This was a momentous month for Journal of the American Revolution. Yesterday, we officially announced our new book series with Westholme and the first two titles that will publish next March: The Road to Concord: How Four Small Cannons Set Off the American Revolution by J. L. Bell Grand Forage 1778: The Revolutionary War’s Forgotten […]
The Journal of the American Revolution (https://allthingsliberty.com) is launching a new book series on the American Revolution in partnership with Westholme Publishing, LLC. The journal and Westholme will jointly serve as the editorial board of the series, known as Journal of the American Revolution Books. Two titles will serve as the inaugural volumes of the […]
In late October of 1777, America celebrated its first capture of a British Army; General Horatio Gates had defeated General Sir John Burgoyne near the village of Saratoga in upstate New York. The prisoners, known as the Convention Army after the semi-treaty that effected their surrender, were moved to a camp outside of Boston. By […]
Good Revolutionary War commanders understood the value of intelligence on their adversaries. The great eighteenth century military theorist Marshal de Saxe, who was on every good general’s reading list, wrote that to win in battle “nothing more is required than to keep good intelligence, to acquire a knowledge of the country, and to assume the […]
Battles are complicated events where conflicting or unclear information can confuse even good generals. Here are some examples of when American intelligence systems failed, usually with terribly tragic results. Quebec In late 1775 the Continental Congress planned to neutralize threats from Canada by seizing Montreal. Gen. George Washington, commanding the Continental Army at Boston, decided […]
Captain Jonathan Carver’s Reconnaissance Captain Jonathan Carver was hired in August 1766 as a surveyor and draughtsman by Major Robert Rogers, the newly appointed governor-commandant of British Fort Michilimackinac. Rogers instructed Carver to familiarize himself with the northern Mississippi River basin and western Lake Superior region’s geography, prepare a map of the area and then, […]
Book Review: The Revolution’s Last Men: The Soldiers Behind the Photographs by Don N. Hagist (Westholme Publishing, 2015). In 1864, The Last Men of the Revolution was written by Elias Hillard. It purported to be not only the stories of these ancient warriors from the American Revolution but also included their photographs. Hillard and his […]
Following their victory at the Battle of Long Island (Brooklyn) on August 27 1776, the British established their headquarters in New York City where it remained throughout the war. They extended their control eastward into Long Island, intending to use it as a combination barracks, larder, and fortress. The British studded the Island’s northern shoreline […]
Wars were fought by soldiers, but it is the campaigns and commanders that are remembered and studied. This is a shame because the soldiers had a remarkable range of fascinating experiences, often more exciting than those of the policymakers they served. And yet, the farther back in history one goes, the fewer personal stories of […]
A month into the historic 1774 meeting of the 1st Continental Congress, delegates John Adams of Massachusetts and Richard Henry Lee of Virginia sparked a heated debate when they proposed that Congress urge each colony to place their militia on a more proper footing.1 Patrick Henry of Virginia forcefully supported these militia proposals, declaring that, […]
Amphibious operations, which involve landing troops and supplies from the sea to the land, are extremely difficult and require special techniques, close coordination between the navy and army, as well as specialized equipment. The British learned the required skills during the Seven Years’ War. After a failed attack on the French port of Rochefort the […]
Journal of the American Revolution (JAR) is 27 months old. Already. It’s growing up so fast. And thanks to an ever-increasing cadre of contributors and a wonderfully large and diverse audience, there’s much more to come in the future. The goal for JAR has always been to provide impeccable historical information in an approachable format […]
The Fort Plain Museum, in the heart of upstate New York, is proud to announce its “First Annual Conference on the American Revolution in the Mohawk Valley.” The Mohawk played a key role in the struggle for American independence. Discover the area’s rich history and attend an exciting new conference that will take place Friday, Saturday […]
The American public’s interest in Ethan Allen as a “larger than life” folk hero during and since the American Revolution is well documented.[1] After leading the capture of Ft. Ticonderoga in May 1775, Allen’s notoriety as the leader of the Green Mountain Boys in the northern frontier, which subsequently became Vermont, spread throughout the thirteen […]
In Hershel Parker’s excellent article in the October 2014 Journal of the American Revolution (“Fanning Outfoxes Marion”) he makes reference to an important research tool, namely hundreds of Revolutionary War pension applications that have recently been transcribed by Will Graves and C. Leon Harris, and are in searchable electronic format.[1] This is an important tool […]
The story of the Boston Tea Party has been told and retold endlessly. It has become a part of American mythos. On the evening of December 16, 1773 in Boston a group of 100 to 150 citizens, dressed like Indians, descended on three ships loaded with tea from England. Politely, but firmly, they demanded the […]
Book Review: Spies in Revolutionary Rhode Island by Christian M. McBurney. History Press, 2014. ISBN 978-1626197244, softcover, 158 pages, illustrated. The last few years have seen a surge of interest in Revolutionary War spying, with several new books and even television shows being produced. Much of this new literature, whether factual or fanciful, is focused […]
The world has seen many a tyrant from Genghis Khan to Hitler. At all times, people have had an impression of what made one a tyrant. Americans living during the Revolutionary War were no exception to the matter and they too held a decided view on tyranny. Here is a list of ten quotes on […]
When historians think of Continental generals of the Revolutionary War, many familiar names come to mind. Henry Knox, who rose from a bookseller to the commander of the Continental Army’s artillery. Benedict Arnold, the dynamic battlefield leader whose name has become a synonym for traitor. Daniel Morgan, the “Old Wagoner” that defeated Britain’s best in […]
By the fall of 1777, the15th Virginia Regiment had been involved in some of the toughest fighting of the American Revolution—the engagements in northern New Jersey and the defense of Philadelphia that included major battles at Germantown and Brandywine in Pennsylvania. As part of the army with Washington, they spent weeks during the fall playing […]
From the intelligence provided by his New York and New Jersey spies, General Washington believed, early in 1777, that General Howe would eventually strike at Philadelphia though he knew not when or whether he would travel by land or sea. In a letter dated July 24, 1777, from Col. Matthias Ogden, he was informed that […]
