George Washington Archives

George Washington

Black Thursday at Sayler’s Creek

By David A. Norris

Four hundred Confederate sailors and marines, their small arms loaded and ready, awaited their orders. Some men had their cutlasses within easy reach. Read more

Whereas European warfare depending increasingly on professional armies, the Colonial American military relied heavily on “citizen-soldiers”, or militia.

George Washington

The Citizen-Soldier: Militia in Early America

by Donald Roberts II

British colonization of the New World transplanted many British institutions to America. Besides the political and social beliefs seeded in the colonies, military ideals were also implemented. Read more

One regiment that stands out for its number of African American Revolutionary War heroes is the 1st Rhode Island regiment, colloquially referred to as the "black regiment."

George Washington

African American Revolutionary War Heroes: Boston to Yorktown

by Mike Haskew

Although a large number of colonial slaves fled their condition of involuntary servitude seeking freedom through service to the British Army, an estimated 5,000 African Americans served in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Read more

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Greene’s Gamble at Hobkirk’s Hill

By Daniel Murphy

In late March 1781, American Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene sought to make the best of a bad situation. Read more

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Monmouth: Longest Battle of the American Revolution

By Eric Niderost

On June 19, 1778, Continental soldiers marched out of Valley Forge, happy to leave the rough wooden cabins where they had spent a miserable winter; cold, hunger, and disease had been their constant companions. Read more

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Slugfest at Eutaw Springs

By John Pezzola

In the early morning hours of September 8, 1781, drums rolled and fifes played in Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene’s camp in the High Hills of southeastern South Carolina. Read more

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John Graves Simcoe: a Queen’s Ranger in the American Revolution

By Mike Phifer

British Army officer John Graves Simcoe wanted to command a corps of irregular troops. He believed that there were opportunities in “the service of a partisan” that taught a man habits of self-dependence and prompt decision making rarely found in the duties of a subordinate officer. Read more

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French Strategy in the American Revolution

By David Curtis Skaggs

When most Americans think of the triumphant ending of the Revolutionary War, they almost exclusively credit George Washington for the miraculous outcome, forgetting that the war was part of a much larger worldwide contest of which the revolution in the colonies was only a part. Read more

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William Washington in the American Revolution

By Arnold Blumberg

William Augustine Washington was born on February 28, 1752 in Stafford County, Va. The eldest son of Bailey Washington, William was destined to be the paladin of the Southern cavalry during the American War of Independence. Read more

The New York Grenadier Company performed a crucial role during the Brooklyn Campaign.

George Washington

New York’s Grenadier Company During the American Revolution

by Marko Zlatich

Among the many local units composing Washington’s army at the Battle of Long Island was the Grenadier Company of New York. Read more

The huts of the Americans spread across sloping ground below the crest of Jockey Hollow, divided into eight infantry brigades. At lower right a regiment is formed in two ranks on the parade ground, while oxen drag timber for firewood at lower left.

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General Washington: Keeping the Continental Army Intact At Morristown

By David Michlovitz

Despite never having gained the mythological fame of Valley Forge, the encampment of the Continental Army at Morristown, New Jersey, over the winter of 1779-80 was a horrendous trial, worse for the men than that at the Pennsylvania hollow, and dire for the revolutionary cause. Read more

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Louis Antoine de Bougainville

By Joshua Shepherd

I can assure you that he has a military mind indeed and in adding experience to the theory he already has, he will become a person of distinction,” Maj. Read more

Brown Bess was the close companion of the British soldier for almost a hundred years.

George Washington

Revolutionary War Weapons: The Brown Bess Musket

By Joseph G. Bilby

The French advanced swiftly, with men yelling “Hurrah” and officers shouting encouragement. They knew the British were to the front, somewhere, although they could not see them yet, and they expected to roll over the enemy in an impetuous, distinctively Gallic tide. Read more