July 2015 - Journal of the American Revolution

Reviews Posted on July 29, 2015July 9, 2015

General Washington’s Commando: Benjamin Tallmadge in the Revolutionary War

Book Review: General Washington’s Commando: Benjamin Tallmadge in the Revolutionary War by Richard F. Welch. Jefferson (McFarland & Company, 2014). While most historians agree that American victory in the Revolutionary War would not have been possible without George Washington’s military leadership, it is less frequently noted that Washington could not have exercised effective command without […]

by Jim Piecuch

Prewar Conflict (<1775) Posted on July 28, 2015August 28, 2016

Revising the Gaspee Legacy

The Traditional Narrative of the Gaspee Affair Patriot fervor seemed to have cooled in the months and years following the Boston Massacre in 1770. All of the taxes of the 1760s had been repealed, save on tea, and the famous Boston Tea Party was still more than one year off. The Admiralty had purchased several […]

by Steven Park

Critical Thinking Posted on July 27, 2015August 28, 2016

How the British Won the American Revolutionary War

No, I have not lost my mind. Of course, the Americans won their freedom from British rule. However, what started in 1775, as an American rebellion against British rule in the thirteen colonies evolved into a far-reaching global war among world’s most powerful nations. Fighting between Britain and American allies including France, Spain and The […]

by Gene Procknow

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on July 23, 2015August 28, 2016

The Final Theaters, the Final Fights

The British defeat at Yorktown in October 1781 did little to convince those fighting that peace was near. Gen. George Washington pleaded with his French naval ally, Admiral de Grasse, for a campaign against other British strongholds, perhaps in the Carolinas. When Grasse, instead, returned to the Caribbean, Washington began planning for his 1782 campaign […]

by Don Glickstein

People Posted on July 22, 2015August 28, 2016

Enlisting Lasses: Women Who Aspired to be Soldiers

Almost every student of the Revolutionary War has heard of Deborah Sampson, the Massachusetts woman who disguised herself as a man and served for over a year as a Continental soldier.[1] As fascinating as her case is, it was exceedingly unusual; although some historians have attempted to prove that many women served in the ranks […]

by Don N. Hagist

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on July 21, 2015August 28, 2016

A Shocking Havoc: The Plundering of Westfield, New Jersey, June 26, 1777

Before a single British soldier set foot on New Jersey soil, Deputy Adjutant-General of the British Army in North America Stephen Kemble was concerned for his native colony. “Shudder for Jersey,” he confided in his journal on November 7, 1776, “the Army being thought to move there Shortly.”[1] Once the invasion and occupation of the […]

by Jason R. Wickersty

Politics During the War (1775-1783) Posted on July 20, 2015August 28, 2016

Coercive Powers Amendment

On June 12, 1776, the Continental Congress appointed a committee to prepare a plan of confederation for the young colonies. The articles directed the states to supply whatever requisitions Congress requested. Article VIII stated that expenses “Shall be defrayed out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the several states, in proportion to […]

by Bob Ruppert

Reviews Posted on July 17, 2015July 9, 2015

Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It

Book Review: Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It by John Ferling (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2015) Whirlwind: The American Revolution and the War That Won It is John Ferling’s most concise analysis of the American Revolutionary War. In many ways it feels like his final attempt to describe the most important […]

by Michael Tuosto

Food & Lifestyle Posted on July 16, 2015August 28, 2016

A Gift for General Washington

In a letter to Patrick Henry recounting the events of the Battle of Monmouth, George Washington included information about losses on both sides and the death of a young Virginia officer: “…Capt. Fauntleroy of the 5th was unfortunately killed by a random Cannon Ball.”[1] What was the connection between the commander in chief and the […]

by Jeff Dacus

Reviews Posted on July 15, 2015June 24, 2015

Stark: The Life and Wars of John Stark, French and Indian War Ranger, Revolutionary War General

Book Review: Stark: The Life and Wars of John Stark, French and Indian War Ranger, Revolutionary War General by Richard Polhemus and John Polhemus (Black Dome Press, 2014). 2015 marks the 240th anniversary of the beginning of American Revolution. With the passage of time, many of the seminal figures that fought in those epic battles […]

by T. J. Johnson

Politics During the War (1775-1783) Posted on July 14, 2015August 28, 2016

Adams vs. Paine: A Critical Debate

There is a tendency today to lump the Founding Fathers together as though somehow they thought alike, acted in unison and actually got along with each other while leading the Revolutionary Cause and founding a new nation. Now that America’s founding is well over two hundred years old, distance brings clarity in understanding the period, […]

by Jett Conner

Critical Thinking Posted on July 13, 2015August 20, 2015

Patrick Henry’s “Liberty or Death”—Granddaddy of Revolution Mythologies

I first encountered Patrick Henry in fifth grade. He was the patriot of “Give me liberty, or give me death!” fame—not to be confused with that other “H” patriot, Nathan Hale, who was disappointed because he had only one life to give for his country. More than half a century later, students are still asked […]

by Ray Raphael

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on July 9, 2015August 28, 2016

The Village of Machias Confronts the Royal Navy, June 1775

The winter of 1774-75 had been difficult for the colonists nestled near the falls of the Machias River on the far eastern edge of Massachusetts (present day Maine). First settled in 1763, the small village of Machias, just 30 miles from the border of Canada, was a lonely outpost on the rocky coast. Heavily dependent […]

by Michael Cecere

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on July 8, 2015August 28, 2016

India: The Last Battle of the American Revolutionary War

The next time you’re in a trivia contest and the question comes up, “What was the last battle of the American Revolutionary War?” the judges will probably be looking for the predictable answer of “Yorktown.”[1] That’s the neat and tidy answer, but it’s not true. After the defeat at Yorktown, King George III brushed it […]

by John L. Smith, Jr.

Politics During the War (1775-1783) Posted on July 7, 2015August 28, 2016

How John Adams Almost Undermined the French Alliance

On September 27, 1779, John Adams was appointed “Minister Plenipotentiary for negotiating a Treaty of Peace and a Treaty of Commerce with Great Britain.” On November 13, he set sail from Boston; on February 9, he arrived in Paris,1 and on February 11 was formally presented to the French Foreign Minister, the Comte de Vergennes. […]

by Bob Ruppert

The War Years (1775-1783) Posted on July 6, 2015August 28, 2016

Murder Along the Creek: Taking a Closer Look at the Sugarloaf Massacre

On September 11, 1780, a detachment of forty-one Northampton County, Pennsylvania, militiamen was surprised by a force consisting of thirty Seneca warriors and Tories. When the fighting was over, fifteen American patriots lay dead on the ground.”[1] “As the summer of 1780 began to wane, a detachment of forty-one of the veteran Van Etten’s Company […]

by Thomas Verenna

Primary Sources Posted on July 3, 2015June 29, 2015

5 Political Characters of Americans

The March 18, 1777 Pennsylvania Packet (Philadelphia) published an essay by “S.” that classified five political characters of Americans. The article was republished in the April 23 Connecticut Journal (New Haven) and is transcribed below: THE people of America with respect to their political characters may be divided into the five following classes. – 1. […]

by Editors

Primary Sources Posted on July 2, 2015June 24, 2015

The Discharge

When a soldier’s term of service was complete, he was discharged. Besides having arrears of pay and other obligations resolved, he was given a document called, aptly enough, a discharge. This piece of paper was vitally important for the soldier, for it proved that he had departed the army legally and was not a deserter. […]

by Editors

Primary Sources Posted on July 1, 2015June 11, 2015

To the Sound of the Fife

So you’ve been elected Captain of the militia company of your small Massachusetts town in 1774, and now you’ve got to train your men. Where do you begin? Probably by sending to a Boston bookseller (maybe Henry Knox) for a copy of a militia training manual. Several were published in England during the French & […]

by Editors

Month: July 2015