Horsing Around in Philadelphia
This Week in 1776, #34
“This Week in 1776” is an ongoing almanac of events from that year in the American Revolution. Be sure to check out my novel HEARTLANDERS.
Philly
While Congress continued to focus on logistical and legal matters, one particular development of interest to this reader was the deliberation over a national seal. In a letter from John Adams to his wife Abigail, we get the following glimpse into what the committee considered:
Dr. F. proposes a Device for a Seal. Moses lifting up his Wand, and dividing the Red Sea, and Pharaoh, in his Chariot overwhelmed with the Waters.—This Motto. Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.
Mr. Jefferson proposed. The Children of Israel in the Wilderness, led by a Cloud by day, and a Pillar of Fire by night, and on the other Side Hengist and Horsa, the Saxon Chiefs, from whom We claim the Honour of being descended and whose Political Principles and Form of Government We have assumed.
I proposed the Choice of Hercules, as engraved by Gribeline in some 97Editions of Lord Shaftsburys Works. The Hero resting on his Clubb. Virtue pointing to her rugged Mountain, on one Hand, and perswading him to ascend. Sloth, glancing at her flowery Paths of Pleasure, wantonly reclining on the Ground, displaying the Charms both of her Eloquence and Person, to seduce him into Vice. But this is too complicated a Group for a Seal or Medal, and it is not original.
A while back I came across this statement and bookmarked it for this week: the discussion of the seal was my introduction to Hengist and Horsa, two figures who captured my imagination. Lore holds that they were Saxon brothers who settled in the British Isles and became ancestors of a great nation, which was later corrupted by Norman conquerors and the English monarchy. Thomas Jefferson looked to them as symbols of a free people and the progenitors of a tradition that America sought to reclaim from monarchs of the past.
You can look at Hengist and Horsa the same way that Italians look to Romulus and Remus as folklorical figures at the beginning of their history. I won’t pretend to be some expert on Hengist and Horsa, but I’m admittedly curious what else Jefferson had to say about them, and his broader views on America as the culmination of a long historical arc. I’ve got some reading to do.
Ultimately these designs for the seal didn’t make it into the final product. I imagine Congress didn’t put the national seal too high on its list of priorities at this time, given the more pressing matter of military logistics in places like…
New York
The Americans are holding New York while the Brits are adding more ships and ground troops to their invading force. Lt. Col. Benjamin Tupper does what he can to harass British ships with limited resources, including deploying “fire rafts,” which are basically what they sound like: the cheapest possible construct that will float and maintain sufficient fire long enough to contact a British ship and burn it down. He doesn’t succeed in blowing anything up, but the attempt is sufficient to force a couple of ships to withdraw to the stronger British lines near New York Harbor.
Elsewhere
Colonel Andrew Williamson and Captain Andrew Pickens continue their campaign against the Cherokee who allied with Brits and Loyalists against the Patriot cause. One fight was especially devastating to Pickens: on August 12, he and about two dozen men were surrounded by about eight times their number, and had to form a ring so they could constantly fire out in all directions. The “Ring Fight” lasted long into the night, with Pickens’ men suffering a casualty rate of almost half, but they made the Cherokee work for it, and left many more of them dead. Reinforcements eventually arrived and bailed out the Patriots. In response the Patriots burned crops and stores in nearby Cherokee settlements, forcing them to break their lines and retreat to friendlier territory.
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