The Culpeper Flag is a white flag with a coiled rattlesnake in the middle, over the words “Don’t Tread on Me.” The words “The Culpeper Minutemen” are in a banner over the top of the snake and Patrick Henry’s famous words “Liberty or Death” are to the sides of the snake. The flag was first used in 1775 and is a variation of the Gadsden Flag created earlier in the year by Congressman Christopher Gadsden of South Carolina.
The flag was flown by the Culpeper Minutemen, a militia group from Culpeper, Virginia that was formed in 1775 by the 3rd Virginia Convention to fight in the Revolutionary War against the British. The name, “Minutemen” refers to the fact that the group was prepared to mobilize and fight at a minute’s notice.
The flag’s symbolism is clear. The rattlesnake is a venomous creature that is not to be trifled with. The words “Don’t Tread on Me” are a warning to the British that they should not cross the colonists. The words “Liberty or Death” are a declaration of the colonists’ willingness to fight for their freedom.
