Rockingham, Washington’s Headquarters, 1783
byGeorge Washington slept here. After the commander in chief was summoned to Princeton, New Jersey during the summer of 1783, and finding no rooms…
George Washington
Review: First and Always: A New Portrait of George Washington
byFirst and Always: A New Portrait of George Washington by Peter R. Henriques (University of Virginia Press, 2020). With so many books already written…
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Congress’s “Committee on Spies” and the Court-Martial Policies of General Washington
byIn the weeks before it declared independence, the Continental Congress was already hard at work building the institutions it would need to maintain the…
Best of Dispatches: Colin G. Calloway and The Indian World of George Washington
byIn this week’s program from the Dispatches archives, recorded in February 2019, host Brady Crytzer interviews distinguished historian Colin G. Calloway about his book, The Indian…
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The Mount Vernon Slave Who Made Good: The Mystery of William Costin
byWilliam “Will” Costin was found dead in his own bed on the morning of May 31, 1842. Washington City’s leading newspaper, the Daily National…
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La Petite Guerre and American Indian Irregular Warfare: Siblings, But Not Twins
byWhen the major European powers began to use light troops in the mid-eighteenth century, they typically employed them in a manner of war that…
This Week on Dispatches: Thomas E. Ricks on First Principles
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews Pulitzer-prize winning historian Thomas E. Ricks on his new book, First Principles: What America’s Founders Learned from…
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First Principles
byFirst Principles: What America’s Founders Learned From the Greeks and Romans and How That Shaped Our Country by Thomas E. Ricks (New York, NY: Harper…
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If George Washington had not Run for President . . . ?
byThis month we asked our contributors: If George Washington had not run for President in 1789, who would you like to have had as…
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The American Revolution in Alexandria, Virginia: Upheaval in George Washington’s Hometown
byAlexandria, Virginia, is well known as George Washington’s hometown, but its role during the American Revolution is not widely understood. Like the rest of…
Franklin & Washington: The Founding Partnership
byFranklin & Washington: The Founding Partnership by Edward J. Larson (New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers, 2020) George Washington and Early Republic scholar Edward J….
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Ten Revolutionary War Patriot Graves
byThis list presents the graves of ten soldiers who made remarkable contributions to the founding of the United States and who have a headstone…
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The Widow Washington: The Life of Mary Washington
byThe Widow Washington: The Life of Mary Washington by Martha Saxton (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2019) Historians who have studied Mary Ball Washington…
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The Fall of Fort Washington: The “Bunker Hill Effect”?
byIt was the one of the worst defeats suffered by the Americans during the War for Independence, certainly the worst over which George Washington…
This Week on Dispatches: Lindsay M. Chervinsky on George Washington and the Cabinet of the United States
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews White House historian and author Lindsay M. Chervinsky about her new book on George Washington and the…
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George Washington’s 1777 Wilmington, Delaware, Headquarters: Insights to an Unmarked Site
byOn the 170th anniversary of Washington’s Birthday in 1902, the Delaware Society of the Cincinnati formed a procession of dignitaries and marched up Quaker…
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It’s in the Details: A Recently Identified View of Boston
byThe exceedingly rare mezzotint of His Excellency George Washington Esqr (above) listed by Charles Hart as no. 1 in his Catalogue of the Engraved Portraits of…
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Washington’s Head of Elk Reconnaissance: A New Letter (and and Old Receipt)
byThe Philadelphia Campaign of 1777 took definitive shape when Gen. William Howe successfully landed his 16,000 officers and men near Head of Elk (now…
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Mary Ball Washington: The Untold Story of George Washington’s Mother
byMary Ball Washington: The Untold Story of George Washington’s Mother by Craig Shirley (Harper, 2019) Rare indeed is the historian of early American history who…
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Top Ten Quotes of Major General Charles Lee
byCharles Lee served as second-in-command of the Continental Army, subordinate only to George Washington. Born in England, Lee was the best-educated and most widely-read…
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Tapping America’s Wealth to Fund the Revolution: Two Good Ideas that Went Awry
by“Unless some great and capital change suddenly takes place,” Gen. George Washington wrote from Valley Forge on December 23, 1777,[1] to Henry Laurens, the…
This Week on Dispatches: David Head on the Run-up to the Newburgh Conspiracy
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews author and University of Central Florida historian David Head on his recent article about events leading up…
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Why Newport, Rhode Island, Scorned the French
byOne would expect that a country that had been at war for five years would welcome its first ally with open arms. We might…
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A Crisis of Peace: George Washington, the Newburgh Conspiracy, and the Fate of the American Revolution
byA Crisis of Peace: George Washington, the Newburgh Conspiracy, and the Fate of the American Revolution by David Head (New York: Pegasus Books, 2019)…
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Robert Erskine, Surveyor-General of the Continental Army
byRobert 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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The Officers’ Spirited Memorial: A Prelude to the Newburgh Conspiracy
byThe officers of the Continental Army were sullen. It was December 1782, and they were stationed in and around Newburgh, New York, and neighboring…
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Uplifting Moments in American Revolution History
byFor every historian, there’s an event that makes them feel good every time they read about it. We asked our contributors: What event from…
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Catharine Macaulay: Her Final Gifts to America and France, 1787–1791
byIn September 1787, Mrs. Mercy Otis Warren informed Catharine Macaulay of the results of the Federal Convention in Philadelphia. She was guardedly optimistic. Macaulay,…
This Week on Dispatches: Gabriel Neville on the Historic Clove Road and Its Role during the Revolution
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews JAR contributor Gabriel “Gabe” Neville on the Clove Road between northern New Jersey and New York and…
This Week on Dispatches: Mark Edward Lender on the “Cabal” Against George Washington
byOn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews distinguished historian, Mark Edward Lender, about his new book, Cabal! The Plot Against General Washington, the first…
Catharine Macaulay’s Difficult Years, 1778–1787
byBetween 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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Monuments to the American Revolution
byAlong with the Civil War, the American Revolution is one of the two most iconic events in American history. The Revolution has inspired countless…
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The Court Martial of Major Henry Lee
byAside from Gen. Anthony Wayne’s successful assault upon a British garrison at Stony Point in July, military activity in the first eight months of…
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The Fight Behind the Declaration of Independence
byPut yourself, in your mind’s eye, back in June 1776, specifically, the period between June 7 and July 1. It is precisely at that…
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Ten Crucial Days: Washington’s Vision for Victory Unfolds
byTen Crucial Days: Washington’s Vision for Victory Unfolds by William L. Kidder (Lawrence Township, NJ: Knox Press, 2018) Gen. George Washington’s granite composure in Emanuel…
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Major Lawrence Washington of Mount Vernon
byMuch has been written about George Washington’s lack of formal education and his eager grasp of learning from other men, especially those of status…
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Jacob Duché: Mixing Religion and Politics During the Revolution
byIn a country in which one of the main constitutional principles is separation of church and state, it is counter-intuitive to find that there…
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The Tragedy of Henry Laurens
byIt wasn’t really their fault, they said. Slavery, men of the founding generation liked to argue, was brought to the colonies by Britain. It…
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“Under God:” Understanding its Revolutionary Usage
byThe words “under God” have been part of America’s fabric since its inception; any school child will recognize the words in the Pledge of…