American Revolution Archives

American Revolution

Major General Braddock’s March on Fort Duquesne

By Colonel John P. Sinnott AUS (Ret.)

Seldom was the hand of fate so clearly exposed in the affairs of men as it did during the French and Indian War when Maj. Read more

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Battle of Kings Mountain: an American Patriot Victory in the Carolinas

By James K. Swisher

The brightly uniformed soldiers that George III of England dispatched to subjugate the rebellious citizens of his North American colonies were at that time possibly the world’s best. Read more

American Revolution

The Frigate Sailing Ship: Pride of The British Royal Navy

By John D. Gresham

Looking back on the age of fighting sail, a common image is that of battles between huge ships of the line, led by such famous admirals as Nelson and Collingwood. Read more

Benedict Arnold tells British Major André to hide military papers in his boot. Washington’s spy ring helped foil the pair’s plot to capture West Point.

American Revolution

The Culper Spy Ring: The American Revolution’s Great Secret

By Peter Kross

The American Revolution was a proving ground for American spy operations. General George Washington’s use of deception, covert activities, secret inks, and informers was a model for future spymasters. Read more

Civil War veteran Capt. Joseph A. Faris completed a depiction of the fight at Point Pleasant long after the action but with a soldier’s sensibilities to combat and terrain.

American Revolution

Lord Dunmore’s War: The Battle of Point Pleasant

By James K. Swisher

In the lengthening shadows of a late October afternoon, a column of tired marchers attired in dusty, fringed hunting dress emerged from the trees along the north bank of the Kanawha River, raising an exhilarating shout upon sighting its confluence with the Ohio. Read more

“The Hanging of Nathan Hale , New York 1776” by Don Troiani.

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Continental Army Captain Nathan Hale

By Kevin Seabrooke

On the night of September 16, 1776, young Nathan Hale, a captain in the Continental Army, set out across Long Island Sound from his native Connecticut on the armed sloop Schuyler. Read more

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George Washington and Lord Cornwallis at Germantown

By Eric Niderost

On a gloomy Friday morning, September 26, 1777, an advance party of the British Army marched into Philadelphia to take possession of the city. Read more

Continental Army units march toward Guilford Courthouse in a modern painting by Keith Rocco. Greene would use similar tactics to those employed by Brig. Gen. Daniel Morgan in his triumph over British forces at Cowpens two months earlier.

American Revolution

Showdown at Guilford Courthouse

By William E. Welsh

American militiamen with their lungs heaving, hearts pounding, and eyes bulging with terror ran for their lives as soon as the British and Hessian troops in their bright red and blue uniforms came ashore at Kips Bay on Manhattan Island. Read more

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The Redoubts At Yorktown

By Jessica J. Sheets

At nightfall on October 14, 1781, 150 British and Hessian soldiers sheltered in two small earthen fortifications at Yorktown, Virginia. Read more

Sir Peter Parker’s nine-warship fleet unleashes a devastating barrage of fire on Ft. Sullivan from Charleston Harbor.

American Revolution

Patriots’ Great Day: The Battle of Sullivan’s Island

By Earl Echelberry

By the early 1770s, with a full century of settlement already behind it, Charleston, S.C., had come into its own as a thriving urban center. Read more

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The History of the U.S. Coast Guard

By Blaine Taylor

On August 4, 1790, at the urging of Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, the United States Congress authorized the construction of 10 armed revenue cutters. Read more

Piloting David Bushnell’s Turtle submarine, Sergeant Ezra Lee attacks ships in New York Harbor.

American Revolution

David Bushnell’s Turtle: The World’s First Submarine

By Brandt Heatherington

The world’s first combat submarine was something of an afterthought on the part of its creator. The revolutionary craft, known as the Turtle for its odd profile, was the progeny of David Bushnell, who was born in 1742 in West Saybrook, Conn. Read more

Under General Benedict Arnold, Patriot forces drive off Hessian mercenaries at Breyman’s Redoubt during the Battle of Saratoga.

American Revolution

The Hessians Are Coming!

By Joseph C. Salamida

“He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny,” Thomas Jefferson said of King George III in the Declaration of Independence. Read more

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Benedict Arnold’s Invasion of Canada

By Earl Echelberry

Fresh from his capture of Fort Ticonderoga, Colonel Benedict Arnold in the summer of 1775 lobbied hard to the Continental Congress for authorization to lead an expedition to the lower St. Read more

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George Washington’s Counterpunch at Germantown

By Chuck Lyons

On the morning of September 11, 1777, 19-year-old Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, calmly sat on his horse next to George Washington, commander in chief of America’s revolutionary forces. Read more

Militiamen from the Carolina Colonies, most armed with rifles, fire on Loyalist American troops under the command of British Major Patrick Ferguson at the top of Kings Mountain, South Carolina. The hour-long battle on Oct. 7, 1780, was a victory for the Patriots and a turning point in the Revolutionary War. This painting by Don Troiami depicts the moment Major Ferguson, center left, was shot from his horse as he charged. Hit multiple times, Ferguson fell from his mount and was dragged by a foot caught in the stirrup. The Loyalists surrendered shortly after his death.

American Revolution

Pivotal Victory at Kings Mountain

By Mike Phifer

Kings Mountain was a battle of militia–American Patriots against American Loyalists. Short and intense, it was the last desperate stand of British Major Patrick Ferguson and a turning point in the American Revolution. Read more

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The Short-range Shotgun

By Christopher Miskimon

Coming upon the enemy’s rear guard outside the western Kentucky village of Sacramento, four days after Christmas 1861, Confederate Colonel Nathan Bedford Forrest ordered his cavalry to advance. Read more

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Commodore John Barry: Naval Hero of the American Revolution

By Neil Cosgrove

Most histories of the American Revolution give the fledgling Patriot navy only one hero: John Paul Jones. While not begrudging Jones’s recognition, it seems unfair to represent the Continental Navy with a single fighting captain. Read more