Tattoo Overview
Throughout European military history, musicians would march out from barracks at the end of the day to play signals and alert troops to return home before the castle gates were locked for the night. In the 17th Century, when these musicians called the soldiers to retire, the Dutch phrase “doe den tap toe” or “shut off the taps” could often be heard in the village pubs of Holland and Flanders. As these nightly occurrences became popular sources of entertainment to the villagers, they also became evermore elaborate. This popular tradition of public musical and drill displays evolved into the modern-day tattoo, condensed from “tap toe,” much like the solemn tune Taps.
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