn about the history and background of the most popular American
Revolution Flags, including the Betsy Ross Flag,
Cowpens Flag, Bennington Flag,
Gadsden Flag and many others, as well as the Star
Spangled Banner Flag. You will learn the historical background of
each flag and how it came to be used during the Revolution and you may also
order your own American Revolution Flags.
Betsy Ross Flag
The Betsy Ross Flag is one of the most well known
American Revolution Flags. The commonly believed history
is most likely not accurate however. The legend goes that George Washington, Robert Morris
and George Ross came to Betsy's store one day and asked if she could make
a flag fashioned after the one drawn on a piece of paper taken from Ross' coat
pocket...
Read more about the Betsy Ross Flag here.
Order your own Betsy Ross Flag.
Read more about Betsy's personal life at our
Betsy Ross Facts page.
13 Star Flag
The 13 Star Flag, with 13 stars on a blue field
and 13 red and white stripes was officially chosen by the Congress of
the United States as the first official flag of the United States on
June 14, 1777. You may not know though, that Congress did not specify
the layout of the stars on the first flag, so there were many variations of the
design...
Read more about the 13 Star Flag here.
Order your own 13 Star Flag.
Bedford Flag
Oldest Flag in North America
One of the oldest American Revolution Flags is the
Bedford Flag. It may be the oldest still existing flag
in North America. It was probably carried by a Massachusetts Bay Militia company
in the French and Indian War and passed down through the years in the possession
of the Nathaniel Page family. Tradition says Page carried the Bedford
Flag into battle at the Battle of Concord on April 19, 1775...
Read more about the Bedford Flag here.
Order your own Bedford Flag.
Bennington Flag
Family tradition states that the Bennington Flag was
taken from the Battle of Bennington, Vermont by Nathaniel Filmore and
passed on down to members of the Fillmore family over many years, including
at one time, President Millard Fillmore. The flag has the usual 13 stars and
stripes, but is unique because the stars have seven points and the stripes
are white on the outer edges instead of the familiar red. The Bennington
Flag is one of the more popular American Revolution Flags,
but it may not have even been at the battle it is named for...
Read more about the Bennington Flag here.
Order your own Bennington Flag.
British Red Ensign Flag
The British Red Ensign Flag, also known as the
Queen Anne Flag was the first official flag of the British colonies
from 1707 when Queen Anne designated this flag as the new flag of Great Britain and her
colonies. The flag became best known as the maritime ensign (the name for flags on
ships) of British and colonial ships from 1707 to 1801. Many American Revolution Flags
were variations of the British Red Ensign with the Union Jack in the upper left
corner upon a field of red, white or blue...
Read more about the British Red Ensign Flag here.
Order your own British Red Ensign Flag.
Bunker Hill Flag
The Bunker Hill Flag is a variation of the British Red Ensign
that was commonly flown on American colonial ships before 1707. The pine tree
was often added to traditional British flags by colonists as a symbol of freedom.
Although the commonly seen version has a blue field, this was an early printer's
mistake that "stuck." The actual background was red...
Read more about the Bunker Hill Flag here.
Order your own Bunker Hill Flag.
Continental Flag
This Continental Flag is one of many American Revolution Flags
with the Pine Tree used in the New England colonies. The Pine Tree was a commonly used
symbol to represent freedom in the early colonies. It was often added to British
flags to indicate the ship was from New England. It is also sometimes called
the New England Flag...
Read more about the Continental Flag here.
Order your own Continental Flag.
Cowpens Flag
The Battle of Cowpens has been called the most impressive battle
victory ever on American soil. The Cowpens Flag was allegedly carried
by William Batchelor of the 3rd Maryland Regiment at the Battle of
Cowpens on January 17, 1781. The flag meets the standards set forth in
the Flag Resolution of 1777 and is similar to the
Betsy Ross Flag, but with twelve stars in the circle and the thirteenth in the center...
Read more about the Cowpens Flag here.
Order your own Cowpens Flag.
Culpeper Flag
The Culpeper Flag was carried by Minutemen from
Culpeper County, Virginia who were part of Colonel Patrick Henry's
First Virginia Regiment, into the Battle of the Great Bridge at
Norfolk, Virginia on December 9, 1775. This is one of several American
Revolution Flags that contain the familiar rattle snake symbol
of the colonies. It also features Christopher Gadsden's words
"Don't Tread on Me," as well as the famous words from Patrick Henry's
speech to the Virginia House of Burgesses pressing for independence,
give me "Liberty or Death!"...
Read more about the Culpeper Flag here.
Order your own Culpeper Flag.
First Navy Jack Flag
The First Navy Jack Flag is one of the most
well-known American Revolution Flags. It features 13 red and white
horizontal stripes, the colonial snake emblem, which was a symbol
of unity since the French and Indian War and the phrase "Don't
Tread On Me," a popular phrase during the Revolutionary War...
Read more about the First Navy Jack Flag here.
Order your own First Navy Jack Flag.
Fort Moultrie Flag
One of the earliest American Revolution Flags was
the Fort Moultrie Flag. It was carried by Colonel
William Moultrie's South Carolina Militia at the Battle of Fort Moultrie
in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. The flag was adopted by
the Minutemen of South Carolina and is the basis for the modern flag
of the State of South Carolina. The version currently accepted as the
Fort Moultrie Flag is however, not entirely accurate...
Read more about the Fort Moultrie Flag here.
Order your own Fort Moultrie Flag.
Gadsden Flag
The Gadsden Flag was created by South Carolina
congressman Christopher Gadsden to be flown on the flagship of the
American Navy. It has become one of the most popular American Revolution
Flags. It was first flown on the ship of Commodore Esek
Hopkins, first commander of the US Navy. It was the first flag
carried into battle by US Marines. The flag has come to be
adopted as a symbol of disagreement with the government and has
been widely adopted by the Tea Party movement in the United States...
Read more about the Gadsden Flag here.
Order your own Gadsden Flag.
Grand Union Flag
The Grand Union Flag, also known as the
Continental Flag was the first (unofficial) flag of the
United States and remained so until June 14, 1777 when
the Union Jack was removed and the stars were added. The flag was
first hoisted by John Paul Jones on the Delaware River and was later
flown on Prospect Hill in Massachusetts by George Washington
during the Siege of Boston...
Read more about the Grand Union Flag here.
Order your own Grand Union Flag.
Green Mountain Boys Flag
Another of the most popular American Revolution Flags
is the Green Mountain Boys Flag. It was flown by part of
the New Hampshire militia known as the Green Mountain Boys from an area
of the New Hampshire land grant that would later become Vermont. The Green
Mountain Boys fought under Ethan Allen and Seth Warner to take Fort Ticonderoga
and Crown Point and under General John Stark at the Battle of Bennington.
A piece of the silk flag actually carried by General Stark into the Battle
of Bennington still resides today at the Bennington Historical Museum...
Read more about the Green Mountain Boys Flag here.
Order your own Green Mountain Boys Flag.
Guilford Courthouse Flag
According to Major Edward Bullock, the Guilford Courthouse Flag was
carried by his father, Macajah Bullock, into the Battle of Guilford Courthouse as a
member of the Granville County, North Carolina militia. It is one of the most unique
American Revolution Flags due to its
elongated canton (the white part), 8 pointed stars and red and blue stripes.
The original flag is now in the possession of the North Carolina Museum of History
in Raleigh, NC and is the oldest still existing example of an American flag containing
stars with 8 points...
Read more about the Guilford Courthouse Flag here.
Order your own Guilford Courthouse Flag.
Serapis Flag
The Serapis Flag was originally flown by Captain John Paul
Jones after he captured the HMS Serapis. Jones captured the
Serapis and sailed it into the Dutch port of Texel. The British Ambassador demanded
that Jones be turned over to Britain as a pirate because he was not sailing
under a known flag (Jones' flag had gone down with his ship USS Richard
Bonhomme). The US Ambassador to France was Ben Franklin who quickly
made up a description of an American flag, even though he wasn't aware
of the official design already voted on by Congress. A drawing was made up from his
description and sent to the Dutch government which officially recognized
the flag. Jones had this flag created from the drawing and the Dutch
were legally able to deny turning over Jones as a pirate because he
now had a recognized flag...
Read more about the Serapis Flag here.
Order your own Serapis Flag.
Sons of Liberty Flag
The Sons of Liberty Flag had it's start at the time of
the Stamp Act protests. It is probably the basis for several other American
Revolution Flags. The Sons of Liberty met under the Liberty Tree in Boston
to protest the Stamp Act. The British had the tree cut down and the colonists
put up a "Liberty Pole" in its place, with a flag flying from it that had
9 vertical red and white stripes known as the "Rebellious Stripes."
Nine stripes were for the 9 colonies that attended the Stamp Act Congress.
After the British outlawed the Rebellious Stripes. The colonists changed the
stripes to horizontal and flew it again. The 9 stripes eventually grew to
13 to represent all 13 colonies...
Read more about the Sons of Liberty Flag here.
Order your own Sons of Liberty Flag.
Taunton Flag
The Taunton Flag was one of the earliest of the American
Revolution Flags. It was simply a Queen Anne Flag with
the words "Liberty and Union" added to the red field. It was first flown
at Taunton, Massachusetts in 1774. The Boston Evening Post reported the
flag and the idea caught on around the colonies. Soon colonists everywhere
were flying flags with the word "Liberty" added to them, often flying
them from Liberty poles...
Read more about the Taunton Flag here.
Order your own Taunton Flag.
Washington's Commander-in-Chief Flag
Washington's Commander-in-Chief Flag was personally
designed by George Washington
and was flown at his headquarters no matter
where he was during the entire Revolutionary War. For this reason it is
also known as the Washington's Headquarters Flag. Notice
that the flag has six-pointed stars, which Washington is known to have
favored. This fact is one reason that many historians discount the
Betsy Ross Flag story, because the
stars in her story had five points...
Read more about the
Washington's Commander-in-Chief Flag here.
Order your own
Washington's Commander-in-Chief Flag.
Washington Cruisers Flag
The Washington Cruisers Flag was flown
on a squadron of 6 ships commissioned and personally outfitted by George
Washington before the creation of the Continental Navy, in the fall
of 1775 to patrol Massachusetts Bay. It is one of the earliest American
Revolution Flags. The pine tree
was a commonly used symbol to represent freedom in New England, while
the phrase "An Appeal to Heaven" represented the colonists reliance on
God in the face of the strongest military power on earth...
Read more about the Washington Cruisers Flag here.
Order your own Washington Cruisers Flag.
Star Spangled Banner Flag
The Star Spangled Banner Flag was the official flag of
the United States from 1793 to 1815. It has fifteen stripes and fifteen
stars after the first two new states, Vermont and Kentucky, were added to
the union. This is the only official version of the United States flag to ever have
more than 13 stripes. This is the flag that flew at Fort McHenry during
the War of 1812 and was the inspiration for Francis Scott Key's song "The Star
Spangled Banner..."
Read more about the Star Spangled Banner Flag here.
Order your own Star Spangled Banner Flag.
Published October 10/18/11
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