Sons of Liberty
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- For the video game, please refer to Metal Gear Solid 2
The Sons of Liberty was an association of Patriots in the United States before the American Revolution. The goal of the Sons of Liberty was to stop enforcement of the 1765 Stamp Act by any means, including violence. Because of this, some argue that by today's standards this group would be considered terrorists. Members of the Sons of Liberty were generally young and ardent. The influential leaders of the American Revolution, such as John Adams and Samuel Adams were not members, although they did support the goal of the Sons of Liberty.
The Sons of Liberty started in Boston, Massachusetts in 1765. A separate organization was founded in New York. By the end of 1765, the Sons of Liberty were in every colony. They took their name from a debate on the Stamp Act in Parliament in 1765. Charles Townshend, speaking in support of the act, spoke contemptuously of the American colonists as being "children planted by our care, nourished up by our indulgence...and protected by our arms." Then Isaac Barre, a member of Parliament and friend of the American colonists, responded by describing the Americans as "these Sons of Liberty."
Viewed from the British side the Sons of Liberty were considered a revolutionary terrorist organization.
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Societies
The term was also used in the American Civil War when, early in 1864, the Copperhead organization, Knights of the Golden Circle, was reorganized as the Order of the Sons of Liberty.
The spirit of the Sons of Liberty continues on at the University of Virginia with the secret society of the same name. Little is known of this organization or its activities.
Flags
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Sons of Liberty flags
In 1767 the Sons of Liberty adopted a flag with nine vertical stripes (five red and four white). It is supposed that nine represented the number of colonies that were to attend the Stamp Act Congress.
A flag called the American Merchant Stripes, having thirteen horizontal red and white stripes, used by American merchant ships during the war, was also associated with the Sons of Liberty.