silk
68 x 52.5 inches
Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York, gift of Mr. and Mrs. T. Arthur Ball Jr. in memory of John David Ball, 1977
Pulaski Legion Banner
Brigadier General Casimir Pulaski presented this banner to his Legion in 1778. The cavalry Legion was one of the most successful under his command. Inscribed with the Latin phrase, “No Other Governs,” the crimson flag is decorated with exploding hand grenades in each corner. The eye of Providence represents God’s watchfulness over the Legion.
Curator's Notes
The Pulaski Legion was an independent cavalry unit raised in Baltimore, Maryland in 1778 and included sixty-eight horses and two hundred foot soldiers. There is much lore surrounding the creation of this flag. One story suggests that Moravian nuns presented the banner to Pulaski in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, after his legion protected them from an attack. The alleged event is described in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "Hymn of the Moravian Nuns of Bethlehem." The two-sided crimson banner also features another Latin phrase: "Unita Virtus Forcior," which means 'Union Makes Valor Stronger. The phrase surrounds the emblem "U.S." in the center.
