“The Female Combatants,” 1776 This British cartoon of January 1776 follows a long tradition of representing countries as female characters: a fancy-dressed matron as Britain and a near-naked Indian maiden as Britain’s North American colonies, pummeling each other with fists. The British matron calls out, “I’ll force you to Obedience, you Rebellious Slut,” while the Indian maiden replies, “Liberty, Liberty forever, Mother, while I exist.”

Courtesy of the Lewis Walpole Library, Yale University.