militia
A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
s. But unlike militias, the associator military volunteers were exempt from regular mandatory military service. Other names used to describe associators were " Associations", "Associated", "
Refugees
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.
", "Volunteers", and " Partisans".
The term '' Non-Associators'' was applied to American colonists who refused to support and sign "military association"
charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...
s. They were not affiliated with associators, or would choose instead, to pay a fine and suffer possible retaliation. During the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, some associator units were said to operate more like, or were in fact loose-knit criminal gangs, taking advantage of the disruption of warfare.
The present-day U.S. Army 111th Infantry RegimentPennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division is nicknamed the "Associators", helping to preserve the volunteer associators' ancestral legacy in Pennsylvania.
King George's War
King George's War (1744–1748) is the name given to the military operations in North America that formed part of the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748). It was the third of the four French and Indian Wars. It took place primarily in t ...
,
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading int ...
, in 1747, wrote and published the pamphlet, "Plain Truth", calling for a
voluntary association
A voluntary group or union (also sometimes called a voluntary organization, common-interest association, association, or society) is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement, usually as volunteers, to form a body (or organization) to ac ...
to defend
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
. This was in line with his earlier formation of volunteer fire-companies. This organization was formed and approved by the council and the officers would be commissioned by the Council President.Newland, Samuel J. ''The Pennsylvania Militia: Defending the Commonwealth and the nation, 1669-1870'', Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Dept. of Military and Veterans Affairs (2002), pp. 36-45 The U.S. Army 111th Infantry RegimentPennsylvania Army National Guard's 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, nicknamed the "Associators", traces their lineage to these Pennsylvania Associators. In 1755 these groups were re-established in response to Braddock's defeat.
irregulars
Irregular military is any non-standard military component that is distinct from a country's national armed forces. Being defined by exclusion, there is significant variance in what comes under the term. It can refer to the type of military orga ...
who fought with the British in the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
were "associators". These units were sometimes commissioned by the commander in chief but could also be commissioned by the commander of a
garrison
A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...
or a royal colonial governor. They received no pay, and often no uniforms; they were usually issued provisions, but relied on labor or
looting
Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...
to earn money. Loyalist Associators often served in mixed-race units, composed of whites, escaped slaves, and even American Indians.
Perhaps one of the most famous Loyalist associators was
Colonel Tye
Titus Cornelius, also known as Titus, Tye, and famously as Colonel Tye ( – 1780), was a slave of African descent in the Province of New Jersey who escaped from his master and fought as a Black Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War; ...
, a former slave and leader of the infamous "Black Brigade". He was the first known black officer in North American military history.
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
Black Loyalists
Black Loyalists were people of African descent who sided with the Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War. In particular, the term refers to men who escaped enslavement by Patriot masters and served on the Loyalist side because of the ...
Refugees
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.
(unit of New Jersey Royal Governor
William Franklin
William Franklin (22 February 1730 – 17 November 1813) was an American-born attorney, soldier, politician, and colonial administrator. He was the acknowledged illegitimate son of Benjamin Franklin. William Franklin was the last colonial Go ...
Ocean County
Ocean County is a county located along the Jersey Shore in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Its county seat is Toms River.Associated Refugees (also known as the
King's American Regiment
The King's American Regiment, also known as the "Associated Refugees", were a Loyalist regiment during the American Revolutionary War.
The King's American Regiment was raised on Staten Island in the Province of New York in December 1776 by Colon ...
) (
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...
) (1776-1783)
*
Brant's Volunteers
Brant's Volunteers also known as Joseph Brant's Volunteers were irregular British Loyalist volunteers, raised during the American Revolutionary War by pro-British Mohawk chief, Joseph Brant (Mohawk: ''Thayendanegea''), who fought on the Britis ...
(
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...
irregulars
Irregular military is any non-standard military component that is distinct from a country's national armed forces. Being defined by exclusion, there is significant variance in what comes under the term. It can refer to the type of military orga ...
New Jersey Volunteers (Skinner's Greens)
The New Jersey Volunteers, also known as Jersey Volunteers, "Skinners", Skinner's Corps, and Skinner's Greens (due to their green wool uniform coats), were a British provincial military unit of Loyalists, raised for service by Cortlandt Skinner, ...
(
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...
Bucks County
Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...
irregulars
Irregular military is any non-standard military component that is distinct from a country's national armed forces. Being defined by exclusion, there is significant variance in what comes under the term. It can refer to the type of military orga ...
marines
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refl ...
Peter Etter
Peter Etter (1715–1794) was a loyalist who was a long-term friend of both Benjamin Franklin and future President John Adams. His friendship with Adams broke over Adams decision to support the American Patriots in the American Rebellion. Ette ...
*
Joseph Brant
Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. Perhaps ...
*
Colonel Tye
Titus Cornelius, also known as Titus, Tye, and famously as Colonel Tye ( – 1780), was a slave of African descent in the Province of New Jersey who escaped from his master and fought as a Black Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War; ...
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading int ...
* Farrelly, Maura Jane. ''Papist Patriots: The Making of an American Catholic Identity''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
* Newland, Samuel J. ''The Pennsylvania Militia: Defending the Commonwealth and the nation, 1669-1870''. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Dept. of Military and Veterans Affairs, 2002.
* Ryan, William R. ''The World of Thomas Jeremiah: Charles Town on the Eve of the American Revolution''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.
* Seymour, Joseph. ''The Pennsylvania Associators, 1747-1777''. Yardley, PA: Westholme Publishing, 2012.
* Verenna, Thomas. "Explaining Pennsylvania's Militia", ''Journal of the American Revolution'', June 17, 2014.
List of British Loyalist Associators - The On-Line Institute for Advanced Loyalist Studies