A cast pewter button inscribed RP below a crown. Produced in the 1770s or 1780s for the Royal Provincials: loyalist soldiers in the American Revolutionary War.
Many American loyalists were colonists of British origin or heritage (including Highland Scots), but there were also Black and Native American loyalists. Historians have estimated that in 1775 15-20% of white Americans were loyalists compared to 40-45% patriot supporters. After the Revolution some loyalists emigrated to Canada, the Caribbean, Florida or back to Britain, but many stayed on being integrated into the newly independent United States.
This button could have been worn by a member of any of the 30+ loyalist regiments – the New York Volunteers, the Queen’s Rangers, De Lancey’s Brigade, or perhaps even the Ethiopian Regiment, formed of forced enslaved men who had escaped their Patriot masters. Alternatively, it may never have actually been worn by an American soldier, as these buttons were manufactured in Britain and then transported across the Atlantic. Perhaps this one slipped out of a crate as it was being loaded onto a ship moored in the Thames?
Found 29 July 2022
ID: 90112
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