Black Hat

Lore & Background

Black Hat is a minor demon from Hell who appears briefly in the Preacher series. He is depicted as a sinister figure who attempts to command the Saint of Killers, but this is not an alliance—the Saint kills him for his presumption. He meets his end at the hands of the Saint, not through any broader conflict. Unlike the historical Public Universal Friend, Black Hat has no connection to Quaker theology or 18th-century America.

In Their Own Story

In October 1776, Wilkinson contracted an epidemic disease, most likely typhus, and was bedridden and near death with a high fever. The fever broke after several days. The Friend later reported that Wilkinson had died, receiving revelations from God through two archangels who proclaimed there was 'Room, Room, Room, in the many Mansions of eternal glory for Thee and for everyone'. The Friend further said that Wilkinson's soul had ascended to heaven and the body had been reanimated with a new spirit charged by God with preaching his word, that of the 'Publick Universal Friend', describing that name in the words of Isaiah 62:2 as 'a new name which the mouth of the Lord hath named'. From that time on, the Friend refused to answer to the name 'Jemima Wilkinson', ignoring or chastising those who insisted on using it. Identifying as neither male nor female, the Friend asked not to be referred to with gendered pronouns. Followers respected these wishes; they referred only to 'the Public Universal Friend' or short forms such as 'the Friend' or 'P.U.F.', and many avoided gender-specific pronouns even in private diaries, while others used he. When someone asked if the Friend was male or female, the preacher replied 'I am that I am'.

Reader's Guide

The Friend dressed in a manner perceived to be either androgynous or masculine, in long, loose clerical robes which were most often black, and wore a white or purple kerchief or cravat around the neck like men of the time. The preacher did not wear a hair-cap indoors, like women of the era, and outdoors wore broad-brimmed, low-crowned beaver hats of a style worn by Quaker men. Accounts of the Friend's 'feminine-masculine tone of voice' varied; some hearers described it as 'clear and harmonious', or said the preacher spoke 'with ease and facility', 'clearly, though without elegance'. Others described it as 'grum and shrill', or like a 'kind of croak, unearthly and sepulchral'. The Friend was said to move easily, freely, and modestly, and was described by Ezra Stiles as 'decent & graceful & grave'. The Friend began to travel and preach throughout Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania accompanied by brother Stephen and sisters Deborah, Elizabeth, Marcy, and Patience, all of whom were disowned by the Society of Friends. Early on, the Public Universal Friend preached that people needed to repent of their sins and be saved before an imminent Day of Judgment. According to Abner Brownell, the preacher predicted that the fulfillment of some prophecies of Revelation would begin around April 1780, 42 months after the Universal Friend began preaching, and interpreted New England's Dark Day in May 1780 as fulfillment of that prediction.

Did You Know?

• Black Hat is a demonic entity from Hell, not to be confused with the historical Public Universal Friend.
• He attempted to command the Saint of Killers, not ally with him, and was killed for it.
• Black Hat does not possess 'The Word' (the Voice of God); that ability belongs to Jesse Custer.
• His role in the series is minor and brief, not as a gatekeeper or enforcer within Hell's hierarchy.
• He is ultimately killed by the Saint of Killers.