Poll

Monday Poll Question: Which American Revolutionary War battle had the greatest impact?

Monday Poll!

Starting this week we are going to do a new poll feature. Every Monday we will put out a new question and collect responses all week. On Friday we’ll look at the results and see what you all think. Feel free to discuss the poll and results on the Facebook page!

The first question is, “Which American Revolutionary War battle had the greatest impact?”

Was it Cowpens and the loss of the British Light Infantry that caused Cornwallis to head north?

Was it Monmouth where the revitalized and newly train Continental Army fought the Red Coats to a draw?

Maybe Trenton where the American cause hung on the knife edge until a surprise victory restore hope?

Perhaps when the French defeated the British Navy off the Virginia Capes opening they way for the Siege of Yorktown?

Or the incredible American defeat at Long Island that nearly broke the cause before it truly got started?

Out of these listed, which do you think had the biggest impact?

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Chose from the ones listed in the poll, even if the one you think should be there isn’t.  Heck, this may become a tournament at some point! Remember to respect other people’s opinions in the comments. Let’s see how this goes…

 

Poll

Which American Revolutionary War Battle Had The Biggest Impact?
Which American Revolutionary War Battle Had The Biggest Impact?

American Revolution

Sea to Shining Sea…Eventually

Sea to Shining Sea…Eventually

The photo above is of a map from 1755 that shows the extent of the British holdings in North America. And yes, if you look close you will see that many of the colonies stretched well beyond what is their western border today. Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia do not stretch all the way to the Pacific ocean, but for a time they did. Most of the original colonial charters didn’t set a fixed western boundary for the colonies

Do you mean to tell me that you never heard of the Pennamite–Yankee Wars? Three times between 1769 and 1784 men from Pennsylvania and Connecticut faced off in the Wyoming Valley near the north branch of the Susquehanna River because each claimed it as their own. (Eventually, it ended up with Pennsylvania.)

Or in the early 1700’s when New York and Connecticut nearly came to blows over their border? Or Connecticut and Rhode Island (Which flared up in 2003)? Don’t think that Massachusetts avoided conflict with them either. Come to think of it Connecticut, for being such a small colony, sure did like to scrap.

The map above was compiled by John Mitchell. He was commissioned by the British Board of Trade to put together a comprehensive map of all their holdings in North America. He was given access to every existing map and chart as well as journals and colonial charters. From that, he put together the map above.

When finished it was found to place a large amount of territory into a dispute with France. This fact was used as a propaganda tool to help incite the French and Indian War.

When the American Revolution ended it was this map that the main parties used to work out the borders for the new United States of America.

 

Word and Phrases

Wednesday Words & Phrases: Head Honcho

 

Image result for head honcho
Oddly enough another phrase that Googling for images may surprise you.

Head Honcho

“Who’s the Head Honcho around here?”

You may have heard that phrase from time to time. Head Honcho is another name for the boss, commander, or anyone in charge. It comes from the Japanese han-cho, which is roughly translated to “squad leader”. For the most part, this was meant to denote a corporal or sergeant.

The Americanized version became popular during WWII and Korea and is one of several Japanese phrases that found its way into the American vernacular.

American Revolution

Surrender at Yorktown

Surrender at Yorktown

On October 19, 1781, the Sige fo Yorktown finally came to an end. American and French forces accepted the full surrender of the British army. The war would go on for several more years, but the British defeat at Yorktown was the last full battle of the American Revolution.

The actual surrender was completed on paper in fourteen articles of capitulation that were agreed upon by the commanders. The document above was believed to have been printed on a French ship in the bay and was one of several copies used to first spread the word of the surrender. It is original and dates to 1781.

The Fourteen Articles

 

  • Article 1
    • British and German soldiers and sailors in York and Gloucester were to surrender themselves as prisoners.
  • Article 2
    • Artillery, arms, stores and military chest (money) were to be turned over.
  • Article 3
    • Two redoubts on the left flank were to be handed over to the American/French forces.
  • Article 4
    • Officer may keep their sides arms and personal belongings.
  • Article 5
    • The soldiers while prisoners were to be afforded the same rations as American soldiers. They would be allowed to receive additional supplies as provided by their officers or other parties.
  • Article 6
    • Some of the men not counted above may be paroled to Europe for the remainder of the war.
  • Article 7
    • Officers will be allowed to maintain soldiers as servants.
  • Article 8
    • A ship was to be provided so that Cornwallis could communicate with his commander, General Clinton, in New York.
  • Article 9
    • Traders that were captured with the British Army were no to be treated as prisoners and were allowed to dispose of their goods.
  • Article 10
    • Natives or inhabitants of other parts of the country are not to be punished for providing service to the British.  (This one became tricky.)
  • Article 11
    • Proper hospitals should be provided.
  • Article 12
    • Wagons should be furnished for transport.
  • Article 13
    • Shipping and boats captured in the harbor will be turned over to American naval officers.
  • Article 14
    • No article is to be infringed on based on reprisals.

For more details on the articles click here.

Frontier, War of 1812

The Cost of 1812

The Cost of 1812

The War of 1812 was an interesting war. The United States was not quite ready to fight but declared war anyway.  The British were busy against Napoleon in Europe, so fought the first half as an afterthought. The Natives involved pretty much knew that no matter who won they would be the losers.

When the war started in June 1812 the land forces of the United States numbered approximately 7,000 men that would face off against 5,200 British soldiers in the New World. By the end of the war, the US would field over 35,000 men including close to half a million militiamen. The British would put over 48,000 men in the field, another ten thousand Provincial regulars and four thousand militia. As far as Natives, the American allies provided at least  125 Choctaw Indians and scores from other tribes, the British could count on over ten thousand warriors.

In almost two and half years of fighting the Americans invaded Canada, the British invaded the United States. Both sides won and lost at sea but neither gained much ground. With the “final” defeat of Napoleon in 1814, the British found themselves in a position to put their full weight into the war. Not long after both sides had enough fighting and a treaty was agreed on.

Final Tally

Almost 15,000 US soldiers died from combat and disease. The British lost about 7,000.  In the end, no borders changed, no grievances were resolved and things went back to pretty much the way it was before the war.

Oh and the natives? They continued to fight the Americans and without the support of the British, did not fare well. The last hope for the Natives pretty much ended with the end of the War of 1812. Now they were all that stood between the people of the United States and their Manifest Destiny.

Word and Phrases

Wednesday Words & Phrases: Tournament

Image result for medieval tournament
Ansteorra King Rene Tournament is a painting by Kevin Womack which was uploaded on January 17th, 2014.

Tournament

Today when you think of a tournament you think of things like sports playoffs or activity that has a group of people competing until only one is left.

Waaaaayyy back in the times of knights and heirs, a tournament was a mock battle fought by knights. They were usually divided into two sides, using blunted or wooden weapons.  One of the major skills they needed to possess was the ability to command their horse using only their knees. Their hands would be full of weapons, shields and such. So prior to the “battle” each knight was tested on his horsemanship by guiding his horse through a maze of wooden poles while holding his arms up at shoulder height. If he could “turn” his horse skillfully enough, he could participate. The French word for turn is tourner, and thus the phrase “tournament” was born.

American Revolution, The Soldier At Rest

Continental Pensions

Continental Pensions

Continental Pensions

The gentleman in the picture above is one of the wonderful staff at Colonial Williamsburg. I did not catch his name but the “character” he played had an interesting evolution. He played his character at different points in time. Starting from when the trouble with Britain was beginning all the way to the end of the war. In this picture was a  Continental soldier after the war trying to figure out was next for himself. Many like him thought they would have some sort of pension to lean on, here is part of that story.

First Pension Act

Pensions and land grants were two methods used to entice young men to join the Continental Army. As early as 1776 Congress passed the first of the pension laws which promised half-pay for a period of time to anyone that served in The Continental Army. With the caveat that the only men eligible were those that lost a limb or that were rendered unable to earn a living after the war. So a start.

Amendment #1

In 1778 General Washington convinced Congress to amend that to include half-pay for 7 years to all officers that remained in the service until the end of the war. Enlisted men who stayed would be eligible for an $80 annuity after the war.

Amendment #2

In 1780 Congress amended the act again to provide the half-pay for 7 years to the orphans and widows of Continental officers who died in service.

Amendment #3

Later in 1780, it was amended again, once more at the insistence of Washington, to give officers half-pay for life.

Amendment #4

After the near revolt of the officer corps at Newburgh, NY in March 1783, a new pension act was passed giving the officers full pay for 5 years payable in hard money or interest-bearing annuities. Officers could choose which they wanted

Amendment #5-10

The pension laws would be changed another six times over the years. In 1828 Congress provided for full pay to surviving officers and enlisted men without any further requirement of disability or financial need. In 1832 they extended further, full pay for life for all officers and enlisted men who served at least 2 years in the Continental Line, the state troops or militia, the navy or marines. Men who served less than 2 years but at least 6 months were granted pensions of less than full pay.

100 Years and Still Tweaking

Fifty-six years after the start of the war everyone who fought was now eligible for a pension. The final actual pension legislation regarding the American Revolution was passed in 1878. This last one extended lifetime benefits to any widow whose husband served at least 14 days or participated in any engagement during the war.

The sad part is that many of the men and widows were never able to actually collect their pensions. That is a story for another time though.

Uncategorized

Aircraft carriers on the Great Lakes?

Aircraft carriers on the Great Lakes?

Aircraft carriers on the Great Lakes?

Yep, there were two during WWII. The model in the picture is of the USS Wolverine (IX-64). During the war, the Navy purchased two large side wheel excursion steamers and converted them into aircraft carriers. The ships were used to train pilots and landing signal officers on the intricacies of their crafts. The ships were based out of the Glenview Naval Air Station near Chicago.

Commissioned 2 August 1942 the Wolverine served during the war even though it had a few issues. It had no elevators or hanger deck, so once the flight deck was full the operations were over for the day. Also in low wind conditions, the ship could not generate enough speed on its own to generate the wind needed to successfully simulate the landings. Still, they served their purposes well.

On 7 November 1945, with the war over. The Wolverine was decommissioned and in December 1947 sold for scrap.

Always remember for a brief couple of years we did have aircraft carriers on the Great Lakes. If ever we had the chance to bring Canda into the fold, it may have been then…

American Revolution

The Revolution Overseas

The Revolution Overseas

The Revolution Overseas

 

The newspaper above is dated April 3, 1781, and is a copy of the Edinburgh Advertiser. In the paper is an account of the Battle of Cowpens where American General Daniel Morgan defeated the British army. Well, at least it should, but you see the article is very non-committal to the actual facts and calls into question Morgan’s so-called “victory”. With Scotland being a part of British Empire that kind of reporting is not that huge of a surprise. As the events in America reached other nations in Europe their reactions were wide and varied.

In Poland, there was a single newspaper and it leaned heavily pro-American. They used the “American” version of events and called out the British for their “brutality”. They also took the time to publish all the rebels manifestos and introduced their radical ideas to their own people.

Russia had two newspapers at the time, one run by the University of Moscow, the other the Russian Academy of sciences.  They both took a more balanced approach to the war and didn’t take sides.

In Swede,n the Revolution was used to extract reforms from the regime of Gustav III.

Switzerland came out as very pro-British.

In the Italian province,s there was a strong pro-American bias but many of the newspapers leaned pro-British.

Spain favored the Americans out of self-interest. Their hope was an American victory in the war would allow them to take a greater share of the Atlantic that used to be their pond. This feeling eventually led them to join the war on the American side.

And most interesting was Portugal. A long time British ally that took the extraordinary step of suggesting to the Crown that the Americans should have their own parliament.

One thing was for sure, the world saw the struggle in America through many various lenses but they all awaited the results with bated breath.

Word and Phrases

Wednesday Words & Phrases: Clobber

Image result for clobber
I am again strangely shocked how many NSFW images come up when googling this term. Ah well, here is The Thing.

Clobber

Clobber is one of those words that you probably have used without realizing it. Unless you are The Thing from the Fantastic Four and it has become part of your catchphrase.

Meaning to pound mercilessly or to defeat overwhelmingly it came to be used in the 1940s when British RAF pilots would refer to a plane that was badly damaged or even shot down as having been “clobbered”. From there it took off and entered into the everyday lexicon with both figurative and literal meanings.

The car was clobbered in the accident.

Joe got clobbered at his job review.

 

 

 

People, Places and Things from US Military History

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