Charlemagne Tower

Sons of the American Revolution membership medal

(Full Size)

查里曼.塔爾

美國革命之子獎章

(官方版)

Item number: M259

Year: AD 1889

Material: Silver Gilt and Enamel

Size: 87.5 x 39.2 x 8.2 mm

Weight: 31.55 g

Provenance:

1. Heritage Auctions 2023

2. Nicolas D. Wood Collection

This is a medal from the year AD 1889, awarded by the Sons of the American Revolution to Charlemagne Tower. The ribbon on the observe side of the medal is a combination of blue and white silk satin. Below the ribbon is the emblem of the Sons of the American Revolution, featuring an eagle with wings down and head facing right, symbolising a noble aspiration to lead America forward. The eagle’s talons grasp the medal with double rings.

The observe side of the medal bears the legend “SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION,” representing the organisation’s name. The figure at the centre of the legend is a militiaman holding a rifle. The design of the medal is an eight-point Maltese cross in white enamel with a gold ball at each point, influenced by the French Order of Saint Louis.

The reverse side bears the legend “LIBERTAS ET PATRIA,” with the central figure being Washington. Libertas refers to the goddess of liberty in Roman mythology, symbolising freedom. In this context, it represents the spirit of liberty, and notably, the Statue of Liberty is based on this deity. Patria refers to the homeland and is the root of the English word “patriotism.” The medal also commemorates American patriots from various periods. Another noteworthy feature is the number ”5352” located on the arm of the Maltese cross.

The Sons of the American Revolution (SAR), formally known as the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (NSSAR), traces its origins to the Sons of the Revolution, a society founded in New York City in 1876 by John Austin Stevens. He envisioned an aristocratic and hereditary society similar to the Society of the Cincinnati.

The SAR aims to honour those who pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honour to achieve independence from Great Britain. Its mission is described as “maintaining and extending the institutions of American freedom, an appreciation for true patriotism, a respect for national symbols, the value of American citizenship, and the unifying force of ‘e pluribus unum,’ which signifies the coming together of people from many nations as one nation and one people.”

The organisation actively promotes “patriotism” and can be seen on Constitution Day, Flag Day, and Bill of Rights Day. Furthermore, the organisation has members in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, highlighting its influence.

To date, a total of 17 U.S. Presidents have been members of the SAR. The membership list of the Sons of the American Revolution has included notable figures such as William McKinley, Herbert Hoover, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Gerald R. “Jerry” Ford. The SAR is highly respected and recognised both nationally and internationally.

Charlemagne Tower, the recipient of this medal, was a direct descendant of the first Holy Roman Emperor through his mother’s lineage. He is the founder of what is now the town of Tower City in Pennsylvania, USA. Additionally, he was an American lawyer and businessman. His interest was in collecting rare books, particularly those related to colonial laws. By the time of his passing, he had amassed the most complete collection of colonial law books in the world.

His commercial success stemmed from his active acquisition of land in the Schuylkill Valley of Pennsylvania and his role as an officer in coal and railway companies.

However, acquiring this land was no easy feat. At that time, he became embroiled in a case. The case originated from Tower being commissioned by Monson-William to use his legal expertise to resolve ownership disputes involving 8,000 acres of land. In short, the 8,000 acres that Monson-William intended to acquire had issues with property encroachment. To resolve the legal problems, Monson offered Tower as much as half of the land’s ownership as a reward.

To prevent other competitors from targeting their land, the partners had Tower handle the purchases and register the land under nominee account to conceal the true ownership. By AD 1858, the partners had already controlled 11,000 acres of land. It was only then that the relevant land users realised what was happening and filed lawsuits against Monson-William. Thanks to Tower’s exceptional legal skills, the plan did not fall apart.

In AD 1867, Tower decided to sell the land he owned but initially found no buyers due to ownership disputes. Eventually, in March AD 1868, Tower decided to lease 1,503 acres of land to two independent coal companies, which developed the Tower Mine and Brookside Mine. The lease term was 15 years, with a rent of $0.30 per ton of coal. Additionally, Tower developed a town near the mines, naming it Towersville after himself, a name that is still in use today.

During the American Civil War, Tower joined the military out of patriotism and was appointed a captain. Within three months, he organised and led a regiment of Federal soldiers from Pottsville. Due to his numerous achievements, he was awarded this medal.

物件編號: M259

年代: 公元 1889 年

材質: 銀鍍金和琺瑯

尺寸: 87.5 x 39.2 x 8.2 mm

重量: 31.55 g

來源:

1. 海瑞得拍賣行 2023

2.尼古拉斯·D·伍德舊藏

這是一枚公元1889年,由美國革命之子組織頒發給查里曼.塔爾(Charlemagne Tower)的獎章。獎章正面的綬帶,以絲綢製的藍白緞帶為組合;綬帶以下則是「美國革命之子」組織的代表形象,翅膀朝下、鷹頭向右,頗有帶領美國向上進步的高貴象徵,鷹爪特色為雙環扣,挾帶著勳章。

獎章正面的銘文為 SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION,代表組織名;圍繞在銘文中央的人物為一持槍民兵。獎章樣式則為八角(八個方位都有點)馬爾他十字型,該設計理念受法國聖路易斯獎章的影響。

背面則為拉丁銘文 「LIBERTAS ET PATRIA」,背面中央人物為華盛頓。「Libertas」為自主神,在古羅馬神話中為一女性神祇,象徵自由,在此處除了代表自由的精神外,美國知名地標自由女神像,也是取材自此神;而Patria則是祖國,在現今英語詞彙中為patriotism的辭源,恰巧的是,該枚獎章也紀念美國不同時期的愛國者。另有值得注意的地方是,在馬爾他十字架吊臂側邊有一串數字「5352」。

美國革命之子組織(SAR),正式名稱為美國革命之子全國協會(NSSAR)。
該組織的起源可以追溯到公元1876年在紐約市成立的革命之子協會,由約翰·奧斯汀·史蒂文斯(John Austin Stevens)創立,他設想了一個類似於辛辛那提組織的貴族社會和世襲組織。

同時,美國革命之子組織還希望紀念那些為了獨立於大不列顛而誓言獻身、獻財、獻身的男女。該組織的幾項宗旨為「維護和擴展美國自由的制度」、「欣賞真正的愛國主義」、「尊重國家,重視美國公民身份」,以及「『e pluribus unum』(合眾為一)的團結力量。」

該組織在積極推動「愛國主義」的路上,於憲法日、國旗日和權利法案日都能看見其影子。不僅如此,該組織在美國、加拿大、法國、德國、西班牙、瑞士和英國擁有成員,足見其影響力。

迄今為止,共有17位美國總統曾是SAR的成員。美國革命之子成員名單曾有
威廉·麥金利(William McKinley)、赫伯特·胡佛(Herbert Hoover)、德懷特·D·艾森豪威爾(Dwight D. Eisenhower)、傑拉爾德·R·傑瑞·福特(Gerald R. “Jerry” Ford)等。SAR可說在國內、國際都備受推崇、肯定。

該枚獎章的獲獎人,查里曼.塔爾,對自己的名字和第一位神聖羅馬帝國皇帝查里曼(Charlemagne)同名感到非常自豪,因在通過繼承母系血統後,事實上也確實是此皇帝的直系後裔。他是如今美國賓州塔爾市的創辦人,同時,也是一位美國律師和商人。他的興趣是喜好收藏稀有書籍,特別是有關殖民地法律知識的書籍,在他過世時,他甚至擁有世界上最完整的殖民地法律知識書籍收藏。

他的商業成就來自於他積極收購賓州斯庫爾基爾山谷的土地,並擔任煤炭和鐵路公司的官員。

然而這塊土地卻得來不易。當時他被捲入一場案件當中。這個案件源自塔爾接到孟森.威廉的委託,請他運用法律專長協助解決牽涉8000英畝土地的所有權爭議。簡而言之,孟森.威廉意圖併購的8000英畝土地有侵占他人財產的爭議,孟森以高達一半的土地所有權犒賞塔爾,請他解決相關法律問題。

這對合夥人為避免其他競爭對手盯上他們的土地,由塔爾負責出面購買土地,再將土地登記在人頭戶,以隱藏土地所有權的實際擁有者。截至公元1858年,這對合夥人已經控制11000英畝的土地。此時相關的土地使用者方才反應過來,向孟森.威廉提起訴訟,多虧塔爾出色的法律技巧才使這套計畫沒有崩盤。

公元1867年,塔爾決定出售名下的土地,卻因為所有權爭議一時找不到買家。最終在公元1868年3月,塔爾決定將1503英畝的土地租給兩家獨立的煤炭公司,開發為塔爾煤礦和布魯克賽煤礦,租期為15年,租金為0.3美元 / 每噸煤礦計算。除此之外,塔爾還在煤礦附近開發城鎮,以自己的名字命名為塔爾鎮並沿用至今。

美國內戰期間,塔爾因自己的愛國心而加入軍隊,在此期間,他被任命為上尉,在三個月內組織並領導了一支來自波茨維爾的聯邦步兵團。也因其戰爭的種種事蹟,他被頒發了這枚獎章。

類似/相同物件 請看:

美國 美國組織獎章博物館 SOCIETY MEDALS United States of America

https://exnet.narod.ru/USA/usm-18.html

美國革命之子組織 SAR

https://mgcsar.org/emblem.html

更多相關訊息請參考:

美國 美國內戰部落格 Civil War Blog

https://civilwar.gratzpa.org/2011/01/charlemagne-tower-civil-war-leader/

美國革命之子組織 SAR

http://www.saroregon.org/about.html

美國革命之子組織 SAR

https://www.ksssar.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SAR_Handbook_Volume_3.pdf

期刊存儲 Jstor

Iron Millionaire: Life of Charlemagne :Towerhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv4v30qg

塔爾蘇丹歷史 Tower Soudan History

https://towersoudanhistory.com/charlemagne-tower/

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