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Stories

Patrick Henry’s “Liberty or Death” Speech

Revolution was in the air in early 1775. Only a few months earlier, delegates from the American colonies had held the first Continental Congress and sent Britain’s King George III a petition for redress of grievances, among them the repeal of the so-called “Intolerable Acts.” A ...read more

American Revolution

1775

Patrick Henry voices American opposition to British policy

During a speech before the second Virginia Convention, Patrick Henry responds to the increasingly oppressive British rule over the American colonies by declaring, “I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” Following the signing of ...read more

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During a speech before the second Virginia Convention, Patrick Henry responds to the increasingly oppressive British rule over the American colonies by declaring, "I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" Following the signing of ...read more

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Early Years

Patrick Henry was born in 1736 to John and Sarah Winston Henry on his family's farm in Hanover County, Virginia. He was educated mostly at home by his father, a Scottish-born planter who had attended college in Scotland.

Henry struggled to find a profession as a young adult. He failed in several attempts as a storeowner and a planter. He taught himself law while working as a tavern keeper at his father-in-law's inn and opened a law practice in Hanover County in 1760.

As a lawyer and politician, Patrick Henry was known for his persuasive and passionate speeches, which appealed as much to emotion as to reason. Many of Henry's contemporaries likened his rhetorical style to the evangelical preachers of the Great Awakening, a religious revival that swept the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s.

Parson's Cause

Henry's first major legal case was known as the Parson's Cause in 1763, a dispute involving Anglican clergy in colonial Virginia. The case - one of the first legal attempts to challenge the limits of England's power over the American colonies - is often viewed as an important event leading up to the American Revolution.

Ministers of the Church of England in Virginia were paid their annual salaries in tobacco. A tobacco shortage caused by drought led to price increases in the late 1750s.

In response, the Virginia legislature passed the Two-Penny Act, which set the value of the Anglican ministers' annual salaries at two pennies per pound of tobacco, rather than the inflated price, which was closer to six pennies per pound. The Anglican clergy appealed to Britain's King George III, who overturned the law and encouraged ministers to sue for back pay.

The Parson's Cause established Patrick Henry as a leader in the emerging movement for American independence. During the case, Henry, then a relatively unknown attorney, delivered an impassioned speech against British overreach into colonial affairs, arguing "that a King by annulling or disallowing acts of so salutary a nature, from being Father of his people degenerated into a Tyrant, and forfeits all rights to his subjects' obedience."

Stamp Act

costs of defending the American colonies. The Stamp Act of 1765 required American colonists to pay a small tax on every piece of paper they used.

Colonists viewed the Stamp Act-an attempt by England to raise money in the colonies without approval from colonial legislatures-as a troublesome precedent.

Patrick Henry responded to the Stamp Act with a series of resolutions introduced to the Virginia legislature in a speech. The resolves, adopted by the Virginia legislature, were soon published in other colonies, and helped to articulate America's stance against taxation without representation under the British Crown.

Henry's resolves declared that Americans should be taxed only by their own representatives and that Virginians should pay no taxes except those voted on by the Virginia legislature.

Later in the speech, Henry flirted with treason when he hinted that the King risked suffering the same fate as Julius Caesar -assassination-if he maintained his oppressive policies.

Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death

In March of 1775, the Second Virginia Convention met at St. John's Church in Richmond to discuss the state's strategy against the British. It was here that Patrick Henry delivered his most famous speech.

"Gentlemen may cry, 'Peace, Peace,' but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? ... Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"

George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and five of the six other Virginians who would later sign the Declaration of Independence were in attendance that day. Historians say that Henry's "Liberty or Death" speech helped convince those in attendance to begin preparing Virginia troops for war against Great Britain.

Royal Governor Lord Dunmore responded to the speech by removing gunpowder from the magazine. That November, he would issue Dunmore's Proclamation declaring martial law in Virginia and promising freedom to enslaved people who joined the King's cause.

Henry spoke without notes, and no transcripts exist from his famous address. The only known version of the speech was reconstructed in an 1817 biography of Henry by author William Wirt, leading some historians to speculate that the famous Patrick Henry quote may have been fabricated by Wirt to sell copies of his book.

Henry and Slavery

Patrick Henry married his first wife, Sarah Shelton, in 1754, and the couple went on to have six children together. Her dowry included a 600-acre farm, a house, and six enslaved people.

After Sarah died in 1775, he married Dorothea Dandridge of Tidewater, Virginia, and their union produced eleven children.

Despite the size of his family, Henry and his family lived in a small farmhouse on a Piedmont-area plantation known as Red Hill. Henry once referred to slavery as a "lamentable evil," but throughout his adult life Henry owned dozens of enslaved persons, some of whom worked the fields at Red Hill.

Anti-Federalism and the Bill of Rights

Patrick Henry served as Virginia's first governor (1776-1779) and sixth governor (1784-1786).

In the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, Henry became an outspoken Anti-Federalist. Henry and other Anti-Federalists opposed the ratification of the 1787 United States Constitution, which created a strong federal government.

Patrick Henry worried that a federal government that was too powerful and too centralized could evolve into a monarchy. He was the author of several Anti- Federalist Papers -written arguments by Founding Father's who opposed the U.S. Constitution.

While the Anti-Federalists were unable to stop the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, the Anti-Federalist Papers were influential in helping to shape the Bill of Rights. The first 10 Amendments to the United States Constitution, known collectively as the Bill of Rights, protected individual liberties and placed limits on the powers of the federal government.

Besides a brief stint as a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress -the United States government during the American Revolution-Patrick Henry never held national public office.

He died on June 6, 1799 at the age of 63 from stomach cancer. His Southern Virginia plantation is now the Red Hill Patrick Henry National Memorial.

Sources

Henry's Full Biography; Red Hill Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation.

Patrick Henry Arguing the Parson's Cause; Virginia Museum of History and Culture.

A Summary of the 1765 Stamp Act; Colonial Williamsburg.

Patrick Henry, Orator of Liberty; U.S. Library of Congress.

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Patrick Henry: Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death Speech | HISTORY

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Patrick Henry, a Founding Father and a leader of the American Revolution, is famous for a 1775 speech in which he declared, "Give me liberty or give me death."

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For Kids : Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America. He was quite a personality. He was a writer, publisher, scientist, inventor, musician, and diplomat.

He wrote Poor Richard's Almanac, which made him rich. The only book that outsold Poor Richard's Almanac in the colonies was the Bible.

He used pseudonyms (pen names) to write humorous letters that expressed his point of view on many subjects. These letters were published in various newspapers, including his own newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette. Some of the names he used were Silence Dogood, Alice Addertongue, Anthony Afterwit, Martha Careful, Miss Body (for the Busy Body letters), and Benevolous.

He was Deputy Postmaster General for North American under the British for over 20 years. He created new and more efficient routes that greatly reduced the time it took to received a letter.

He taught himself German, French, and Italian. He played the violin, the harp, and the guitar. He also composed music.

He served as ambassador to several countries including England, France, and Canada. The English were not that fond of him. Most Englishmen thought of American colonists as rude and coarse. Ben Franklin did not appreciate their attitude at all. But the French loved him!

The French called him a "natural man" because they thought of the American colonists as ideal humans, more rustic than those living in the urban centers of Europe.

Franklin played up this image. He always wore his coonskin cap when he was in France. He wrote his daughter a letter and said, "My picture is everywhere, on the top of snuff boxes, on rings, on busts. My portrait is a best seller. Your father's face is now as well known as the man in the moon."

He turned his popularity in France into a tremendous advantage for the patriots. While serving as Ambassador to France, Ben Franklin was able to persuade the French to support the colonial effort with large amounts of money, supplies, and manpower, including ships and experienced military leaders. This was enormously important to the successful outcome of the Revolutionary War for the colonists.

Ben Franklin was also a scientist. He discovered many laws about electricity, and invented many things including the lightening rod, bifocals, street lights, swim fins, and the Franklin stove. He never patented any of his inventions. He believed that inventions should be freely shared.

Shortly after the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin created the first United States coin in 1787. One side had a design of 13 linked circles and the statement "We Are One". On the other side, the coin said, "Mind Your Own Business".

He created the first lending library, the first hospital, the first volunteer fire department, and was the driving force behind the establishment of fire insurance.

One of the most interesting things about Franklin was his willingness to change his mind when faced with new facts. Franklin was incredibly curious and always sought new information, a personality trait that contributed greatly to his success as a spy on the side of the colonists (when he served on the committee of Secret Correspondence in 1775.)

There is a wonderful story about Ben Franklin that may or may not be true. But it sounds just like him. For quite a while, Ben Franklin believed that African people were less intelligent than white people. One day, he visited an African-American school. The kids in that school convinced him that blacks and whites were equally intelligent.

It is true that after the Revolutionary War, Ben Franklin did work hard to abolish slavery. He did not accomplish this in his lifetime, but he did convince quite a few people that slavery was wrong.

And somehow, in his busy life, he found time to help write and sign the Declaration of Independence at the age of 70, and later, to sign the Constitution of the United States of America.

This quick look at Benjamin Franklin mentions only a few of his many accomplishments. Even with such a quick look, I think you can see why Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America.

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The American Revolution for Kids - Benjamin Franklin

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For Kids : Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America. He was quite a personality. He was a writer, publisher, scientist, inventor, musician, and diplomat. He wrote Poor Richard's Almanac, which made him rich.

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the first African to arrive in the new world is believed to have accompanied Christopher Columbus on one of his voyages to the Americans. African slaves began arriving shortly after 1492. there are records of slaves being in Haiti by 1501. the first blacks arrived in the British colonies almost 200 years before Douglass was born. In August 1619, twenty blacks arrived in Jamestown.

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Patrick Henry voices American opposition to British policy

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Patrick Henry voices American opposition to British policy

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Patrick Henry voices American opposition to British policy

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During a speech before the second Virginia Convention, Patrick Henry responds to the increasingly oppressive British rule over the American colonies by

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Paul Revere was born in the North End of Boston on December 21, 1734. Although Revere originated from the middling sort, through his membership in St. Andrews Lodge of Freemasons, he made connections with a number of people who later became the founding members of the Loyal Nine. Although he was not a member of the Loyal Nine, it is believed that he assisted this predecessor organization of the Sons of Liberty in leading political protests against Parliament's authority to tax the colonies. While he was not known for exceptional oratory, he was a master of propaganda, and his works helped the Sons of Liberty galvanize support for their dissident cause.

Resisting Taxation Without Representation

In August of 1765, Paul Revere participated in the Stamp Act Riots in response to the impending Stamp Act that was to take effect in the coming months. During these riots, the mob tore down the houses of government officials, including the house of Lieutenant Governor and Chief Justice Thomas Hutchinson. While these riots were viewed in a negative light by Parliament, the now apparent unpopularity of the Stamp Act in British North America forced its repeal. Following swiftly on the heels of the Stamp Act's repeal was the passage of the Declaratory Act in 1766, further asserting Parliament's right to tax the colonies. From this point forward, Paul Revere dedicated himself to the production of engravings which highlighted the excesses of the British government, and the unpopularity of their laws in Boston.

On October 1, 1768, two thousand British regulars arrived in Boston. Paul Revere rendered his first of many engravings which, in a subtle manner, detailed the ill effects of British imperial policy in North America. In his engraving of the arrival of British troops, Revere included towering church steeples along Boston's skyline as evidence of the town's orderly and religious origins. To the viewer of the eighteenth century, this made the arrival of British regulars even more offensive. If Boston was capable of managing its own affairs, then why were two thousand regulars quartered in the town?

The Boston Massacre

As time passed, tensions between the occupying force of British regulars and the town of Boston mounted. On March 5, 1770, these tensions resulted in the deaths of five unarmed Boston civilians on King Street. This tragedy later became known as the Boston Massacre. Henry Pelham produced an engraving that was later copied and sensationalized by Paul Revere entitled the Bloody Massacre Perpetrated in King Street. In this engraving, Revere depicted Captain Thomas Preston standing behind his soldiers of the 29th regiment, implying that he ordered them to fire into the crowd-which was later refuted during the Boston Massacre Trial. In addition, Ebenezer Richardson was shown firing his buckshot into the crowd (which had happened only a few weeks prior on February 22, 1770, resulting in the death of Christopher Sneider), and a storefront labeled "Butcher's Hall" as to appeal to the viewer's perception of the British Army as brutal oppressors.

Revere's Revolutionary Propaganda

These examples of propaganda did much to convince the public of Parliament's flawed colonial policies. In the years that followed, Paul Revere, and the leaders of the Sons of Liberty did everything in their power to keep the memory of the Boston Massacre alive. On March 5, 1771, only one year after the massacre, Paul Revere staged an elaborate public demonstration from his home in the North End. From the windows of his home, he displayed various scenes of the Boston Massacre. In one of his windows, he displayed the ghost of young Christopher Sneider along with the names of the five men that fell on King Street. A second window depicted the soldiers of the 29th regiment firing into the crowd, and the third window displayed lady liberty with one foot on the head of a British Grenadier, and her finger pointing toward the window displaying the massacre.

Paul Revere's Ride

These various forms of propaganda had a profound effect on the people of Boston, and were instrumental in persuading the citizenry that the struggle for liberty was a just cause. In the years that followed, the leaders of the patriots would discover other useful talents in Paul Revere. Following the Boston Tea Party, he was dispatched to New York and Philadelphia to inform the Sons of Liberty in those towns of Boston's resistance to the Tea Act. In addition, he was sent by Dr. Joseph Warren to alert the countryside of British regular troop movements on the evening of April 18, 1775, the day before the Battle of Lexington-Concord. While Paul Revere has widely been credited with the midnight ride, other riders were dispatched to raise the alarm of the approaching British Army. His place in history would be solidified by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who canonized Revere as the lone midnight rider in an 1860 poem entitled "Paul Revere's Ride."

Legacy & Leadership

While Paul Revere is best remembered for his horsemanship, his most important contributions came from his hammer and chisel. His ability to appeal to the sensibilities of colonial subjects through the works of his copper engravings, and vigils demonstrated the power of propaganda. After the War of Independence, Revere expanded his business to open an iron foundry in the North End of Boston making utilitarian cast iron products that were useful and widely consumed by the local populace. He also opened a copper mill which produced bells for churches, rolled copper for the hulls of wooden ships, along with copper bolts and spikes that were useful to Boston's burgeoning ship industry. All of this demonstrated that Paul Revere was a man of many talents and a true revolutionary, and was therefore indispensable to Boston's success in resisting the authority of the British Parliament, and King George III.

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Paul Revere was an early revolutionary from Boston who made a number of key connections with leaders of the Loyal Nine and Sons of Liberty.

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While George Washington led the American colonists to victory in the Revolutionary War, there might not have been a revolution at all if it weren't for provocateurs such as Samuel Adams.

Adams and other firebrands helped push moderate colonial leaders into joining in the resistance against the British, which eventually led to the war. But Adams wasn't just a rabble-rouser. He also was a serious political theorist who championed the notion of individual rights, which became a core American value. During the Revolutionary War, Adams served in the Continental Congress and helped draft the Articles of Confederation, the document that was the predecessor to the U.S. Constitution.

Samuel Adams' Background and Early Life

Adams was born in Boston on September 27, 1722, to an affluent Puritan family. His father, Samuel Adams Sr., was a prominent local merchant and religious deacon who was also active in local politics. His mother, Mary Adams, was the daughter of a local businessman.

Adams attended Boston Latin School and then went to Harvard College. It was there that Adams was introduced to the writings of John Locke, a philosopher in the Enlightenment, who argued that all people were born with certain rights that could not be taken away and that governments exist by the consent of the people. That idea made a powerful impression on Adams, who wrote his 1743 master's degree thesis at Harvard on the legality of resisting British authority.

When Adams' father died in 1748, he inherited the family business of making malted barley and supplying it to brewers. He also may have tried his hand at brewing, judging from a 1751 newspaper advertisement in which he offered "strong beer, or malt for those who incline to brew it themselves; to be sold by Samuel Adams, at a reasonable rate."

But Adams wasn't very good at running the business and eventually went bankrupt. He was similarly unsuccessful as a city tax collector, performing his duties so ineptly that his ledgers came up short by thousands of pounds.

Sons of Liberty

Though Adams wasn't very good with money, he was a good writer. He and some friends started their own short-lived newspaper, The Public Advertiser, which published Adams' opinion pieces. He used that opportunity to exhort other Bostonians to cherish and protect their personal freedom.

Adams' voice became more prominent in the mid-1760s when the British government tried to pay off debt from the Seven Years War by imposing new taxes upon the American colonists. While others merely grumbled about the economic harm, Adams argued in print that the British were violating the colonists' rights, because they were being taxed without representation in Parliament. He denounced the Stamp Act, a 1765 tax law, as an attempt "to destroy the liberties of America as with one blow."

That same year, Adams was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, an office he would hold for nine years. Around that time, he also joined a secretive group of activists called the Loyal Nine, which eventually evolved into a more radical organization called the Sons of Liberty.

When British troops arrived in Boston in 1768, Adams became more heavily involved in organizing resistance against the Crown. He wrote scores of newspaper articles under pen names, attacking the British. He also pressured Boston merchants to boycott British goods.

Role in the Boston Tea Party

After the British Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773, which sought to force the colonists to buy their tea from the British East India Company, Adams helped organize Bostonians to hinder the tea shipments. One group of resisters took matters even further, dressing up as Indian warriors and boarding several British ships to dump their tea, in what became known as the Boston Tea Party. Adams, who may have played a role in planning the event, afterward praised it publicly, writing that the protesters "have acted upon pure and upright principle."

Eventually, British authorities had enough of Adams and his agitation. In 1775, British General Thomas Gage led a force of soldiers from Boston to Lexington, on a mission to arrest Adams and fellow colonial radical John Hancock. But American spies got wind of the plan, and American militiamen confronted the British on Lexington Common. The ensuing Battles of Lexington and Concord were the opening armed confrontations that sparked the Revolutionary War.

As a delegate to the Continental Congress, Adams signed the Declaration of Independence and continued his inflammatory rhetoric. In a 1776 speech in Philadelphia, he castigated Americans who sided with the Crown. "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom-go from us in peace," Adams said. "We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you."

As a member of the Continental Congress, Adams also helped draft the Articles of Confederation, the predecessor to the U.S. Constitution.

Samuel Adams' Later Years

After leaving the Continental Congress in 1781, Adams went back to Boston and eventually got back into state politics. He served for a time as president of the Massachusetts Senate and as Lieutenant Governor under Governor John Hancock, his former fellow radical. When Hancock died in office, Adams took over for him and subsequently was elected to three one-year terms before retiring.

Adams died at the age of 81 on October 2, 1803.

Samuel Adams Quotes

"Among the natural rights of the Colonists are these: First, a right to life; Secondly, to liberty; Thirdly, to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can. These are evident branches of, rather than deductions from, the duty of self-preservation, commonly called the first law of nature."

"Some of our politicians would have the people believe that the administration are disposed or determined to have all the grievances which we complain of redressed, if we will only be quiet. But apprehend this would be a fatal delusion."

"There can be no property in that which another can of right take from us without our consent."

"If the British administration and government do not return to the principles of moderation and equity, the evil which they profess to aim at preventing by their own rigorous measures, will the sooner be brought to pass-the entire separation and independence of the colonies."

"We cannot make events. Our business is to wisely improve them."

"Shame on the men who can court exemption from present trouble and expense at the price of their own posterity's liberty!"

"How strangely will the tools of a tyrant perve the plain meaning of words!"

Sources

Rights of the Colonists, by Samuel Adams.
The Writings of Samuel Adams, Vol. III (1773-1777) by Samuel Adams.
Biographical sketch of Samuel Adams, American Battlefield Trust.
Desperate Sons: Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, John Hancock, and the Secret Bands of Radicals Who Led the Colonies to War, by Lee Standiford
Biographical sketch of Samuel Adams, National Park Service.
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Samuel Adams: The Life of an American Revolutionary, by John K. Alexander.

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Samuel Adams - Quotes, Definition & Facts

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Samuel Adams was a political leader and activist who played a vital role in urging colonial America to break with Britain during the American Revolution.

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"Give me liberty or give me death!"

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Revolution was in the air in early 1775. Only a few months earlier, delegates from the American colonies had held the first Continental Congress and sent Britain's King George III a petition for redress of grievances, among them the repeal of the so-called "Intolerable Acts." A mass boycott of British goods was underway, and Boston Harbor still languished under a British blockade as punishment for 1773's Boston Tea Party. In a speech to Parliament in late-1774, King George had denounced the "daring spirit of resistance and disobedience to the law" which seemed to be spreading like wildfire across the American continent.

Amid these mounting tensions, the Second Virginia Convention convened to discuss the Old Dominion's strategy in negotiating with the Crown. The roughly 120 delegates who filed into Richmond's St. John's Church were a veritable "who's who" of Virginia's colonial leaders. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were both in attendance, as were five of the six other Virginians who would later sign the Declaration of Independence. Prominent among the bewigged statesmen was Patrick Henry, a well-respected lawyer from Hanover County. Blessed with an unfailing wit and mellifluous speaking voice, Henry had long held a reputation as one of Virginia's most vociferous opponents of British taxation schemes. During the Stamp Act controversy in 1765, he had even flirted with treason in a speech in which he hinted that King George risked suffering the same fate as Julius Caesar if he maintained his oppressive policies. As a recent delegate to the Continental Congress, he had sounded the call for colonial solidarity by proclaiming, "The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers and New Englanders are no more. I am not a Virginian; I am an American."

Henry giving his "Liberty or Death" speech.[/caption]

Henry was convinced that war was around the corner, and he arrived at the Virginia Convention determined to persuade his fellow delegates to adopt a defensive stance against Great Britain. On March 23, he put forward a resolution proposing that Virginia's counties raise militiamen "to secure our inestimable rights and liberties, from those further violations with which they are threatened." The suggestion of forming a militia was not shocking in itself. Other colonies had passed similar resolutions, and Henry had already taken it upon himself to raise a volunteer outfit in Hanover County. Nevertheless, many in the audience balked at approving any measure that might be viewed as combative. Word that King George had rejected the Continental Congress's petition for redress of grievances was yet to reach the colonies, and some still held out hope for a peaceful reconciliation with Britain.

After several delegates had spoken on the issue, Patrick Henry rose from his seat in the third pew and took the floor. A Baptist minister who was watching the proceedings would later describe him as having "an unearthly fire burning in his eye." Just what happened next has long been a subject of debate. Henry spoke without notes, and no transcripts of his exact words have survived to today. The only known version of his remarks was reconstructed in the early 1800s by William Wirt, a biographer who corresponded with several men that attended the Convention. According to this version, Henry began by stating his intention to "speak forth my sentiments freely" before launching into an eloquent warning against appeasing the Crown.

"I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided," he said, "and that is the lamp of experience. I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past. And judging by the past, I wish to know what there has been in the conduct of the British ministry for the last ten years, to justify those hopes with which gentlemen have been pleased to solace themselves, and the House?"

Henry then turned his attention to the British troops mobilizing across the colonies. "Are fleets and armies necessary to a work of love and reconciliation?" he asked. "Have we shown ourselves so unwilling to be reconciled, that force must be called in to win back our love? ...Has Great Britain any enemy, in this quarter of the world, to call for all this accumulation of navies and armies? No, sir, she has none. They are meant for us; they can be meant for no other."

As he continued speaking, Henry's dulcet tones began to darken with anger. "Excitement began to play more and more upon his features," the minister later said. "The tendons of his neck stood out white and rigid like whipcords."

"Our petitions have been slighted," Henry said, "our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne...we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us!"

Henry stood silent for a moment, letting his defiant words hang in the air. When he finally began speaking again, it was in a thunderous bellow that seemed to shake "the walls of the building and all within them." His fellow delegates leaned forward in their seats as he reached his crescendo.

"The war is actually begun!" Henry cried. "The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?" As he spoke, Henry held his wrists together as though they were manacled and raised them toward the heavens. "Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty"-Henry burst from his imaginary chains and grasped an ivory letter opener-"or give me death!" As he uttered these final words, he plunged the letter opener toward his chest, mimicking a knife blow to the heart.

For several moments after Henry sat back down, the assembled delegates seemed at a loss for words. "No other member...was yet adventurous enough to interfere with that voice which had so recently subdued and captivated," delegate Edmund Randolph later said. A hushed silence descended on the room. "Every eye yet gazed entranced on Henry," said the Baptist minister. "Men were beside themselves." Colonel Edward Carrington, one of the many people watching the proceedings through the church windows, was so moved that he stood and proclaimed to his fellow spectators, "Let me be buried at this spot!" When he died decades later, his widow honored his request.

While some of the Convention's delegates clung to their loyalist stance-one even called Henry's words "infamously insolent"-the "Liberty or Death" speech tipped the scales in favor of defensive action. After Richard Henry Lee and Thomas Jefferson both lent their support, the resolution passed by only a few votes. Henry was appointed the head of a new committee charged with readying the Virginia militia for combat.

Henry's call to arms came at a pivotal moment. Less than a month later, skirmishes between British troops and colonial minutemen at Lexington and Concord resulted in "the shot heard round the world" and the first casualties of the Revolutionary War. In Virginia, scores of colonials-many of whom had embroidered the words "Liberty or Death" onto their shirts-flocked to join local militias. "The sword is now drawn," wrote the Virginia Gazette, "and God knows when it will be sheathed."

Patrick Henry would go on to serve as both a delegate to the Second Continental Congress and as Virginia's governor. He played a crucial role in securing men and arms for George Washington's Continental Army, but many would credit his silver tongue as having been his most indispensable contribution to American independence. "It is not now easy to say what we should have done without Patrick Henry," Thomas Jefferson later wrote. "He was before us all in maintaining the spirit of the Revolution."

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Patrick Henry's "Liberty or Death" Speech

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Revolution was in the air in early 1775. Only a few months earlier, delegates from the American colonies had held the first Continental Congress and sent Britain's King George III a petition for redress of grievances, among them the repeal of the so-called "Intolerable Acts."

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Samuel Adams | Biography, History, Accomplishments, Boston Tea Party, & Facts

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Samuel Adams, politician of the American Revolution, leader of the Massachusetts ‘radicals,’ who was a delegate to the Continental Congress and signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was later lieutenant governor (1789–93) and governor (1794–97) of Massachusetts.

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The Boston Tea Party Ships Arrive in Griffin's Wharf

By November 28, the crisis was now on the doorstep of Boston. The first tea ship to arrive was the Dartmouth owned by the Rotch family. The ship arrived with 114 crates of East India Company tea. Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty now had a deadline. According to customs law, the ship had only twenty days to unload its cargo. The twentieth day would be December 17, 1773. Still two more ships arrived. On December 2, the Eleanor arrived with 114 crates, and on December 15, the Beaver had joined the other two ships at Griffin's Wharf.

Samuel Adams took the lead in negotiating with ship owners, and the customs officials for the port of Boston. On December 3, Adams ordered John Rowe, the owner of the Eleanor to unload his other cargo, but not the tea. On December 11, Adams and the Boston Committee of Correspondence ordered Francis Rotch, the owner of the Dartmouth and Beaver, to set sail for London with the East India Company tea onboard. Rotch refused to because his ships would be broadsided by two British warships, the Somerset and Boyne that were out in the harbor. Adams told Rotch that his ship must sail back to London. Adams exclaimed to Rotch "the people of Boston and the neighboring towns absolutely require and expect it."

Now there were only a few days before the cargo of tea had to be unloaded according to customs law. On December 14, Samuel Adams brought Francis Rotch to the customs collector to ask for clearance for his ships to leave the port of Boston. The customs collector stubbornly insisted that no law would allow the ship to leave before unloading the tea. Two days later, on December 16, Rotch appeared at Old South Meeting House before thousands of angry Bostonians. Samuel Adams advised him to appeal to Royal Governor Thomas Hutchinson for permission to send his ships back to London. Francis Rotch reluctantly straddled his horse, and made his way to Milton where the Royal Governor was staying at his summer estate.

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Samuel Adams Biography | Samuel Adams Facts

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Samuel Adams was one of Boston's most prominent revolutionary leaders. His perspective and ability to gather support were pivotal in the Boston Tea Party.

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Some might consider Adams a surprising leader. Despite his Harvard education, he was a failure as a businessman, shabbily dressed, and reportedly, a poor public speaker. However, his shortcomings were eclipsed by an intense passion for politics. During a time when many Americans colonists wanted to…

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This is a list of basic George Washington Facts. George Washington is known as the "Father of his Country." He was the Commander of Continental Forces during the Revolutionary War and was elected the First President of the United States of America. George Washington is often lauded for retiring from public life twice and returning to his farm.

When King George III of England heard that Washington was going to retire as Commander of the Continental Forces, he allegedly said, "If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world." This list of George Washington Facts contains basic things such as birth and death dates, marriage date, number of children and occupations as a young man. It also contains some interesting and less well known George Washington Facts.

George Washington Facts

When was George Washington born?

George Washington Birthplace

Father's "Pope Creek Estate" near present day Colonial Beach in Westmoreland County, Virginia

Father - Augustine Washington (1694 - April 23, 1743)

Mother - Mary Ball (1708 - 1789)

They married in 1731. She was his second wife.

Augustine Washington was a planter and was part owner and director of an iron mine.

George was the fifth of Augustine Washington's ten children. The first four were mothered by Augustine's first wife, Jane Butler, two of whom did not survive to adulthood. The next six children were mothered by Mary Ball, including George, all of whom lived to adulthood, except the last, Mildred, who died in infancy.

Father of his Country

The American Cincinnatus - Cincinnatus was a Roman political figure noted for retiring and going back to his farm instead of trying to seize further political power.

The Sage of Mount Vernon

The Old Fox - Lord Cornwallis used this name for Washington in a remark in 1777.

The American Fabius - From the writings of Timothy Pickering. Fabius was a Roman general and politician noted for his military tactics.

George Washington never attended any school or college. He was educated as a child by his father and brother, and also self-educated as he became an adult.

George Washington was a member of the Anglican church. He made frequent references to God and the Bible in his public statements and private letters. Personal friends and family members gave accounts of his regular Bible reading, church attendance and moral lifestyle. He personally promoted a project to evangelize Indians that was organized by Selina, Countess of Huntingdon. Washington even had a portrait of the Countess hanging in his house. The Countess was one of the leading evangelical ministers of the day. Washington was a "Low Church" Anglican, the branch of the Anglican church that took the Bible literally and would be considered "true" to the Bible by believing Christians today.

Surveyor, planter, soldier.

Washington took only one trip outside of what is now the United States in his life. He went to Barbados with his older half-brother Lawrence in 1751. The purpose of the trip was to find relief for Lawrence's tuberculosis with the warmer weather.

George Washington's Family

Date of marriage, wife's name

Married Martha Dandridge Custis on January 6, 1759. She was a widow and they were both 27 years old when they married.

Children's names and birth order

George and Martha never had any children together. George had bouts with both smallpox and tuberculosis earlier in life and these may have left him unable to have children. In spite of their inability to have their own children, George and Martha raised two children from her first marriage:

John Parke Custis (November 27, 1754 - November 5, 1781), known as "Jackie"

Martha Parke Custis (1756 - June 19, 1773), known as "Patsy"

John Parke Custis served as an aide to Washington at the Battle of Yorktown. He contracted camp fever and died on November 5, 1781. After this, George and Martha Washington raised John's two children:

Eleanor Parke Custis (March 31, 1779 - July 15, 1852), known as Nelly

George Washington Parke Custis - (April 30, 1781 - October 10, 1857)

John Parke Custis was raised by George and Martha Washington. He was Martha's son from her previous marriage. John married Eleanor Calvert, a granddaughter of Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore. The Calvert family was the founding family of the colony of Maryland.

George Washington Parke Custis was Martha's biological grandson. He and his sister Eleanor were raised by George and Martha after their father John died. George Washington Parke Custis had one surviving daughter named Mary Anna Randolph Custis. She marriedRobert E. Lee, who became the Commander of the Confederate Army during the Civil War.

George Washington and Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Confederate army during the civil war were third cousins, twice removed!

Bushrod Washington was George's nephew, the son of George's younger brother John Augustine Washington. Bushrod and George Washington were very close, Bushrod was appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States by PresidentJohn Adams in 1799, the same year George Washington died.

The Revolutionary War

How he got involved in the independence effort?

Washington's first involvement in the resistance against Great Britain was in 1769 when he introduced a bill in the House of Burgesses calling for a boycott of all British goods. The bill was written by George Mason and was in response to the passage of the Townsend Acts, a set of laws created by Parliament that taxed imports to the American colonies. The colonists believed the acts were illegal and violated their rights as British citizens. Learn more about thecauses of the Revolutionary War here.

Did he see military action during the war?

Yes, yes and yes! George Washington was the Commander of the Continental Forces. There were many battles of the Revolutionary War that were fought by Washington's other generals, but Washington was actually present at the following battles:

Siege of Boston

Battle of Long Island

Battle of Kip's Bay

Battle of Harlem Heights

Battle of White Plains

Battle of Fort Washington

Battle of Trenton

Battle of the Assunpink Creek

Battle of Princeton

Battle of Brandywine

Battle of Germantown

Battle of White Marsh

Battle of Monmouth

Siege of Yorktown

George Washington - Offices He Held

Washington never formally joined a party. He was against parties because he thought they created too much division. He was, however, considered to be the informal figurehead of the Federalist party, since most of his supporters were of this party and he was in agreement with most of their positions.
Which government offices did he hold?

Elected Surveyor of Culpepper County - 1749-1751

Appointed Adjutant General of Virginia militia - 1752, an adjutant general is the chief administrative officer of the militia, this made him a Major at the age of 20.

Appointed Lieutenant and Colonel of Virginia Regiment - 1754

Commander of Virginia Military - 1755-1758

Elected to Virginia House of Burgesses - 1759-1774

Justice of the Peace - Fairfax County, Virginia - 1760-1774

Delegate to Continental Congress - 1774-1775

Appointed Commander-in-Chief of Continental Forces by Continental Congress - 1775-1783

Presiding officer over Constitutional Convention - 1787

First President of the United States - 1789-1797 - elected twice

Did he hold any office under the Royal government?

Yes:

Surveyor of Culpeper County - 1749-1751

Adjutant General of Virginia militia - 1752

Lieutenant and Colonel of Virginia Regiment - 1754

Commander of Virginia Military - 1755-1758

Justice of the Peace - Fairfax County, Virginia - 1760-1774

Accomplishments of George Washington while in office?

Chaired Constitutional Convention in 1789.

Averted war with France and Britain in the early part of his presidency, always promoting neutrality toward conflicts between other nations.

Stopped the first uprising against the Federal government, known as the Whiskey Rebellion, in 1794.

By voluntarily retiring at the end of his second term, Washington established the American precedent of a non-violent transfer of power to new administrations.

Oversaw creation of first National Bank.

Oversaw creation of the Jay Treaty, which ended many conflicts remaining with Britain at the end of the Revolutionary War.

Interesting Personal Information

Deeds, not words

For God and My Country

Character and disposition

Washington is often revered for his retiring from public service and going back to private life, rather than seeking to extend his power as many monarchs did. He was thought of as very shy and reserved. He was believed to be very humble, not even wanting positions of power. The First Congress appointed him a $25,000 salary, which he turned down, an enormous amount of money at the time. He was known for his motto, "Deeds, not words," and was not concerned about leaving a "legacy."

George Washington Quotes

Nothing is a greater stranger to my breast, or a sin that my soul more abhors, than that black and detestable one, ingratitude." - Letter to Governor Dinwiddie - May 29, 1754

"The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die." - Address to the Continental Army before the Battle of Long Island - August 27, 1776

"While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian." - General Orders - May 2, 1778

Find more George Washington Quotes here.

Selected works of George Washington and their dates

Rules of Civility - 1744 - This is a list of proverbs and maxims written by George when he was about 16 years old. The maxims originated in France and were used as a method of instilling social virtues in young people. "Rules of Civility" is often credited with being the source ofGeorge Washington's well spoken of virtue.

George Washington's First Inaugural Address - April 30, 1789

Thanksgiving Proclamation - October 3, 1789

Proclamation of Neutrality - April 22, 1793 - Britain and France were at war at this time and with some Americans supporting both sides. Washington was pressured to assist both sides, but refused. He issued this proclamation and held to this policy of neutrality toward the conflicts of other nations throughout his career.

George Washington's Farewell Address - September 19, 1796

The End of His Life

Date and age of retirement

March 1797, at age 64

Due to impending war with France, President John Adams asked the retired George Washington to take command of all United States armies in 1798. Washington reluctantly agreed in order to serve his country and served in this position from July 13, 1798, until his death on December 14, 1799. He participated in the planning for a possible war with France, but the war never occurred.

George Washington's death

December 14, 1799 at age 67

George Washington became ill after spending all day December 12 on horseback in snow and freezing rain. He awoke the next day with a cold, a fever and throat infection. These turned into pneumonia and possibly laryngitis. Washington apparently died of asphyxiation as a result of all these complications.

Where was George Washington buried?

At his home, Mount Vernon, near Alexandria, Virginia

Inscription over Washington's grave

I am the resurrection
and the life, saith the Lord,
He that believeth in me, though
he were dead, yet shall he live;
And whosoever liveth and
believeth in me shall never die

St. John 11:25-26

Other interesting George Washington Facts

Quotes about George Washington by others

After the Revolutionary War, George Washington retired to Mt. Vernon in 1783. King George III couldn't believe it. He reportedly said about Washington - "If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world."

When Henry Lee delivered George Washington's funeral oration, he said this of Washington - He was... "A citizen, first in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen."

"Let the deist reflect on this, and remember that Washington, the saviour of his country, did not disdain to acknowledge and adore a great Saviour, whom deists and infidels affect to slight and despise." - Jonathan Mitchell Sewall, in an address to Portsmouth, New Hampshire on December 31, 1799

"His personal bravery, and the desire he has of animating his troops by example, make him fearless of danger. This occasions us much uneasiness. But Heaven, which has hitherto been his shield, I hope will still continue to guard so valuable a life." - An anonymous soldier, 1777

"Our Washington is no more! The Hero, the Sage and Patriot of America - the man on whom in times of danger, every eye was turned, and all hopes were placed - lives now, only in his own great actions, and in the hearts of an affectionate and afflicted people." - Representative John Marshall, 1799, Marshall became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1801

Landmarks for George Washington

Washington DC, the nation's capital is named after George Washington.

Washington Monument, Washington DC, the familiar pointed obelisk across from the White House.

Mount Rushmore, near Keystone, South Dakota, features the heads of Washington, Roosevelt, Lincoln and Jefferson carved into the side of a mountain.

George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia.

Mount Vernon - George Washington's famous estate near Alexandria, Virginia - you can visit the Mount Vernon website here.

George Washington Birthplace National Monument - Also known as Pope's Creek Estate, features the excavated original home site, reconstructed period buildings with period furnishings and an active farm. More info aboutGeorge Washington's Birthplace monument here.

Ferry Farm - George Washington's childhood home near Fredericksburg, Virginia, the original structures no longer exist, but the site is an active farm and archaeological site. Find info and visiting information aboutFerry Farm can be here.

Christiana Campbell's Tavern - Williamsburg, Virginia, This was George Washington's favorite place to eat away from home. It is still open today! You can find out how to visitChristiana Campbell's Tavern here.

Natural Bridge - A natural Virginia landmark, also one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It was first surveyed by George Washington as a young man and owned at one time byThomas Jefferson. George Washington allegedly was able to throw a rock over the bridge as well. Today it is on the National Historic Landmark registry. Find out more about how to visit theNatural Bridge here.

Numerous universities, streets and towns throughout America are named after George Washington, as well as the State of Washington.

Other interesting Random Facts about George Washington

In December 1753, Governor Dinwiddie sent George Washington with a British ultimatum that commanded the French to stop their developments in the Ohio country. Washington assessed the French military strength and position and delivered the ultimatum at the French Fort Le Beouf, which is at present day Waterford, Pennsylvania. This episode was one of the events that set in motion the French and Indian war. Washington's report on the event was examined on both sides of the Atlantic, creating the first time he became known internationally.

After the disastrous Monongahela expedition to take back Ohio from the French, in which General Edward Braddock was killed, Washington wrote to his brother that God had protected him, saying he had two horses shot out from under him and multiple bullet holes through his clothes!

George Washington proposed to Martha Dandridge Custis after knowing her for only three weeks and meeting her only twice!

Washington was nominated for Commander-in-Chief by future president John Adams on June 15, 1775.

Martha Washington owned an estate called "The White House" on the Pamunkey River in New Kent, County, Virginia when she married George.

Martha Washington burned all of the letters between she and George at his death to protect their privacy.

Washington's likeness is featured on the American $1 bill and the 25 cent quarter.

George Washington and Robert E. Lee, commander of Confederate forces during the Civil War, were third cousins, twice removed!

George Washington never wore a wig as some did in that day, he did powder his hair though and wore it in a pony tail that was sometimes put in a silk bag!

You may also like to check out these other pages about George Washington:

If you enjoyed reading these Facts about George Washington, you will also like to read the following Revolutionary War Facts:
Revolutionary War and Beyond Home

© 2008 - 2022 Revolutionary-War-and-Beyond.com Dan & Jax Bubis

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George Washington Facts - Quick facts about George Washington, First President of the United States, his life, children, birth, death, offices held, quotes and more.

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Ten Facts About George Washington and the Revolutionary War

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Ten Facts About George Washington and the Revolutionary War

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Despite having little experience in commanding large, conventional military forces, Washington's strong leadership presence and fortitude held the American military together long enough to secure victory at Yorktown and independence for his new nation.

1. Washington was appointed commander of the Continental Army on June 14, 1775

On June 14, 1775, the Second Continental Congress, responding to the growing crisis near Boston, directed that one of its own constituents - George Washington - take command of the newly designated Continental Army. Not only did Washington have the most military experience amongst the Congressional delegates, but as John Adams pointed out there were also great political advantages in having a someone outside of New England take command of a military force that was congregated around Boston and largely made up of New Englanders.

Arriving shortly after the conclusion of the Battle of Bunker Hill, Washington moved swiftly to assume command of the ragtag forces surrounding besieging the British garrison within the city of Boston. What Washington did not realize at the time was that it would be six long years of battle, marching, siege, crises, and winter encampments before Washington had an opportunity to return to his beloved Mount Vernon. In September 1781, as the combined American and French forces made their way down to Yorktown, Virginia, Washington was able to make a brief visit to his home along the Potomac River. During this visit, Washington and Rochambeau refined their plan for defeating Charles Cornwallis' forces trapped on the York Peninsula.

2. Prior to his appointment as head of the Continental Army, Washington had never commanded a large army in the field

George Washington was but one of only a handful of candidates considered by the Second Continental Congress who possessed any significant military experience. But by European standards Washington's experience in commanding large conventional armies was non-existent. Leading up to the French & Indian War, Washington had ably commanded the Virginia Regiment, but this provincial military unit never had more than 2,000 men in its ranks. In 1754 Washington commanded roughly 100 regulars and 300 militia at the ill-fated Battle of Fort Necessity.

Despite this seeming lack of experience in managing large army formations, Washington brought a number of strengths to his new position as commander of the Continental Army. Washington had learned many important command principles from the British regular officers that he marched with during the French & Indian War and British army manuals that he studied. He also witnessed, firsthand, how vulnerable British formations could be in the rough, timbered frontier land that predominated in North America. His verve, impressive physical presence, and command instincts helped to hold together an ill-equipped force that outlasted his more experienced opponents. And as Benjamin Franklin would famously state, "[a]n American planter, who had never seen Europe, was chosen by us to Command our Troops, and continued during the whole War. This man sent home to you, one after another, five of your best generals, baffled, their Heads bare of Laurels, disgraced even in the Opinion of their Employers."

So much for conventional experience.

3. Washington and the Continental army narrowly escaped total destruction in the New York campaign of 1776

Unlike the successful Siege of Boston, the efforts to defend the city of New York ended in near disaster for the Continental Army and the cause of independence. In what proved to be the largest battle of the Revolutionary War in terms of total combatants, Washington's forces on August 22, 1776, were flanked out of their positions atop the Gowanus Heights (part of today's modern Brooklyn) and soundly defeated by William Howe's roughly 20,000 man force on Long Island.

Confronted by a powerful British army to his front and the East River to his back, Washington rapidly formulated a risky plan to save his threatened army atop Brooklyn Heights. With the constant threat that the Royal Navy would enter the East River and block his avenue of retreat, Washington ordered that all available flatboats be brought down to his position so that the army could be moved to nearby Manhattan on the night of August 29-30, 1776. Aided by a providential fog that hid the evacuation, Washington was able to successfully move all 9,000 of his troops to Manhattan without losing a man - a remarkable military feat that astounded his British enemy.

As the New York campaign progressed, Washington's forces were subsequently defeated at the Battle of White Plains on October 28, 1776, and later at Fort Washington on November 16, 1776. The debacle at Fort Washington cost the Americans 59 killed and another 2,837 captured. Chased from New York, Washington's fractured and demoralized army retreated all the way across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania.

It was during these dark days at the close of 1776 that Thomas Paine's words from the recently published American Crisis rang most true - "These are the times that try men's souls...the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman."

4. Washington crossed the Delaware River twice in December 1776

Washington's great triumph against the Hessian forces at Trenton on December 26, 1776, is one of the best-known episodes of the Revolutionary War. ( Map: Battle of Trenton) Fearing a counterattack by British regulars, Washington hustled his tired warriors and frozen Hessian captives back to the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River.

Would this single victory over a Hessian garrison be enough to sustain the morale and inspiration of the beleaguered Patriot cause? Encouraged by reports of the enemies' general confusion in New Jersey and a successful campaign to extend the enlistments of many soldiers ready in his ranks, Washington decided to seize the initiative once more. Determined to expand upon his initial success Washington shuttled his army and artillery back across the frozen Delaware on December 30, 1776, and into a strong position along the Assunpink Creek outside of Trenton. It was here that Washington awaited the arrival of Gen. Charles Cornwallis' force of 8,000 Redcoats and Hessians.

Disdaining any complicated maneuvers, a confident Cornwallis ordered three successive frontal assaults on January 2, 1777, by his Hessian grenadiers and British Regulars. Each attack across the narrow Assunpink bridges and fords was driven back with heavy loss of life. The casualties were so heavy that one soldier remarked that the bridge to his front "looked red as blood, with their killed and wounded and their red coats." ( Map: Battle of Second Trenton)

With the rapid onset of an early winter's eve, Cornwallis ordered a cessation of offensive actions. Certain of a victory the following day, the British general boasted that "we've got the old fox safe now. We'll go over and bag him in the morning." Unfortunately for Cornwallis, the morning sun that illuminated the empty American camps proved that the "old fox" was gone. Washington during the night had stolen a march and had marched his army north to Princeton where the Americans proved victorious once more on January 3, 1777 ( Map: Battle of Princeton).

The victories at Trenton and Princeton, not only helped to bolster the morale of the American army and encourage recruitment, but these bold actions also greatly impressed the French who were actively weighing their involvement in the war.

Learn More: 10 Facts About Washington's Crossing of the Delaware

5. Washington's smallpox inoculation program was one of his best decisions of the war

Up until modern times, disease, not bullets, bayonets, or cannon fire, had been the great killer of soldiers in all armies. In 1775, smallpox had so devastated the American army in Canada that John Adams bemoaned that "...smallpox is ten times more terrible than the British, Canadians and Indians together."

Having survived his own bout with smallpox in 1751, Washington was altogether familiar with how disease could rob the cause of a viable army. Not only would smallpox kill off soldiers in the ranks, but the threat of infection also scared away many of the recruits that Washington's army depended upon.

Starting during the winter of 1777 in Morristown, New Jersey, Washington took the bold and controversial move to have soldiers in his army inoculated against smallpox infection using a technique called variolation. Later during the winter encampment at Valley Forge, Washington went even further, demanding that his entire army be inoculated - an action that required great secrecy since inoculated soldiers were incapacitated for a period of time. By some reports, death by smallpox in the ranks dropped from 17% of all deaths to a low of 1% of all reported deaths - a tremendous reduction.

Historian Elizabeth Fenn, author of Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-1782, claims that "Washington's unheralded and little-recognized resolution to inoculate the Continental forces must surely rank with the most important decisions of the war..."

Learn More: George Washington and the Inoculation of the Continental Army

6. Supply issues became one of Washington's greatest challenges

One of the oldest of military adages is that amateurs study tactics while professional warriors study logistics. As with all military campaigns, providing for the vast material needs of an army in the field requires a focus on organization and effective supply management. Unfortunately for Washington and the Continental Army, a poor supply chain became a chronic issue that negatively impacted combat effectiveness. Biographer Ron Chernow states that "[s]eldom in history has a general been handicapped by such constantly crippling conditions...He repeatedly had to exhort Congress and the thirteen states to remedy desperate shortages of men, shoes, shirts, blankets, and gunpowder. This meant dealing with selfish, apathetic states and bureaucratic incompetence in Congress. He labored under a terrible strain that would have destroyed a lesser man."

Nowhere were supply troubles more evident and onerous than during the Valley Forge winter encampment of 1777-1778. Rather than snow and frigid temperatures, it was actually the rainy, temperate weather at Valley Forge that turned the surrounding roads to mud, further hindering an already tenuous supply network.

Local farmers were more likely to send their foodstuffs and supplies to the nearby British who had hard currency to offer in return. The Continental Army, by comparison, could only offer payment in greatly devalued paper currency or through IOUs. Washington became so concerned over the poor state of supply that he appointed Gen. Nathanael Greene as his new quartermaster. Greene, who was initially concerned about taking this thankless job, overhauled the inefficient supply system and greatly improved the state of the Continental Army through his efforts.

Video: Valley Forge in the American Revolution

7. Mount Vernon escaped destruction in 1781, but the method used to gain its security alarmed Washington

In April of 1781, the British sloop of war HMS Savage anchored menacingly in the Potomac River near George Washington's plantation home at Mount Vernon. The Savage, under the command of Captain Thomas Graves, had been raiding up and down the Potomac and now demanded that the General's estate provide the sloop with "a large supply of provisions." If the order to provide supplies was actively resisted, Mount Vernon was likely to have been put to the torch as other nearby plantation homes had been.

While the Savage was anchored close to shore, seventeen intrepid Mount Vernon slaves made their way down to the ship and gained their freedom as they arrived on the warship's deck. Lund Washington, George Washington's distant cousin and estate manager, first thought to resist this ultimatum per his master's instruction, but later agreed to provide sheep, hogs, and "an abundant supply of other articles" to the Savage, partially in an attempt to win back the escaped slaves. Captain Graves gladly accepted the supplies, spared the plantation, and refused to return the slaves.

Washington, once he learned of Lund's decision to provide supplies to the enemy, was incensed. From his headquarters in New Windsor, New York, he wrote Lund and dismissed any significant concern over the escaped slaves, but noted that "It would have been a less painful circumstance to me, to have heard, that in consequence of your non-compliance with [the HMS Savage's request], they had burnt my House, and laid the Plantation in ruins."

Learn More: The HMS Savage at Mount Vernon

8. Prior to its decisive victory at Yorktown, the American military teetered upon total collapse

Years of rampant military spending, economic mismanagement, and hyperinflation fueled by a successful British campaign to flood the colonies with counterfeit paper money had left the American financial coffers bare. Washington, in a letter to John Laurens in France, declared in January 1781 that he could not even pay the teamsters that were required to bring supplies to his troops. A gloomy and frustrated Washington admitted that "we are at the end of our tether, and that now or never our deliverance must come." French setbacks in Rhode Island, news of British successes in the Southern theater, and intelligence reports indicating a possible French exit in 1781 all added to the sense of impending defeat.

In late May 1781 Washington's situation and the fate of the American cause began to rapidly improve. Comte de Rochambeau, the commander of the French troops in America, informed Washington that France had made a 6,000,000 livre gift to the Continental Army. But it was the news that Rochambeau did not initially share with Washington that made an even bigger impact. The French fleet, now operating in strength in North American waters, had been secretly directed to the Chesapeake and a real opportunity to defeat Cornwallis' force now existed. Washington, who had been stubbornly fixated on attacking the British base at New York City, rallied to Rochambeau's plan and moved his army south to Virginia. On September 5, 1781, the French fleet under the command of Admiral de Grasse drove off the British fleet sent to relieve Cornwallis. The trap was now set. The siege of Yorktown began on September 28, 1781, and ended with a Franco-American victory on October 19, 1781 - the decisive battle of the Revolutionary War.

Learn More: The Yorktown Campaign | Watch "Now or Never: The Yorktown Campaign of 1781"

9. Washington deftly put down a growing military rebellion

Despite having achieved a decisive victory at the Battle of Yorktown in October of 1781, threats to the Patriotic cause continued. In March of 1783, a growing number of American military officers, discouraged by lack of regular pay and ongoing financial support, began to openly discuss options that included a wanton disbandment of the army or possibly even a military show of force pointed directly at Congress.

Washington, who learned of the "Newburgh Conspiracy" through a printed camp circular, appeared at a March 15, 1783 meeting and challenged the gathered group of officers. "My God! What can this writer have in view, by recommending such measures! Can he be a friend to the army? Can he be a friend to this country? Rather is he not an insidious foe?" Towards the end of his address, Washington reached into his pocket to retrieve a pair of spectacles and in a theatrical gesture remarked that "...I have not only grown gray, but almost blind in service to my country." This display of self-sacrifice from their longstanding leader deeply affected many of the officers who in turn abandoned their treasonous thoughts and returned the obvious affection of their leader.

Videos: Washington and the Newburgh Conspiracy

10. Washington's greatest display of power was his surrender of power

On December 23, 1783, Washington strode into the statehouse at Annapolis, Maryland and surrendered his military commission to a grateful Congress. In front of the gathered congressmen, Washington declared, "Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from the great theatre of Action-and bidding an Affectionate farewell to this August body under whose orders I have so long acted, I here offer my Commission, and take my leave of all the employments of public life."

History is filled with example after example of military commanders seizing political power during times of revolution - Julius Caesar, Oliver Cromwell, Napoleon Bonaparte, Mao Zedong, and Muammar Gaddaffi are just some of the better-known examples. We take it for granted today that the United States Armed Forces are subordinated to civilian rule, but in the 18th century, it was far from certain that any general would simply surrender power to a civilian authority. But for George Washington, civilian control of the military was a core part of his beliefs. Washington's resignation signaled to the world and the American people that this new nation would be founded on different principles.

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Ten Facts About George Washington and the Revolutionary War

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Despite having little experience in commanding large, conventional military forces, Washington's strong leadership presence and fortitude held the American military together long enough to secure victory at Yorktown and independence for his new nation.

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George Washington- Ten Facts About Washington's Presidency

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George Washington- Ten Facts About Washington's Presidency

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Unanimously elected President of the United States twice, George Washington played an essential part in shaping the role and function of the President of the United States.

1. President Washington never lived in Washington, D.C.

George Washington is the only US president to have never occupied the White House. In New York and then later in Philadelphia, the Washingtons occupied a series of grand houses, where they received members of Congress, officials, foreign dignitaries, and other prominent people according to a standing weekly schedule.

In July 1790, Congress passed the Residence Act which called for the permanent capital of the United States to be located on the Potomac River (the future Washington D.C.). President Washington personally overlooked the building of what he once termed "the seat of Empire." He specified the location of the ten-mile square federal district, the President's mansion (the White House), and the Capitol.
read the residence act of 1790
Washington involved himself in almost all aspects of the project, even after his retirement from the presidency in 1797.
Building the new nation's capitol
2. George Washington established the tradition of a cabinet of advisors

While the Constitution calls for the creation of executive departments, it only explained that the heads of executive departments were unelected officials who had to answer to the president. Washington defined how these roles would function.

While the current presidential cabinet includes sixteen members (fifteen heads of executive agencies and the vice president), Washington's cabinet included just four original members: Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of War Henry Knox, and Attorney General Edmund Randolph. Washington set the precedence for how these roles would interact with the presidency, establishing the cabinet as the chief executive's private, trusted advisors. Further, Washington sought to include multiple perspectives in the cabinet, perhaps best exhibited by the political spectrum ranging from Hamilton to Jefferson.

While variance helped ensure that differing ideas would be aired, it also created tensions, particularly regarding debates over the establishment of a national bank. As Jefferson himself admitted, "Hamilton and myself were daily pitted in the cabinet like two cocks." Despite the harsh disagreements, Jefferson believed that the tone had little impact on quality of governance, explaining that "The pain was for Hamilton and myself, but the public experienced no inconvenience."
Learn More: Washington's Cabinet
3. Washington signed into law the first copyright law

On May 31, 1790, President Washington signed the Copyright Act of 1790 into law. Formally titled, "An act for the encouragement of learning by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned," the legislation was the first law protecting copyright in the United States. The act explained that it intended to protect "the author and authors of any map, chart, book or books already printed within these United States," and that authors would "have the sole right and liberty of printing, reprinting, publishing and vending such map, chart, book or books." Copies of the law bearing Washington's signature were re-printed in newspapers throughout the country.
Learn More: Patents
4. Washington set precedents for the social life of the president

Washington was concerned that the presidents of the Confederation Congress had been overwhelmed by visitors in the past. As a result, during the presidency Washington set aside the late afternoon for meetings with the public and evenings for dinner parties with invited guests. On Tuesday afternoons Washington received male callers from three until four o'clock in the afternoon. The reception was a series of gentlemanly introductions and greetings where Washington was visited in a formal manner as President of the United States. Friday evenings included both women and men and were less formal affairs featuring interaction with colleagues and other politicians.
Learn More: Presidential Entertaining
5. The first Thanksgiving Proclamation was issued by President Washington

Days of thanksgiving were celebrated since the beginning of European settlement in North America. In 1789, President Washington formalized the holiday by issuing a proclamation designating November 26 as a national day of thanksgiving. Washington declared that the day sprung from the Almighty's care of Americans both during and after the Revolution. The proclamation was distributed to state governors, requesting that they announce and observe the day within their states. Newspapers subsequently published the proclamation and celebrations were held throughout the United States. Washington himself marked the day by attending services at St. Paul's Chapel in New York City, and subsequently donating beer and food to imprisoned debtors in the city.
Learn More: Thanksgiving
6. President Washington personally led troops into the field to stop the Whiskey Rebellion

Suffering under a heavy debt load originating from the American Revolution, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton in January 1791 proposed to Congress an excise tax "upon spirits distilled within the United States." This tax, which was passed into law in March 1791, was angrily opposed by many Americans living in Western Pennsylvania. Many of these frontier citizens relied heavily on distilled spirits for income and violently opposed this tax. Attempts to end the uprising peacefully were rejected by the growing opposition.

By 1794 the Whiskey Rebellion threatened the stability of the new United States and challenged the authority of the democratically-elected federal government. President Washington organized a militia force of 12,950 men and personally led them towards Western Pennsylvania, warning locals "not to abet, aid, or comfort the Insurgents aforesaid, as they will answer the contrary at their peril." The calling of the militia had the desired effect of essentially ending the Whiskey Rebellion. By the time the militia reached Pittsburgh, the rebels had dispersed and could not be found. The militia apprehended approximately 150 men and tried them for treason. Limited evidence and the inability to obtain witnesses hampered the trials. Two men, John Mitchell and Philip Weigel, were found guilty of treason, though both were pardoned by President Washington. George Washington's firm actions during this crisis served to build the strength and authority of the new federal government.
Learn More: The Whiskey Rebellion
7. Washington vetoed only two bills while President

Washington rejected both pieces of legislation based on ideological concerns and in each instance Congress was unable to overturn the veto. The first bill that Washington vetoed was the Apportionment Bill of April 5, 1792 which aimed at providing guidelines for the number of congressional representatives based on the results of 1790 census. Washington vetoed the legislation based on constitutional concerns, believing that the law would not divide each state's population evenly when determining representation. Further, Washington argued that the law had unfairly "allotted to eight of the States, more than one [representative] for thirty thousand," potentially creating an imbalance in power.

On February 28, 1797 (shortly before leaving office), Washington vetoed a bill aimed at cutting the size and cost of the military. The veto was utilized based on the advice of Secretary of War James McHenry and was policy-driven, objecting to one specific provision that dissolved two companies of light cavalry.

8. President Washington delivered an important address on religious tolerance at a Rhode Island synagogue

On August 18, 1790, congregants of the Touro Synagogue of Newport, Rhode Island, warmly welcomed George Washington to both their place of worship and their city. Washington's letter of response to the synagogue, has become famous for reinforcing the ideal of religious liberty in American life. Washington promised the synagogue more than mere religious tolerance, explaining that "It is now no more that toleration is spoken of as if it were the indulgence of one class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights." The letter continued with the promise that "the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens in giving it on all occasions their effectual support." Washington's remarks established a precedent for protecting religious liberty and pluralism in the United States that persists to this day.
LEARN MORE: WASHINGTON AND RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
9. Washington's second inaugural address is the shortest ever delivered

Washington's second inaugural, delivered March 4, 1793, clocked in at less than two minutes and was only 135 words in length. The text of that ever-so-brief address reads:
"I am again called upon by the voice of my country to execute the functions of its Chief Magistrate. When the occasion proper for it shall arrive, I shall endeavor to express the high sense I entertain of this distinguished honor, and of the confidence which has been reposed in me by the people of united America." " Previous to the execution of any official act of the President the Constitution requires an oath of office. This oath I am now about to take, and in your presence: That if it shall be found during my administration of the Government I have in any instance violated willingly or knowingly the injunctions thereof, I may (besides incurring constitutional punishment) be subject to the upbraidings of all who are now witnesses of the present solemn ceremony."
10. Washington's Farewell Address is one of the most celebrated documents in American history.

Washington's Farewell Address, which warned against "the baneful effects of the Spirit of Party," encouraged a focus on education and morality, cautioned against sectionalism within the nation, and admonished against entangling foreign alliances, has continued to have influence over American culture and political debates long past when it was first published.

In the midst of the Civil War, on February 19, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling on Americans to mark Washington's birthday. Lincoln "recommended to the people of the United States that they assemble in their customary places of meeting for public solemnities on the 22d day of February" to "celebrate the anniversary of the birth of the Father of his Country by causing to be read to them his immortal Farewell Address."

Since 1896, the United States Senate has commemorated Washington's birthday with an annual reading of the Farewell Address, all 7,641 words, by a selected sitting senator. At the conclusion of the reading, the chosen senator signs and writes his or her thoughts on the significance of the address in the pages of a leather-bound book that is maintained by the Secretary of the Senate.

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Unanimously elected President of the United States twice, George Washington played an essential part in shaping the role and function of the President of the United States.

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Alexander Hamilton - Author of The Federalist Papers & First Secretary of Treasury | Mini Bio | BIO

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Alexander Hamilton was born in Charlestown, Nevis, in the West Indies on January 11, 1757 ( or 1755), to James Hamilton, a Scottish merchant of St. Christopher, and Rachel Fawcett. Rachel's father was a Huguenot physician and planter. While very young, she had been married to and divorced from a Danish proprietor on St. Croix. After her divorce, the court prohibited her remarriage. The marriage to James Hamilton was acceptable socially in the West Indies, but not elsewhere. The union resulted in the birth of two sons, but they were living apart less than 10 years later. Rachel and her boys lived on St. Croix, dependent on her relatives. She passed away in 1768. His father survived until 1799 - but the boys were virtually orphans before they were even teenagers.

At the age of 12, Hamilton began work as a clerk in a general store, but the boy had a keen intellect and ambitious goals. He was an excellent writer, in French as well as English. In 1772, a hurricaine ravaged the West Indies. Hamilton wrote a letter about the devastating storm, published in the Royal Danish American Gazette, of such poetic eloquence that a subscription fund was taken up to send the promising young intellectual to North America for a formal education.

In 1773, Hamilton was entered at King's College (Now Columbia). Even as a young man he had a strong grasp on political issues concerning British and American government, which he exhibited in a series of anonymous pamphlets so discerning, they were attributed to John Jay. He was only 17 at the time.

In 1775 he withdrew from his college studies and founded a volunteer military company. On March 14, 1776, Hamilton was commissioned Captain of the New York Provincial Company of Artillery. He exhibited great skill and intelligence in his duties with artillery, and Nathanael Greene noticed. He was asked to serve on the staff of Lord Stirling, which he declined, and continued his career with artillery at Long Island, Harlem Heights, White Plains, and saw action at Trenton and Princeton in the New Jersey campaign.

Washington recognized Hamilton's leadership abilities, as well as his extraordinary talent for writing. Hamilton was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and made his aide-de-camp on March 1, 1777. Just twenty years old at the time, Hamilton had already made remarkable accomplishments.

Hamilton spent the winter of 1777-1778 with Washington and the Continental Army at Valley Forge. It was during this winter that Brigadier General Horatio Gates tried unsuccessfully to incriminate Hamilton during the Conway Cabal.

On December 14, 1780, Alexander Hamilton married Elizabeth Schuyler, daughter of Philip Schuyler, a Revolutionary War general, and Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler. Both the Schuylers and Rensselaers were very wealthy and prominent New York families. It was a happy marriage that produced eight children.

On February 16, 1781, Hamilton quarreled with Washington, and their relationship was forever soured. He describes the incident in a letter to his father-in-law dated February 18, 1791:

. . . Two days ago, the General and I passed each other on the stairs. He told me he wanted to speak to me. I answered that I would wait upon him immediately. I went below, and delivered Mr. Tilghman a letter to be sent to the commissary, containing an order of a pressing and interesting nature.
Returning to the General, I was stopped on the way by the Marquis de La Fayette, and we conversed together about a minute on a matter of business. He can testify how impatient I was to get back [. . .] I met him [Washington] at the head of the stairs, where, accosting me in an angry tone, "Colonel Hamilton," said he, "you have kept me waiting at the head of the stairs these ten minutes. I must tell you sir, you treat me with disrespect. I replied without petulancy, but with decision: "I am not conscious of it, sir, but since you have thought it necessary to tell me so, we part." "Very Well, sir," said he, "if it be your choice," or something to this effect, and we separated. I sincerely believe my absence, which gave so much umbrage, did not last two minutes.

Attempts at reconciliation were not successful. Several months later, in July, Hamilton was given command of a battalion of Lafayette's Division in Moses Hazen's Brigade. He led a successful attack at Yorktown, contributing to the final American victory there. He continued in the military for a couple of years when he was made Colonel on September 30, 1783. He left the service by the end of the year.

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Alexander Hamilton, (born January 11, 1755/57, Nevis, British West Indies-died July 12, 1804, New York, New York, U.S.), New York delegate to the Constitutional Convention (1787), major author of the Federalist papers, and first secretary of the treasury of the United States (1789-95), who was the foremost champion of a strong central government for the new United States. He was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr.

Early life

Hamilton's father was James Hamilton, a drifting trader and son of Alexander Hamilton, the laird of Cambuskeith, Ayrshire, Scotland; his mother was Rachel Fawcett Lavine, the daughter of a French Huguenot physician and the wife of John Michael Lavine, a German or Danish merchant who had settled on the island of St. Croix in the Danish West Indies. Rachel probably began living with James Hamilton in 1752, but Lavine did not divorce her until 1758.

In 1765 James Hamilton abandoned his family. Destitute, Rachel set up a small shop, and at the age of 11 Alexander went to work, becoming a clerk in the countinghouse of two New York merchants who had recently established themselves at St. Croix. When Rachel died in 1768, Alexander became a ward of his mother's relatives, and in 1772 his ability, industry, and engaging manners won him advancement from bookkeeper to manager. Later, friends sent him to a preparatory school in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, and in the autumn of 1773 he entered King's College (later Columbia) in New York. Intensely ambitious, he became a serious and successful student, but his studies were interrupted by the brewing revolt against Great Britain. He publicly defended the Boston Tea Party, in which Boston colonists destroyed several tea cargoes in defiance of the tea tax. In 1774-75 he wrote three influential pamphlets, which upheld the agreements of the Continental Congress on the nonimportation, nonconsumption, and nonexportation of British products and attacked British policy in Quebec. Those anonymous publications-one of them attributed to John Jay and John Adams, two of the ablest of American propagandists-gave the first solid evidence of Hamilton's precocity.

In March 1776, through the influence of friends in the New York legislature, Hamilton was commissioned a captain in the provincial artillery. He organized his own company and at the Battle of Trenton, when he and his men prevented the British under Lord Cornwallis from crossing the Raritan River and attacking George Washington's main army, showed conspicuous bravery. In February 1777 Washington invited him to become an aide-de-camp with the rank of lieutenant colonel. In his four years on Washington's staff he grew close to the general and was entrusted with his correspondence. He was sent on important military missions and, thanks to his fluent command of French, became liaison officer between Washington and the French generals and admirals.

Eager to connect himself with wealth and influence, Hamilton married Elizabeth, the daughter of Gen. Philip Schuyler, the head of one of New York's most distinguished families. Meantime, having tired of the routine duties at headquarters and yearning for glory, he pressed Washington for an active command in the field. Washington refused, and in early 1781 Hamilton seized upon a trivial quarrel to break with the general and leave his staff. Fortunately, he had not forfeited the general's friendship, for in July Washington gave him command of a battalion. At the siege of Cornwallis's army at Yorktown in October, Hamilton led an assault on a British stronghold.

Early political activities

In letters to a member of Congress and to Robert Morris, the superintendent of finance, Hamilton analyzed the financial and political weaknesses of the government. In November 1781, with the war virtually over, he moved to Albany, where he studied law and was admitted to practice in July 1782. A few months later the New York legislature elected him to the Continental Congress. He continued to argue in essays for a strong central government, and in Congress from November 1782 to July 1783 he worked for the same end, being convinced that the Articles of Confederation were the source of the country's weakness and disunion.

In 1783 Hamilton began to practice law in New York City. He defended unpopular loyalists who had remained faithful to the British during the Revolution in suits brought against them under a state law called the Trespass Act. Partly as a result of his efforts, state acts disbarring loyalist lawyers and disfranchising loyalist voters were repealed. In that year he also won election to the lower house of the New York legislature, taking his seat in January 1787. Meanwhile, the legislature had appointed him a delegate to the convention in Annapolis, Maryland, that met in September 1786 to consider the commercial plight of the Union. Hamilton suggested that the convention exceed its delegated powers and call for another meeting of representatives from all the states to discuss various problems confronting the nation. He drew up the draft of the address to the states from which emerged the Constitutional Convention that met in Philadelphia in May 1787. After persuading New York to send a delegation, Hamilton obtained a place for himself on the delegation.

Hamilton went to Philadelphia as an uncompromising nationalist who wished to replace the Articles of Confederation with a strong centralized government, but he did not take much part in the debates. He served on two important committees, one on rules in the beginning of the convention and the other on style at the end of the convention. In a long speech on June 18, he presented his own idea of what the national government should be. Under his plan, the national government would have had unlimited power over the states. Hamilton's plan had little impact on the convention; the delegates went ahead to frame a constitution that, while it gave strong power to a federal government, stood some chance of being accepted by the people. Since the other two delegates from New York, who were strong opponents of a Federalist constitution, had withdrawn from the convention, New York was not officially represented, and Hamilton had no power to sign for his state. Nonetheless, even though he knew that his state wished to go no further than a revision of the Articles of Confederation, he signed the new constitution as an individual.

Opponents in New York quickly attacked the Constitution, and Hamilton answered them in the newspapers under the signature Caesar. Since the Caesar letters seemed not influential, Hamilton turned to another classical pseudonym, Publius, and to two collaborators, James Madison, the delegate from Virginia, and John Jay, the secretary of foreign affairs, to write The Federalist, a series of 85 essays in defense of the Constitution and republican government that appeared in newspapers between October 1787 and May 1788. Hamilton wrote at least two-thirds of the essays, including some of the most important ones that interpreted the Constitution, explained the powers of the executive, the senate, and the judiciary, and expounded the theory of judicial review (i.e., the power of the Supreme Court to declare legislative acts unconstitutional and, thus, void). Although written and published in haste, The Federalist was widely read, had a great influence on contemporaries, became one of the classics of political literature, and helped shape American political institutions. In 1788 Hamilton was reappointed a delegate to the Continental Congress from New York. At the ratifying convention in June, he became the chief champion of the Constitution and, against strong opposition, won approval for it.

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Alexander Hamilton | Biography, Duel, Musical, & Facts

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Alexander Hamilton, New York delegate to the Constitutional convention, major author of the Federalist papers, and first secretary of the treasury of the United States, who was the foremost champion of a strong central government for the new United States.

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Alexander Hamilton: Facts, Birth, Children & Death - HISTORY

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Alexander Hamilton, one of America’s most influential Founding Fathers and Treasury secretaries, had a brilliant political career until he was killed in an 1804 duel.

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Summer 1999, Vol. 31, No. 2

By Emily J. Teipe

© 1999 by Emily J. Teipe

At first glance, searching for the real Molly Pitcher, the fabled heroine of the American Revolutionary War, seems about as pointless as searching for Paul Bunyan and his blue ox, Babe. Nonetheless, legendary figures hold some fascination and usually contain a kernel of historical authenticity. In the case of the patriot-cannoneer Molly Pitcher, culling the fictitious from the real can be somewhat of a challenge. She has held a revered place in the patriotic lore of the American Revolution, right next to Betsy Ross, while real female patriots such as Deborah Sampson, a revolutionary soldier (a.k.a. Robert Shurtleff), or the multitalented, self-taught scholar, playwright, propagandist, and historian Mercy Otis Warren are rarely mentioned even in survey history texts. Two centuries after the Revolution, Molly's popularity flourishes, extending into the virtual world of cyberspace perpetuated by Web sites on the Internet on which browsers can discuss whether or not Molly Pitcher was a feminist. While all of this good-natured speculation has not led to anything of substance, it is quite probable that historical research can still render some interesting insights about Molly and, more important, about the role of women who served in the military during the American Revolutionary War.

Historian Linda Grant De Pauw, whose studies have examined women's roles in the War for Independence, believes that Molly Pitcher is merely a persona created from numerous sources. However, there are some viable contenders for canonization as the real Molly Pitcher such as a young soldier's wife named Mary Ludwig Hayes. Mary Ludwig, the daughter of German immigrants, had married John Hays, a barber, in 1769. She first entered the war record on June 28, 1778, when she signed up two years after her husband to serve with Capt. Francis Proctor's company in the Pennsylvania Artillery. Mary was described by the men in her company as a twenty-two-year-old illiterate pregnant woman who smoked and chewed tobacco and swore as well as any of the male soldiers. Mary had endeared herself to the troops because of her unusual courage and hard work under fire. 1 During the Battle of Monmouth, Mary Ludwig Hayes earned the nickname Molly Pitcher for performing the exhaustive work of supplying battle-fatigued and wounded men with drinking water in the heat of combat. When her husband collapsed from heat stroke (some sources say he was injured in battle), Mary took his place at the cannon, performing skillfully and heroically. Like so many other patriots, tradition states that she received the personal thanks of General Washington. 2 When her husband died in 1789 from his battle wounds, Mary Hayes married George McCauley, and some forty-four years after the war the state of Pennsylvania awarded her with an annual pension of forty dollars for her heroism at Monmouth. She died January 22, 1833, and is buried at Old Graveyard (the name of the town) in Pennsylvania near Carlisle. During the centennial of the Revolution in 1876, the citizens of Cumberland County marked her grave as a honored soldier. Today battlefield monuments at Monmouth and at her gravesite commemorate Mary Ludwig Hayes McCauley (i.e., Molly Pitcher) for her heroic contribution to American independence.

Her service record and place as a historical figure is also validated by the documentation of one eyewitness at the Battle of Monmouth, Pvt. Joseph Plumb Martin, who substantiates that Molly Pitcher was more than just a legend. In his most engaging war diary, he described how during the battle he had observed a woman firing cannon. 3 History is forever indebted to Private Martin for having the presence of mind to mention this woman's valor and for relating this humorous incident.

A woman whose husband belonged to the artillery and who was then attached to a piece in the engagement, attended with her husband at the piece for the whole time. While in the act of reaching a cartridge and having one of her feet as far before the other as she could step, a cannon shot from the enemy passed directly between her legs without doing any other damage than carrying away all the lower part of her petticoat. Looking at it with apparent unconcern, she observed that it was lucky It did not pass a little higher, for in that case it might have carried away something else, and continued her occupation.4

According to historian James Kirby Martin, the woman whom Joseph had observed firing cannon during the Battle of Monmouth was Mary Ludwig Hayes. If this were the only evidence, it would seem conclusive that Mary Ludwig Hayes McCauley certifies as the real Molly Pitcher. However, as it turns out, there are other Molly Pitcher candidates vying for the title.

Identifying the real Molly Pitcher is further obscured by the fact that Margaret Corbin served in the same artillery regiment as Mary Ludwig Hayes. She and her husband, John, served under Capt. Francis Proctor in the First Company of the Pennsylvania Artillery. Margaret Corbin, the first woman pensioned by the Continental Congress, holds the unique honor of being the only soldier of the Revolutionary War buried at the Military Academy at West Point, New York. Patriotic literature commonly refers to Margaret Corbin as "Captain Molly." Linda Grant De Pauw describes Margaret Corbin as a transvestite soldier who wore a uniform but made no attempt to conceal her sex. 5 At the Battle of Fort Washington, when John Corbin was killed, Margaret took his place immediately on the firing line and was wounded in the engagement with the British. Captured by the British, she was subsequently released and reassigned to the corps of invalids at West Point performing guard duty. Her name is also listed on the discharge rolls of the invalid regiment rolls for April 1783. These events demonstrate that the military recognized Margaret Corbin as a regular soldier and treated her as such. Furthermore, officers from her regiment petitioned successfully for Corbin to receive both state and federal pensions the same year. 6 On July 6, 1779, the Continental Congress

Resolved, That Margaret Corbin, who was wounded and disabled in the attack on Fort Washington, whilst she heroically filled the post of her husband who was killed by her side serving a piece of artillery, do receive, during her natural life Or the continuance of the said disability, the one-half of the monthly pay drawn by a soldier in the service of these states; and that she now receive out of the public stores, one complete suit of cloaths, or the value thereof in money.7

After the war, the invalid Margaret lived in straitened circumstances in Westmoreland County. She died at the age of forty-eight on January 16, 1800, as a result of her war injuries. 8

Candidate number three is Deborah Sampson. Deborah was the only woman other than Corbin who received a federal pension for military service. Recruited as Robert Shurtleff, she is a startling example of the female patriot-soldiers who fought for independence. During the war, Deborah disguised herself as a man and signed up to fight with the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment. Because of her smooth complexion and high-pitched voice, her fellow soldiers had nicknamed her "Molly." After the war she was employed briefly by an uncle on his farm in Stoughton, Massachusetts. In 1784 at Sharon, Massachusetts, she married Benjamin Gannett, a poor farmer, and between 1786 and 1790 gave birth to three children, Earl, Gilbert, and Patience.

In 1792, Deborah petitioned the state of Massachusetts for her back pay. She had a number of documents to verify her service including the affidavit of Col. Henry Jackson testifying that Robert Shurtleff had served in his regiment and received an honorable discharge. Anticipating that her identity might be questioned, she also held a certificate signed in Dedham, Massachusetts (dated December 10, 1791), by Capt. Eliphalet Thorp, who vouched that it was Mrs. Deborah Gannett who had enlisted as a soldier. Her petition was approved by the legislature and signed by Governor John Hancock that same year. She is also very likely the first American woman to appear on the theatrical stage. In an effort to augment her income, Deborah Gannett performed in Boston and New York theaters, charging seven dollars an appearance. 9 In 1802 the Mercury and New England Palladium, a Boston newspaper, advertised that "Mrs. Gannett equipt in complete uniform will go through the Manual Exercise. The whole to conclude with the Song and Chorus of 'God Save the Sixteen States.'" 10 It was later reported that she had marched through twenty-seven maneuvers, wearing her blue and white uniform, armed with a musket, followed by a speech that was largely an apology for having "swerved from the flowery path of female delicacy." 11 Breaking social convention in more ways than one, Deborah Sampson's stage appearances, which predate those of early female abolitionists and feminists, are notable for making her the first American woman to give public lectures to mixed audiences of men and women.

Deborah Gannett's influential advocate, the famous silversmith and engraver Paul Revere, wrote several times on her behalf for a pension. A letter to Congressman William Eustis of Massachusetts confirms that twenty-one years after the war, Deborah was still stigmatized as the woman who had dressed as a male soldier. Revere appealed to the congressman on her behalf, claiming that she had mended her ways:

I have been induced to inquire her situation and character, since she quitted the male habit, and soldier's uniform, for the more decent apparel of her own sex; and since she has been married and become a mother. Humanity and justice obliges me to say, that every person with whom I have conversed about her, and it is not a few, speak of her as a woman of handsome talents, good morals, a dutiful wife, and an affectionate parent.

He explained that Deborah's impaired health was due to the wound she had received in combat. While Benjamin, her husband, was a good man, he was unsuccessful in business; even though the Gannetts had a few acres of farm land, they were very poor. In concluding his petition, Revere appealed to his congressman by reiterating that Mrs. Gannett was indeed feminine:

When I heard her spoken of as a soldier, I formed the idea of a tall, masculine female, who had a small share of understanding, without education, and one of the meanest of her sex. When I saw and discoursed with her I was agreeably surprised to find a small, effeminate, and conversable woman, whose education entitled her to a better situation in life.12

It is significant that Deborah felt it necessary to apologize on stage for having swerved from the path of femininity, and it was also critical for Revere to convince Congressman Eustis that Mrs. Gannett had recovered and maintained her femininity after the war. By disguising herself as a man, running away from home alone, and joining the army, Deborah had broken all the rules of social convention. Until the twentieth century, a young lady had only two legitimate reasons for leaving home-her marriage or the death of her parents. It was unthinkable for a single woman to be on her own without risking damage to her reputation. Popular literature abounded with horror tales of female deviants who had suffered the consequences of leaving home and living on their own. They met with the resulting moral deterioration of illegitimate childbirth, prostitution, or even death. 13 Taken from this cultural perspective, Deborah's biography can best be understood not as an exaggerated account of her military exploits but as an apology to her community. Her biographer Herman Mann emphasized repeatedly that throughout all of Deborah's wartime escapades, she had maintained her chastity. Obviously, Deborah needed a man with the prestige of Paul Revere to speak for her and defend her femininity.

In 1809, after twenty years of petitioning the federal government, Deborah received a disability pension of four dollars a month. (Male veterans claiming disability received five dollars a month.) In large part due to Revere's intervention, the pension amount was made retroactive to 1803. With this money, the Gannetts were able to build a clapboard home on their acreage and plant a few trees. However, the pensions Deborah received never relieved their poverty or debt. Shortly after receiving the pension, Deborah wrote to thank Paul Revere and asked to borrow ten dollars. 14 When the 1818 pension bill was passed by the Monroe administration, she applied again. The 1818 pension, designed specifically to help indigent veterans, promised government relief to those still struggling thirty-five years after the war. It required applicants to submit a personal inventory of their assets and net worth including real estate and household goods. (The government did not require that the value of clothing and bedding be estimated in the inventory.) In the application, Deborah Gannett, fifty-eight years old and mother of three children, claimed total assets of twenty dollars, which included her clothing. In order to qualify for the new pension, she had to relinquish the former disability pension of forty-eight dollars per annum as well as a state pension of four dollars a month. Deborah received the seventy-six-dollar stipend for about seven years. 15

After her death in 1827, her husband (believed to be the only widower to file for a pension) could not qualify for benefits since they had not been married until l784. 16 In 1831 Gannett, aged eighty-three, was sick and impoverished. He depended upon local charity for survival and decided to petition the government for a pension. Gannett's pension affidavit describes Deborah's life after the war. He stated that she had been honorably discharged and rendered an accurate account of her military service. He also believed that her discharge papers were lost. According to Mr. Gannett, her war wound, a musket ball lodged in her thigh for forty-six years, "followed her through life and hastened her death." Another witness, Mr. P. Parsons, testified that Deborah had been unable to perform any labor due to her wound. Consequently, Benjamin had been subjected to heavy medical expenses for more than twenty years before Deborah started receiving a pension. In 1831 Gannett still owed physicians six hundred dollars for her treatment. On March 4, 1831, a special act of Congress awarded Benjamin Gannett a more generous pension than Deborah had ever received. This stipend of eighty dollars a year was to continue "for and during his natural life." Four years after Deborah Samson Gannett's death, Congress stated in the pension granted to Benjamin, "the whole history of the American Revolution records no other similar example of female heroism, fidelity and courage." Based on the evidence available, it is more accurate to state that although history does not record the heroic deeds of many military women of the American Revolutionary War, we cannot assume that Deborah Sampson Gannett was extraordinary. 17

The historical record presents other candidates too numerous to mention here. But the evidence available begs the question-who is the real Molly Pitcher? The answer is quite simple-all of them and none of them. Molly Pitcher is, as Linda Grant De Pauw has suggested, a legendary personality constructed from the tales of bravery and daring of Revolutionary women. The name Molly Pitcher is a collective generic term inasmuch as "G.I. Joe" was a moniker for a soldier or soldiers in World War II. The name Molly Pitcher, like the term G.I. Joe, is a common label for the countless, nameless, women and men who are anonymously honored for their heroic service. Because no one individual can be accurately identified as Molly, many women qualify to be called by what has come to be the honorary title of Molly Pitcher. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of women served not only as ammunition wives, manning and firing the guns, but also in the army and colonial militia. While this search for the real Molly Pitcher seems at first glance a rather futile academic pursuit, on closer scrutiny it actually yields not only a clearer understanding of the multifaceted roles that women played but also some clues as to the greater numbers who were engaged in the war effort. Indeed, while only two women, Betsy Ross and Molly Pitcher, are enshrined in Revolutionary history, the major contribution of women in winning independence has been blatantly overlooked. Why have these women gone unrecognized for so long? This telling oversight reveals something of the prevalent eighteenth-century attitudes toward women.

A broader, more active, military role for females was first suggested by Walter Blumenthal's study of women in the Revolutionary War in which he identified as camp followers many who served as nurses, cooks, and military aides. 18 Until his landmark study, women's contribution to the war effort consisted of anecdotal references in the literature or mythologized sketches of Molly Pitcher and Betsy Ross. It was Blumenthal who first suggested that a significant number of women in the colonial population had participated in the military effort.

Surveying commissary records and military orders, he calculated the number of women who followed specific regiments. Because the British held the distinction of maintaining the highest number of camp followers with a ratio of women to men at one to eight, Blumenthal estimated the number of camp followers in Burgoyne's army at about one thousand women to eight thousand men. 19 Among the American forces, he theorized that camp followers were fewer in number because of the shortage of food and the inability of the Continental army to sustain them. According to Washington's orders, the proportion of women in the camps was not to exceed a ratio of one per thirteen men. Since the combined fighting forces of the Continental army and the colonial militia never exceeded forty thousand troops in the field simultaneously, assuming Blumenthal's ratio of thirteen to one would yield about three thousand camp followers at any given period.

While the Blumenthal study is highly informative on the role of camp followers, his suggestion that mainly loose women "giddied by the uniform" or by the possibility of procuring rum rations attracted them to the camps for a romp in the open air is inaccurate. His treatment of camp followers fails to recognize that the chief motivation to follow the armies was not romantic adventure but was a result of the war itself. Many civilians whose homes had been destroyed were displaced and destitute. Homeless women, including military wives, single mothers, and widows, fled to the army for protection and the hope of daily rations for themselves and their children.

Blumenthal's seminal study of camp followers has, however, challenged additional research to determine just how many more women served on active military duty. While any estimate is specious, nonetheless inquiry does disclose significant details about patriotic women.

A closer examination of the war correspondence and papers of George Washington and other officers reveals that they gradually came to accept and appreciate the contribution of the wmen in the army. They came to be regarded as more than just auxiliary or paramilitary "hangers on" at camp or prostitutes. Initially, Washington forbade women in the camps, assuming that they were a nuisance and of loose morals. He complained especially about the women who were pregnant and those with children who were a "clog upon the movement." 20 However, as the war progressed, General Washington recognized the value of the camp women to the survival of the soldiers and to an ultimate victory and exhorted his men to treat the women as regular army personnel.

One of the more colorful narratives about camp followers that describes their desperate condition is that of Hannah Winthrop. She had watched as Burgoyne's troops marched through Boston and wrote to her friend Mercy Otis Warren about this spectacle.

To be sure the sight was truly astonishing. I never had the least idea that the Creation produced such a sordid set of creatures in human Figure-poor, dirty, emaciated men, great numbers of women, who seemed to be the beasts of burthen having a bushel basket on their back, by which they were bent double, the contents seemed to be Pots and kettles, various sorts of furniture, children Peeping thro' gridirons and other utensils, some very young infants who were Born on the road, the woman bare feet, cloathed in dirty rags, such effluvia filled the air while they were passing, had they not been smoaking all the time, I should have been apprehensive of being contaminated by them.21

Linda Grant De Pauw asserts "tens of thousands of women were involved in active combat" during the Revolutionary War in three distinct areas: those who served in the Continental army referred to as women of the army; those who enlisted, wore uniforms, and served in the regular forces; and women who served as affiliates in state militia or field hospitals or as camp followers. Citing the memoirs of men who served, camp orders of commanding officers, and army records that periodically counted the women of the army for the purposes of rations assessment, she cautions that notions of women in the army solely as prostitutes or camp followers is misleading. Women of "vicious character," or camp followers, were first of all civilians, and not subject to military orders or discipline. She reckons that as many as twenty thousand females may have served as women of the army, but only a few hundred may have served in uniform, and "unlike camp followers, women of the army were subject to military discipline." 22 When they were given military orders, they were expected to carry them out in the same manner as the male soldiers. When they did not, offenders such as Mary Johnson, at Valley Forge, were court-martialed. The women were not paid to darn socks and cook meals for the men but were recruited to augment them as support troops in the medical corps and the artillery. She believes it was so difficult for women to survive as camp followers that many chose to join the army to ensure rations and pay. De Pauw describes the women who served in the artillery, i.e., the Molly Pitchers, as ordinary wives acting in their capacity as deputy husbands trained in firing cannons and ready at a moment's notice to "stand in" for their husbands.

Other historians have calculated the number of women who served on active military duty. Elizabeth Cometti estimates that as many as twenty thousand American women joined the Continental army serving as nurses and carrying water and ammunition for the artillery regiments. She identifies these women as neither camp followers nor uniformed soldiers but members of soldiers' families, i.e., mothers, wives, and daughters, who received pay and food rations and were subject to military discipline. 23 Cometti recognizes only a "handful of women" who dressed as soldiers and fought as regular troops even though military regulations forbade them to wear uniforms.

In addition to the war diaries of soldiers, food rations lists, military correspondence, and general orders, the ongoing search for the Molly Pitchers is greatly enhanced by a largely untapped source of historical evidence-the Revolutionary War pension file applications. These files contain testimonials of Revolutionary War soldiers and provide a rich source of military, social, and family history. The pension affidavit of veteran Lemuel Cook is one such example. As an eyewitness of Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown, he described the horrid physical condition of the camp followers who augmented the British troops, such as "the old devil women with no boots or shoes and about a pint of lice on them." 24 There is no reason to assume that the American female camp followers would have made a more favorable appearance. Although historian Blumenthal and veteran Cook have characterized these women as the low life of colonial society, other pensioners give a different description. Veteran Alexander Milliner, who served as a drummer boy in the Continental army, described his mother, a camp follower, as "English, high larnt, understood all languages, and had been a teacher." Alexander testified in his pension application that his mother had volunteered to serve as a washerwoman in the camps just to be with him. 25

Other pension file applications, specifically the records of Revolutionary War widows, hold great potential for further studies not so much on the role of military women but on their plight after the war. These women had applied for pensions initially to collect any unpaid army salaries due to their deceased husbands. Some were compensated later when widows' benefits were legislated.

Sarah Osborn Benjamin is a fitting example. Her pension file application contains a lengthy affidavit about her life as a camp follower and much detail about her military service. In 1780, when Aaron Osborn reenlisted with the Third New York Regiment of the Continental forces, he insisted that his wife, Sarah, accompany him into the service. Sarah relates that at their first camp there were only two other women-the wives of Lieutenant Forman and Sergeant Lamberson. She spent about three years in the military, during which time she had two children, Phoebe and Aaron, Jr. Living with the troops, Sarah must have been a rather pathetic sight. While encamped with her husband and family near Philadelphia, some Quaker ladies visiting the camp took pity on her, urged her to leave, and offered her asylum. Sarah explained to them that she could not because of her husband's refusal to leave her behind when the army resumed march. At the Battle of Yorktown, she and other women took their place just behind the American tents. They washed, mended, cooked, and served gallons of coffee along with beef and bread to the men in the trenches. 26 After discharge, she and her husband stayed near their last encampment at New Windsor, New York (near West Point). Shortly thereafter, her husband abandoned her and the children. Sarah heard rumors that he had taken residence near Newburgh, New York, with another woman. She went there to confront him and discovered that he had married a young woman named Polly Sloat. Sarah returned to her birthplace of Blooming Grove in Orange County, New York, where she met and married Revolutionary War veteran John Benjamin. When John died in 1827, she was not eligible for a pension. But in November 1837, at the age of eighty-one, she qualified and was awarded a pension as Osborn's widow. 27 She received a pension of eighty-eight dollars a year and remained on the pension rolls for twenty-seven years. 28

The pension lists not only fill in some detail about women's wartime efforts and describe their economic struggle and social experience in the new Republic but also raise additional questions. The most obvious is why were so few women compensated for their patriotic service to their country? The Revolutionary War pension rolls contains about eighty thousand pension applications. With the exception of two women, Margaret Corbin and Deborah Sampson, all of the applicants were men. For this study, the files of 1,000 male veterans that contained the applications for 350 revolutionary war widows were analyzed. The discovery of Sarah Osborn Benjamin's application presupposes that other Revolutionary wives who had served in the military as well were not pensioned.

Trying to assess just how many Revolutionary War women served but were not compensated can be perplexing because the military evidence is deficient. Sarah's affidavit is unique. She disclosed her story despite the humiliation of her husband's bigamy and her abandonment. Her testimony suggests that other wives may have followed their husbands and served as well. As already mentioned, many women are not identifiable in the record because they used male names, masquerading as men in order to serve. Bearing all of this in mind, Sarah's testimony of life in the camps advances the question-why are the testimonies of the other women who served in the camps missing?

Faced with this silence, Linda Kerber's astute observation on the war's impact on gender roles offers some enlightenment. In the postwar period, leading Americans constructed the ideology of Republican motherhood as an attempt to reinstate the domestic sphere for women and carefully selected those attributes to assign to females that would maintain pride, decency, and the ritual of self-respect. "But," Kerber argues, "they denied the most frightening elements of women's wartime experiences. There was no room in the new construction for the disorderly women who had emptied pisspots on stamp tax agents, intimidated hoarders, or marched with Washington and Greene." In restoring order-patriarchal order-to American society, it was essential to deny the disordered behavior that had occurred during the War for Independence. The military women could not be rewarded because to do so would have dredged up the most disturbing aspects of the Revolution. Thus, Kerber concludes, "the women of the army were denied as the Shaysites were denied." 29 Women such as Sarah Osborn Benjamin, Margaret Corbin, or Deborah Sampson were very likely regarded by Republican society as coarse, unfeminine, and of loose morals because they had cohabited with the soldiers. Their wartime exploits were not exemplary of Republican womanhood, not something to boast or write about, and certainly not the sort of thing a lady would tell her grandchildren. This would certainly explain why Deborah Sampson was compelled to apologise publicly on stage for her part in the war and why Paul Revere felt it necessary to assure Congressmen Eustis that she had returned to a more feminine role as wife and mother.

It is interesting to note that the only two women who were granted federal veterans pensions had one thing in common that the other courageous Molly Pitchers lacked: male sponsorship. Paul Revere had acted on Deborah's behalf and petitioned for her pension. (It also bears noting that her husband, Benjamin Gannett, was granted a special pension by Congress at a time when widows were refused benefits. 30) Margaret Corbin was compensated when officers of the Pennsylvania Regiment petitioned on her behalf. Despite the extraordinary service of all of the Molly Pitchers in the American Revolution, the Republic that was established was still a man's world. As female veterans returned to a patriarchal society where their contribution went unrewarded and largely unrecognized, only the heroic imagery of Molly Pitcher commemorated their patriotism.
Notes
1. Robert Leckie, George Washington's War: The Saga of the American Revolution (l992), p. 486.

2. There are several versions of this story as well. Either George Washington merely complimented Mary Hayes, thanked her, or bestowed some reward. Walter Blumenthal states that Washington gave Mary a gold piece and promoted her to sergeant for her bravery during the Battle of Monmouth; however, there is no evidence in the military records of her having been promoted.

3. Joseph Plumb Martin, Ordinary Courage: The Revolutionary War Adventures of Joseph Plumb Martin, ed. James Kirby Martin (1993), p. 80.

5. Linda Grant De Pauw, "Women in Combat: The Revolutionary War Experience," Armed Forces and Society 7 (Winter 1981): 219.

6. William Henry Egle, Some Pennsylvania Women during the War of the Revolution (1898; reprint 1993), p. 53.

7. Continental Congress, Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789, microcard editions, 1975, p. 805. The "One-half of a monthly salary drawn by a soldier" (i.e., a private) amounted to less than two dollars a month. Allen Bowman, The Morale of the American Revolutionary Army (1964), pp. 23-24, explains the difficulty in assessing wages. Initially, a private's monthly salary was $6.66, which was reduced by 25 percent early in the war. Corbin's disability pay was probably about two dollars a month.

8. Egle, Pennsylvania Women, p. 53.

9. William Blumenthal, Women Camp Followers of the American Revolution (1952), p. 70.

10. Elizabeth Evans, Weathering the Storm: Women of the American Revolution (1975), p. 319.

11. The text of her speech is reprinted in ibid., pp. 317-329.

12. Paul Revere to Congressman William Eustis of Massachusetts, l804, quoted in ibid., pp. 329-330.

13. Gerda Lerner, The Female Experience: An American Documentary, American Heritage (l977), pp. 42-44.

14. Deborah Sampson Gannett's letter is quoted in Evans, Weathering the Storm, p. 33.

15. Deborah Sampson Gannett, file # S-32732, Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files (National Archives Microfilm Publication M804, roll 1045), Records of the Veterans Administration, Record Group 15, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.

16. The first pension law granting benefits to widows, passed in l836, required that the marriage of the veteran and the claimant must have taken place before the veteran's military service terminated, i.e., before the close of the war.

17. Some fifty years after the war, Congress investigated Gannett himself while reviewing his claim. His lack of military service and loyalty during the Revolution were questioned. The congressional proclamation states, "While it does not appear that he fought, she would be unlikely to link up with a Tory traitor." Congress noted that because he had sustained her through a life of long sickness and suffering, "he has proved himself worthy of her." Benjamin Gannett died six years later, and by another special act of Congress, Deborah's pension of eighty dollars a year was granted to her children, Earl, Gilbert, and Patience.

18. For further information on women camp followers during the Revolutionary War, see Walter Blumenthal's landmark study, Women Camp Followers of the American Revolution.

19. Henry Belcher, The First American Civil War, vol. 1 (1911), p. 280.

20. John C. Fitzpatrick, ed., Writings of Washington, vol. 9 (1938), p. 17.

21. Hannah Winthrop to Mercy Otis Warren, Nov. 11, l777, in Massachusetts Historical Society Collections 73 (1925), vol. 2, pp. 451-453.

22. De Pauw, "Women in Combat," p. 210.

23. Elizabeth Cometti, "Women of the Revolution," The New England Quarterly 20 (September 1947): 329.

24. Lemuel Cook, file # S-33258, M804, roll 637, RG 15, NARA.

25. Alexander Miller, file # S-42925, M804, roll 1733, RG 15, NARA.

26. Sarah Osborn Benjamin, file # W4558, M804, roll 624, RG 15, NARA. According to Sarah's testimony, during the Battle of Yorktown, General Washington asked her if she was frightened by the artillery fire, and she replied, "No, the bullets would not cheat the gallows, for it would not do for the men to fight and starve too."

27. References of other family members suggest that Sarah was married to three Revolutionary veterans. Her first husband may have been William Read of Blooming Grove, who died early in the war from battle injury. Her maiden name was Matthews; however, she testified that her name was Sarah Read when she met and married Osborn.

28. Sarah Osborn is one of the pensioners featured in John C. Dann, The Revolution Remembered (1980), pp. 240-250. Dann states that she received a double pension based upon the service of both veteran husbands. However, John Benjamin's pension card file indicates that she was pensioned as the former widow of Aaron Osborn of New York. There is no mention of any widow's benefits under Benjamin. Her complete application is filed under Osborn's name. She states in her affidavit that Aaron Osborn later sold the bounty land of 160 acres that he had received to pay some debts. In 1837 she claimed to be eighty-one. If that was her correct age, then she was l08 years old when she died in 1864.

29. Linda Kerber, "History Can Do It No Justice: Women and the Reinterpretation of the American Revolution," in Women in the Age of the American Revolution, ed. Ronald Hoffman and Peter J. Albert (1989), p. 40.

30. Deborah Sampson Gannett, file # S-32732, M804, roll 1045, RG 15, NARA.

Articles published in Prologue do not necessarily represent the views of NARA or of any other agency of the United States Government.

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Will the Real Molly Pitcher Please Stand Up?

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Summer 1999, Vol. 31, No. 2 By Emily J. Teipe © 1999 by Emily J. Teipe Enlarge Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth. June 1778. Copy of engraving by J. C. Armytage after Alonzo Chappel. ARC Identifier: 532935; The George Washington Bicentennial Commission, 1931-1932; Records of Commissions of the…

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Molly Pitcher, byname of Mary Ludwig Hays McCauly, (born 1754, near Trenton, New Jersey [U.S.]-died January 22, 1832, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, U.S.), heroine of the Battle of Monmouth during the American Revolution.

According to legend, at the Battle of Monmouth (June 28, 1778), Mary Hays, wife of artilleryman William Hays, carried water to cool both the cannon and the soldiers in her husband's battery-hence the nickname "Molly Pitcher." Legend also asserts that when William Hays collapsed or was wounded, she took her husband's place in the gun crew for the rest of the battle.

Patriotic prints and literature depicting the alleged event initially referred to "Captain Molly." The less martial and more nurturing "Molly Pitcher" did not appear as a cognomen until the mid-19th century. Neither image was identified with a specific person until 1876, when the citizens of Carlisle claimed a woman buried there was the literal heroine of Monmouth. Military records indicate that a William Hays did enlist in the artillery in 1776 and died about 1789. His wife Mary remarried and eventually applied for a pension as a soldier's widow. Instead, on February 21, 1822, Pennsylvania awarded her an annual grant of $40 "for services she rendered." The services were unspecified, though the wording of the pension bill suggests that she may have played some kind of direct role in the Revolution. Whether she was this particular woman or not, monuments near the Monmouth battle site and at Mary Hays's grave recognize Molly Pitcher's contribution to American independence.

Dennis E. Showalter

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Molly Pitcher | Biography, American Revolution, Battle of Monmouth, & Facts

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Molly Pitcher, heroine of the Battle of Monmouth (June 28, 1778) during the American Revolution. According to legend, at that battle, Mary Hays, wife of artilleryman William Hays, carried water to cool both the cannon and the soldiers in her husband's battery, hence the nickname 'Molly Pitcher.'

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A heroine of the Revolutionary War, Molly Pitcher was the nickname of a woman said to have carried water to American soldiers during the Battle of Monmouth on June 28, 1778, before taking over for her husband on the battlefield after he was no longer able to fight.

While there's no definitive proof about who Pitcher was-and there's debate about whether she even existed at all-most commonly she's been identified as Mary Hays McCauley. Born in Pennsylvania in 1754 (or possibly 1744), Mary may have worked as a servant before marrying William Hays, of Carlisle, Pennsylvania. During the war, Hays served as a gunner in the 4th Artillery of the Continental Army while Mary became part of the group of women, later referred to as camp followers, who traveled with the army and took on such duties as cooking, washing and caring for sick and wounded soldiers.

At the Battle of Monmouth, which took place on a sweltering summer day in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Continental forces under General George Washington faced off against British troops under General Henry Clinton. Mary brought water to the parched American troops until her husband collapsed, either from the heat or after being wounded, after which she supposedly took his place and helped operate the cannon for the rest of the battle.

A soldier who witnessed the action later wrote about in his diary, without referring to the woman involved by name: "While in the act of reaching a cartridge and having one of her feet as far before the other as she could step, a cannon shot from the enemy passed directly between her legs without doing any other damage than carrying away all the lower part of her petticoat."

The longest single day of fighting of the American Revolution, the Battle of Monmouth ended in a tactical draw. Following the war, Mary and her husband returned to Carlisle, where he died several years later. Mary went on to wed John McCauley, about who little is known. In 1822, the state of Pennsylvania awarded her an annual pension of $40 "for services rendered during the war."

Following Mary's death in 1832, newspaper stories noted her bravery during the war but offered no details about which battle she served in. In the ensuing decades, accounts spread about Molly Pitcher, an unnamed woman who manned a cannon at the Battle of Monmouth. Mary Hays McCauley became formally linked with the Revolutionary War heroine in 1876 when residents of Carlisle decided to mark her grave as that of Molly Pitcher.

HISTORY Vault: The American Revolution

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Did Revolutionary War Heroine Molly Pitcher Exist? | HISTORY

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She supposedly cared for American soldiers during the war-and then took over for one of them when he could no longer fight.

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Q.Can you tell me any thing about Molly Pitcher and if she had any responsibilities at Valley Forge or did she just follow her husband there for support. It is hard to find any information on Molly before the Battle of Monmouth.
Robin Mcbroom, Lancaster, Ohio

A. "Molly Pitcher" was not a single historical figure, but a composite folk hero inspired by the actions of different people, most of them women who carried water to troops during the revolution. Women filling this role on the battlefield may have generally been referred to by this nickname. Two real women in particular have been associated with the legend of Molly Pitcher

Born in 1754, Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley was the daughter of a New Jersey dairy farmer. At the age of 13, she went to work as a domestic/servant and married a barber named William Hays. When the Revolutionary War began, William enlisted and became a gunner in the Pennsylvania Artillery. Mary eventually joined her husband as a campfollower during the Philadelphia Campaign (1777-1778) in New Jersey, eventually wintering with the Army at Valley Forge.

Legend says that Mary was carrying water for the troops at the Battle of Monmouth in June, 1778, but when her husband the artilleryman was wounded, she abandoned her water jugs and took up loading the artillary in his place. Joseph Plumb Martin, a soldier in the Continental Army, was present at the battle. His memoirs, discovered in the 1950s, have become an important primary source for historians interested in the experiences of ordinary soldiers during the revolution. Plumb relates an incident during the battle:

"A woman whose husband belonged to the artillery and who was then attached to a piece in the engagement, attended with her husband at the piece the whole time. While in the act of reaching a cartridge and having one of her feet as far before the other as she could stemp, a cannon shot from the enemey passed directly between her legs without doing any other damage than carrying away all the lower part of her petticoat. Looking at it with apparent unconcern, she observed that it was lucky it did not pass a little higher, for in that case it might have carried away something else, and continued her occupation."

Washington is said to have observed her heroics on the battlefield and issued her a commendation, and Mary was allegedly called by the nickname "Sergeant Molly" for the rest of her life. Where history ends and folklore begins is a matter of continued debate, however. We have no record of this commendation from Washington. Martin's single account is the only real evidence available concerning Hays' contributions at Monmouth.

At the close of the war, William and Mary Hays returned to Pennsylvania. They settled in Carlisle where Mary went back to work as a domestic as well as a "charwoman" in the State House in Carlisle. William died in 1786, and in 1793, Mary married John McCauley, who had also served in the war. She was awarded a pension in 1822 by the Pennsylvania State Legislature and it wasn't until the anniversary of the War in 1876 that a marker noting her exemplary service was placed on her grave. She died on January 22, 1832.

Another "Molly Pitcher" was Margaret Corbin (b. 1751) - who is said to have taken up a cannon when her husband was killed at Fort Washington on Manhattan Island, New York in 1776. She was seriously wounded there herself when her arm was almost severed and her breast was lacerated by grapeshot. She lived until 1800 after receiving charity payments from the Invalid Regiment and later a small pension from Congress. She was allegedly known throughtout her community as a bad-tempered, hard-drinking eccentric by the nickname of "Captain Molly."

Corbin and Hays were both real women who performed bravely during the war. "Molly Pitcher," in contrast, is a legend, a symbol of courage in the face of adversity.

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Historic Valley Forge. Read the story of the 6-month encampment at Valley Forge. Plus a timeline, weather reports, the French Connection, Franklin, spies, mysteries, and more!

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Molly Pitcher- Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth VIDEO

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Molly Pitcher- Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth VIDEO

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Betsy Ross and the First United States Flag

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Betsy Ross and the First United States Flag

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Table of Contents

1. Betsy Ross: An Early American Life

2. The Story of the Betsy Ross Flag

3. Betsy Ross: Later Life, Work and Children

4. Betsy Ross: A Legacy Unfurled

Perhaps the best-known figure from the American Revolutionary era who wasn't a president, general or statesman, Betsy Ross (1752-1836) became a patriotic icon in the late 19th century when stories surfaced that she had sewn the first "stars and stripes" U.S. flag in 1776. Though that story is likely apocryphal, Ross is known to have sewn flags during the Revolutionary War.

Betsy Ross: An Early American Life

Elizabeth Griscom was born on January 1, 1752, in Gloucester City, New Jersey. She was the eighth of 17 children. Her parents, Rebecca James Griscom and Samuel Griscom were both Quakers. The daughter of generations of craftsmen (her father was a house carpenter), young Betsy attended a Quaker school and was then apprenticed to William Webster, an upholsterer. In Webster's workshop, she learned to sew mattresses, chair covers and window blinds.

Did you know? An 1871 pamphlet enthusiastically not only credited Betsy Ross for designing the first U.S. flag, but for coming up with the name "United States of America" and writing a hymn that was the basis for the French anthem "La Marseillaise." (There is no evidence to support either of those claims.)

In 1773, at age 21, Betsy crossed the river to New Jersey to elope with John Ross, a fellow apprentice of Webster's and the son of an Episcopal rector-a double act of defiance that got her expelled from the Quaker church. The Rosses started their own upholstery shop, and John joined the militia. He died after barely two years of marriage. Though family legend would attribute John's death to a gunpowder explosion, illness is a more likely culprit.

The Story of the Betsy Ross Flag

In the summer of 1776 (or possibly 1777) Betsy Ross, newly widowed, is said to have received a visit from General George Washington regarding a design for a flag for the new nation. Washington and the Continental Congress had come up with the basic layout, but, according to legend, Betsy allegedly finalized the design, arguing for stars with five points (Washington had suggested six) because the cloth could be folded and cut out with a single snip.

The tale of Washington's visit to Ross was first made public in 1870, nearly a century later, by Betsy Ross's grandson. However, the flag's design was not fixed until later than 1776 or 1777. Charles Wilson Peale's 1779 painting of George Washington following the 1777 Battle of Princeton features a flag with six-pointed stars.

Betsy Ross was making flags around that time-a receipt shows that the Pennsylvania State Navy Board paid her 15 pounds for sewing ship's standards. But similar receipts exist for Philadelphia seamstresses Margaret Manning (from as early as 1775), Cornelia Bridges (1776) and Rebecca Young, whose daughter Mary Pickersgill would sew the mammoth flag that later inspired Francis Scott Key to write " The Star-Spangled Banner."

Betsy Ross: Later Life, Work and Children

In June 1777, Betsy married Joseph Ashburn, a sailor, with whom she had two daughters. In 1782 Ashburn was apprehended while working as a privateer in the West Indies and died in a British prison. A year later, Betsy married John Claypoole, a man who had grown up with her in Philadelphia's Quaker community and had been imprisoned in England with Ashburn. A few months after their wedding, the Treaty of Paris was signed, ending the Revolutionary War. They went on to have five daughters.

Over the next decades, Betsy Claypoole and her daughters sewed upholstery and made flags, banners and standards for the new nation. In 1810 she made six 18-by-24-foot garrison flags to be sent to New Orleans; the next year she made 27 flags for the Indian Department. She spent her last decade in quiet retirement, her vision failing, and died in 1836, at age 84.

Betsy Ross: A Legacy Unfurled

The records of the U.S. flag's origins are fragmentary in part because at the time Americans were indifferent to flags as national relics. "The Star-Spangled Banner" was written in 1812 but did not become popular until the 1840s. As the 1876 U.S. Centennial approached, enthusiasm for the flag increased.

It was in that environment, in 1870, that Betsy Claypoole's grandson William Canby presented the family tale to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. At the time several claims on the first flag were surfacing, ranging from other Philadelphia seamstresses to a New Hampshire quilting bee said to have fashioned the banner out of cut-up gowns.

Most such stories, however wishfully sourced, expressed a national desire for symbols of female Revolutionary patriotism, of women materially supporting their fighting men and (just perhaps) showing George Washington a better way to make a star.

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Betsy Ross (1752-1836) became a patriotic icon in the late 19th century when stories surfaced that she had sewn the first "stars and stripes" U.S. flag in 1776. Though that story is likely apocryphal, Ross is known to have sewn flags during the Revolutionary War.

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Betsy Ross - Her Life

by Jonathan Schamlzbach and Douglas Heller [This material is copyrighted by and used by permission of ushistory.org.] One year before William Penn founded Philadelphia in 1681, Betsy Ross's great-grandfather, Andrew Griscom, a Quaker carpenter, had already emigrated from England to New Jersey. Andrew was successful at his trade. He was also of firm Quaker belief, and he was inspired to move to Philadelphia to become an early participant in Penn's "holy experiment." He purchased 495 acres of land in the Spring Garden section north of the city of Philadelphia (the section would later be incorporated as part of the city), and received a plot of land within the city proper. Griscom's son and grandson both became respected carpenters as well. Both have their names inscribed on a wall at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, home of the oldest trade organization in the country. Griscom's grandson Samuel helped build the bell tower at the Pennsylvania State House (Independence Hall). He married Rebecca James who was a member of a prominent Quaker merchant family. It was not unusual for people in those days to have many children, so it is only somewhat surprising to learn that they had 17! Elizabeth Griscom - also called Betsy, their eighth child and a fourth-generation American, was born on January 1, 1752. Betsy went to a Friends (Quaker) public school. For eight hours a day she was taught reading, writing, and received instruction in a trade - probably sewing. After completing her schooling, Betsy's father apprenticed her to a local upholsterer. Today we think of upholsterers primarily as sofa-makers and such, but in colonial times they performed all manner of sewing jobs, including flag-making. It was at her job that Betsy fell in love with another apprentice, John Ross, who was the son of an Episcopal assistant rector at Christ Church. Quakers frowned on inter-denominational marriages. The penalty for such unions was severe - the guilty party being "read out" of the Quaker meeting house. Getting "read out" meant being cut off emotionally and economically from both family and meeting house. One's entire history and community would be instantly dissolved. On a November night in 1773, 21-year-old Betsy eloped with John Ross. They ferried across the Delaware River to Hugg's Tavern and were married in New Jersey. Her wedding caused an irrevocable split from her family. [It is an interesting parallel to note that on their wedding certificate is the name of New Jersey's Governor, William Franklin, Benjamin Franklin's son. Three years later William would have an irrevocable split with his father because he was a Loyalist against the cause of the Revolution.] Less than two years after their nuptials, the couple started their own upholstery business. Their decision was a bold one as competition was tough and they could not count on Betsy's Quaker circle for business. As she was "read out" of the Quaker community, on Sundays one could now find Betsy at Christ Church sitting in pew 12 with her husband. Some Sundays would find George Washington, America's new commander in chief, sitting in an adjacent pew.

War Comes to Philadelphia

In January 1776, a disaffected British agitator living in Philadelphia for only a short while published a pamphlet that would have a profound impact on the Colonials. Tom Paine ("These are the times that try men's souls") wrote Common Sense which would swell rebellious hearts and sell 120,000 copies in three months; 500,000 copies before war's end. However, the city was fractured in its loyalties. Many still felt themselves citizens of Britain. Others were ardent revolutionaries heeding a call to arms. Betsy and John Ross keenly felt the impact of the war. Fabrics needed for business were becoming hard to come by. Business was slow. John joined the Pennsylvania militia. While guarding an ammunition cache in mid-January 1776, John Ross was mortally wounded in an explosion. Though his young wife tried to nurse him back to health he died on the 21st and was buried in Christ Church cemetery. In late May or early June of 1776, according to Betsy's telling, she had that fateful meeting with the Committee of Three: George Washington, George Ross, and Robert Morris, which led to the sewing of the first flag. After becoming widowed, Betsy returned to the Quaker fold, in a way. Quakers are pacifists and forbidden from bearing arms. This led to a schism in their ranks. When Free, or Fighting Quakers - who supported the war effort - banded together, Betsy joined them. (The Free Quaker Meeting House, which still stands a few blocks from the Betsy Ross House, was built in 1783, after the war was over.) Betsy would be married again in June 1777, this time to sea captain Joseph Ashburn in a ceremony performed at Old Swedes Church in Philadelphia. During the winter of 1777, Betsy's home was forcibly shared with British soldiers whose army occupied Philadelphia. Meanwhile the Continental Army was suffering that most historic winter at Valley Forge. Betsy and Joseph had two daughters (Zillah, who died in her youth, and Elizabeth). On a trip to the West Indies to procure war supplies for the Revolutionary cause, Captain Ashburn was captured by the British and sent to Old Mill Prison in England where he died in March 1782, several months after the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia, the last major battle of the Revolutionary War.

After the War

Betsy learned of her husband's death from her old friend, John Claypoole, another sailor imprisoned at the brutal Old Mill. In May of 1783, Betsy was married for the third time, the ceremony performed at Christ Church. Her new husband was none other than old friend John Claypoole. Betsy convinced her new husband to abandon the life of the sea and find landlubbing employment. Claypoole initially worked in her upholstery business and then at the U.S. Customs House in Philadelphia. The couple had five daughters (Clarissa Sidney, Susannah, Rachel, Jane, and Harriet, who died at nine months). After the birth of their second daughter, the family moved to bigger quarters on Second Street in what was then Philadelphia's Mercantile District. Claypoole passed on in 1817 after years of ill health and Betsy never remarried. She continued working until 1827 bringing many of her immediate family into the business with her. After retiring, she went to live with her married daughter Susannah Satterthwaite in the then-remote suburb of Abington, PA, to the north of Philadelphia. In 1834, there were only two Free Quakers still attending the Meeting House. It was agreed by Betsy and Samuel Wetherill's son John Price Wetherill that the usefulness of their beloved Meeting House had come to an end. At that last meeting, Betsy watched as the door was locked, symbolizing the end of an era. Betsy died on January 30, 1836, at the age of 84.

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Betsy Ross Flag Facts - Her Life and Times

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The Story of Betsy Ross: The Woman Who Sewed the First American Flag. Elizabeth Griscom, also called Betsy, was born on January 1, 1752. She was ..

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Betsy Ross: Disputed Maker of the First American Flag

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According to legend, Betsy Ross made the first American flag. Despite a lack of credible evidence to support this, she remains an icon of American history.

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general history of the american revolution

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WatchKnowLearn - Free K-12 educational videos

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Free K-12 educational videos ... organized. Tens of thousands of excellent, educational videos in a huge, intuitive directory. Organized, reviewed, rated, and described by teachers. Ideal as a supplement to a curriculum or for independent study. Designed for teachers, students, parents, homeschoolers, educators ... and all life-long learners!

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Kids learn about Paul Revere's famous ride of warning the patriots about the British; major event in the American Revolutionary War.

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Paul Revere was born in the North End of Boston on December 21, 1734. Although Revere originated from the middling sort, through his membership in St. Andrews Lodge of Freemasons, he made connections with a number of people who later became the founding members of the Loyal Nine. Although he was not a member of the Loyal Nine, it is believed that he assisted this predecessor organization of the Sons of Liberty in leading political protests against Parliament's authority to tax the colonies. While he was not known for exceptional oratory, he was a master of propaganda, and his works helped the Sons of Liberty galvanize support for their dissident cause.

Resisting Taxation Without Representation

In August of 1765, Paul Revere participated in the Stamp Act Riots in response to the impending Stamp Act that was to take effect in the coming months. During these riots, the mob tore down the houses of government officials, including the house of Lieutenant Governor and Chief Justice Thomas Hutchinson. While these riots were viewed in a negative light by Parliament, the now apparent unpopularity of the Stamp Act in British North America forced its repeal. Following swiftly on the heels of the Stamp Act's repeal was the passage of the Declaratory Act in 1766, further asserting Parliament's right to tax the colonies. From this point forward, Paul Revere dedicated himself to the production of engravings which highlighted the excesses of the British government, and the unpopularity of their laws in Boston.

On October 1, 1768, two thousand British regulars arrived in Boston. Paul Revere rendered his first of many engravings which, in a subtle manner, detailed the ill effects of British imperial policy in North America. In his engraving of the arrival of British troops, Revere included towering church steeples along Boston's skyline as evidence of the town's orderly and religious origins. To the viewer of the eighteenth century, this made the arrival of British regulars even more offensive. If Boston was capable of managing its own affairs, then why were two thousand regulars quartered in the town?

The Boston Massacre

As time passed, tensions between the occupying force of British regulars and the town of Boston mounted. On March 5, 1770, these tensions resulted in the deaths of five unarmed Boston civilians on King Street. This tragedy later became known as the Boston Massacre. Henry Pelham produced an engraving that was later copied and sensationalized by Paul Revere entitled the Bloody Massacre Perpetrated in King Street. In this engraving, Revere depicted Captain Thomas Preston standing behind his soldiers of the 29th regiment, implying that he ordered them to fire into the crowd-which was later refuted during the Boston Massacre Trial. In addition, Ebenezer Richardson was shown firing his buckshot into the crowd (which had happened only a few weeks prior on February 22, 1770, resulting in the death of Christopher Sneider), and a storefront labeled "Butcher's Hall" as to appeal to the viewer's perception of the British Army as brutal oppressors.

Revere's Revolutionary Propaganda

These examples of propaganda did much to convince the public of Parliament's flawed colonial policies. In the years that followed, Paul Revere, and the leaders of the Sons of Liberty did everything in their power to keep the memory of the Boston Massacre alive. On March 5, 1771, only one year after the massacre, Paul Revere staged an elaborate public demonstration from his home in the North End. From the windows of his home, he displayed various scenes of the Boston Massacre. In one of his windows, he displayed the ghost of young Christopher Sneider along with the names of the five men that fell on King Street. A second window depicted the soldiers of the 29th regiment firing into the crowd, and the third window displayed lady liberty with one foot on the head of a British Grenadier, and her finger pointing toward the window displaying the massacre.

Paul Revere's Ride

These various forms of propaganda had a profound effect on the people of Boston, and were instrumental in persuading the citizenry that the struggle for liberty was a just cause. In the years that followed, the leaders of the patriots would discover other useful talents in Paul Revere. Following the Boston Tea Party, he was dispatched to New York and Philadelphia to inform the Sons of Liberty in those towns of Boston's resistance to the Tea Act. In addition, he was sent by Dr. Joseph Warren to alert the countryside of British regular troop movements on the evening of April 18, 1775, the day before the Battle of Lexington-Concord. While Paul Revere has widely been credited with the midnight ride, other riders were dispatched to raise the alarm of the approaching British Army. His place in history would be solidified by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who canonized Revere as the lone midnight rider in an 1860 poem entitled "Paul Revere's Ride."

Legacy & Leadership

While Paul Revere is best remembered for his horsemanship, his most important contributions came from his hammer and chisel. His ability to appeal to the sensibilities of colonial subjects through the works of his copper engravings, and vigils demonstrated the power of propaganda. After the War of Independence, Revere expanded his business to open an iron foundry in the North End of Boston making utilitarian cast iron products that were useful and widely consumed by the local populace. He also opened a copper mill which produced bells for churches, rolled copper for the hulls of wooden ships, along with copper bolts and spikes that were useful to Boston's burgeoning ship industry. All of this demonstrated that Paul Revere was a man of many talents and a true revolutionary, and was therefore indispensable to Boston's success in resisting the authority of the British Parliament, and King George III.

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Paul Revere was an early revolutionary from Boston who made a number of key connections with leaders of the Loyal Nine and Sons of Liberty.

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Thomas Jefferson's Early Years

Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743, at Shadwell, a plantation on a large tract of land near present-day Charlottesville, Virginia. His father, Peter Jefferson (1707/08-57), was a successful planter and surveyor and his mother, Jane Randolph Jefferson (1720-76), came from a prominent Virginia family. Thomas was their third child and eldest son; he had six sisters and one surviving brother.

Did you know? In 1815, Jefferson sold his 6,700-volume personal library to Congress for $23,950 to replace books lost when the British burned the U.S. Capitol, which housed the Library of Congress, during the War of 1812. Jefferson's books formed the foundation of the rebuilt Library of Congress's collections.

In 1762, Jefferson graduated from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he reportedly enjoyed studying for 15 hours, then practicing violin for several more hours on a daily basis. He went on to study law under the tutelage of respected Virginia attorney George Wythe (there were no official law schools in America at the time, and Wythe's other pupils included future Chief Justice John Marshall and statesman Henry Clay).

Jefferson began working as a lawyer in 1767. As a member of colonial Virginia's House of Burgesses from 1769 to 1775, Jefferson, who was known for his reserved manner, gained recognition for penning a pamphlet, "A Summary View of the Rights of British America" (1774), which declared that the British Parliament had no right to exercise authority over the American colonies.

Marriage and Monticello

After his father died when Jefferson was a teen, the future president inherited the Shadwell property. In 1768, Jefferson began clearing a mountaintop on the land in preparation for the elegant brick mansion he would construct there called Monticello ("little mountain" in Italian). Jefferson, who had a keen interest in architecture and gardening, designed the home and its elaborate gardens himself.

Over the course of his life, he remodeled and expanded Monticello and filled it with art, fine furnishings and interesting gadgets and architectural details. He kept records of everything that happened at the 5,000-acre plantation, including daily weather reports, a gardening journal and notes about his slaves and animals.

On January 1, 1772, Jefferson married Martha Wayles Skelton (1748-82), a young widow. The couple moved to Monticello and eventually had six children; only two of their daughters-Martha (1772-1836) and Mary (1778-1804)-survived into adulthood. In 1782, Jefferson's wife Martha died at age 33 following complications from childbirth. Jefferson was distraught and never remarried. However, it is believed he fathered more children with one of his enslaved women, Sally Hemings (1773-1835), who was also his wife's half-sister.

Slavery was a contradictory issue in Jefferson's life. Although he was an advocate for individual liberty and at one point promoted a plan for the gradual emancipation of slaves in America, he enslaved people throughout his life. Additionally, while he wrote in the Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal," he believed African Americans were biologically inferior to whites and thought the two races could not coexist peacefully in freedom. Jefferson inherited some 175 enslaved people from his father and father-in-law and owned an estimated 600 slaves over the course of his life. He freed only a small number of them in his will; the majority were sold following his death.

Thomas Jefferson and the American Revolution

In 1775, with the American Revolutionary War recently underway, Jefferson was selected as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress. Although not known as a great public speaker, he was a gifted writer and at age 33, was asked to draft the Declaration of Independence (before he began writing, Jefferson discussed the document's contents with a five-member drafting committee that included John Adams and Benjamin Franklin). The Declaration of Independence, which explained why the 13 colonies wanted to be free of British rule and also detailed the importance of individual rights and freedoms, was adopted on July 4, 1776.

In the fall of 1776, Jefferson resigned from the Continental Congress and was re-elected to the Virginia House of Delegates (formerly the House of Burgesses). He considered the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which he authored in the late 1770s and which Virginia lawmakers eventually passed in 1786, to be one of the significant achievements of his career. It was a forerunner to the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which protects people's right to worship as they choose.

From 1779 to 1781, Jefferson served as governor of Virginia, and from 1783 to 1784, did a second stint in Congress (then officially known, since 1781, as the Congress of the Confederation). In 1785, he succeeded Benjamin Franklin (1706-90) as U.S. minister to France. Jefferson's duties in Europe meant he could not attend the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787; however, he was kept informed of the proceedings to draft a new national constitution and later advocated for including a bill of rights and presidential term limits.

Jefferson's Path to the Presidency

After returning to America in the fall of 1789, Jefferson accepted an appointment from President George Washington (1732-99) to become the new nation's first secretary of state. In this post, Jefferson clashed with U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton (1755/57-1804) over foreign policy and their differing interpretations of the U.S. Constitution. In the early 1790s, Jefferson, who favored strong state and local government, co-founded the Democratic-Republican Party to oppose Hamilton's Federalist Party, which advocated for a strong national government with broad powers over the economy.

In the presidential election of 1796, Jefferson ran against John Adams and received the second-highest amount of votes, which, according to the law at the time, made him vice president.

Jefferson ran against Adams again in the presidential election of 1800, which turned into a bitter battle between the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans. Jefferson defeated Adams; however, due to a flaw in the electoral system, Jefferson tied with fellow Democratic-Republican Aaron Burr (1756-1836). The House of Representatives broke the tie and voted Jefferson into office. In order to avoid a repeat of this situation, Congress proposed the Twelfth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which required separate voting for president and vice president. The amendment was ratified in 1804.

Jefferson Becomes Third U.S. President

Jefferson was sworn into office on March 4, 1801; he was the first presidential inauguration held in Washington, D.C. ( George Washington was inaugurated in New York in 1789; in 1793, he was sworn into office in Philadelphia, as was his successor, John Adams, in 1797.) Instead of riding in a horse-drawn carriage, Jefferson broke with tradition and walked to and from the ceremony.

One of the most significant achievements of Jefferson's first administration was the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million in 1803. At more than 820,000 square miles, the Louisiana Purchase (which included lands extending between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico to present-day Canada) effectively doubled the size of the United States. Jefferson then commissioned explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the uncharted land, plus the area beyond, out to the Pacific Ocean. (At the time, most Americans lived within 50 miles of the Atlantic Ocean.) Lewis and Clark's expedition, known today as the Corps of Discovery, lasted from 1804 to 1806 and provided valuable information about the geography, American Indian tribes and animal and plant life of the western part of the continent.

In 1804, Jefferson ran for re-election and defeated Federalist candidate Charles Pinckney (1746-1825) of South Carolina with more than 70 percent of the popular vote and an electoral count of 162-14. During his second term, Jefferson focused on trying to keep America out of Europe's Napoleonic Wars (1803-15). However, after Great Britain and France, who were at war, both began harassing American merchant ships, Jefferson implemented the Embargo Act of 1807.

The act, which closed U.S. ports to foreign trade, proved unpopular with Americans and hurt the U.S. economy. It was repealed in 1809 and, despite the president's attempts to maintain neutrality, the U.S. ended up going to war against Britain in the War of 1812. Jefferson chose not to run for a third term in 1808 and was succeeded in office by James Madison (1751-1836), a fellow Virginian and former U.S. secretary of state.

Thomas Jefferson's Later Years and Death

Jefferson spent his post-presidential years at Monticello, where he continued to pursue his many interests, including architecture, music, reading and gardening. He also helped found the University of Virginia, which held its first classes in 1825. Jefferson was involved with designing the school's buildings and curriculum and ensured that unlike other American colleges at the time, the school had no religious affiliation or religious requirements for its students.

Jefferson died at age 83 at Monticello on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Coincidentally, John Adams, Jefferson's friend, former rival and fellow signer of the Declaration of Independence, died the same day. Jefferson was buried at Monticello. However, due to the significant debt the former president had accumulated during his life, his mansion, furnishing and enslaved people were sold at auction following his death. Monticello was eventually acquired by a nonprofit organization, which opened it to the public in 1954.

Jefferson remains an American icon. His face appears on the U.S. nickel and is carved into stone at Mount Rushmore. The Jefferson Memorial, near the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was dedicated on April 13, 1943, the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's birth.

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Thomas Jefferson - Facts, Presidency & Children

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Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), a statesman, Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence and the third U.S. president, was a leading figure in America's early development. One of Jefferson's major legacies was the Louisiana Purchase, which more than doubled the size of the United States.

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Thomas Jefferson was the 3rd president of the United States. Learn about his biography and life story.

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Benjamin Franklin- American Revolution for kids

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Benjamin Franklin- American Revolution for kids

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For Kids : Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America. He was quite a personality. He was a writer, publisher, scientist, inventor, musician, and diplomat.

He wrote Poor Richard's Almanac, which made him rich. The only book that outsold Poor Richard's Almanac in the colonies was the Bible.

He used pseudonyms (pen names) to write humorous letters that expressed his point of view on many subjects. These letters were published in various newspapers, including his own newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette. Some of the names he used were Silence Dogood, Alice Addertongue, Anthony Afterwit, Martha Careful, Miss Body (for the Busy Body letters), and Benevolous.

He was Deputy Postmaster General for North American under the British for over 20 years. He created new and more efficient routes that greatly reduced the time it took to received a letter.

He taught himself German, French, and Italian. He played the violin, the harp, and the guitar. He also composed music.

He served as ambassador to several countries including England, France, and Canada. The English were not that fond of him. Most Englishmen thought of American colonists as rude and coarse. Ben Franklin did not appreciate their attitude at all. But the French loved him!

The French called him a "natural man" because they thought of the American colonists as ideal humans, more rustic than those living in the urban centers of Europe.

Franklin played up this image. He always wore his coonskin cap when he was in France. He wrote his daughter a letter and said, "My picture is everywhere, on the top of snuff boxes, on rings, on busts. My portrait is a best seller. Your father's face is now as well known as the man in the moon."

He turned his popularity in France into a tremendous advantage for the patriots. While serving as Ambassador to France, Ben Franklin was able to persuade the French to support the colonial effort with large amounts of money, supplies, and manpower, including ships and experienced military leaders. This was enormously important to the successful outcome of the Revolutionary War for the colonists.

Ben Franklin was also a scientist. He discovered many laws about electricity, and invented many things including the lightening rod, bifocals, street lights, swim fins, and the Franklin stove. He never patented any of his inventions. He believed that inventions should be freely shared.

Shortly after the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin created the first United States coin in 1787. One side had a design of 13 linked circles and the statement "We Are One". On the other side, the coin said, "Mind Your Own Business".

He created the first lending library, the first hospital, the first volunteer fire department, and was the driving force behind the establishment of fire insurance.

One of the most interesting things about Franklin was his willingness to change his mind when faced with new facts. Franklin was incredibly curious and always sought new information, a personality trait that contributed greatly to his success as a spy on the side of the colonists (when he served on the committee of Secret Correspondence in 1775.)

There is a wonderful story about Ben Franklin that may or may not be true. But it sounds just like him. For quite a while, Ben Franklin believed that African people were less intelligent than white people. One day, he visited an African-American school. The kids in that school convinced him that blacks and whites were equally intelligent.

It is true that after the Revolutionary War, Ben Franklin did work hard to abolish slavery. He did not accomplish this in his lifetime, but he did convince quite a few people that slavery was wrong.

And somehow, in his busy life, he found time to help write and sign the Declaration of Independence at the age of 70, and later, to sign the Constitution of the United States of America.

This quick look at Benjamin Franklin mentions only a few of his many accomplishments. Even with such a quick look, I think you can see why Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America.

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The American Revolution for Kids - Benjamin Franklin

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For Kids : Ben Franklin is one of the most loved and well known founders of the United States of America. He was quite a personality. He was a writer, publisher, scientist, inventor, musician, and diplomat. He wrote Poor Richard's Almanac, which made him rich.

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Benjamin Franklin ‑ Biography, Inventions & Facts | HISTORY

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Benjamin Franklin (1706‑1790) was a statesman, author, publisher, scientist, inventor, diplomat, a Founding Father and a leading figure of early American history.

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George Washington was the 1st president of the United States. Learn about his biography and life story.

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George Washington's Early Years

George Washington was born on February 22, 1732, at his family's plantation on Pope's Creek in Westmoreland County, in the British colony of Virginia, to Augustine Washington (1694-1743) and his second wife, Mary Ball Washington (1708-89). George, the eldest of Augustine and Mary Washington's six children, spent much of his childhood at Ferry Farm, a plantation near Fredericksburg, Virginia. After Washington's father died when he was 11, it's likely he helped his mother manage the plantation.

Did you know? At the time of his death in 1799, George Washington owned some 300 enslaved people. However, before his passing, he had become opposed to slavery, and in his will, he ordered that his enslaved workers be freed after his wife's death.

Few details about Washington's early education are known, although children of prosperous families like his typically were taught at home by private tutors or attended private schools. It's believed he finished his formal schooling at around age 15.

As a teenager, Washington, who had shown an aptitude for mathematics, became a successful surveyor. His surveying expeditions into the Virginia wilderness earned him enough money to begin acquiring land of his own.

In 1751, Washington made his only trip outside of America, when he traveled to Barbados with his older half-brother Lawrence Washington (1718-52), who was suffering from tuberculosis and hoped the warm climate would help him recuperate. Shortly after their arrival, George contracted smallpox. He survived, although the illness left him with permanent facial scars. In 1752, Lawrence, who had been educated in England and served as Washington's mentor, died. Washington eventually inherited Lawrence's estate, Mount Vernon, on the Potomac River near Alexandria, Virginia.

An Officer and Gentleman Farmer

In December 1752, Washington, who had no previous military experience, was made a commander of the Virginia militia. He saw action in the French and Indian War and was eventually put in charge of all of Virginia's militia forces. By 1759, Washington had resigned his commission, returned to Mount Vernon and was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses, where he served until 1774. In January 1759, he married Martha Dandridge Custis (1731-1802), a wealthy widow with two children. Washington became a devoted stepfather to her children; he and Martha Washington never had any offspring of their own.

In the ensuing years, Washington expanded Mount Vernon from 2,000 acres into an 8,000-acre property with five farms. He grew a variety of crops, including wheat and corn, bred mules and maintained fruit orchards and a successful fishery. He was deeply interested in farming and continually experimented with new crops and methods of land conservation.

George Washington During the American Revolution

Washington proved to be a better general than military strategist. His strength lay not in his genius on the battlefield but in his ability to keep the struggling colonial army together. His troops were poorly trained and lacked food, ammunition and other supplies (soldiers sometimes even went without shoes in winter). However, Washington was able to give them direction and motivation. His leadership during the winter of 1777-1778 at Valley Forge was a testament to his power to inspire his men to keep going.

By the late 1760s, Washington had experienced firsthand the effects of rising taxes imposed on American colonists by the British and came to believe that it was in the best interests of the colonists to declare independence from England. Washington served as a delegate to the First Continental Congress in 1774 in Philadelphia. By the time the Second Continental Congress convened a year later, the American Revolution had begun in earnest, and Washington was named commander in chief of the Continental Army.

Over the course of the grueling eight-year war, the colonial forces won few battles but consistently held their own against the British. In October 1781, with the aid of the French (who allied themselves with the colonists over their rivals the British), the Continental forces were able to capture British troops under General Charles Cornwallis (1738-1805) in the Battle of Yorktown. This action effectively ended the Revolutionary War and Washington was declared a national hero.

America's First President

In 1783, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris between Great Britain and the U.S., Washington, believing he had done his duty, gave up his command of the army and returned to Mount Vernon, intent on resuming his life as a gentleman farmer and family man. However, in 1787, he was asked to attend the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and head the committee to draft the new constitution. His impressive leadership there convinced the delegates that he was by far the most qualified man to become the nation's first president.

At first, Washington balked. He wanted to, at last, return to a quiet life at home and leave governing the new nation to others. But public opinion was so strong that eventually he gave in. The first presidential election was held on January 7, 1789, and Washington won handily. John Adams (1735-1826), who received the second-largest number of votes, became the nation's first vice president. The 57-year-old Washington was inaugurated on April 30, 1789, in New York City. Because Washington, D.C., America's future capital city wasn't yet built, he lived in New York and Philadelphia. While in office, he signed a bill establishing a future, permanent U.S. capital along the Potomac River-the city later named Washington, D.C., in his honor.

George Washington's Accomplishments

The United States was a small nation when Washington took office, consisting of 11 states and approximately 4 million people, and there was no precedent for how the new president should conduct domestic or foreign business. Mindful that his actions would likely determine how future presidents were expected to govern, Washington worked hard to set an example of fairness, prudence and integrity. In foreign matters, he supported cordial relations with other countries but also favored a position of neutrality in foreign conflicts. Domestically, he nominated the first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, John Jay (1745-1829), signed a bill establishing the first national bank, the Bank of the United States, and set up his own presidential cabinet.

His two most prominent cabinet appointees were Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) and Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804), two men who disagreed strongly on the role of the federal government. Hamilton favored a strong central government and was part of the Federalist Party, while Jefferson favored stronger states' rights as part of the Democratic-Republican Party, the forerunner to the Democratic Party. Washington believed that divergent views were critical for the health of the new government, but he was distressed at what he saw as an emerging partisanship.

George Washington's presidency was marked by a series of firsts. He signed the first United States copyright law, protecting the copyrights of authors. He also signed the first Thanksgiving proclamation, making November 26 a national day of Thanksgiving for the end of the war for American independence and the successful ratification of the Constitution.

During Washington's presidency, Congress passed the first federal revenue law, a tax on distilled spirits. In July 1794, farmers in Western Pennsylvania rebelled over the so-called "whiskey tax." Washington called in over 12,000 militiamen to Pennsylvania to dissolve the Whiskey Rebellion in one of the first major tests of the authority of the national government.

Under Washington's leadership, the states ratified the Bill of Rights, and five new states entered the union: North Carolina (1789), Rhode Island (1790), Vermont (1791), Kentucky (1792) and Tennessee (1796).

In his second term, Washington issued the proclamation of neutrality to avoid entering the 1793 war between Great Britain and France. But when French minister to the United States Edmond Charles Genet-known to history as "Citizen Genet"-toured the United States, he boldly flaunted the proclamation, attempting to set up American ports as French military bases and gain support for his cause in the Western United States. His meddling caused a stir between Federalists and Democratic-Republicans, widening the rift between parties and making consensus-building more difficult.

In 1795, Washington signed the "Treaty of Amity Commerce and Navigation, between His Britannic Majesty; and The United States of America," or Jay's Treaty, so-named for John Jay, who had negotiated it with the government of King George III. It helped the U.S. avoid war with Great Britain, but also rankled certain members of Congress back home and was fiercely opposed by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Internationally, it caused a stir among the French, who believed it violated previous treaties between the United States and France.

Washington's administration signed two other influential international treaties. Pinckney's Treaty of 1795, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo, established friendly relations between the United States and Spain, firming up borders between the U.S. and Spanish territories in North America and opening up the Mississippi to American traders. The Treaty of Tripoli, signed the following year, gave American ships access to Mediterranean shipping lanes in exchange for a yearly tribute to the Pasha of Tripoli.

George Washington's Retirement to Mount Vernon and Death

In 1796, after two terms as president and declining to serve a third term, Washington finally retired. In Washington's farewell address, he urged the new nation to maintain the highest standards domestically and to keep involvement with foreign powers to a minimum. The address is still read each February in the U.S. Senate to commemorate Washington's birthday.

Washington returned to Mount Vernon and devoted his attentions to making the plantation as productive as it had been before he became president. More than four decades of public service had aged him, but he was still a commanding figure. In December 1799, he caught a cold after inspecting his properties in the rain. The cold developed into a throat infection and Washington died on the night of December 14, 1799, at the age of 67. He was entombed at Mount Vernon, which in 1960 was designated a national historic landmark.

Washington left one of the most enduring legacies of any American in history. Known as the "Father of His Country," his face appears on the U.S. dollar bill and quarter, and dozens of U.S. schools, towns and counties, as well as the state of Washington and the nation's capital city, are named for him.

George Washington: An Interactive Timeline of His Life

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George Washington: Facts, Revolution & Presidency

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George Washington (1732-99) was commander in chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-83) and served two terms as the first U.S. president, from 1789 to 1797.