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The Maltese Cross:
Legend or Myth?
In my research for Badges of the Bravest, I sought to find the definitive answer on how and when the Maltese cross was chosen. Based on a quick, unscientific survey of major U.S. city fire departments that use the Maltese cross as their primary badge, it appears that the FDNY was the first to use this shape officially in 1865. Individual companies may have used it even earlier than that. But what stands out the most from my research is that NONE of the 19th century literature that I read EVER yielded the answer as to why or how the Maltese cross was chosen by the Department for its badge. In particular, most fire buffs, historians and collectors are familiar with Costello’s Our Fireman, which made its return only a few years ago when reprinted by Knickerbocker Press. The book was written in 1887 - about as close as we can get to the formation of the paid Department and its issuance of a Maltese cross badge. But among all the details about that era, there is no mention of the Knights of St. John of Malta, whose emblematic cross is supposed to be the source of the fire department symbol. Now, with such a colorful story like that, if it was the basis for the use of the Maltese cross, don’t you think there would have been quite a bit written about the connection??
Not only is there no mention of the Knights of St. John in early fire history books, none of the contemporary information on the Knights makes any connection between their emblem and that of the fire service. After doing quite a bit of research on the Knights of St. John, I couldn't find any documentation of how they fought off the Saracens in the Holy Land, shielding themselves from burning naptha-filled grenades with their capes! I am sure the fire historians who refer to this event are not making it up, but in an internet search the only hits for this story bring up fire-related websites.
There is an interesting modern connection between the Knights of St. John and the FDNY! The headquarters for the U.S. Priory was, until recently, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on Riverside Drive in Manhattan. (The Headquarters are still in NYC on East 55th Street.) Perhaps one of the most significant memorials to NYC firefighters to date is located at the Cathedral. It is dedicated to the twelve firefighters who made the Supreme Sacrifice at the 23rd Street Fire and Collapse in 1966. The Cathedral was the scene of a five-alarm fire on December 18, 2001. It was saved from significant damage, if not loss, by an aggressive and effective attack by the FDNY.
The modern Order of the Knights of St. John has taken up support of another emergency service…ambulances. The St. Johns Ambulance Association is sponsored throughout the world and uses the distinctive Maltese cross as their emblem. In fact, it is a true rendition of the Knights’ cross, not one of the stylized fire service versions.
So, is it legend, or is it myth?
Our brothers across the Atlantic also use, what they call, a Maltese cross as their national symbol for the fire service. However, their cross – like the ones used in the U.S. – bears little resemblance to the true Maltese cross. To their credit, they have taken the eight points of the cross and assigned a “knightly” virtue to each. The same virtues can be attributed to firefighters.
So, if I have totally bashed our legend, what can I offer as an alternative?
If you read my book, you know that I feel there is a strong connection to the use of the Maltese cross by the military during the Civil War. Keep in mind, that what I believe to be its first “official” use occurred in NYC in 1865 near the end of the Civil War. During the war in 1863, General Hooker introduced distinctive insignia for each Corps of the Union Army. They were worn in felt on the top of the kepi hat of infantry soldiers and on the left breast in either cloth or metal by officers. The symbol of the Fifth and Nineteenth Corps was called a Cross Pattée. The Army version of this cross had flat sides identical to that of the first "Maltese cross" when it was introduced by the NYC Metropolitan Fire Department in 1865 as a hat badge.
We all know the story of the New York Fire Zouaves and Colonel Elmer Ellsworth. Well, when Ellsworth was killed, another regiment – the 44th New York Volunteers – known as Ellsworth’s Avengers, was formed. From May 1862 until it was disbanded in October 1864, the regiment was a part of the Fifth Corps whose symbol was the Cross Pattée, commonly called a Maltese cross.
I found a newspaper article in the Brooklyn Eagle that I believe to be my “smoking gun.” Now, let me note that when the article was published in 1882, Brooklyn was a totally independent city. So, while I claim that the fire department across the river in New York City was first to use the Maltese cross in 1865, you have to make a leap of faith that their reason for selecting it seventeen years earlier was based on the same military significance.
The article appeared in the September 19, 1882 issue of the Brooklyn Eagle. It says:
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"Commissioner Partridge has decided to make a change in the design of the badges of the Fire Department. The present badge is of nickel and in the form of a four-leaf clover. The new one is in the design of a Maltese cross, the old sixth army corps badge. Those of the Commissioner, deputy, chief engineer and assistants are gold-plated, and those of the privates are German silver. The present badges have been in use so long that some of them have found their way into the possession of parties who are not entitled to them, and from whom they cannot be obtained. Hence the change."
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Now, look at the illustration of the VI Corps badge and the Brooklyn Fire Department badge. First, this isn’t even close to being a Maltese cross. Second, the connection to the military symbol is in plain English, clearly supporting my claim.
Look also at the V Corps symbol. When you look at this side by side comparison with the 1865 Metropolitan Fire Department badge, it is difficult to deny that my claim might be right.
So that's my theory...The reason for choosing the Maltese cross has its roots in the U.S. military, not the Knights of St. Johns of Malta. I invite your comments to tell me if you think I am right or wrong, or if you have any additional information to provide. Please contact me at: FDNYhistory@aol.com
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