Difference between revisions of "Paul Revere"
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| − | '''Paul Revere''' (December 21, 1734 | + | {{Person |
| + | |Birth Present=No | ||
| + | |Birth Date=December 21, 1734 | ||
| + | |Birth Circa=No | ||
| + | |Birth Concurrence=Exact | ||
| + | |Birth Questionable=No | ||
| + | |Birth HasEndDate=No | ||
| + | |Birth Present End=No | ||
| + | |Birth Circa End=No | ||
| + | |Birth Questionable End=No | ||
| + | |Death Present=No | ||
| + | |Death Date=May 10, 1818 | ||
| + | |Death Circa=No | ||
| + | |Death Concurrence=Exact | ||
| + | |Death Questionable=No | ||
| + | |Death HasEndDate=No | ||
| + | |Death Present End=No | ||
| + | |Death Circa End=No | ||
| + | |Death Questionable End=No | ||
| + | |Birth Location=Boston, MA | ||
| + | |Roles=Engraver; Silversmith | ||
| + | |Keywords=Common; Obelisk; View/Vista | ||
| + | |Other resources={{ExternalLink | ||
| + | |External link URL=http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n80037041.html | ||
| + | |External link text=Library of Congress Name Authority File | ||
| + | }}{{ExternalLink | ||
| + | |External link URL=http://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500017620 | ||
| + | |External link text=Getty ULAN | ||
| + | }}{{ExternalLink | ||
| + | |External link URL=http://www.anb.org/articles/01/01-00778.html | ||
| + | |External link text=American National Biography Online | ||
| + | }}{{ExternalLink | ||
| + | |External link URL=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/68650 | ||
| + | |External link text=Dictionary of National Biography | ||
| + | }}{{ExternalLink | ||
| + | |External link URL=http://www.americanantiquarian.org/Inventories/Revere/ | ||
| + | |External link text=Illustrated Inventory of Paul Revere’s works at the American Antiquarian Society | ||
| + | }} | ||
| + | }} | ||
| + | '''Paul Revere''' (December 21, 1734–May 10, 1818) was a prominent Boston silversmith, engraver, proto-industrialist, and patriot who played a key role in mobilizing colonial activism that led to the American Revolution. He designed an [[obelisk]], which appeared briefly on [[Boston Common]], to celebrate the repeal of the Stamp Act. He is also remembered for his “midnight ride” during which he alerted the colonial militia to the approaching British forces on the eve of the Battle of Lexington. | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
| + | [[File:0482.jpg|thumb|Fig. 1, Paul Revere, ''A [[View]] of the [[Obelisk]] erected under Liberty-Tree in Boston on the Rejoicings for the Repeal of the Stamp Act'', 1766.]] | ||
| + | Paul Revere produced some of the most sophisticated engravings of the Revolutionary era, including political cartoons intended to undermine British rule.<ref>Elizabeth Louise Roark, ''Artists of Colonial America'' (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2003), 135–40 [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/APXPF4PM view on Zotero].</ref> A veteran of the French and Indian War (1754–63), Revere later joined the Sons of Liberty, a militant group formed in response to the passing of the 1765 Stamp Act.<ref>Jayne E. Triber, ''A True Republican: The Life of Paul Revere'' (Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2001), 44–67, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/Q9B6H7HE view on Zotero].</ref> To mark the Act’s repeal in 1766, Revere designed an “[[obelisk]] of liberty” which he erected on [[Boston Common]]. Fashioned of translucent paper on a thin frame and illuminated from within by 280 lamps, the [[obelisk]] was ornately decorated with symbols, allegories, portraits, and inscriptions representing the triumph of American liberty and its heroic defenders.<ref>David Hackett Fischer, ''Liberty and Freedom: A Visual History of America’s Founding Ideas'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005), 99–101, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/2XDX4X88 view on Zotero].</ref> Following its display on [[Boston Common]] the illuminated [[obelisk]] was to be removed to the Liberty Tree, a large elm that had become a site for acts of political dissent.<ref>Arthur M. Schlesinger, “Liberty Tree: A Genealogy,” ''New England Quarterly'' 25 (1952): 437–40, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/WQT9H9MG view on Zotero].</ref> Before this could be accomplished, however, the [[obelisk]] was destroyed by fireworks launched from its apex in a celebratory pyrotechnical display.<ref>Clarence Brigham, ''Paul Revere’s Engravings'' (Worcester, MA: American Antiquarian Society, 1954), 26–29, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8QDGHC3A view on Zotero]. For the iconography of Boston illuminations and the use of obelisks in political celebrations, see Peter Bastian, “Celebrating the Empire in the Changing Political World of Boston, 1759–1774,” ''Australasian Journal of American Studies'' 16 (1997): 26–44, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/GZA9VT63 view on Zotero].</ref> Revere had already documented the appearance of the [[obelisk]] in a large copperplate engraving [Fig. 1]—now extremely rare)—which depicts the portraits, allegories, and texts that appeared on each of the [[obelisk]]’s four sides.<ref>Elbridge Henry Goss, ''The Life of Colonel Paul Revere'', 8th ed., 2 vols. (Boston: Howard W. Spurr, 1909), 1:37–49, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/VVJJ2UF5 view on Zotero]; Brigham 1956, 26, 29–31, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8QDGHC3A view on Zotero].</ref> The copper plate was subsequently repurposed for the design of a Masonic certificate.<ref>Brigham 1956, 29, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8QDGHC3A view on Zotero].</ref> | ||
| − | + | During the build-up to war with Britain in the 1770s, Revere regularly contributed propagandistic engravings to the ''Royal American Magazine'', while simultaneously helping to organize an intelligence system to gather and disseminate information about the movement of British troops.<ref>John Bakeless, ''Turncoats, Traitors, and Heroes: Espionage in the American Revolution'' (New York: J. B. Lippincott, 1959), 68–82, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/HX5ZIIIG view on Zotero].</ref> In April 1775 he was instrumental in preventing British capture of rebel leaders and weapons supplies in Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts, by sounding an alarm that called area militias into action. After the American Revolution, Revere became a successful businessman, operating a hardware store, a foundry, and the first rolling copper mill in the United States.<ref>Robert Martello, ''Midnight Ride, Industrial Dawn: Paul Revere and the Growth of American Enterprise'' (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010), 204–323, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/Z6GSJ7C7 view on Zotero].</ref> | |
| + | |||
| + | —''Robyn Asleson'' | ||
| + | |||
| + | <hr> | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Texts== | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Anonymous, May 19, 1766, ''Boston Evening-Post'' (quoted in Brigham 1954: 21)<ref>Brigham 1954, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8QDGHC3A view on Zotero].</ref> | ||
| + | : “ . . . [T]he Gentlemen Selectmen of ''Boston'', have fix’d upon this Evening for the public Rejoicing, at whose Desire, will be exhibited on the [[Boston Common|Common]], an [[Obelisk|OBELISK]]. — A Description of which is engraved by Mr. ''Paul Revere''; and is now selling by Edes & Gill. — The Signal of its Ending will be by firing a Horizontal Wheel on the Top of the [[Obelisk|''Obelisk'']], when its desired the Assembly would retire.” | ||
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| − | + | *Anonymous, May 26, 1766, ''Boston Evening-Post'', p. 1 | |
| + | : “ . . . On the common the Sons of Liberty erected a magnificent pyramid, illuminated with 280 lamps: The four upper stories of which were ornamented with the figures of their Majesties, and fourteen worthy patriots who have distinguished themselves by their love of Liberty. . . | ||
| − | + | :“On top of the pyramid was fixed a round box of fireworks horizontally. . . At eleven o’clock the signal being given by a discharge of 21 rockets, the horizontal wheel on top of the pyramid or [[obelisk]] was played off, ending in the discharge of sixteen dozen of serpents in the air, which concluded the shew. — . . . The pyramid, which was designed to be placed under the Tree of Liberty, as a standing monument of this glorious era, by accident took fire about one o’clock, and was consumed: — The lamps by which it was illuminated not being extinguished at the close of the scene, it is supposed to have taken fire by some of them.” | |
| − | |||
| + | <hr> | ||
==Images== | ==Images== | ||
<gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="7"> | <gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="7"> | ||
| + | Image:2303.jpg|John Singleton Copley, ''Paul Revere'', 1768. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Image:0482.jpg|Paul Revere, ''A [[View]] of the [[Obelisk]] erected under Liberty-Tree in Boston on the Rejoicings for the Repeal of the Stamp Act'', 1766. | ||
</gallery> | </gallery> | ||
| − | + | <hr> | |
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==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
<references/> | <references/> | ||
| + | |||
| + | <hr> | ||
[[Category: People|Revere, Paul]] | [[Category: People|Revere, Paul]] | ||
Latest revision as of 21:20, October 5, 2021
Overview
Birth Date: December 21, 1734
Death Date: May 10, 1818
Birth Location: Boston, MA
Role: Engraver, Silversmith
Used Keywords: Common, Obelisk, View/Vista
Other resources: Library of Congress Name Authority File; Getty ULAN; American National Biography Online; Dictionary of National Biography; Illustrated Inventory of Paul Revere’s works at the American Antiquarian Society;
Paul Revere (December 21, 1734–May 10, 1818) was a prominent Boston silversmith, engraver, proto-industrialist, and patriot who played a key role in mobilizing colonial activism that led to the American Revolution. He designed an obelisk, which appeared briefly on Boston Common, to celebrate the repeal of the Stamp Act. He is also remembered for his “midnight ride” during which he alerted the colonial militia to the approaching British forces on the eve of the Battle of Lexington.
History
Paul Revere produced some of the most sophisticated engravings of the Revolutionary era, including political cartoons intended to undermine British rule.[1] A veteran of the French and Indian War (1754–63), Revere later joined the Sons of Liberty, a militant group formed in response to the passing of the 1765 Stamp Act.[2] To mark the Act’s repeal in 1766, Revere designed an “obelisk of liberty” which he erected on Boston Common. Fashioned of translucent paper on a thin frame and illuminated from within by 280 lamps, the obelisk was ornately decorated with symbols, allegories, portraits, and inscriptions representing the triumph of American liberty and its heroic defenders.[3] Following its display on Boston Common the illuminated obelisk was to be removed to the Liberty Tree, a large elm that had become a site for acts of political dissent.[4] Before this could be accomplished, however, the obelisk was destroyed by fireworks launched from its apex in a celebratory pyrotechnical display.[5] Revere had already documented the appearance of the obelisk in a large copperplate engraving [Fig. 1]—now extremely rare)—which depicts the portraits, allegories, and texts that appeared on each of the obelisk’s four sides.[6] The copper plate was subsequently repurposed for the design of a Masonic certificate.[7]
During the build-up to war with Britain in the 1770s, Revere regularly contributed propagandistic engravings to the Royal American Magazine, while simultaneously helping to organize an intelligence system to gather and disseminate information about the movement of British troops.[8] In April 1775 he was instrumental in preventing British capture of rebel leaders and weapons supplies in Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts, by sounding an alarm that called area militias into action. After the American Revolution, Revere became a successful businessman, operating a hardware store, a foundry, and the first rolling copper mill in the United States.[9]
—Robyn Asleson
Texts
- Anonymous, May 19, 1766, Boston Evening-Post (quoted in Brigham 1954: 21)[10]
- “ . . . [T]he Gentlemen Selectmen of Boston, have fix’d upon this Evening for the public Rejoicing, at whose Desire, will be exhibited on the Common, an OBELISK. — A Description of which is engraved by Mr. Paul Revere; and is now selling by Edes & Gill. — The Signal of its Ending will be by firing a Horizontal Wheel on the Top of the Obelisk, when its desired the Assembly would retire.”
- Anonymous, May 26, 1766, Boston Evening-Post, p. 1
- “ . . . On the common the Sons of Liberty erected a magnificent pyramid, illuminated with 280 lamps: The four upper stories of which were ornamented with the figures of their Majesties, and fourteen worthy patriots who have distinguished themselves by their love of Liberty. . .
- “On top of the pyramid was fixed a round box of fireworks horizontally. . . At eleven o’clock the signal being given by a discharge of 21 rockets, the horizontal wheel on top of the pyramid or obelisk was played off, ending in the discharge of sixteen dozen of serpents in the air, which concluded the shew. — . . . The pyramid, which was designed to be placed under the Tree of Liberty, as a standing monument of this glorious era, by accident took fire about one o’clock, and was consumed: — The lamps by which it was illuminated not being extinguished at the close of the scene, it is supposed to have taken fire by some of them.”
Images
John Singleton Copley, Paul Revere, 1768.
Notes
- ↑ Elizabeth Louise Roark, Artists of Colonial America (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2003), 135–40 view on Zotero.
- ↑ Jayne E. Triber, A True Republican: The Life of Paul Revere (Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2001), 44–67, view on Zotero.
- ↑ David Hackett Fischer, Liberty and Freedom: A Visual History of America’s Founding Ideas (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005), 99–101, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Arthur M. Schlesinger, “Liberty Tree: A Genealogy,” New England Quarterly 25 (1952): 437–40, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Clarence Brigham, Paul Revere’s Engravings (Worcester, MA: American Antiquarian Society, 1954), 26–29, view on Zotero. For the iconography of Boston illuminations and the use of obelisks in political celebrations, see Peter Bastian, “Celebrating the Empire in the Changing Political World of Boston, 1759–1774,” Australasian Journal of American Studies 16 (1997): 26–44, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Elbridge Henry Goss, The Life of Colonel Paul Revere, 8th ed., 2 vols. (Boston: Howard W. Spurr, 1909), 1:37–49, view on Zotero; Brigham 1956, 26, 29–31, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Brigham 1956, 29, view on Zotero.
- ↑ John Bakeless, Turncoats, Traitors, and Heroes: Espionage in the American Revolution (New York: J. B. Lippincott, 1959), 68–82, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Robert Martello, Midnight Ride, Industrial Dawn: Paul Revere and the Growth of American Enterprise (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010), 204–323, view on Zotero.
- ↑ Brigham 1954, view on Zotero.
