Questions tagged [american-revolution]
pertaining to the American Revolutionary War (1775-1781) and its era, where the 13 North American colonies fought and won independence from Great Britain.
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How consistent were the English in enforcing their regulations in the colonies? [closed]
How consistent were the English in enforcing their regulations in the colonies during the American Revolution?
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Did active frontiersmen really eat 20,000 calories a day? How does this compare to other highly-active people in recorded history?
I am currently midway through this book, The Company: The Rise And Fall of the Hudson's Bay Empire. It is really good.
One thing that keeps coming up is the amount of rations needed for each explorer, ...
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Where can I find a comprehensive collection of all American Founding Fathers' writings?
I was taught in school that the Founding Fathers of America were very prolific and that they produced many documents during their time, including books, pamphlets, magazines, letters, diaries, etc. ...
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How long did it take arriving passengers to become indentured servants and where did they stay until then? [closed]
In colonial times just prior to the Revolution, when passengers arrived to the New World on a ship, how long would it typically take for them to be indentured to someone? For example, would they ...
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Was Lord Dunmore's offer to free slaves for military service a significant driver of the American Revolution?
The controversial 1619 Project has a documentary out that makes the claim that Lord Dunmore's 1775 proclamation was actually the catalyst that prompted the Revolutionary War
Specifically, they are ...
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Why are there holidays marking VE/VJ/Armistice Day in different cultures, while many other wars aren't commemorated at their conclusion?
I have tried to research why there seems to be commemorations and/or holidays marking the end of the World War in countries around the world, but seemingly in the United states we do not mark the end ...
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Did Continental Army officers wear wigs or keep their hair white like their British Army counterparts?
I just can't find any concrete answer to this question because there is just too much conflicting information. While I know British enlisted men weren't allowed to wear wigs but were forced to grow ...
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Could an eight-year-old child be eligible to stand trial as a witness and provide testimony in an 18th-century American courtroom? [closed]
I'm doing research for a historical fiction set in a small fictional town in America between the year 1778 and 1779. Let's say I have two characters, John and Jack. John is an officer in the ...
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What's a major 19th Century history of the American Revolution from a British perspective?
I recently read McCaulay's History of England, which he initially projected to cover in detail events up to the reign of Queen Victoria. I was excited to see his take on the American revolution, ...
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Why didn't the British attack the Continental Congress?
During the American Revolution, the British army was far superior to the Continental army. The Second Continental Congress was in session during most of the war, usually in Philadelphia. Why didn't ...
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Did Hamilton really send Burr an "itemised list of thirty years of disagreements"?
In the production of Hamilton, during the song "Your Obedient Servant", which imagines the conversation between Aaron Burr and Hamilton shortly before their duel, the following exchange ...
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Were early US citizens ever able to get reparations for the Revolutionary War?
In looking into the aftermath of the American Revolutionary War I ran across a list of citizens applying for reparations to the new government:
Reparation Requests
The state of New Jersey even ...
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What "Treaty of 1785" is referred to in the August 1955 report of the Secretary of Defense's Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War?
While chasing around various sources of material, I came across "POW, The Fight Continues After the Battle". In this report, as it goes over the history of treatment of Prisoners of War (...
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Were British officers able to return home after the American Revolution?
Were defeated British officers able to return home after England lost the war or were they taken prisoner? I am writing a novel set in the aftermath of the American Revolution. What happened to the ...
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What were the proportions of state militias in Continental Army?
The wikipedia article on the Continental Army suggests that "The army never numbered more than 17,000 men." but also lists a number of 80,000 as the peak size. The former number refers specifically ...
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Why could George Washington and the revolutionaries not stop Governor Tryon in New York Harbor?
On October 19, 1775, New York Governor Tryon fled the city and took refuge in the harbor, first on the British ship Halifax, then later on the Duchess of Gordon [1] [2] [3]. The book "The First ...
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Did other British colonies at the time have seats in parliament [duplicate]
I know the American colonies didn’t have a seat, but what about the other British colonies. Did some have it. Like Australia, and the places in Africa.
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What influence did Benjamin Franklin's association with Freemasonry have on his success in France?
Ben Franklin was sent to France (as were two others) to seek aide and personnel from France during the American Revolution. During his time there he attended the Lodge of Nine Muses where he was ...
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What was the extent of France's material support during the American Revolution?
Though it is a recognised fact that French support for the American revolutionaries was vital for their success against the British empire, the exact details are less clear.
The most obvious source is ...
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Did purging occur during the American revolution?
Every nation that has revolutionized in the last 150 years has undergone major turmoil including the jailing and execution of dissidents. France and Russian revolutions were both famously violent ...
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When did Britain learn about the American Declaration of Independence?
When did Britain learn about the American Declaration of Independence?
We all know the declaration was made on July 4th, 1776. But when did news reach Buckingham Palace and do we have records of ...
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What happened to the British convicts transported to America after the American Revolution?
From the early 1600s until the American Revolution of 1776, the British colonies in North America received transported British criminals for, what I have read, a term of 6 to 14 years. I have read (...
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Did American colonists object to the protections of Catholicism in the Quebec Act?
One of the acts which helped precipitate the American Revolutionary War was the Quebec Act. This act was passed in the aftermath of the Seven Years' War (aka the French & Indian War), after the ...
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What happened to the colonial estates belonging to loyalists after the American Revolution?
What happened to the colonial estates of the rich, elite Loyalist families after the American Revolution? I assume they were just broken up and sold off to small farmers to appease some of the land ...
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Was the US debt free in 1776, as Thomas Paine claimed in “Common Sense”?
In the pamphlet's fourth chapter “Of the Present Ability of America, with Some Miscellaneous Reflections” Paine wrote that the US had no debt. However, "Common Sense" was published in 1776, by which ...
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Why was John Paul Jones pardoned in Whitehaven in 1999?
The Wikipedia page for John Paul Jones states that he was pardoned in Whitehaven in 1999 for his raid, but doesn't state why. So far, the article I have found that seems to contain the most ...
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What is the history of the Molly, which became the USS Reprisal
According to Wikipedia, the USS Reprisal
...was the first ship of what was to become the United States Navy to be
given the name promising hostile action in response to an offense.
Originally ...
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Was there any distinction between the 13 Colonies and the Canadian provinces prior to the American Revolution?
Was there any distinction between the 13 Colonies that became the United States and the Canadian colonies/provinces prior to the American Revolution? For example, did New Brunswick and New Hampshire ...
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What social relationships existed between the popular mobility and the political elites in the revolutionary American colonies?
What social relationships existed between the popular mobility and the political elites in the revolutionary and potentially revolutionary British American colonies?
For those unfamiliar with 18th ...
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What started the American Revolution?
I’ve read that the American Revolution started at Lexington and Concord with what Ralph Waldo Emerson called, “the shot heard around the world”.
Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Battles of ...
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What was the Victorian opinion of the American Revolution?
BACKGROUND
It's pretty remarkable to me, though perhaps it shouldn't be, how much British popular debate there was about the American Revolution. It was often condemned, but sometimes openly ...
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Did Washington like or dislike the monarchical styles of address proposed by John Adams?
In high school history class a teacher taught us that George Washington desired and sought nobility/monarchy-like titles for his office of President, such as ones involving "Highness", "Majesty", and "...
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What was the perception of the average British person of the Boston Tea Party?
Do we have any record of the reaction of the average British person to the Boston Tea Party? Would the proverbial man on the street have been aware of the event? If so, what was their perception of it ...
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Did any country threaten war on the US because they didn't pay their debt after the Revolutionary War?
Ok, I am in 8th grade and we had a history test. One of the questions on the test was:
Why did Hamilton want to pay off war debt?
a) If he didn't, other countries might not want to do business with ...
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Which of Ben Franklin's grandsons was blessed by Voltaire?
I've seen this image and I was curious if anyone knows which grandson of Ben Franklin's this is receiving Voltaire's blessing:
https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/Franklin-Descendants-1
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Why did Loyalists go to Canada during the American Revolution
I am currently learning about the American Revolution and I have some questions about the loyalists.
I know that they were supportive of the British Empire, but why did they leave the U.S. and, when ...
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Why was the Declaration of Independence handwritten, rather than printed with a printing press?
The United States' Declaration of Independence was handwritten by Thomas Jefferson. Why was this done instead of being printed with a printing press?
The Dunlap broadside was the first printed copy ...
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Who attributed to King George II the quote "Will someone please remove these infernal chains?"
The quote is from Pirates of the Caribbean, but I'm certain an author from the American Revolution era wrote something very similar, and hence the irony of the King George II character's quote (...
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In the Revolutionary War, why did General Howe attack Philadelphia, instead of continuing his march to join General Burgoyne?
General Howe, had previously captured New York City and originally proposed to move north, where Burgoyne was. What caused the change of plan?
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What was the true status of Hessian mercenaries?
Were the Revolutionary War Hessian mercenaries that fought with the British pressed into service by the Hessian government in Hesse. or were they truly voluntary mercenaries that had signed up with ...
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Why did European people settle in America and later create another nation of their own? [closed]
Now, in North America, mostly white people live. They are not the real natives—it's the American Indians. They are mostly from England and other powerful European nations at that time who were ...
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Was "Mad Anthony" Wayne of the Continental Army really that cruel like shown in this video?
In the TV show "Turn: Washington's Spies" (which I like to recommend throughly), there are some scenes in the 4th season which show Brigadier General Anthony Wayne of the Continental Army, who earned ...
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Are any Liberty Poles around today?
My American Revolutionary War research has led to an investigation of the Sons of Liberty (SAR). This organization was known to erect Liberty Poles (see picture) as a way of angering Britain in a show ...
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What is the London Enemies List 1775?
This London Enemies List 1775 has come up in American Revolutionary War research regarding Paul Revere and other revolutionaries. I believe it is a document of some sort and find a referenced source (...
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Is the "refuse" side of this American Revolutionary War document really empty?
I am doing genealogy work (not a genealogy question) and noticed my ancestors on a list regarding who would agree to fight the Britain in the American Revolutionary War.
The document is from people ...
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Why was Independence Day in America established on July 4?
July 4 is the date that the Declaration of Independence was ratified. Why was that the date chosen for Independence Day, rather than any of these dates (not to the exclusion of others; these just seem ...
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Was the Somerset Decision in 1772 in England the real underlying cause of the American Revolutionary war?
I had a discussion with a Brit the other day and naturally the topic drifted to our historic break from the UK in 1776 and I boasted of our noble fight for liberation and freedom. The Brit was amused ...
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Was there a time when George Washington discovered some of his soldiers absolutely refused to swear loyalty and obedience to the Continental Congress?
I'm trying to pin down the details of something which I believe once happened to George Washington, before the end of the American War of Independence. Back around the late 1980s, I was reading a book ...
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Why was Lafayette imprisoned after the French Revolution?
I have read books about the American and French revolutions, but in all my reading it was never made clear why exactly Lafayette was imprisoned by the Austrians. It's clear that he angered the radical ...
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Were there any British traitors during the American revolutionary war?
I'm looking for any instances where a British soldier voluntarily changed sides mid conflict and fought for the colonies. People who were as infamous as Benedict Arnold but for the British.
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