Caps Off to the Cast!

The production of The Scarlet Pimpernel is right around the corner and our students have been working hard to provide the audience with a great story all wrapped up in an entertaining evening!

 Sneaking out of France...who is that pulling the cart, and what is inside?

The Fisherman's Rest is a popular destination for Lords, Ladies, Knights, and French Revolutionaries alike!

While finalizing details for the performance, (properties are set, stage is almost complete, costumes have been ordered and just need final fittings), there is one last thing we need - Phrygian Caps!

The Phrygian cap, or Liberty Cap, was a cap worn in antiquity by the inhabitants of Phrygia. Phrygia is a region of central Anatolia. The Phrygian cap is a soft conical cap, whose top is pulled forward. In France, the Phrygian cap is called bonne Phrygian. As the Liberty Cap, it is also called bonnet de la Liberté and the Red Cap (Bonnet Rouge).

It is commonly believed that the revolutionaries from Southern France adopted this cap as it symbolized liberty. An important fact about the Phrygian cap from history is that in June 1792, King Louis XVI was obliged to don a liberty cap by a mob that stormed the palace of Tuileries. The Archbishop of Paris was made to replace his mitre with the red Cap of Liberty, when he had to resign his duties.

The Liberty Cap became more popular, particularly after the fall of the French Monarchy and emerged as a revolutionary icon in the 18th century. It evolved as a symbol of freedom. It was even held aloft on a Liberty Pole during the American Revolutionary War. The Phrygian cap was adopted during the French Revolution. Till date, it's a part of the national emblem.

Source: PHRYGIAN CAP (THE RED CAP OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION)