Washington in the Hurricane’s Eye: An Interview with Nathaniel Philbrick
byIf not for a series of devastating hurricanes in the Caribbean Sea in 1780, George Washington might not have met Lord Cornwallis at the…
Revisiting the Prayer at Valley Forge
byWhen George Washington died in 1799, partisan infighting and international crises threatened the survival of the American experiment. Many Americans believed in Washington’s unique…
Help Save the Spitfire
byOur article about Edward Wigglesworth’s diary has brought a lot of attention to the Spitfire gunboat, a well-preserved Revolutionary War warship that is in danger of…
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Finding Edward Wigglesworth’s Lost Diary
byCol. Edward Wigglesworth took part in some of the most consequential actions of the American Revolution, but, like so many such men, we know…
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What Strategy Could Either Side Have Used to Win the War in 1776?
byOpen warfare began in America in 1775, and the colonies declared independence from Great Britain in 1776. We asked our contributors to speculate on…
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Joshua Huddy: The Scourge of New Jersey Loyalists
byNew Jersey is known as the “Crossroads of the Revolution” because its location between New York and Philadelphia, as well as its strategic importance…
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Revolution Road with the Journal of the American Revolution
byOn the first Friday of each month those who have Sirius XM radio can listen to a new program, Revolution Road with the Journal…
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John Row and Jenny Innes
byJohn Row was a British officer in the 9th Regiment of Foot, and he was in love with Jane Innes. For six years their…
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James Grant’s American Confession
byIn American history, the name James Grant became synonymous with advocacy for British supremacy in colonial matters. For much of Grant’s early military career,…
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Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton
byBook Review: Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton by Tilar Mazzeo (Simon and Schuster: 2018). BUY THIS BOOK…
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Aunt Flora Remembers the Irish Rebellion of 1798
byDid you see the Volunteers! Did you see the Volunteers! Marching to parade Their hearts are true Their facings blue They are six feet…
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The Lost Journal of Private Freeman Judd
byOver the years, historians have located about thirty first-hand accounts of the American expedition into Canada in the fall of 1775. These accounts detail…
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A Loyalist’s Response to the Franco-American Alliance: Charles Inglis’s “Papinian” Essays
byAt nine o’clock on the morning of May 6, 1778, Continental soldiers at Valley Forge emerged from their huts to hear their regimental chaplains…
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The Most Extraordinary Murder
byOn July 2, 1778, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts hanged Bathsheba Ruggles Spooner and Continental soldier Ezra Ross, together with British soldiers Sgt. James Buchanan…
Our Man in Minorca: Lewis Littlepage, American Volunteer with the Spanish Armed Forces
byThe Revolutionary War was fought on a global scale, with six nation states engaged in battles across three continents and two oceans. Volunteers from…
The Sugar Act: A Brief History
byThe Sugar Act of 1764 levied taxes on imports to British colonies in North America. In doing so, the act marked a change in…
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Who Picked the Committees at the Constitutional Convention?
byThrough four months in the summer of 1787, passionate arguments over political principles filled the Pennsylvania State House while hard-nosed political horse-trading buzzed in…
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The Glorious Career and Unfortunate Death of John Laurens
byGeorge Washington surrounded himself with the best and the brightest young men involved in the revolutionary cause. Alexander Hamilton, Tench Tilghman, Robert Harrison, the…
Latest Reviews
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Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton
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Founding Martyr: The Life and Death of Dr. Joseph Warren, the American Revolution’s Lost Hero
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The American Farmer in the Eighteenth Century: A Social and Cultural History
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Young Washington: How Wilderness and War Forged America’s Founding Father
Featured Articles
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The Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, Second Year: November 1773 – August 1774
byDuring the three months that the Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, was on holiday from August to November 1773, the…
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What Do Bond Prices Tell Us about the Early Republic?
byAmerica’s early finances were, in a word, messy. The states took on enormous debt to fund the Revolutionary War while the national government chartered…
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A Brief History of Benjamin Franklin’s Residences on Craven Street, London: 1757 – 1775
byIf one looked into Benjamin Franklin’s time on Craven Street, they might initially believe he lived at 36 Craven Street the entirety of his…
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How do you define “Founding Fathers”?
byHow do you define “Founding Fathers”? You can define it either broadly or narrowly. By consensus, most historians limit the narrow definition to six….
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Which side benefited the most from the Native Americans?
byWhich side do you think benefited the most from the Native American involvement in the war? Why? The British benefited the most, from one…
Hamilton: An American Musical
byReview of the Broadway musical Hamilton, now playing at the Richard Rodgers Theater on 46th Street in New York City. Let me confess at…
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9 Questions with Rick Atkinson
byLearning that one of the most acclaimed military writers of our time has turned his narrative expertise towards the American Revolution is exciting news…
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The American Vicars of Bray
byLoyalists, those Americans who openly supported the British Government during the American Revolution, have been largely assumed to have had unchanging allegiance during the…
America's Most Important History!
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Books from the Past: A Question for JAR Contributors
byBooks are an important resource for any researcher. As approaches to the interpretation of history change and new primary source material comes to light,…
The Dorchester Heights Memorial, South Boston, and the Celebration of Evacuation Day
byOn my way to Boston’s Logan Airport a while ago a taxi driver pointed towards Boston Harbor and started telling me about a Revolutionary…
5
Contributor Close-up: Eric Sterner
byEric Sterner is a writer and historian living in Northern Virginia, who has worked primarily in the fields of national security and aerospace policy…
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Dying to Celebrate
byDuring the American Revolution, hundreds of civilians and military men on both sides were killed or injured by accidents. A number of these occurred…
Guilty of Desertion? James White, 7th (Royal Fusiliers) Regiment
byIn today’s trial, see if you agree with the court’s verdict and sentence. In determining guilt, the court considered several factors: was the man…
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Guilty of Desertion? Daniel Holliwell, 33rd Regiment of Foot
byDesertion was a capital crime, but it was up to a general court martial, a board of thirteen officers, to determine the defendant’s guilt…
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Guilty of Desertion? Hubert Römer, 22nd Regiment of Foot
byIf a British soldier was absent without leave, he might be charged with desertion; if caught, he could be tried by a general court…
Guilty of Desertion? John Sullivan, 5th Regiment of Foot
byIn this second trial, see if you agree with the court’s verdict and sentence. In determining guilt, the officers of the general court martial…
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Guilty of Desertion? Charles Hanley, 4th (King’s Own) Regiment
byThis week JAR Editor Don N. Hagist presents the testimony from five British desertion trials held during the American Revolution. For each trial, see…
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Communities Divided: Massachusetts, January to March 1775
byOn January 1, 1775, Charles Stockbridge visited his neighbor’s house in Hanover, Massachusetts, twenty five miles south of Boston. He heard a rumor that…
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The Counterbalance: Explaining James Madison
byThe charge was leveled often in his own time, as it has been ever since: James Madison is and was a hypocrite—a man inconstant…