A coiled Rattlesnake preparing to strike symbolizes the American Colonies’ fight for freedom from the British.
To dig more about the don’t tread on me flag meaning, this flag gained popularity during the Revolutionary War and has since emerged as a symbol of liberty, individualism, and independence in the modern period.
There is additional evidence that the flag first appeared in 1754, 20 years before America’s independence, with a basic picture to serve in an essay by Benjamin Franklin.
According to American historians, it was most likely Franklin who created this flag, which depicts the American colonies as sections of a severed snake, with a simple exhortation to “Join, or Die.”
The accompanying essay addresses the major current problem facing British colonists in North America: the threat posed by the French and their Native American allies.