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Revolutionary War

Capt. John Paul Jones, U.S. Navy (1775–1792)

Capt. John Paul Jones, U.S. Navy (1775–1792)

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There is no shortage of heroes who rose to prominence during the American Revolution, but few compare to the legacy of John Paul Jones. A Scotsman by birth, he came to the fledgling United States but joined the Continental Navy as an American. Although many of his newfound countrymen would enjoy victories over Great Britain in the years to come, only Capt. John Paul Jones, the "Father of the U.S. Navy," would ever bring the war home to the British.  John Paul Jones Rose as the Father of the U.S. Navy Born in 1747, young John Paul (not yet Jones) began his sailing career at the tender age of 13. He spent a considerable amount of time traveling across the Atlantic Ocean from England to Virginia as a merchant mariner. It was as a merchant that he got his first chance to command a ship. He was 21 years old when the captain and first mate of his ship suddenly died of Yellow Fever, and it was John Paul who successfully navigated the vessel back to its home waters.   He soon...

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Revolutionary War – The Battle of Green Spring

Revolutionary War – The Battle of Green Spring

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The Battle of Green Spring isn't as celebrated a battle as the great American victories at Saratoga or Cowpens, but it is a relatively simple meeting between two great opposing forces, one that would demonstrate the evolution of the Continental Army in the face of superior British numbers and firepower.  Lafayette’s Maneuvers Led to the Battle of Green Spring It was the summer of 1781, and the outnumbered Marquis de Lafayette was dogging British Gen. Charles Cornwallis as the two armies tried to outmaneuver one another across Virginia. With 7,000 experienced troops, Lord Cornwallis was eager to trap Lafayette's 3,000-strong force, which was filled with mostly inexperienced militiamen.  Lafayette deftly dodged the British attempts to force an engagement, but his harassment of the British forces grew bolder when he received reinforcements, around 1,000 Continental Army troops under the legendary Gen. "Mad" Anthony Wayne.  When Cornwallis' movement suddenly shifted...

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The Battle of Guilford Courthouse

The Battle of Guilford Courthouse

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The Revolutionary War Battle at Guilford Courthouse in North Carolina is not just an important moment for American independence; it's a good lesson for everyone to remember. There are times when, no matter how hard you fight or how badly you want to win, you might still lose. But that loss could lead to an even more important battle—and a greater, more important victory. The British Strategy Before the Battle at Guilford Courthouse After its 1777 loss at the Battle of Saratoga, the British Army's strategy to put down the colonial rebellion refocused on the south, where support for the mother country was strongest. Although the campaign itself was more successful than in the north, the British under Lord Cornwallis still suffered some heavy defeats. American militia held their ground at Cowpens, and the collapsing British lost a quarter of their overall strength in the southern colonies. Focused solely on destroying American Nathaniel Greene's Army, Cornwallis burned his baggage...

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The Revolutionary War – The Battle of Saratoga

The Revolutionary War – The Battle of Saratoga

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The road to the American Revolutionary War - or War of Independence - began in the wake of the French and Indian War (1754 - 1763) when the government of King George III of Great Britain decided that the American colonies should share in the costs associated with the War by adding taxes to common goods, such as sugar, molasses and tea. These attempts were met with increasingly stiff resistance. American colonists claimed they were unconstitutional, suggesting that they deserved to have representation in the British Parliament if they were to shoulder some of the war costs. Taking a harsh response, the British instead used their military to allow their representatives to safely perform their tax collection and other duties. At the time, the loyalties among the colonists were divided. Historians estimate that one-third of colonists supported the American Revolution, one-third sided with the British, and one-third remained neutral about breaking away from British rule. Background of the...

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The Revolutionary War – Washington Crossing the Delaware

The Revolutionary War – Washington Crossing the Delaware

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The American Revolution did not start off the way the Americans had hoped. By Christmas night, 1776, morale was lower than it had ever been. The British Army had captured New York the previous summer, and men were beginning to desert as Washington's Army camped across the Delaware River from occupied Trenton (Washington Crossing the Delaware), New Jersey.  What men Washington had left were largely inexperienced, as most of the veterans from the Battle of Long Island went home when their enlistments were up. Even Washington himself was unsure of the near future. All was not lost, however. He did have a few factors in his favor. For starters, his forces outnumbered those of the Hessian mercenaries who occupied Trenton. He also had a solid intelligence source inside Trenton, providing information on the numbers, movements, and dispositions of the enemy. Washington decided to craft a perfectly-detailed attack that would surprise the Hessians and give the Americans a badly-needed...

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Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor

Benedict Arnold: Patriot and Traitor

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Two hundred thirty-five years ago an event took place which, had it succeeded, would have ended the American fight for independence. Before exploring that near disaster, see if you can answer these questions about the American Revolutionary War, all of which have some bearing on the event. Who was called "The Hannibal of North America?" Who built a fleet on Lake Champlain and fought British ships invading New York from Canada? Who led a small American army more than 300 miles through the Maine wilderness in fierce winter conditions in an attempt to capture Quebec?  Whose heroic action at the Battle of Saratoga led to the greatest American victory of the war? Who did George Washington consider to be his best fighting general? Who attempted to betray West Point to the British in exchange for 20,000 British Royal Pounds?  A True Hero of the First Days of the War Benedict Arnold The answer to all these questions is Benedict Arnold, the most notorious traitor in American...

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Heroines of the Revolutionary War

Heroines of the Revolutionary War

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Since various "Molly Pitcher" tales grew in the telling, some historians regard Molly Pitcher as folklore rather than history. In contrast, others suggest it may be a composite image inspired by the actions of a number of real women who carried water to men on the battlefield during the war. However, historical records and eye witness accounts identify the heroines of the Revolutionary War whose battlefield bravery marks them as genuine Molly Pitchers. They were Mary Ludwig Hays and Margaret Cochran Corbin. The Heroines of the Revolutionary War: Molly Pitcher Mary Ludwig, born in 1754, was the daughter of a New Jersey dairy farmer. At the age of 13, she went to work as a domestic servant, and that same year married a barber by the name of William Hays. When the Revolutionary War began, William enlisted in the Pennsylvania Artillery and became a gunner. Like hundreds of other wives of enlisted men, Mary followed her husband into battle and contributed actively by rendering such...

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SSG James Walker, U.S. Army (1966-1991)

SSG James Walker, U.S. Army (1966-1991)

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Which song do you connect most to your time in Military service? What specific memories does this song bring back for you?:

Detroit City (I Wanna Go Home) by Bobby Bare. After AIT in November of 1966, we all just knew we were headed to Vietnam. It was a great surprise when 32 of us came down on orders for Korea. Our first reaction was: “Where the hell is Korea?” Korea in 1966 is not like you see today. The 14 months I spent there turned a boy into a man, with increased responsibility coming as the months trudged by. I spent 3 months in the field giving communications support to the ROK army that were looking for North Korean infiltrators. The song “I Wanna Go Home” became our theme song played in every bar and club we went to.

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Facts on the Spanish-American War (1898)

Facts on the Spanish-American War (1898)

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On April 25, 1898, the United States declared war on Spain following the Battleship Maine's sinking in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898. As a result, Spain lost its control over the remains of its overseas empire - Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines Islands, Guam, and other islands. Background of the Spanish-American War Beginning in 1492, Spain was the first European nation to sail westward across the Atlantic Ocean, explore, and colonize the Amerindian nations of the Western Hemisphere. At its greatest extent, the empire that resulted from this exploration extended from Virginia on the eastern coast of the United States south to Tierra del Fuego at South America's tip, excluding Brazil and westward to California and Alaska. Across the Pacific, it included the Philippines and other island groups. By 1825 much of this empire had fallen into other hands. In that year, Spain acknowledged the independence...

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The Revolutionary War – The Penobscot Expedition

The Revolutionary War – The Penobscot Expedition

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The U.S. Navy has had its wins and losses since its birthday on Oct. 13, 1775. Its victories are too numerous to count. While its losses are few and far between, two devastating losses stand out among all the others.  Its most memorable significant loss is, of course, a day that continues to live in infamy. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor devastated the Navy's Pacific Fleet but did not cripple it. The Navy's first-ever significant is on par with Pearl Harbor but is often forgotten: The ill-fated Penobscot Expedition.  The Ill-fated Penobscot Expedition In 1779, the Revolutionary War was in full swing. An American victory over British forces at Saratoga in 1777 brought recognition of the 13 American colonies from European powers like France and Spain. France allied itself with the new country, and the British Empire was forced to alter its strategy for dealing with the rebels.  A British force under Gen. Francis McLean captured a large portion of Maine, then part of...

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Famous Military Units – 1st Rhode Island Regiment (The Black Regiment)

Famous Military Units – 1st Rhode Island Regiment (The Black Regiment)

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The Continental Army was camped for the 1777-78 winter at Valley Forge, twenty miles from Philadelphia, the British-occupied American capital. At least a third of the eleven thousand men were without shoes, coats, and blankets to protect them from the constant rain. They suffered from exposure, typhus, dysentery, and pneumonia. Food was running out. Men were starving, dying, the desertion rate was escalating, and the States could not meet their enlistment quotas. Able-bodied men were simply not willing to fight. Able-bodied white men, that is. As they waited out the winter, General Washington had no plan to replace his dwindling manpower. Rhode Island general James Varnum, who commanded the 1st Rhode Island Regiment at the outset of the war, offered a solution that would not sit well with Washington. Combine Rhode Island's two depleted regiments into a single formation and send the extra officers home to recruit a new unit consisting of both slaves and free men. The 1st Rhode Island...

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Patriot Army Saved From Disaster

Patriot Army Saved From Disaster

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On August 27, 1776, the British Army defeated Patriot troops at the Battle of Long Island, New York. Though the Americans were soundly defeated, they could safely evacuate their troops and avoid what would have been the probable destruction of a large part of the Continental Army. After the British were pushed out of Boston in March 1776, they next set their sights on capturing New York City and the vital Hudson River. During that summer, 32,000 British and Hessian troops under the command of Gen. William Howe arrived on Staten Island, preparing for their attack on Long Island. General George Washington, unsure where exactly the British planned to attack, split his approximately 20,000 troops between Manhattan Island and Long Island, even though he already had fewer troops than Howe. 15,000 British troops landed on the southwest shore of Long Island on August 22, with a few thousand additional Hessian troops arriving later. A portion of the roughly seven thousand American troops on...

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