"Washington's Headquarters Flag"
Description of the flag
This is an almost square blue flag with 13 white six-pointed stars arranged 3:2:3:2:3 Rather than the normal stars which appear to be composed of triangles, they're composed of three lines that intersect. The ends of the lines are slightly tapered.
The original of this flag is in the
collection of the Valley Forge Historical Society. It is not quite square
measuring 27 1/2 inches by 35 1/2 inches. It is made of faded blue silk with the
stars appliquéd white silk. Thus the stars appear smaller on the reverse than on
the observe.
William M. Grimes-Wyatt, 21 February 1996
History of the flag
It is said to be the headquarters standard
of General George Washington. It appears in two early postwar paintings,
supervised by eyewitnesses, the Battle of Princeton by William Mercer and the
surrender of Yorktown by the French artist Van Blarenberghe. It was donated to
the Society by Miss Frances B. Lovell, a descendant of Washington's only sister,
Betty Washington Lewis.
It is accepted by experts as being Washington's Headquarters Flag
and the standard of the army in 1781.
William M. Grimes-Wyatt, 21 February 1996
