https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadsden_flag The Gadsden flag is a historical American flag with a yellow field depicting a timber rattlesnake coiled and ready to strike. Beneath the rattlesnake are the words "DONT TREAD ON ME".[a] Some modern versions of the flag include an apostrophe. The flag is named for Christopher Gadsden, a South Carolina delegate to the Continental Congress and brigadier general in the Continental Army who designed the flag in 1775 during the American Revolution. He gave the flag to Commodore Esek Hopkins, and it was unfurled on the main mast of Hopkins' flagship USS Alfred on December 20, 1775. Two days later, Congress made Hopkins commander-in-chief of the Continental Navy. He adopted the Gadsden banner as his personal flag, flying it from the mainmast of the flagship while he was aboard.The Continental Marines also flew the flag during the early part of the war.

The rattlesnake was a symbol of the unity of the Thirteen Colonies at the start of the Revolutionary War, and it had a long history as a political symbol in America. Benjamin Franklin used it for his Join, or Die woodcut in 1754. Gadsden intended his flag as a warning to Britain not to violate the liberties of its American subjects.

The flag has been described as the "most popular symbol of the American revolution." Its design proclaims an assertive warning of vigilance and willingness to act in defense against coercion. This has led it to be associated with the ideas of individualism and liberty. It is often used in the United States as a symbol for right-libertarianism, classical liberalism, and small government; for distrust or defiance against authorities and government.