Texas Longhorns in the American Revolution

If you’re a history buff, you probably know that the American Revolution didn’t just happen in New England and Virginia. The Southern states played a big role as well. 

The first “tea party,” for instance, happened in South Carolina, not Boston. And the losses of the British and victories of the armies in the Southern states are what led to Cornwallis surrendering at Yorktown. So yeah – South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia – sure, those Southern states played a big part in winning the war. 

But did you know that TEXAS played a part too? Along with Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida!

But wait, you say. Most of those states (which weren't even states then) weren’t part of the British empire, nor were they claimed by the newly minted United States. How could they influence the war? 

The answer includes Texas longhorns and the British navy.

Great Britain's Navy Is Busy

When America declared her independence from Great Britain in 1776, the territory covering Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and West Florida belonged to Spain – the area was called “New Spain.” Spain had originally owned all of Florida, but traded part of it to Great Britain in the 1763 Treaty of Paris. And that’s where the American Revolution comes in. 

As Americans and British fought over whether we would remain independent, Britain also became embroiled in war with France, Spain and Holland. Since all of these countries had colonies around the world, Britain’s navy became stretched exceedingly thin. And British ships that could have been fighting Americans on the east coast were instead defending Pensacola, Florida against a siege. 

If you’ve only ever read basic American history textbooks, you may be confusedly thinking, “Who in tarnation was besieging the British at Pensacola?” And therein lies a totally amazing and fascinating tale. 

Bernardo de Galvez by José Germán de Alfaro

Galvez on the Warpath

A young Spanish 31-year-old named Bernardo de Galvez had been appointed Governor of "Luisiana" (Louisiana) in 1777. He already had an illustrious military career under his belt, starting at age 16, which included not only famous battles in Europe but also some Apache fighting in Mexico and Texas! 

Galvez, under instructions from his government, proceeded to provide covert help and assistance to American troops fighting the British. 

When Spain officially declared war on Britain in 1779, Galvez was given the chance to fight openly with the British at their outposts along the Gulf coast. He fought a masterful campaign through 1779-1781, with victories at Fort Bute, Baton Rouge, Natchez, Baton Rouge again, and Mobile… and finally wound up with a major victory at Pensacola! 

By the time Galvez defeated the British at Pensacola, he had 7000 troops (by comparison, Cornwallis surrendered 8000 men at Yorktown). How did those victorious troops survive during that long campaign, stretching from Louisiana to Florida? 

They lived on Texas longhorns!

Yes, the first cattle drives from Texas began, not in the Wild West of the mid-1800s, but in 1779! Though records are still being discovered, it’s estimated that from 1779 to 1782, somewhere between 9,000 and 15,000 head of cattle were sent to Galvez’s army from ranchers in Texas. And that’s the army that kept the British tied up – and defeated - all along the Gulf coast. 

So that’s how the Texas longhorn helped save American independence!

Pierre Georges Rousseau, an officer in the Gulf Coast theater,
sporting his alliance cockade

Cockades of the Gulf Coast Theater

In honor of both Spain and France’s contribution to the American Revolution, I’ve created a “Triple Alliance” cockade of red (Spain), white (France) and black (United States). These are based on actual accounts, drawings and paintings of soldiers’ cockades in the Gulf coast theater of war. 

Naturally, I had to create a cockade to honor the legacy of Bernardo de Galvez. (Did you know that Galveston was named after him?)

And I’ve also created a special cockade just to celebrate the contribution of that imminently American icon: the Texas Longhorn!

Carolina Day: Palmetto Trees & Cannon Balls

America celebrates the Independence Day on July 4, but South Carolina's Independence Day is actually June 28! That's because of an important battle that occurred on June 28, 1776. The events of "Carolina Day" had an effect on Southern cockades that lasted nearly a century - and an effect on American history that has lasted over 240 years!

1776

Things weren't going very well for the Patriots in the early days of the American Revolution. Though there were some victories - such as the British being forced to evacuate Boston in March 1776 - there were some heavy losses as well. The Battle of Bunker Hill was one of the bloodiest battles in the entire war and the campaign to bring Canada over to the Patriots' side was a complete disaster.

However, the Patriots were gaining enough ground to worry the British. So the Brits decided to start a Southern campaign, beginning with the conquering of a Southern port.

Portal to the South

The South was a goldmine to whichever side could hold it. Southern commodities like tobacco, rice, indigo, and pine tree products made the South the richest area of the country.

Furthermore, the British felt that they had much stronger support from the Loyalists in the South than in the North. They didn't reckon on the strong Patriot contingent in the South as well.

As it turned out, the people of the Southern states were so deeply divided between Patriots and Loyalists that some of the hardest and bloodiest fighting of the war would occur there.

But General Henry Clinton and Admiral Parker knew nothing of what was to come. They initially headed for Cape Fear, NC to establish a port of entry for the British. This did not work out so the next stop was Charleston. Earlier reconnaissance had shown that the fortifications around Charleston were incomplete, making it an easy target - or so the British thought.

Spongy Wood and Cannon Balls (and Cockades)

In early June, nine British warships sailed into Charleston's harbor and troops were landed on Long Island. The idea was that the soldiers could wade ashore from there to the city while the ships bombarded into oblivion the half-complete fort on Sullivan's Island. The British miscalculated on both counts.

The water turned out to be too deep to wade. And the fort - well, the sand and palmetto logs used for constructing the walls simply absorbed the cannon balls! Because of this battle, palmettos have ever since been the symbol of South Carolina, and her patriotic cockades have often included palmetto fronds.

Meanwhile, the Patriots were low on ammunition so they made every shot count. They managed to significantly damage a number of the ships, plus the British accidentally grounded one ship.

The British had 220 killed and wounded; the Patriots had 12 killed and 25 wounded.

Oh, and the ship that was grounded? The Brits finally despaired of recovering her so they set her on fire. But the resourceful Patriots swam over and managed to turn the ship's guns on the British themselves - and then escape before the ship blew up!

Heroes of the Battle

Sergeant Jasper holding up the flag - painting by John Blake White, 1826

Colonel William Moultrie of the South Carolina militia commanded the Patriots on Sullivan's Island. As a result of his victory against overwhelming odds, the fort (which was finally finished) was named Fort Moultrie in his honor.

During the battle, the Patriots' spirits reportedly were flagging when the British shot down their flag. Sergeant William Jasper heroically grabbed the flag and held it up until a new flag staff could be mounted. His action brought new life to the fort's defenders and he has been immortalized throughout American history as a hero. (If you check your family tree, you may even have an ancestor named after him, like I have!)

Carolina Day

The Patriot victory on June 28 ensured that Charleston's port would be closed to the British until its eventual fall in 1780 - too late to turn the tide of the war. The Battle of Sullivan's Island was one of the first major victories for the American Patriots. And it provided an exclamation point to the Declaration of Independence, which would be signed less than a week later.

Carolina Day has been celebrated by lovers of freedom and American history ever since.

Buff and Blue... And Cockades

Many of the portraits of our founding fathers show them in Continental Army uniforms of buff (tan) and blue. By the end of the Revolutionary War, these were considered the basic uniform colors for the army. George Washington himself was apparently involved in the choice of those colors - and the choice was not arbitrary.

There's a story behind buff and blue - and yes, it involves cockades!

George Washington's adopted son, George Custis, gives us a hint of this story when he described his father's uniform: "His uniform (Blue and Buff, the antient Whig colours of England) was as plain as hands could make it..."

The Polling, by William Hogarth

Whig Colors

By the time of the Revolutionary War, the Whig party in England was firmly identified with the colors of buff and blue. Their archrivals were the Tory party, whose color was simply blue. 

Up until the middle 1700s, the Whig color was buff alone. An old painting by William Hogarth shows a polling place with a flag of each color, representing each party. The voters wear cockades of their party's color in their hats.

By the time of the Revolution though, the Whigs had added blue to the mix. An old book I found states that blue is the color of fidelity. Buff comes from the color of buffalo leather, and the old term "to stand buff" is based on the sturdiness of that leather. 

So the colors of the Whig cockade said they were faithful, true blue and sturdy citizens!

A Whig caricature in buff and blue,
taking aim at a symbol of the crown

Whig Ideals

Now we know the story of the colors, but that still begs the question: Why did our founders choose Whig colors for their uniforms?

American revolutionaries were, of course, British citizens until the United States declared their independence. And so they identified closely with British politics. The two main British parties of the day were Tories and Whigs. 

A quick look at the principles of the Whigs - particularly the "radical Whigs" - shows us why American patriots chose their colors and their ideals. 

Religious liberty - unlike the rest of the western world at the time, radical Whigs actually were in favor of allowing dissenters from the state religion. Though they were anti-Catholic, their opposition was rooted in the fact that the Catholic church of the day was political and absolutely quashed all religious dissent. 

Constitutionalism - at a time when nearly all nations believed in the divine right of kings to dictate however they wished, radical Whigs instead said that kings must be confined to constitutional limits.

Representation in government - radical Whigs espoused the new idea of Parliament having supremacy over the king. The representatives of the people, they said, should have more power than a single monarch.

A British election celebration in 1755.
Note the buff and blue cockades.

There is much more Whig philosophy that our founders believed, but this gives you a quick taste. Whigs liked the writings of John Locke, Adam Smith, Edmund Burke, Algernon Sidney, and Baron Montesquieu. They brought up new theories about things like social contract, natural rights, separation of powers, republic vs monarchy, free trade, religious liberty and the protection of property. 

Those are the ideals on which the American Revolution - indeed, the whole American story - were based.

So it makes sense that our national uniforms would be based on the Whig cockades!

If you want to read in more depth about Whig influence on American thought, here's a good article to start with.

So the next time you see a portrait of an American founder in buff and blue, you'll know what those colors represented!

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Rosettes For Lafayette

Considering the politics involved in the early 1800s, it was a pretty remarkable achievement to be called a hero of both the Old World and the New World simultaneously.

But Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette - more popularly known as the Marquis de Lafayette - achieved this honor. This is his portrait, and please note the lovely tri-color cockade in his hat!

Lafayette was honored in both the United States and Europe as a lover of liberty. It would take a whole book to tell about his courageous deeds fighting for freedom both on the battlefield and in government.

In anticipation of the United States' 50th anniversary in 1825, the Marquis de Lafayette accepted the invitation of American President James Monroe to tour every one of the 24 states then in the Union. The celebrations of his arrival that ensued were reportedly some of the largest, most amazing ever held in the United States. He was greeted his entire journey by huge, cheering crowds and lavish banquets and balls of celebration. People were excited to entertain one of the most famous heroes of the American Revolution.

One account of a ball given in Castle Clinton in New York City observes that it was "the most brilliant and magnificent scene ever witnessed in the United States." Six thousand ladies and gentlemen attended it! The entire fort was covered by a 75-foot-high awning and lit by fourteen cut glass chandeliers. That's quite a ball!

Another account tells of of the celebrations in Boston where 3000 children (yes, you read that number right!) ages 8-12 lined up to receive him. They "wore ribbons in their breasts, stamped with a miniature likeness of Lafayette." In Salem, there was also a description of "a body of seamen, of about two hundred, in blue jackets and white trousers, with ribbons on their hats, stamped with the name of Lafayette." There are many other stories as well about people wearing these ribbons and badges in his honor. These are surviving ribbons from that time, no doubt very like the ones they were wearing. The middle one is in my collection.

Louisa May Alcott, writing historical fiction in "An Old Fashioned Girl" published in 1869, wrote a delightful anecdote about Lafayette's tour, told by "Grandmother" in the book. "The time when I saw Lafayette was in 1825....Old Josiah Quincy was mayor of the city, and he sent aunt word that the Marquis Lafayette wished to pay his respects to her. Of course she was delighted, and we all flew about to make ready for him. Aunt was an old lady, but she made a grand toilet, and was as anxious to look well as any girl....She wore a steel-colored satin, trimmed with black lace, and on her cap was pinned a Lafayette badge of white satin."

Later in the story, she tells about a lady wearing gloves with the Marquis' image on them. When Lafayette was presented to the lady, he bowed and kissed her hand - realizing too late that he was kissing his own picture! This is an original Lafayette glove that probably looked much like the glove in the story.

But this is what caught my eye and led me to write this post - some lovely cockade shoe rosettes that were worn during the celebrations! Red, white and blue were the patriotic colors of both France and America by 1825. So this was a perfect fashion choice for an American patriot to wear in honor of a heroic Frenchman!

In addition to the celebrations and fashion statements for Lafayette, many monuments were erected in his honor and parks, streets, cities and counties were named for him (Fayetteville, NC for instance). There's even a Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.

All of this begs the question: Who was this man the whole nation celebrated?

Hero In The New World - Fighting for American Independence
Lafayette was in his teens when he learned of the struggle for liberty in the American colonies. When Benjamin Franklin arrived in France as the American ambassador during the War for Independence. Lafayette resolved to go himself to help the Americans gain their freedom. In his own words, "The moment I heard of America, I love her; the moment I knew she was fighting for liberty, I burnt with a desire to bleed for her." And bleed for her he did.

Despite his youth, Lafayette became a Major-General in the Continental Army.  He played pivotal roles in several major battles, and gained the love of his troops not only by his military prowess but also by his care for their clothing, comfort and health. Though wounded in the Battle of Brandywine, he stayed on the field to organize an orderly retreat. Only when the troops were safe did he allow his wound to be treated.

George Washington and Lafayette became firm friends. Washington considered him as an adopted son. One eye witness account says, "Washington love him for his goodness, and honored him for his bravery and military talents." And Lafayette himself affectionately remembered, "I was adopted as a disciple and son, by our immortal Commander and Chief."

This is a painting of Lafayette and General Washington together at Valley Forge. Note the American black cockades in their hats. Lafayette was a citizen of both France and the United States, the grateful Americans granting him citizenship in their new nation.

Lafayette's international diplomacy was also a major influence in the war. He was instrumental in negotiating French support for the American cause and on several occasions convinced the French navy to lend their support at crucial moments. This includes the battle at Yorktown which led the final British surrender that ended the war on the battlefield.
Hero In The Old World
Lafayette's military career didn't end in the United States. Back in "Old World" France, he tried to bring about governmental reform there as well. He was instrumental in calling the meeting of the French Estates-General and with some assistance from Thomas Jefferson, he created the draft of The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.

Appointed Commander-In-Chief of the Garde nationale, he designed the tri-color cockade as its badge and set about maintaining order in the city of Paris. (This is an original Garde nationale cockade, by the way.)

However, as the French Revolution gained momentum, his efforts to keep order made the Revolutionaries angry. And his desire to reform the current French royalist government created tension between him and the nobility. Since he held to his moderate principles of limited, constitutional government, no one in that age of extremism was happy with him!

With his life in jeopardy from both factions, the Marquis tried to flee to the United States, but was caught by the royalists in Austria and spent five years in prison. Though national leaders in both Europe and America did their best to negotiate his freedom, his captors feared his strong, principled influence in favor of liberty and they refused to let him go.

Lafayette's wife, Adrienne, and two daughters were also imprisoned (his son escaped to America). Though freed through the combined efforts of French and American friends, his wife and daughters bravely decided to be reunited with him once more and spent the final two years of his imprisonment with him.

This is a plaque in Olomouc, Czech Republic commemorating his confinement there.

After Napoleon gained battlefield victories over the Austrians, he negotiated Lafayette's release in 1797. But the freedom-loving Lafayette and the power-hungry Napoleon did not have common views on government. To avoid political clashes, Lafayette retired from public service until 1815. He was offered a peerage through Napoleon's influence but he refused to align himself with what he considered to be a dictatorial, unrestrained government.

Lafayette came out of retirement to join the Chamber of Representatives calling for Napoleon's final abdication in 1815. His dream of limited, constitutional government in France looked as if it might be finally fulfilled.

Hero of Freedom
Lafayette was a proponent of freedom of the press, suffrage for all taxpayers, and the worldwide abolition of slavery. As a supporter of religious freedom, Lafayette was instrumental in gaining the Edict of Tolerance, which gave more freedoms to Protestants in Catholic France.

He stuck to his principles even when threatened with sickness and death in prison. And more tellingly, he stuck to his principles when offered the temptations of rich and influential positions. Besides turning down the peerage from Napoleon which I mentioned earlier, he also had refused an executive role in the Paris Commune 1792 . And in the July Revolution of 1830, he turned down an offer to become the dictator of France, instead supporting constitutional monarchy.

As a side note of interest, he also declined an offer from President Thomas Jefferson of the governorship of the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase.

He finished his days a happy family man managing his estate in the beautiful La Grange chateau 30 miles southeast of Paris. Though his wife died soon after their release from prison due to the hardships she had suffered, his married children and grandchildren lived with him. This is a picture of La Grange as it appears now, very little different from the 1800s.

Upon his death in 1834, he was buried next to his wife and covered by his son with dirt from Bunker Hill.  His contemporary, the French historian Chateaubriand described him as "affable, obliging and generous."

But my favorite summary of him was provided by Supreme Court Judge Joseph Story when Lafayette visited America in 1824:

"Your private character has not cast a shade on your public honors. In the palaces of Paris and the dungeons of Olmutz, in the splendor of power, and the gloom of banishment, you have been the friend of justice, and the asserter of the rights of man. Under every misfortune, you have never deserted your principles. What earthly prince can afford consolation like this? The favor of princes and the applause of senates, sink into absolute nothingness, in comparison with the approving conscience of a life devoted to the good of mankind."

In this day of false heroes and anti-heroes, it is good to reflect on the life of a man who had integrity and stood for his principles regardless of the consequences. If he came to America today, I would wear tricolor rosettes on my shoes to honor him too! In fact, I might just do it anyway!

Check out the Lafayette swag in my shop!

The White Cockade

Though several nations have used white cockades in history, the white cockade is almost always associated with Scotland. And there's a great story behind it!

The story happens in Scotland in 1745. Let's set the stage because it's just a little complicated.

We start with a king - James II and VII. Yep, complicated right at the get-go. The two numbers reflect the fact that he was James II of England and Ireland, and James VII of Scotland. All we care about for the purposes of this blog post is that James Stuart, king of Scotland, was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. And the Scots never got over it. Thereby hangs the rest of this tail.

William of Orange came to the throne in James's place and reigned with his wife Mary. (If you've heard of William and Mary College in Virginia, this is who it's named after.) William was Protestant, whereas the Stuarts were Catholic. The Brits were concerned not only about the James's Catholic leanings but also his ties with Catholic France (Britain's historic enemy). So after William's ascension, they ruled that only Protestants could hold the throne.

Now if you know anything about Europe's kings and queens, you know they are all related! Mary (wife of William) and her sister Anne, were both Stuarts - daughters of King James (the II and the VII). So when William and Mary died, Anne became queen, placing a Stuart on the throne once again. She was, in fact, the first official monarch of the united Great Britain.

She was destined to be the last Stuart on the British throne.

At her death, the law ruled out about fifty Catholic contenders for the throne, instead placing Protestant and foreigner German King George on the throne.

The Scots had finally had it with interlopers.

So they decided to try to put a Stuart back on the throne. This movement became known as the Jacobite movement, based on the Latin form of James's name.

In order not to turn this blog into a historical treatise, let's skip ahead to where we started: 1745.

Bonnie Prince Charlie was the last Stuart to attempt to regain the British throne for his family. If "Charlie" sounds a little informal for a prince, you can always use his full name: Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Sylvester Severino Maria Stuart. As for me, I'll stick to Charlie. This is a picture of him... and please check out that lovely white cockade in his hat. (You knew cockades had something to do with this, right?)

The story goes that when Prince Charlie landed in Scotland, he picked a white rose to wear as a badge in his hat and thereafter his followers wore white cockades as their emblem. Robert Burns even wrote a song about The White Cockade of Charlie's followers.

In my research, I've come across some beautiful paintings of maidens sewing white cockades on their lovers' Scotch bonnets, or proudly admiring their laddies' emblems of defiance. Like this one.

Of course, women as well as men could know fear of British reprisals for their patriotism as this tension-laden picture shows. These ladies are sewing white cockades in secret, anxiously watching the window... perhaps afraid of a British sympathizer discovering them?

Well, in spite of the support of both the ladies and the laddies, poor Charlie was eventually defeated at the Battle of Culloden and many of his followers had to flee the wrath of the British. Wonder where they ended up? You guessed it. In the good ole USA.

When war broke out between the American colonies and Great Britain in 1775, many Scottish-born colonists simply continued the resistance they'd felt all along to the Hanoverian Kings George. In fact, tradition says that as the colonists marched to Concord bridge, where the first battle of the Revolutionary War was fought, the band played "The White Cockade."

A favorite phrase of the American colonists was "Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." So it was only natural that the cockade which stood for resistance to tyrants in Scotland should still be favored as an emblem of patriotic resistance in America.

So if you love freedom, if you resist tyrants, if you have a little Scottish ancestry... wear a white cockade!

Oh, by the way... did you know that when American gained her independence in 1783, she very nearly asked Prince Charlie to reign as king of the new nation? Yep, it's true. They didn't actually do it... but they came close. History is fun, isn't it?

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Black and White American Cockades

If you know anything about Secession Cockades during the American Civil War, you know that blue was the most popular color. However, there is a small number of black or black and white Secession Cockades in existence. Like this one:

Where did this color scheme originate?

The black cockade was the color of the Hanoverian kings of England (think of the "King Georges"). When American colonists went to war in 1775, they still felt an affinity for their mother nation. After all, many of them were born there and still had relatives there. In fact, when George Washington's army was camped at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-1778, the officers were still toasting King George. So it was natural that an American cockade would include the Hanoverian color black.

However, Americans also recognized the help that the French nation was giving them in gaining their independence from the mother country. And the color of French royalty was white.

Hence, the Americans adopted a black and white cockade for their emblem. In the painting, "Washington and His Generals at Yorktown" by James and Charles Willson Peale, you can see the black and white cockades on their hats.

This cockade became an emblem of the American War for Independence. In fact, it remained a patriotic statement for some time after the war as well. Not only was it incorporated on the United States Army's regulation shakos, but civilians also wore these patriotic devices. This one has a picture of George Washington in the center.

On July 4, 1798, the Philadelphia Centinel stated: "It has been repeatedly recommended, that our citizens wear in their hats on the day of Independence, the American Cockade, (which is a Rose, composed of black ribbon, with a white button, or fastening) and that the Ladies should add to the attraction of their dress...this symbol of their attachment to the government."

So over 60 years later, when the Civil War broke out, it was only natural for Southerners to revive the black and white cockade as the emblem for their Second War for Independence!