African Americans In The American Revolution
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African Americans In The American Revolution
African Americans fought on both sides the American Revolution, the Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot cause for independence as well as in the British army, in order to achieve their freedom from enslavement. It is estimated that 20,000 African Americans joined the British cause, which promised freedom to enslaved people, as Black Loyalists. About half that number, an estimated 9,000 African Americans, became Black Patriots. Between 220,000 and 250,000 soldiers and militia served the American cause in total, suggesting that Black soldiers made up approximately four percent of the Patriots' numbers. Of the 9,000 Black soldiers, 5,000 were combat-dedicated troops. The average length of time in service for an African American soldier during the war was four and a half years (due to many serving for the whole eight-year duration), which was eight times longer than the average period for white soldiers. Meaning that while they were only four percent of the manpower base, they co ...
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Soldiers At The Siege Of Yorktown (1781), By Jean-Baptiste-Antoine DeVerger
A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French or , meaning mercenary, from , meaning shilling's worth or wage, from or , shilling. The word is also related to the Medieval Latin , meaning soldier (). These words ultimately derive from the Late Latin word , referring to an Ancient Rome, ancient Roman coin used in the Byzantine Empire. Occupational and other designations In most armies, the word "soldier" has a general meaning that refers to all members of an army, distinct from more specialized military occupations that require different areas of knowledge and skill sets. "Soldiers" may be referred to by titles, names, Nickname, nicknames, or Acronym, acronyms that reflect an individual's military occupation spec ...
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Peter Salem
Peter Salem (October 1, 1750 – August 16, 1816)BlackPast.org
"Salem, Peter"
was an from Massachusetts who served as a U.S. soldier in the . Born into slavery in Framingham, he was freed by a later master, Major Lawson Buckminster, to serve in the local militia. He then enlisted in the

Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment
The Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment (; ) was a line infantry regiment of the French Royal Army raised in the Palatine Zweibrücken which existed from 1757 to 1791. They are an example of the policy of Soldatenhandel. History The Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment was raised by Christian IV, Duke of Deux-Ponts, Count Palatine of Birkenfeld, under a treaty made in 1751 between Louis XV and Christian, by which the Duke undertook to provide in the event of war a contingent of 1,000 men to France. In 1775 it was commanded by Colonel Christian, Count of Forbach, nephew of the Duke of Deux-Ponts and future Marquis de Deux-Ponts. The Marquis was colonel-commandant from March 10, 1788 until January 1, 1791, when it was reorganised into the 99th Line Infantry Regiment. American Revolutionary War The Royal Deux-Ponts Regiment left Brest on April 4, 1780 as part of a contingent of four regiments sent by France under the orders of Rochambeau to provide support to the American Revolution. It distingu ...
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Germans In The American Revolution
People of German ancestry fought on both sides in the American Revolution. Many of the small German states in Europe supported the British. King George III of Britain was simultaneously the ruler of the German state of Hanover. Around 30,000 Germans fought for the British during the war, around 25% of British land forces. In particular, 12,000 Hessian soldiers served as Auxiliaries on the side of British. However some Germans who were supporters of Congress as individuals crossed the Atlantic to help the Patriots. Inside America, German Americans were largely concentrated in Pennsylvania and upstate New York. The majority supported Congress and the patriot cause. Very few German Americans were Loyalists, although many of the religious sects (such as the Amish) were neutral. It is estimated that nearly 5,000 of the German auxiliaries permanently settled in the United States. European allies of Britain Germans in Europe lived in numerous separate states. Some of these states ...
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Siege Of Yorktown (1781)
The siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown and the surrender at Yorktown, was the final battle of the American Revolutionary War. It was won decisively by the Continental Army, led by George Washington, with support from the Marquis de Lafayette and French Army troops, led by the Comte de Rochambeau, and a French Navy force commanded by the Comte de Grasse over the British Army commanded by British Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis. The siege began on September 28, 1781, and ended on October 19, 1781, at exactly 10:30 am in Yorktown, Virginia. The victory of Washington and the Continental Army at Yorktown led to the capture of both Cornwallis and the British Army, who subsequently surrendered, leading the British to negotiate an end to the conflict. The British defeat at Yorktown led to the Treaty of Paris in 1783, in which the British acknowledged the independence and sovereignty of the Thirteen Colonies and subsequently to the establishment of the Uni ...
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Twin Cities Public Television, Inc
Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two embryos, or ''dizygotic'' ('non-identical' or 'fraternal'), meaning that each twin develops from a separate egg and each egg is fertilized by its own sperm cell. Since identical twins develop from one zygote, they will share the same sex, while fraternal twins may or may not. In very rare cases, fraternal or (semi-) identical twins can have the same mother and different fathers ( heteropaternal superfecundation). In contrast, a fetus that develops alone in the womb (the much more common case in humans) is called a ''singleton'', and the general term for one offspring of a multiple birth is a ''multiple''. Unrelated look-alikes whose resemblance parallels that of twins are referred to as doppelgänger. Statistics The human twin birth rate ...
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Liberty!
''Liberty! The American Revolution'' is a six-hour documentary miniseries about the Revolutionary War, and the instigating factors, that brought about the United States' independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. It was first broadcast on the Public Broadcasting Service in 1997. The series consists of six hour-long episodes. Each episode is introduced by Forrest Sawyer and narrated by Edward Herrmann. Period photographs and location filming are intercut with stage and screen actors in appropriate period costume reading as figures of the time, including Campbell Scott (Thomas Jefferson), Philip Bosco (Benjamin Franklin), Victor Garber ( John Dickinson), Alex Jennings ( King George III), Roger Rees ( Thomas Paine), Philip Seymour Hoffman ( Joseph Plumb Martin), Terrence Mann ( Gen. John Burgoyne), Colm Feore (Alexander Hamilton), Sebastian Roché (The Marquis de Lafayette), Donna Murphy ( Abigail Adams), Austin Pendleton ( Benjamin Rush) and Peter Donaldson (Joh ...
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Continental Army
The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia after the war's outbreak at the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Therefore, June 14th is celebrated as the U.S. Army Birthday. The Continental Army was created to coordinate military efforts of the colonies in the war against the British Army during the American Revolutionary War, British, who sought to maintain control over the American colonies. General George Washington was appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and maintained this position throughout the war. The Continental Army was supplemented by local Militia (United States), militias and volunteer troops that were either loyal to individual states or otherwise independent. Most of the Continental Army was disbanded ...
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Seymour Burr
Seymour Burr (1754/1762–1837) was an enslaved African-American in the Connecticut Colony in the North American British Colonies and United States. Enslaved by the brother of Colonel Aaron Burr, who was also named Seymour, he was known only as Seymour (sometimes spelled Seymore) until he escaped and used the surname Burr to enlist in the British Army in the early days of the American Revolution. The British promised the personal freedom of any enslaved African-American who enlisted or escaped to fight against the Continental Army, and Burr longed for freedom. However, he was quickly captured and forcibly returned to his enslaver. His owner, fearing that Seymour would escape again, offered him his freedom at the war's end if he paid over his Bounty Money after enlisting in the American Army; Seymour accepted this agreement. Birth There is conflicting information regarding his birth. Some citations list him as born in Connecticut, possibly of mixed-race parentage; others claim he ...
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Barzillai Lew
Barzillai Lew (November 5, 1743 January 18, 1822) was an African-American soldier who served with distinction during the American Revolutionary War. Family History Barzillai Lew's story began with Primus Lew of Groton, Massachusetts (a former servant of Captain Matthew Bonner), and Margret Lew (a former servant of Samuel Scripture). As free blacks, Primus and Margret Lew married in 1742 and they had two sons and two daughters. Primus served as a musician in the French and Indian War in 1747. In 1752, Primus married again to Rose Canterbury and bought a farm on the west side of the Nashua River in the Pepperell section of Groton, Massachusetts and they had two children. Primus and Margret Lew's oldest son Barzillai (pronounced BAR-zeal-ya) often called "Zeal" or "Zelah," was born a free black in Groton, Massachusetts November 5, 1743. Following in his father’s footsteps, Barzillai Lew was a fifer in Captain Thomas Farrington’s Company from Groton, which marched northward for â ...
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Salem Poor
Salem Poor (c. 1747–1802) was an enslaved African-American man who purchased his freedom in 1769, became a soldier in 1775. He was involved in the American Revolutionary War, particularly in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Early life Salem Poor was born in 1747 into slavery on a farm in Andover in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The farm was owned by John Poor and Rebecca Poor and his son John Poor Jr. His first name may be derived from the Arabic word " salaam", meaning ''peace''. Other sources explain that his name may have been derived from his place of birth. He bought his freedom on July 10, 1769, from John Poor Jr. for £27, a year's salary for an average working man at the time.  This would be equivalent to about $5,600 in 2019 dollars. Military career In May 1775, Poor enlisted in the militia when he was about 28 years old. He served under Captain Benjamin Ames in Colonel James Frye's regiment. Colonel Frye's command consisted of Lieutenant-Colonel James Bricket, Major ...
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Battle Of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Boston, Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved. It was the original objective of both the colonial and British troops, though the majority of combat took place on the adjacent hill, which became known as Breed's Hill. On June 13, 1775, the leaders of the colonial forces besieging Boston learned that the British were planning to send troops out from the city to fortify the unoccupied hills surrounding the city, which would give them control of Boston Harbor. In response, 1,200 colonial troops under the command of William Prescott stealthily occupied Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill. They constructed a strong redoubt on Breed's Hill overnight, as well as smaller fortified lines across the Charlestown Peninsula. By daybreak of June 17, the British became aware of the presen ...
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