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France officially joined the American colonies in their struggle for independence on February 6, 1778. On this day two treaties were signed: the first was…
Two motions had already been brought forth in the House of Commons to end the war with England’s American colonies. The first occurred on…
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On December 12, 1781, a motion to end the war with the American colonies and to grant them their independence was introduced in the House…
Following the surrender of General Cornwallis at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, the House of Commons began to debate whether or not the war…
On April 1, 2015, Queen Elizabeth II announced the creation of the Georgian Papers Programme. It is a ten-year project to transcribe, digitize, conserve,…
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The most common storm that the British navy and army encountered at sea and on land during the American War of Independence was the…
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Mit Complimenten Aweissen (put him off with compliments) Arthur Lee, one of the American Commissioners stationed in Paris, was appointed minister to the Prussian Court…
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Upon the death of his grandfather on May 31, 1740, Frederick William II of the House of Hohenzollern became the King of Prussia. Over…
There were four bodies that directly influenced England’s relationship with her American colonies; they were the King (a body of one), the Privy Council…
On May 7, 1757, Thomas Pownall sailed from England for Boston to take his post as the governor of Massachusetts. Aboard the ship was…
Thomas Pownall was appointed “Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief in and over . . . the Province of the Massachusetts Bay” on February 25, 1757. He…
Thomas Pownall, the eldest son of William and Sarah Pownall, was born on September 4, 1722 in Lincoln, England. His father, a country gentleman,…
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Adam Smith, considered by many to be the Father of Modern Economics, was born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, on June 16, 1723. His father, also…
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On February 6, 1778, France signed two treaties with the United States, one of Amity and Commerce, the other, a defensive Alliance.[1] In them, France…
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Robert Erskine was born in Dumfermline, Scotland, to Ralph and Margaret Erskine on September 7, 1735. Ralph Erskine, being a Presbyterian minister, raised Robert…
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In September 1787, Mrs. Mercy Otis Warren informed Catharine Macaulay of the results of the Federal Convention in Philadelphia. She was guardedly optimistic. Macaulay,…
Between 1775 and 1784 Catharine Macaulay’s social and personal life was one traumatic event after another. She accepted the invitation from Rev. Dr. James…
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George Mason: The Founding Father Who Gave Us the Bill of Rights by William Hyland, Jr. (Regnery, 2019) Most people have never heard of George…
Josiah Quincy, Jr.’s name is rarely mentioned in history books. This is because his name never appeared at the top of any leaderboard, that…
By the end of 1774, Catharine Macaulay had met Benjamin Rush, Arthur Lee, Richard Marchant, and Benjamin Franklin, and had corresponded with John Dickinson, James…
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By the end of 1772, Catharine Macaulay had completed and published the first five volumes of her History of England from the Accession of…
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Catharine Sawbridge was born in Wye, Kent, England to John Sawbridge and Elizabeth Wanley on April 2, 1731. Her father was a landed proprietor;…
The year was 1773. On May 10, Parliament had passed the Tea Act allowed the East India Company to sell tea directly to the…
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While the Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, was on holiday in the summer of 1774, his office continued to receive…
As the Revolutionary War was coming to an end, financial problems came to the forefront: to name a few, the country’s debts to France,…
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In the Spring of 1775, Benjamin Franklin, still stationed in England, made what he thought was a last attempt to secure a plan of…
Benjamin Franklin made two missions to London prior to the Revolution; the first from 1757 to 1762, the second from 1764 to 1775. In…
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During the three months that the Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies, was on holiday from August to November 1773, the…
William Legge, the second Earl of Dartmouth, had three interests: his family, his estates, and his religion. He was known by many as “the…
Luke Ryan was born in the County Dublin coastal village of Rush on February 14, 1750. His parents were Michael and Mary Ryan. As…
Thomas Penn, the son of founder William Penn, inherited majority control of the proprietorship of the colony of Pennsylvania in 1746. At the time…
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Pierre-Augustin de Caron, better known by his stage name, Beaumarchais, was a French playwright, financier, and confidant of King Louis XVI. In the spring…
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Benjamin Franklin was appointed an American Commissioner to France on September 26, 1776. [1] One month later he set sail for France where he…
The war between Britain and her North American colonies shut off the availability of raw materials, specifically timber, tar, and pitch, for the…
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Armies are tasked with enforcing government policies. When it came time for the British military to enforce parliamentary policies concerning the American colonies, however,…
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Hans Christian Febiger was born on the island of Funen, Denmark in 1746. Around the age of sixteen his father died. For the next…
In the spring of 1781, Washington’s army was small (he would report on July 15 that he had only 5,835 rank and file); “the…
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The Stamp Act of 1765 is closely associated with Lord George Grenville, First Lord of the Treasury and the Prime Minister of England. However,…
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On May 10, 1769 Parliament had voted to repeal all of the Townshend Acts except one – the tax on Tea. It was another…