Liberty Tree: A Look at Thomas Paine’s Song Celebrating the Beauty of American Freedom

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The Goddess of Liberty came;

Ten thousand celestials directed the way

And hither conducted the dame.

A fair budding branch from the gardens above,

Where millions with millions agree,

She brought in her hand as a pledge of her love,

And the plant she named Liberty Tree.

The celestial exotic struck deep in the ground,

Like a native it flourished and bore;

The fame of its fruit drew the nations around,

To seek out this peaceable shore.

Unmindful of names or distinction they came,

For freemen like brothers agree;

With one spirit endued, they one friendship pursued,

And their temple was Liberty Tree.

Beneath this fair tree, like the patriarchs of old,

Their bread in contentment they ate,

Unvexed with the troubles of silver and gold,

The cares of the grand and the great.

With timber and tar they Old England supplied,

And supported her power on the sea;

Her battles they fought, without getting a groat,

For the honor of Liberty Tree.

But hear, O ye swains, ’tis a tale most profane,

How all the tyrannical powers,

Kings, Commons, and Lords, are uniting amain

To cut down this guardian of ours;

From the east to the west blow the trumpet to arms

Through the land let the sound of it flee,

Let the far and the near, all unite with a cheer,

In defence of our Liberty Tree.

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A large elm stood as a grand landmark on the only road leading into colonial Boston. The tree was planted in 1646 and became a common symbol of beauty and liberty in the following century. The weight of this symbol carried through the colonies, inspiring others to plant trees as similar rallying points.

In the mid-18th century, the British Crown began imposing stricter trade regulations to recoup the cost of defending American colonies in the French and Indian War (1754–63) and increase its diminishing control. These restrictions, including the Currency Act and Sugar Act of 1764, angered colonials for prohibiting any trade with the French and Dutch. In 1765, the Royal Crown issued the Stamp Act, which taxed all commercial and legal papers, newspapers, pamphlets, cards, almanacs, and dice. The Liberty Tree became the site of a theatrical protest that led to the repeal of the Stamp Act the following year. Although colonials were successful with the repeal of the Stamp Act, the sparks of revolution had been lit and set in motion the events that started the American Revolution.

A politician and advocate for trade between the colonies and other European nations, Thomas Paine was an editor for the Pennsylvania Magazine during the war. He penned this song as a tribute to the symbolism of the Liberty Tree, further solidifying its place as Boston’s rallying point. After the war began, British loyalists chopped down the tree in solidarity with the Crown. Centuries later, the tree that stood on what was once Orange Street is commemorated with a plaque at 630 Washington Street bearing the inscription, “Sons of Liberty 1766.”