About

Regimental colours, the flags carried into battle to identify the individual regiments that made up the armies of the day, were important military accoutrements throughout the eighteenth century, particularly in North America, where regimental flags served to identify troops owing allegiance to nine different crowns of Europe as well as the newly established United States. We may think we know a lot about these flags—drawings of them are all over the internet, reproductions of them are in museums and at battlefield parks, they figure prominently in historical paintings and popular culture such as movies and tv. But how accurate are any of those drawings or reproductions? In recognition of the 250th Anniversary of the beginning of the American Revolution and the American War of Independence, this talk will focus primarily on the colours of the early period of that war—the British regiments sent to enforce the King's peace and the flags of the American forces created to resist them. We will explore how not just regulations and traditions made those colours the way they were, but the physical limitations of the times—the availability of standardized materials and dyes, the lack of standard measurements, changing artistic tastes and expectations. From these we can correct many of the mistakes and misunderstandings that have crept into even the most respected "standard" works on the subject, and arrive at a more accurate picture of how these colors actually looked at the time of their use, rather than as worn and dilapidated mementos of battles fought over two centuries ago.

Registration will open on September 25th, 2025.

Registration requested: https://poquoson.librarycalendar.com/event/terrible-army-banners-true-colours-british-and-americans-war-revolution-3145

Steven W. Hill info
A lifelong student of military history, Steven W. Hill has been researching military flags and colors, with special focus on the regimental colors of the five major combatants in the American War for Independence—American, French, British, German, and Spanish—for over 50 years.
He has worked as curator and historian at both the current Massachusetts State House and The Old State House Museum in Boston, the Historical Society of Delaware, the Indiana War Memorials in Indianapolis, and most recently at the National Museum of Health and Medicine-formerly the Army Medical Museum.
In addition to his "regular" curatorial positions, Mr. Hill is a researcher and maker of reproduction flags for museums, the military and government, reenactment groups, tv and movies, including flags of the French and British troops in the movie "Last of the Mohicans." He is also a consultant to museums, publishers, and historical painters on the details of military flags and their histories. He recently completed the book "Battle Flags of the Wars for North America, 1754-1783, Foreign Armies and Regiments," and is currently working on a companion volume on the American standards and colors of the same period.

Website: http://www.dupagemilitaryflag.com.