Journal of the American Revolution (allthingsliberty.com) is the leading online source for original research on the Revolutionary and Founding Eras.
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. […]
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. […]
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 & […]
The British government’s policies toward the American colonies in the 1760s and 1770s were controversial in Great Britain; some people favored the government’s actions while others were sympathetic to the grievances of the colonists, with a wide range of opinions in between. When war broke out, the controversy continued, with some believing in reconciliation, some […]
One of the newspapers featured in Reporting the Revolutionary War was the Virginia Gazette dated August 26, 1775. In the book, Don N. Hagist describes its uniqueness as it relates to the Battle of Bunker Hill: A remarkable piece of journalism appeared in Dixon and Hunter’s Virginia Gazette on August 26, 1775. The illustrations that […]
From Bunker Hill to Yorktown, a feature of military actions during the American Revolution was the redoubt. Of course, redoubts were a fixture in world-wide military operations long before, and long after, that war, but those fortifications built of earth, sod and timber were usually more complex than their simple materials suggest. At a glance, […]
Maps are vital to understanding campaigns and battles. During the American Revolution, military planners often lamented the lack of good maps and went to great lengths to obtain geographic information. Officers with the proper training and tools could quickly produce sufficiently detailed renderings of the lay of the land, adding information as it became available. […]
From mid-August to early October, 1774, huge crowds gathered in the “shiretowns” of every county in contiguous, mainland Massachusetts (except Suffolk, where Boston is located) to shut down the courts. These courts, which served executive as well as judicial functions, were the farthest outreach of Crown authority. People at the time offered estimates of the […]
Cartoons were a vital part of England’s print media in the 1770s, and were almost exclusively of the sort that today we call editorial cartoons. Artists drew images packed with symbolism expressing opinions concerning current events. Sometimes they included word balloons and captions in prose or verse, but many were simple images that left the […]
Armies thrived on paperwork. With huge amounts of information to be recorded and tracked, non-commissioned officers and soldiers with good literacy, skill at basic mathematics, and steady penmanship were highly valued. Although data had to be recorded by hand, much of it was repetitive; by the era of the American Revolution, printed forms for recording […]
In the late summer and early fall of 1774, all of Massachusetts outside of Boston shed British rule. From October 1774 to April 1775, a Provincial Congress prepared to defend this revolution against an anticipated British counter-revolution, mustering supplies to outfit an army of 15,000. After Lexington and Concord, it fell upon the Provincial Congress […]
One of the most famous and recognizable eighteenth-century newspapers is the October 31, 1765 issue of the Pennsylvania Journal, also known as the “tombstone edition.” With the hated Stamp Act set to take effect in the British North American colonies on November 1, 1765, Philadelphia printer William Bradford designed this issue to resemble a tombstone, […]
Outside of the big four (Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Charleston), which city was most critical to the success of the Revolution? Why? Newport. British land and naval forces garrisoned in the rebellious nation’s fifth largest city for four years. Although the Continental Army failed to dislodge them in 1778, Newport served no great […]
What impact did British involvement elsewhere in the world have on operations in North America? Explain. As brilliantly told in Andrew Jackson O’Shaughnessy’s Men Who Lost America, in February 1781 Rodney sacked St. Eustatius, a Dutch-held Caribbean island that served as a major trading port for the shipment of arms and munitions to the […]
A lot has been written about the greatest writers and orators of the Revolution, but effective communication also requires good listening. Who was the best listener during the Revolution and what demonstrates or supports your selection? I’d give Henry Knox the prize for best listener. He seldom took the lead in discussions when he […]
During the protracted conflict, nations, colonies, committees and individuals had several opportunities to learn from their mistakes. In your opinion, what is the best example of a person or people learning from a mistake early in the Revolution, and applying the lesson learned later on? Gen. George Washington spent over two years of the […]
Which Revolutionary artifact do you wish was mistakenly delivered to your doorstep rather than the curator of a museum? Washington’s draft of The Farewell Address. As I tell the story in my new book, The Great Divide, the newspaper editor who printed said he liked it so much, he felt regret at returning it. […]
Journal of the American Revolution, the popular online magazine and annual book, today announced its 2014 Book of the Year Award winner. The annual honor goes to the non-fiction volume that best mirrors the journal’s mission, which is to deliver passionate, creative and smart content that makes American Revolution history more palatable for a broad […]
Who was the biggest oddball of the founders? Why? Every Founder had his “foibles,” as Washington acknowledged about himself, but Charles Lee was hands down the most eccentric of the bunch. But his eccentricity did not diminish his military talents. He made mistakes (what general didn’t), but at times his presence and leadership were […]
Of all the disputed topics, events, reputations or battles of the Revolution, which is the greatest? Explain. Militarily, Howe’s failure to pursue Washington’s beleaguered force trapped on the tip of Long Island remains something of a puzzle, despite attempts to reconstruct an answer. On a different note, this question intrigues me. I think we […]
Revolutionary person known for one thing who should be known for something else? And the winner is Benedict Arnold, almost universally known as one of the greatest traitors of them all while Horatio Gates keeps getting credit as the “hero of Saratoga.” In reality, Arnold was the true hero of Saratoga, if field leadership […]
Which one event of the Revolution is incorrectly interpreted most often? Explain. The battle of Saratoga. There is a group who are determined to prove Horatio Gates deserves most of the credit. I don’t agree. I have a low opinion of “Granny” Gates. His flight to the rear at Camden (after demonstrating his total […]
Which American Revolution book do you refer to most often (not to be confused with “favorite book”)? Why? The single volume that I access most often is Mark M. Boatner’s Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. In it, I can generally find something about almost any topic pertaining to the American Revolution that either answers […]
Propaganda was important during the Revolution. What is your favorite propaganda item? Why? My favorite is Tom Paine’s “These are the times that try men’s souls.” It’s infinitely better than his Common Sense, the last third of which, with its blabber about the British being easy to defeat, should be subtitled Common Nonsense. –Thomas […]
Favorite RevWar site (battlefield, home, museum, etc.) to visit today? Why? My favorite site is Yorktown. There’s enough still there to give you a sense of stepping back in time. You can see the French ships in the bay. Second is Bunker Hill. That takes more imagination but it’s still worth a visit. –Thomas […]
Most important diplomatic action of the war? Why? The most important diplomatic action of the war was signing the treaty of alliance with France. Without it America would have collapsed in 1778 or 79. The treaty created a whole new war. –Thomas Fleming The most important was Benjamin Franklin’s successful scheme that brought […]
Aside from John and Abigail, what was the best husband-wife duo of the Revolution? Why? The best husband wife team–better than John and Abigail in my opinion–was George and Martha. We don’t have much in the way of detail about their relationship because Martha burned all their correspondence after Washington died. But we have […]
Greatest consequence of the American Revolution? The greatest consequence of the Revolution is the way the Declaration of Independence spread around the globe. Eventually it spawned over 200 similar declarations. –Thomas Fleming The creation of an independent American empire (George Washington’s descriptive) was the most important although I believe it was inevitable due […]
With a steady flow of new readers stopping by our online history magazine we thought we’d dip into our archives and surface a few favorites. All of these articles published during our first six months of existence, between January through June 2013. Enjoy! The Myth of Rifleman Timothy Murphy by Hugh T. Harrington Unleashing the […]
The Journal of the American Revolution today announces the launch of its Book of the Year Award, an annual book prize to the non-fiction volume that best mirrors the mission of Journal of the American Revolution, which is to deliver passionate, creative and smart content that makes American Revolution history more palatable for a broad […]
Most underrated battle of the Revolutionary War? Why? The most underrated battle of the war was Springfield, New Jersey, in 1780. If the Americans had lost, the war would have been virtually over. –Thomas Fleming In the Battle of Pollilur on 10 Sept 1780, the forces of Mysore wiped out a British army of more […]
Most overrated battle of the Revolutionary War? Why? Saratoga. It wasn’t a turning point and the general who theoretically won it, Horatio Gates, was a coward and a fake. –Thomas Fleming Not a battle, but one of the most famous events of the war: Paul Revere’s ride was a brave, stirring act, but […]
Twitter is the enormously popular social networking tool that enables one user to send “tweets” to many followers, or subscribers. The text message-like tweets are limited to 140 characters. Hence, the question: How would you describe the American Revolution in 140 characters or less? The American Revolution was a complex eight year semi-civil war that was […]
What is your favorite quote by a Revolutionary? “I see one head turning into thirteen.” Washington said this several times in the closing years of the war. After independence, it was THE crucial issue. –Thomas Fleming “But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, […]
What’s the one unanswered question about the American Revolution you’d most like answered? Put another way, what’s one remaining mystery of the Revolution that you’d most like solved? Did General Washington order New York City burned in 1776? There is evidence that he discussed it. But no definite proof that he gave the order. […]
If you could time travel and visit any American city/colony/state for one year between 1763 and 1783, which city/colony/state and year would you choose? Why? Blessed by 30 years of genealogical research performed by my mother, I actually lay claim to personal connections in all sorts of places in the colonies. However, the one […]
What aspects of or questions regarding the American Revolution need to be further explored by historians? All of them. I think a return to primary sources and close comparison to modern secondary sources yields some extremely interesting results in the evolution of modern history. Should much of what is now considered history be consigned […]
What books do you consider essential to any American Revolution buff’s library? Why? About 12 years ago I ran across John Buchanan’s The Road to Guilford Courthouse and fell in love with the Southern Campaigns of the American Revolution. Been stuck there ever since. To this day, many of the opinions or views I […]
Do you think there was a greater strategy behind most of the pre-war violence, or was it primarily raw emotion and vengeance? There was a greater strategy but, unfortunately, that strategy routinely used raw emotion and vengeance against its opponents. As early as the Stamp Act Crisis, the Sons of Liberty learned to target […]