Is the Mercer Legacy Secure?

On By Mark MaloyIn Uncategorized4 Comments

In one of the songs of the Broadway hit Hamilton, the character of Aaron Burr says: “Did ya hear the news about good old General Mercer? You know Clermont Street? They renamed it after him. The Mercer legacy is secure.”

The line is referring to Mercer Street in lower Manhattan.  Ironically, while they mention in the musical that the renaming of this street secures Mercer’s legacy, many Americans probably have never heard of General Mercer, nor do they know what his true legacy was.

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A drawing study John Trumbull did of Hugh Mercer for his painting of the Battle of Princeton.  He likely used Mercer’s son as a stand in. (Wikimedia Commons)

Hugh Mercer was regarded as one of the greatest American heroes of the Revolutionary War, at least by his contemporaries.  Interestingly, though, Mercer was born in Great Britain, (Scotland to be exact) and studied at the University of Aberdeen to be a medical doctor.  After graduating, he joined the Bonnie Prince Charlie’s army as an assistant surgeon and witnessed the bloody destruction of that army on the fields of Culloden in 1746.  The young 20 year old became a fugitive in his own land.

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The Battle of Culloden decimated the Jacobite forces in April of 1746.  The suicidal battle followed an aborted night attack that could have possibly resulted in a Jacobite victory. (Wikimedia Commons)

Continue reading “Is the Mercer Legacy Secure?” →

Uncovering the Continental Army in Morristown

On By Phill GreenwaltIn Armies, Battlefields & Historic Places, Common Soldier, Memory, Revolutionary WarLeave a comment

Part of an ongoing series of about the Continental Army in Morristown, New Jersey. For the first post, click here.

“The smallpox has made such head in every quarter that I find it impossible to keep it from spreading thro’ the whole army the natural way.” General George Washington wrote in February 1777.

By the time the Continental Army was encamped in Morrristown, Washington had become a firm believer in the inoculations for smallpox for the entire army. The inoculation process would entail the following: Continue reading “Uncovering the Continental Army in Morristown” →

Memorial Day

On By erwpostIn Memory, Personalities, Revolutionary WarLeave a comment

Emerging Revolutionary War wishes everyone a happy and safe Memorial Day remembrance.

Beginning with the sacrifices of the soldiers in the American Revolution to the present day, let us take a moment for all those who made that ultimate sacrifice and whose remains lay in unknown graves scattered throughout the country and globe.

Grave of an American Revolutionary War veteran in Hanover County, Virginia (photo courtesy of M. Wilcox)

In conclusion, John Stark, former general in the American Revolution, in a written announcement commemorating the anniversary of the Battle of Bennington wrote;

“Live free or die; Death is not the worst of evils.” 

Thank you to all those who have fallen so we can have the chance to live free.

 

 

*Grave of an American Revolutionary War veteran in Hanover County, Virginia. (photo courtesy of M. Wilcox)

Uncovering the Continental Army in Morristown

On By Phill GreenwaltIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Campaigns, Common Soldier, Continental Leadership, Memory, Northern Theater, Revolutionary War3 Comments

Approximately one month ago, I took a temporary detail assignment to Morristown National Historical Park. The national park preserves the winter cantonments of the Continental Army during the American Revolution; including the harshest winter, weather-wise, of the entire war, in 1779-1780.

For parts of multiple winters and even during the campaigning season, Washington’s forces would come to Morristown, situated behind the Watchung Mountains, which provided safety but also a perch to monitor the British in the New York City.

The town still bears witnesses to this rich legacy of housing soldiers, with historic buildings and signs dotted around the spiraling town. On a walk the other day, I came across the house below, with a small plaque situated on the front of the dwelling.

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The home saw soldiers use it for their encampments throughout the majority of the war years. On his return to the United States the Marquis de Lafayette was welcomed with a reception in the building as well, which is in the photo below.

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Morristown is filled with tidbits of history from the American Revolution and I as spend the next few months there as a park ranger, I will share what I come across. So, stay tuned as I uncover the history of the place that “Saved America” according to the park’s unofficial slogan.

 

Visiting Carlyle House

On By Eric SternerIn Civilian, Emerging Revolutionary War, French and Indian War, Monuments, Personalities, Preservation, Uncategorized3 Comments
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Carlyle House from the Front (Author Photo)

William Griffith’s examination of the Carlyle House Congress last month (The Carlyle House Congress and Britain’s Military Objectives for 1755) reminded me that I had been remiss in not visiting the site.   So, the family and I set off for Alexandria, VA and a visit to John Carlyle’s home.

Continue reading “Visiting Carlyle House” →

Review: European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802 (Campaigns and Commanders Series) Edited by Frederick C. Schneid

On By erwguestIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Book Review, Campaigns, Common Soldier, UncategorizedLeave a comment

ERW Book Reviews (1)

Emerging Revolutionary War welcomes back guest historian Bill Backus

The American Revolution ultimately set in motion a chain of events that transformed not only society in the Americas but also back in the Old World.  Six years after the United States gained independence, revolution broke out across France.  While Americans focused on building a new nation, across the Atlantic the French Revolution sparked a series of wars subsequently known as the French Revolutionary Wars.  Eventually after many years of combat and political chaos, a young army officer named Napoleon Bonaparte emerged as the new Emperor of France.  Led by the Emperor the French army and nation embarked on a series of new wars that spread from Spain to Russia.  From the beginning of the French Revolution to the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo, Europe was at war for nearly 26 years, or nearly the entire lives of people born during the American Revolutionary period.

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European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802 (Campaigns and Commanders Series) by Frederick C. Schneid

While Napoleon’s French Empire is widely known on both sides of the Atlantic, the wars that allowed Napoleon’s ascent to power are less prominent.  Concerned that revolution could spread to the rest of continental Europe, Revolutionary France found itself engaged fighting the European status co intent on restoring the Bourbon monarchy in France.  Over the course of years war and peace ebbed and flowed in Europe, with war sometimes sparked by the French in hopes of unifying a splintered public. In “European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789-1802”, historian Frederick Schneid has organized a study exploring the role of some of the prominent European armies in this period.  Collaborating with noted scholars in their respective fields, the essays explore the armies of the nation-states of France, Prussia, Austria, Russia, Great Britain, Spain, and the Ottoman Empire, along side the various German principalities and the armies of the Italian states. Continue reading “Review: European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802 (Campaigns and Commanders Series) Edited by Frederick C. Schneid” →

George Mason’s Gunston Hall

On By Eric SternerIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Continental Leadership, Emerging Revolutionary War, Personalities, Revolutionary War, Uncategorized2 Comments
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Gunston Hall River Entrance (Author Photo)

Gunston Hall’s River Entrance (Author Photo)

George Washington’s estate on the Potomac River is one of the most-visited places in the greater Washington, DC area, as befits the home of the Father of his Country.  Just twelve miles south (by road), however, sits an equally impressive 18th century plantation home.  Gunston Hall was the estate of George Mason IV (1725-1792).  Best known as one of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention who in the end opposed the Constitution’s ratification, Mason doesn’t always get his due in the stories of America’s founding fathers.  But, he was a critical and thoughtful voice in forming the early United States government and enshrining its first ten amendments, the Bill of Rights.  Fortunately, his home is open to the public and easily accessible from the metropolitan Washington area.

Continue reading “George Mason’s Gunston Hall” →

A Very Special Message

On By erwpostIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Campaigns, Emerging Revolutionary War, Monuments, Preservation, Revolutionary WarLeave a comment

A special announcement in the preservation world was made public today. The Civil War Trust, which the Campaign 1776 initiative spawned from, officially changed their name to the American Battlefield Trust. You can see their video announcement of the name change and what it means, here.

logoEmerging Revolutionary War sent an email inquiry to our friends at American Battlefield Trust to elaborate a little further on what this name change means and the impact to their current and future preservation efforts. Continue reading “A Very Special Message” →

The Brush of John Trumbull

On By erwguestIn Campaigns, Continental Congress, Continental Leadership, Memory, Monuments, National Park Service, Northern Theater, Personalities, Preservation, Revolutionary WarLeave a comment

Emerging Revolutionary War welcomes back guest historian Michael Aubrecht

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John Trumbull

John Trumbull’s paintings represent some of the most familiar depictions from the time of the American Revolution. Trumbull was a graduate of Harvard University and the gifted son of the Governor of Connecticut. As a child, Trumbull showed a remarkable talent for an attention to detail. This aptitude set his drawings apart from his contemporaries. Trumbull traveled to London in 1784 to study painting under the master Benjamin West. It was then that he started painting some of his most notable pieces. There he honed his expertise for realistic painting. A year later later Trumbull traveled to the City of Paris to do commissioned artworks. He later did portraits of George Washington, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. In 1816, he was selected as the president of the American Academy of the Fine Arts where he would serve for 20 years. Emphasizing classic traditions Trumbull attempted to teach the skills he had acquired while overseas. Following his death in 1843 at the age of 87, Trumbull was buried beneath the Art Gallery at Yale University which he had designed. In 1867, his collection of artworks were displayed at the Street Hall building on the same grounds. He and his wife’s remains were later re-interred and buried on the grounds of that building. Trumbull’s approach to painting has been studied by art students around the world. Today Trumbull’s paintings remain some of the most cherished ever to be painted by an American artist.  Continue reading “The Brush of John Trumbull” →

THE AUTHORS AND THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION IN CONCORD

On By Rob OrrisonIn Battlefields & Historic Places, Civilian, Memory, Personalities, Slavery, Uncategorized1 Comment

In honor of April being National Poetry Month, we share the connection of the literary icons of Concord (MA) and its American Revolution heritage. Concord historian Jayne Gordon wrote about these connections in an appendix in our recent release “A Single Blow.” Below is part of that text.

None of the eighteenth-century Concord authors lived through the American Revolution, yet reminders of that eighteenth-century war abounded in Concord in their lifetimes. Their neighbors were the grandchildren of the minutemen; veterans of the war were still among the townsfolk. Buildings, gravestones, old roads, and other landmarks evoked that part of the past, and they were surrounded by the stories of the fateful day of April 19, 1775. They each drew on their interpretations of the Revolution’s symbolic meaning, and incorporated those ideas into both their private and public writings.

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The “Old Manse” next to the North Bridge in Concord

In the case of RALPH WALDO EMERSON (1803-1882), there was a direct historical link to a grandfather who had played a significant role in the beginnings of the Revolution. Sixty years after colonial militiamen confronted the British troops at the North Bridge within sight of the Old Manse, the grandson of patriot minister Reverend William Emerson would come to his ancestral home to stay, writing in his journal, “Hail to the quiet fields of my fathers! . . . Henceforth I design not to utter any speech, poem, or book that is not entirely & peculiarly my work.” Continue reading “THE AUTHORS AND THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION IN CONCORD” →