Illustration shows colonists jubilantly escorting a carriage in which sit two loyalists, one of whom appears to have been tarred and feathered. Tarring and feathering is a form of public humiliation used to enforce unofficial justice or revenge. It was used in feudal Europe and its colonies in the early modern period, as well as the early American frontier, mostly as a type of mob vengeance. In North America, the term loyalist characterized colonists who rejected the American Revolution in favor of remaining within the British Empire. American loyalists included royal officials, Anglican clergymen, wealthy merchants with ties to London, demobilized British soldiers, and recent arrivals (especially from Scotland), as well as many ordinary colonists who were conservative by nature and/or felt that the protection of Britain was needed.