Pine Tree Flag

The Pine Tree Flag (or the An Appeal to Heaven Flag) was one of the flags used during the American Revolution. The flag, which featured a pine tree with the motto "An Appeal to Heaven", or less frequently "An Appeal to God", was used by a squadron of six schooners commissioned under George Washington's authority as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army beginning in October 1775.
The pine tree is a traditional symbol of New England. The phrase "appeal to heaven" appears in John Locke's Second Treatise on Government, where it is used to describe the right of revolution.
It is also used by liberty activists and enthusiasts of the American Revolution to commemorate the Pine Tree Riot, one of the first acts of resistance by the American colonists to British royal authority eventually culminating in the American Revolution.
The pine tree symbol may have been used by the Iroquois League before the arrival of the Pilgrims. The term "pine tree" also referred to oaks, willows, and other trees. Colonists adopted the pine as a symbol on flags and currency in the 17th century, including variants of the flag of New England and coinage produced by the Massachusetts Bay Colony from 1652 to 1682.
The phrase "Appeal to Heaven" is a particular expression of the right of revolution used by British philosopher John Locke in his Second Treatise on Government. The work was published in 1690 and rejected the theory of the divine right of kings. In chapter 14:
Locke's enlightenment-age works on the topic of the philosophy of government were well-known and frequently quoted by colonial leaders in the 1760–1776 period prior to American independence. Locke's writing that most influenced the American philosophy of government was his Two Treatises of Government, and has been used to defend the secularization of American political structures. Richard Henry Lee, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, saw the Declaration as being copied from that work. Locke was not only one of the most-cited political philosophers during the Founding Era (~1776 to 1779), but also the single most frequently-cited source in the years from 1760 to 1776 (the period leading up to the Declaration of Independence).
A flag with a pine tree on it, "a red flag with the cross of St. George in the canton with a green pine tree in the first quarter", was used in New England as early as 1704, and may have flown at Bunker Hill in 1775. It also appeared having a "white field with the motto 'An Appeal to Heaven' above the pine tree".
In a letter dated October 20, 1775, General Washington's secretary, Colonel Joseph Reed, suggested a "flag with a white ground and a tree in the middle, the motto AN APPEAL TO HEAVEN" be used for the ships Washington commissioned. Two heavily armed American scows, or "floating batteries," launched on the Charles River in September 1775 had used the Pine Tree flag as an ensign; in his letter, Reed described the banner he proposed as "the flag of our floating batteries." The six schooners commissioned by Congress beginning in October 1775 to intercept British ships entering Boston—the USS Hancock, Lee, Franklin, Harrison, Lynch, and Warren—used the Pine Tree flag. Prior to Colonel Reed's suggestion, "an appeal to Heaven" or similar expressions had been invoked by the Massachusetts Provincial Congress in several resolutions, Patrick Henry in his Liberty or Death speech. Subsequently, the phrase was used again by the Second Continental Congress in the Declaration of Independence.
The following year, on April 29, 1776, the Massachusetts Council established the flag of the state navy with a resolution stating: "...that the Colours be a white Flag, with a green Pine Tree, and the Inscription, 'An Appeal to Heaven'."
The pine tree flag has been described as one of the most important flags in the colonies during 1775–1776, and the central image of the pine tree stood for wealth and power, in part because the tall trees were so important to the Royal Navy, as masts for warships.
The flag was a popular regional New England flag and was used to muster troops during the American Revolution before Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes. The flag may have served as partial inspiration for liberty trees and liberty poles.
A pine tree flag appeared on a handkerchief (sometimes referred to as a bandana) depicting George Washington on horseback, surrounded by various flags, dating to 1776–1777 and attributed to John Hewson. Jonathan Trumbull shows a variant of the flag in his c. 1785 painting of events at the Battle of Bunker Hill, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775.
The Pine Tree Flag was adopted as the Massachusetts state flag after the American Revolution and was in use from 1775 through 1780. In 1908, Massachusetts adopted a new state flag, and on the reverse side of this flag the pine tree could still be seen. In 1971, the reverse side of the flag was removed.
The Pine Tree Flag is the official maritime ensign for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, though the enscription "An Appeal to Heaven" was removed from the flag in 1971. It was used by state navy vessels in addition to privateers sailing from Massachusetts.
Maine, nicknamed the "pine tree state", used a state flag from 1901–1909 that had a pine tree on a buff field with a blue star in the canton.
The Maine National Guard also cites the Appeal to Heaven flag as a historic military symbol of Maine, stating that it was presented in July 1775 to the 31st Massachusetts Regiment of Foot, whose soldiers were recruited from present-day Maine. The regiment marched to Boston following the Battles of Lexington and Concord, and served in the Siege of Boston.
In 2024, a referendum question was placed on general election ballots in Maine, with 2024 Maine Question 5 asking voters: Do you favor making the former state flag, replaced as the official flag of the State in 1909 and commonly known as the Pine Tree Flag, the official flag of the State? The measure failed with 55% of votes in opposition.
The current flag of Maine still uses a pine tree in its design.
The flag of Vermont uses a pine tree and pine branches in its design.
In 1968, the Pine Tree flag, or "Washington's Cruisers Flag," was featured in the 6¢ Historic American Flags postage stamp series printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
From 1964 to 2024, the flag was flown outside San Francisco City Hall as part of a collection of historic American flags. It is also displayed at Faneuil Hall in Boston, in the Museum of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts.
In the 2020s, the flag was flown at events attended by various far-right groups including a Christian nationalist strand of Donald Trump's "Stop the Steal" movement.
In May 2024, news outlets reported that the flag had been flown at the vacation home of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in 2023. This drew media attention because the flag had been used by "Stop the Steal" supporters. The justice stated that his wife had displayed the flag, referred to the historic background of the symbol, and refused to recuse himself from ongoing cases involving the 2020 United States presidential election.
As of 2024, "pine tree symbolism is ubiquitous" in New England, with the Pine Tree Flag "a well-known icon", and proposals to change the Maine state flag to the Pine Tree Flag had support from members of both the Republican and Democratic parties.
Media related to Pine Tree Flag at Wikimedia Commons