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Battles Posted on

“Four Battleflags of the Revolution: Captured by Lt.-Col. Banastre Tarleton”

On a late summer afternoon in 2005 representatives from Sotheby’s, the world’s most prestigious Fine Art auctioneers, pulled up outside the Hampshire home of Christopher Tarleton-Fagan. Fagan was a retired Grenadier Guards officer and the owner and custodian of four of the most historic Revolutionary war artefacts still remaining in private hands. He was also […]

by John Knight
Historic Sites Posted on

The Beeline March: The Birth of the American Army

On a late spring afternoon in 1825, the two Bedinger brothers—Henry and Michael, old men now, seventy-four and sixty-nine respectively, proud immigrants from Alsace-Lorraine—commanded attention among “a party of ladies and gentlemen” gathered for an “elegant [midday] dinner” to keep a fifty-year-old pledge to their other “brothers” in arms. They were at Daniel Morgan’s Springs, […]

by John Grady
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: Joseph Wroblewski on the Queen’s Rangers during the British Occupation of Philadelphia

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews educator and JAR contributor Joseph Wroblewski on the operations of the Queen’s Rangers during the British occupation of Philadelphia in 1777–1778. Thousands of readers like you enjoy the articles published by the Journal of the American Revolution. Dispatches is a free podcast that puts a voice to the writing […]

by Editors
Battles Posted on

The Battle between Bonhomme Richard and Serapis

Author’s note: Continental Navy midshipman Nathaniel Fanning’s eyewitness account of the American Revolution’s most famous naval battle is among the most detailed available. This article presents his account, rewritten in the third person with some modifications for clarity. A six-knot breeze blew from the south southwest off Flamborough Head as the Continental Navy ship Bonhomme […]

by Louis Arthur Norton
Features Posted on

Historic Structures and Sites Worth Preserving?

A recent article mentioned Sidman’s Tavern in New Jersey, a building with strong connections to the American Revolution that is under threat of destruction. That compelled us to ask our contributors: “Which historical structure related to America’s founding that is currently not recognized by a foundation, group, or organization do you think deserves preservation?” While […]

by Editors
People Posted on

Major Lawrence Washington of Mount Vernon

Much has been written about George Washington’s lack of formal education and his eager grasp of learning from other men, especially those of status and wealth such as Thomas, Lord Fairfax. Probably the most influential man in the young Washington’s early life was his older half-brother, Lawrence. Born in 1718, Lawrence was the eldest surviving […]

by Jeff Dacus
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: J. L. Bell on Truths and Myths of the Declaration of Independence

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews author and historian J. L. Bell on the Declaration of Independence and which stories surrounding the document are probably true or probably not. As your host Brady Crytzer says, “Sit back, relax, and enjoy the interview. . . .” New episodes of Dispatches are available for free every […]

by Editors
Conflict & War Posted on

The Penobscot Expedition of 1779

For much of the Revolutionary War, the relative obscurity and isolation of the three Massachusetts counties of York, Cumberland, and Lincoln along the coast of present day Maine protected the inhabitants from British threats. This changed in June 1779, when Gen. Francis McLean and 700 British troops, escorted by a handful of British warships and […]

by Michael Cecere
Features Posted on

Small Boats and Daring Men: Raiding, Irregular Warfare, and the Early American Navy

Small Boats and Daring Men: Maritime Raiding, Irregular Warfare, and the Early American Navy by Benjamin Armstrong (University of Oklahoma Press, 2019) In the seventy-foot sloop of war Providence, John Paul Jones began his illustrious military career in 1776 with a series of littoral raids in Canadian waters. The bold commander, sailing with a contingent […]

by David Kindy
Critical Thinking Posted on

“That Damned Absurd Word Liberty:” Les Habitants, the Quebec Act, and American Revolutionary Ideology, 1774–1776

The American invasion of Quebec of 1775-1776 failed to achieve its primary objective: to bring into the fold what the Continental Congress referred to as “the only link wanting, to compleat the bright and strong chains of union.”[1] While Canada would not join its southern brethren in outright rebellion, the Americans’ campaign furnishes important insight into […]

by Sebastian van Bastelaer
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: Andrew Waters on the Campaign in the Carolinas

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews JAR contributor Andrew Waters on the course of the campaign through the Carolinas, including Cowpens and other key engagements. His experience as a land conservator has provided him a knowledge of the Carolina backcountry that enhances his interpretation of the campaign. As your host Brady Crytzer says, “Sit back, […]

by Editors
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: Tristan J. New on Joseph Galloway’s Efforts for a Peaceful Resolution with Great Britain

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews budding scholar Tristan J. New about Joseph Galloway and his proposal for a peaceful political resolution with Great Britain rather than armed rebellion. His proposal was  rejected by Congress and sent him firmly into the Loyalist camp once the war began. As your host Brady Crytzer says, “Sit […]

by Editors
Critical Thinking Posted on

The Constitution Counted Free Women and Children—And It Mattered

As adopted by the Constitutional Convention, Article I, Section 2, Clause 3 of the Constitution mandated that the population numbers forming the basis for calculating representation in the House of Representatives would “be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding […]

by Andrew M. Schocket
People Posted on

“Monsr Dubuq,” the First French Officer to Serve the American Cause?

To historians of the American Revolution, the date of 1775 for French participation in the Patriot cause may seem incredible. The enigmatic “Monsr Dubuq,” “Dubuc,” or “Dubuque” was nonetheless, one of the first French officers to assist in the American Revolution, before envoy M. Julien Bonvouloir,[1] and two years prior to the arrival of Baron […]

by Frederic C. Detwiller
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: John L. Smith, Jr. on John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and King Louis XVI together at Notre-Dame

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews actor, teacher, US Army and US Air Force veteran, and JAR contributor, John L. Smith, Jr., about the extraordinary day in 1785 when Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and his family, and the king and queen of France attended a service at Notre-Dame. As your host Brady Crytzer says, […]

by Editors
Features Posted on

“The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret”: George Washington, Slavery, and the Enslaved Community at Mount Vernon

“The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret”:  George Washington, Slavery, and the Enslaved Community at Mount Vernon by Mary V. Thompson (Charlottesville, VA:  University of Virginia Press, 2019) Mary V. Thompson, accomplished Mount Vernon Estate historian, attempts to answer the question “Was Washington a good slave owner?” with her book, “The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret”:  […]

by Timothy Symington
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: Philip D. Weaver on the Court-Martial of New York Captain Joel Pratt

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews JAR contributor, independent researcher, and living historian Philip D. Weaver on the story of New York Captain Joel Pratt and his court-martial. As your host Brady Crytzer says, “Sit back, relax, and enjoy the interview. . . .” New episodes of Dispatches are available for free every Sunday […]

by Editors
Features Posted on

Contributor Close Up: Kelly Mielke

A lifelong lover of history, Kelly Mielke lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband, four cats, dog, and horse. Passionate about academic pursuits, Kelly holds a master’s degree in history from the joint program between the College of Charleston and the Citadel and is currently pursuing a second Master’s degree in English. When she’s […]

by Editors
Features Posted on

This Week on Dispatches: Charles H. Lagerbom on HMS Albany and Henry Mowatt

On this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews historian and archaeologist Charles H. Lagerbom about the British sloop-of-war HMS Albany  and its captain Henry Mowatt, known for the bombardment of  Falmouth, Maine, and the defeat of the American Penobscot Expedition. The Albany  was wrecked off Maine in 1782 and has been subject to underwater archaeology. As your host […]

by Editors
Features Posted on

Quarters: The Accommodation of the British Army and the Coming of the American Revolution

Quarters: The Accommodation of the British Army and the Coming of the American Revolution by John Gilbert McCurdy (Cornell University Press, 2019) Question: “Why did the colonists fight the British?” Answer: “Because the British Army stayed in their houses.” This question and answer comes from a United States government practice test for the U. S. citizenship […]

by Don N. Hagist
Myths and Legends Posted on

The Declaration of Independence: Did John Hancock Really Say That about his Signature?—and Other Signing Stories

When we picture the Declaration of Independence, most of us immediately think of the document handwritten on parchment and signed at the bottom by fifty-six members of the Second Continental Congress. Few individuals from the first two generations of Americans shared that view, however. The vast majority of those citizens never saw the Congress’s document, […]

by J. L. Bell
People Posted on

Benedict Arnold and James Wemyss: Similar Experiences Contrasting Legacies

Often, a person’s legacy is defined by decisions made at pivotal moments rather than a lifetime of previous accomplishments. The is especially true for two aspiring, highly competent military officers in senior leadership positions during the fractious American Rebellion. Although initially on opposing sides, the wartime and personal experiences of the infamous Maj. Gen. Benedict […]

by Gene Procknow