The Illinois state motto, “Sovereignty of the State, National Union,” had a powerful symbolic meaning during the Civil War. The issue of state sovereignty and federal power has been a major issue since America’s inception, and the Illinois state seal has undergone changes to reflect this. The motto’s wording caused controversy, and Illinois Secretary of State Sharon Tyndale made a subtle alteration to the banner held by the eagle to express his feelings. The alteration remains part of the Illinois state seal today.
The state motto of Illinois is “Sovereignty of the State, National Union”. While the phrase sounds simple and direct, at the time of its adoption it had a very powerful symbolic meaning for Illinois and the United States. Later, as the American Civil War approached, which lasted from 1861 to 1865, the meaning of the motto literally became words of combat. President Abraham Lincoln, probably the most famous citizen of Illinois in American history, made the decision to put these words into practice to preserve the Union. Political disputes over the motto and the arrangement of its words continued even after the war ended.
The extent of state sovereignty and federal power have been major issues since America’s inception. The Ninth Amendment to the Constitution’s Bill of Rights provided that those powers not specifically vested in the federal government were reserved for the states or the people. The framers of the Constitution were rebelling against what they considered an inconceivable governmental tyranny and were careful to defend against it. The constitutional provisions protecting state sovereignty have been greatly appreciated by the individual states that have joined the Union.
The motto “State Sovereignty, National Union” made its appearance on an Illinois emblem as part of the first state seal of Illinois, which was authorized by the new Illinois General Assembly on February 19, 1819. The seal bears the date of August 26, 1818, when the first Illinois Constitution was signed. The seal replicated the seal replicated the Great Seal of the United States, with the exception that the eagle depicted in the seal held a banner with the state motto of Illinois in its beak.
Like the true scope of states’ rights, the issue of slavery was to become a divisive issue in the new Union. Illinois joined the Union in 1818 as a state where slavery was outlawed. Shortly before its admission, Mississippi and Alabama merged as states where slavery was legal. In 1861, following Lincoln’s election to the presidency as an anti-slavery Republican, tensions between individual states and the federal government over these issues led to the Civil War. The resulting conflict was the deadliest ever fought on American soil, and by the end of the war in 1865, many smaller US cities had been stripped of their entire male populations.
In 1867, the precise political interpretation of the Illinois state motto was still a matter of controversy. Illinois Secretary of State Sharon Tyndale, the custodian of the Great Seal of Illinois, approached Senator Allen C. Fuller about sponsoring a bill authorizing a new state seal. Tyndale’s idea was to change the Illinois state motto to “National Union, State Sovereignty” due to the events of the Civil War.
The Illinois Senate vehemently opposed this change and passed legislation specifically preventing Tyndale from altering the order of the motto’s wording. Following the letter but not the spirit of the Senate’s legal prohibition, Tyndale expressed his feelings through the strategic placement of the banner held by the eagle.
Although the phrase National Union still followed the words Sovereignty of the State, the banner is vertical rather than horizontal, as in the previous seal. This caused the phrase National Union to appear at the top of the banner. Also, with the new banner placement, the “Sovereignty” appeared rolled up in the upside-down banner. The subtle but significant alteration of Tyndale remains part of the Illinois state seal today.
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