(1861) Bronze Medal GW-432, Unity of Government

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,920 SP65 11-18-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

This bronze medal cataloged as GW-432 bears the theme "Unity of Government," produced circa 1861 at the onset of the American Civil War. The invocation of Washington alongside the "Unity of Government" message was a powerful political statement during the secession crisis, arguing that the preservation of the Union was a sacred obligation inherited from the founding generation. Washington had warned against the dangers of sectionalism in his Farewell Address of 1796, and Northern medal makers seized upon this precedent to frame the Union cause as the fulfillment of Washington's legacy. The bronze composition allowed broad distribution of this patriotic message during a period of intense political propaganda. This medal belongs to a category of Civil War-era pieces that used Washington's image and words to legitimize the Union position, countering Confederate claims that secession was consistent with the revolutionary principles of 1776.

Rarity Notes

GW-432, bronze. Unity of Government Civil War-era patriotic medal. Moderate scarcity.

Cross References

PCGS #789606; GW-432; Unity of Government, bronze