Todd W. Braisted is a leading expert on Loyalist studies, a die-hard Mets fan and craft beer connoisseur. In addition to his many articles for Journal of the American Revolution, Todd is the author of the first volume in our book series, Grand Forage 1778: The Battleground Around New York City. Since 1979, Todd has amassed and […]
Known primarily through a mix of fact and legend as the most notorious Patriot of the southern campaigns, Paddy Carr was also claimed to have an “amiable and benevolent” nature. As if that contradiction were not enough to create complexity of character, Carr, a stone cold killer of Tories, never swore or uttered blasphemy. Instead, […]
Everybody has heard of Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain. On the other hand, mention Mount Independence and one usually encounters the puzzled lowering of eyebrows and cocking of the head to the side. Most will be quite surprised to learn how that rocky thumb of land on the Vermont shore opposite Ticonderoga actually played a […]
In Hollywood terms, biographies of Daniel Boone might be advertised as, “Based on a true story.” Daniel Boone being known as a legendary Kentucky trailblazer is an undisputed fact in American history. That he was a backcountry militia leader during the Revolutionary War is a fact substantiated primarily by sketchy frontier rosters and pension statements […]
Most veterans have an aversion to publicly telling their traumatic experiences, preferring instead to let sleeping devils lie. Philip Freneau, however, was a professional writer and poet, not an enlisted soldier. Perhaps that is why he decided to tell his tale of terrortwice—once in prose and once in poetry. Philip Morin Freneau was born in […]
Deciding the guilt or innocence of a defendant in a criminal case today is generally left in the hands of twelve citizens comprising a jury. Prosecutions are left to a member of the district attorney’s office, while the accused has the representation of counsel. The facts in the case are presented, argued, proved, refuted and […]
Despite April being shortened by spring break, we still had time to publish several great articles and welcomed our newest writer, Richard Sambasivam. We also received an important update from Westholme Publishing on the status of all current JAR book projects: The reprint of our 2015 volume ships to distributors/retailers on May 13 and orders will be […]
Having recently discovered Journal of the American Revolution, I have spent many hours reading through the archive. I particularly enjoy reading the discussions that Top 10 Lists provoke and benefiting from such an incredible exchange of information and opinions. As there is a Top 10 List for Continental Army Generals, I decided to compile this […]
George Washington wrote “no event was ever received with a more heart felt joy” after hearing about the official alliance between the fledgling United States and the world power France.[1] It’s well established that foreign aid both before and after 1778 was crucial to America’s struggle for independence: not only did the French and other […]
Book review: Washington and Hamilton: The Alliance that Forged America (Naperville, Illinois: Sourcebooks, 2015) by Stephen Knott and Tony Williams [BUY ON AMAZON] The American Revolution and Founding was the work of many celebrated collaborations and rivalries. Sometimes, such as in the case of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, they were both. While many have been […]
In writing Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787-1788, Pauline Maier hoped to create, in her words, a “Constitutional thriller.” She invited readers to “forget for the moment much of what they know … and return to another time when there was no Constitution … and watch events occur, step by step, unaware of how […]
Civility is the cheapest, and yet the most profitable traffic.[1] Put large numbers of men together for extended periods of time and they’re bound to eventually get on each other’s nerves. For armies in the eighteenth century, rowdy brawls were to be expected from the men in the ranks, who were generally drawn from the […]
On Saturday, December 17, 1774, the 10th Regiment of Foot marched out of Boston and into the Massachusetts countryside “to give the men a little exercise.”[1] The British government’s response to the Boston Tea Party had included sending ten British army regiments, elements of two others, a contingent of artillery and a battalion of Marines […]
As a young man studying law in Williamsburg, Thomas Jefferson was admittedly shy and tongue tied around members of the opposite sex. One of his first serious girlfriends as a college kid was a Yorktown heiress named Rebecca Lewis Burwell (Tom called her “Belinda” for some reason). Jefferson spent most of 1763 swept off his […]
Deserter advertisements and runaway notices, fascinating though they are, provide only single elements of what were certainly more complex stories. In rare cases, further research reveals much more about a person. Take this ad, for example: Twenty Dollars Reward. Deserted from Captain Jacob Mauser’s company, of the sixth Pennsylvania regiment, on Monday the 11th instant, […]
The soldiers from several German principalities who were contracted to supplement the British army in America are often called mercenaries, a misnomer propagated during the war itself to vilify these soldiers and enhance the impression of British oppression. Although the British government did pay for these soldiers, they paid the German princes who then sent […]
Desertion was as much a problem for the British army as it was for the American. Once the war began, however, British officers seldom placed ads for deserters in newspapers. This may be because the British army was largely confined to areas around major cities where information about deserters could be circulated in army orders, […]
The deserter advertisement presented today illustrates several important facets of the Continental Army. Looking at this list of thirteen deserters, we see: Men born on both sides of the Atlantic A variety of ages A soldier accompanied by his wife Some men with short hair Desertion was sometimes a very, very big problem Deserted from […]
Newspapers are among our favorite things at Journal of the American Revolution, providing endless information and insight about America’s Revolutionary era. In addition to news, notices, and opinion pieces, newspapers carried advertising that reveals important aspects of the people who placed ads and read them. Some of the ads were actually about people. When soldiers […]
Just as many schools are going on spring break now, so is Journal of the American Revolution. We will be taking a short hiatus to recover from all the exciting activity in our world and will return to our regular programming the week of April 11. Writers: Please continue to send your article submissions to ed****@al**************.com during […]
This month we gave a hearty hello to four new writers: Stephen Brumwell, Michelle Porter, Alec D. Rogers and David Turnquist. We also welcomed a new advertiser, which has planned one of the most impressive history conference itineraries we’ve ever seen. If the Fort Plain Museum’s Second Annual Conference on the American Revolution (June 9-12) isn’t already on […]
If one looked into Benjamin Franklin’s time on Craven Street, they might initially believe he lived at 36 Craven Street the entirety of his two stays in London based on the plethora of articles on the internet that say so. If they dug a little deeper they might read that he lived at No. 27 […]
Book review: The First Congress: How James Madison, George Washington, and a Group of Extraordinary Men Invented the Government by Fergus M. Bordewich (Simon & Schuster, 2016) [BUY NOW ON AMAZON] Upon ratification of the Constitution, many Americans likely breathed a sigh of relief or, in some cases, despair. The tumult that had accompanied ratification could […]
On March 22, 1765, the Stamp Act was passed in the House of Commons by a vote of 205 to 49. The Act caused both anger and resentment in the colonies – not so much because of its imposition of a tax, but rather because of its manner of enactment and means of enforcement. […]
Think of Revolutionary War lyrics. Does a ditty about a dandified bumpkin out on the town come to mind? “Yankee Doodle” was just one of many satires written during the American Revolution. A wealth of wit pervaded poetry that filled newspapers on both sides of the Atlantic. Most verses were satires set to the tunes […]
Book review: Becoming Men of Some Consequence: Youth and Military Service in the Revolutionary War by John A. Ruddiman (University of Virginia Press, 2014). [BUY NOW ON AMAZON] Distinct from the many works that focus on the political dynamics, notable figures and military campaigns associated with the American War for Independence, Professor John Ruddiman centers attention […]
Denouncing the reputation of Benedict Arnold began immediately after he fled West Point and returned his allegiance to the British empire on September 25, 1780. Without hesitation, contemporaries denounced him as a nefarious human being, a devious villain suddenly well-known to everyone for his “barbarity,” “avarice,” “ingratitude,” and “hypocrisy,” in sum nothing more than “a […]
If there was one tall hunk that nearly all the women of the colonies swooned over (and many in England and Europe, quite likely), it was Gen. George Washington. He was mobbed in the towns he passed through, he never sat out one dance, and even received groupie letters asking for a lock of his […]
Thanks to a critically-acclaimed and phenomenally popular Broadway musical, Alexander Hamilton has, quite literally, returned to the spotlight. The success of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, a show inspired by Ron Chernow’s best-selling 2004 biography Alexander Hamilton, has helped to rekindle interest in a man who, even when judged by the exceptional standards of the Founding Fathers, […]
Book review: Rutgers v. Waddington: Alexander Hamilton, the End of the War for Independence, and the Origins of Judicial Review by Peter Charles Hoffer (Kansas University Press, 2016). [BUY ON AMAZON] During the Revolutionary War, a widow named Elizabeth Rutgers and her sons were forced to abandon their brewery when the British occupied New York City in […]
New London’s harbor was the center of Connecticut’s wartime naval activity for the duration of the eight-year American Revolution. Because of its recognized importance, its provincial government, as early as 1775, sought ways to protect it. Sending a military commission to the harbor area, they would eventually order the construction of three earthen fortifications on […]
Almost every day, I drive past a Revolutionary War roadside marker. It commemorates a house that served as the headquarters of patriot Gen. Israel Putnam in 1777. Putnam occupied the elegant brick building briefly while he mustered militia to oppose a British incursion up the Hudson River. The enemy raid was intended to relieve Burgoyne’s […]
The Fort Plain Museum, in the heart of upstate New York, is proud to announce its Second Annual Conference on the American Revolution in the Mohawk Valley–the 2016 conference features more authors, more days and more events. Click here to download the flyer, the registration form or the schedule. The Mohawk played a key role in the struggle […]
“No taxation without representation” was not a notion born in the American colonies in 1765 with the passage of the Stamp Act, or with James Otis’s 1764 pamphlet The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved, or in his 1761 courtroom oration against Writs of Assistance. It was born with the “Pistole” fee in […]
Winston Churchill: “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.” Almost without exception present day military commanders have heeded Winston Churchill’s advice.[1] Starting with Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf’s book on the First Gulf War, successive American commanders in the Middle East have written books describing their war strategies and emphasizing positive […]
February felt like National New JAR Contributor Month with four new writers: Ennis Duling, Anthony J. Minna, Thomas Thorleifur Sobol and Tyler Rudd Putman. Welcome aboard! That makes seven new JAR authors in the first two months of 2016 and 120 total JAR contributors since we launched! Together we have now published more than 725 articles with many more fascinating pieces on […]
We are pleased to introduce our newest collectible hardback, which is now available for pre-order via Amazon and will deliver in April. The Journal of the American Revolution, Annual Volume 2016, presents the journal’s best historical research and writing over the past calendar year. Articles are carefully selected by the editorial board and authors are given […]
Book review: George Washington’s Journey: The President Forges a New Nation by T. H. Breen (Simon & Schuster, 2016). [BUY NOW ON AMAZON] George Washington’s standing as the Revolutionary Era’s “indispensable man” is virtually unchallenged. Veteran historian T.H. Breen’s new study of Washington’s tours during his first term of office can only add to that assessment. […]
In July 1776, Brig. Gen. Benedict Arnold brought charges against Col. Moses Hazen for disobeying orders and neglecting merchandise seized in Montréal. Hazen was a Massachusetts-born Québec landowner and merchant who commanded a small regiment of Canadians in the Continental army. In April when Arnold took command in Montréal, he called Hazen “a sensible judicious […]
