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AMERICAN REVOLUTION

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see "FREEDOM" for related links

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The second day of July, 1776, will be the most
memorable epoch in the history of America.
I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by
succeeding generations as the great anniversary
festival. It ought to be commemorated as the
day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion
to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with
pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports,
guns, bells, bonfires, and illustrations, from one
end of this continent to the other, from this time
forward forevermore.
--John Adams (1735—1826)
First VP and second President of the United States.
In his second letter to Abigail Adams [3 July 1776].


What do We Mean by the Revolution? The War?
That was no part of the Revolution; it was only an
Effect and Consequence of it. The Revolution
was in the Minds of the People, and this was
effected from 1760 to 1775, before a drop of
blood was shed at Lexington.
--John Adams (1735—1826)
First VP and second President of the United States.
Letter to Thomas Jefferson [24 August 1815] in
L. J. Cappon _The Adams-Jefferson Correspondence_ [1959] p.455.

-

What a glorious morning is this!
--Samuel Adams (1722—1803)
American revolutionary leader.
On hearing gunfire at Lexington [19 April 1775].

The demand-for quarter, seldom refused to a
vanquished foe, was at once found to be in vain.
Not a man was spared, and it was the concurrent
testimony of all the survivors that for fifteen minutes
after every man was prostrate, they went over the
ground, plunging their bayonets into everyone that
exhibited any signs of life.
--The American surgeon, Dr Robert Brownfield, on the
massacre of several hundred Virginia troops by the men
of the Tory Colonel Banastre Tarleton in mid-May 1780
after the Battle of Waxhaw Creek, after they had raised
a flag of surrender;
in M.J. Cohan and John Major {eds.}
_History in Quotations_ [2004] p. 508.
Cohan & Major add:
The American film The Patriot [2000] portrays the British
and their Tory collaborators as a merciless partnership,
but atrocities were committed by both sides in the war.

[Ethan Allen] wrote to Congress to make it
quite clear that he and his men were fighting
for the independence of Vermont, as a
separate nation. If he failed, he said, "I will
retire into the desolate caverns of the
mountains to wage war with human nature
at large." He didn't. Instead, he schemed
with the British to make Vermont a British
province. He was lucky not to be tried for
treason. As it was, he ended up having to
escape from his beloved state to avoid
imprisonment — a little matter of big debts
— and left behind a brave name, a highly
baised history of Vermont, and a fat
pamphlet: A Denunciation of the Prophet
Moses and the State of New York.
--Alistair Cooke [Alfred Cooke] (1908—2004)
British-born American broadcater and journalist.
_America_ [1973]

Then join Hand in Hand, brave Americans all,
By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall.
--John Dickinson (1732—1808)
American politician.
"A Song for American Freedom," called
The Liberty Song, first published in
_The Boston Gazette_ [18 July 1768].

By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmer stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world.
--Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803—1882)
American philosopher and poet.
"Concord Hymn" _Poems_ [1847]
The poem was introduced on April 19, 1836
at the unveiling ceremony for the Battle
Monument in Concord, Massachusetts.

-

We must all hang together, or most
assuredly, we shall all hang separately.
--Benjamin Franklin (1706—1790)
American politician, inventor, and scientist.
Attributed remark at signing of the Declaration of Independence [4 July 1776].


Our new Constitution is now established, and has
an appearance that promises permanency, but in
this world nothing can be said to be certain, except
death and taxes.
--Benjamin Franklin (1706—1790)
American politician, inventor, and scientist.
(Letter to Jean-Baptiste Leroy [13 November 1789].)

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Quash this spirit at a Blow without too much regard
to Expence and it will prove economy in the End.
If the Principles of Moderation and Forbearance
are again adopted ... there will be an End to these
Provinces as British Colonies.
--Thomas Gage (c. 1721—1787)
British general who commanded all British forces
in North America from 1763—1774.
To the secretary at war Lord Barrington [28 June 1768],
in John Shy _A People Numerous and Armed_ [1976] p. 90.

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I only regret that I have but one life
to lose for my country.
--Nathan Hale (1755—1776)
American revolutionary.
About to be hanged as a spy by the British during
the American Revolution [22 September 1776].

& note:

What a pity is it
That we can die but once to serve our country!
--Joseph Addison (1672—1719)
English essayist, poet, and dramatist.
_Cato_ [1713], act IV, sc. 4

-

There, I guess King George will be able to read that.
--John Hancock (1737—1793)
American Revolutionary leader and first
signer of the Declaration of Independence.
(After affixing a large signature at the signing
ceremony of 2 August 1776.)

-

Is life so dear or peace so sweet, as to be purchased
at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty
God! I know not what course others may take, but as
for me, give me liberty or give me death!
--Patrick Henry (1736—1799)
American statesman, instrumental in the adoption of The Bill of Rights.
Speech before the Virginia House of Burgesses, St John's Episcopal
Church, Richmond [23 March 1775]. First published in the William
Wirt's _Sketches of the Life and Times of Patrick Henry_ [1817].


The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians,
New Yorkers, New Englanders are no more. I am
not a Virginian but an American!
--Patrick Henry (1736—1799)
American statesman, instrumental in the adoption of The Bill of Rights.
Addressing the First Continental Congress [5 September 1774].

-

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On the night of April 18, 1775, while Franklin was in mid-ocean,
a contingent of British redcoats headed north from Boston to arrest
the tea party planners Samuel Adams and John Hancock and capture
the munitions stockpiled by their supporters. Paul Revere spread
the alarm, as did others less famous. When the redcoats reached
Lexington, seventy American "minutemen" were there to meet them.

"Disperse, ye rebels," the British major ordered. At first they
did. Then a shot was fired. In the ensuing skirmish, eight
Americans were killed. The victorious redcoats marched on to
Concord, where, as Emerson put it, "the embattled farmers stood,
and fired the shot heard round the world."

On their day-long retreat back to Boston, more than 250 redcoats
were killed or wounded by American militiamen.

--Walter Isaacson (1952— )
American journalist and author.
_Benjamin Franklin: An American Life_ [2003]

-

I have not yet begun to fight.
--John Paul Jones (1747—1792)
Naval captain.
Attributed. Responding to a British ultimatum that he surrender
his sinking ship, the "Bon Homme Richard," in a battle he
ultimately won [23 September 1779].

-

After the sacrifices that I have made in this cause, I have
the right to ask two favors at your hands; the one is, to
serve without pay, at my own expense; and the other,
that I be allowed to serve at first as a volunteer in the
ranks.
--Marquis de Lafayette (1757—1834)
French aristocrat who fought with the
American colonists against the
British in the American Revolution.
In a letter to Congress [23 July 1777].


Humanity has won its battle.
Liberty now has a country.
--Marquis de Lafayette (1757—1834)
French aristocrat who fought with the
American colonists against the
British in the American Revolution.

Note:

After the American Revolution, Marquis de
Lafayette asked the Americans to come
help France some time.

And so:

Lafayette, we are here!
--Col. Charles E. Stanton (1859—1933)
American army officer.
Address at tomb of Lafayette, in Paris, France [4 July 1917].

-

The history of modern, civilized America opened with
one of those great, really liberating, really revolutionary
wars of which there have been so few compared to
the vast number of wars of conquest which, like the
present imperialist war, were caused by squabbles
among kings. landowners or capitalists over the division
of usurped lands or ill-gotten gains. That was the war
the American people waged against the British oppressed
America and held her in colonial slavery, in the same way
as these "civilized bloodsuckers" are still oppressing and
holding in colonial slavery hundreds of millions of people
--V.I. Lenin (1870—1924)
Russian revolutionary and first head of the Soviet state (1917—1924).
In "Pravda" [22 August 1918].

[It] gave liberty not alone to the people of this
country, but hope to all the world, for all future time
...I would rather be assassinated on the spot than
surrender it.
--Abraham Lincoln (1809—1865)
American Republican statesman, President [1861—1865].
[22 February 1861] in J.G. Nicolay and John Hay (eds.)
_Abraham Lincoln: Complete Works_ [1920 ed.] v. I, p. 691.

-

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year

[ . . . ]

One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,

--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807—1882)
American poet.
_Tales of a Wayside Inn_ [1863-1874],
pt. 1 "The Landlord's Tale: Paul Revere's Ride" [1863]

-

-

If the American Revolution produced nothing but the
Declaration of Independence, it would have been
worth while.
--Samuel Eliot Morison (1887—1976)
American historian, author and winner
of two Pulitzer Prizes.
_The Oxford History of the American People_, ch. 14 [1965]


Make no mistake; the American Revolution was not fought to obtain
freedom, but to preserve the liberties that Americans already had
as colonials. Independence was no conscious goal, secretly nurtured
in cellar or jungle by bearded conspirators, but a reluctant last
resort, to preserve 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.'
--Samuel Eliot Morison (1887—1976)
American historian, author and winner
of two Pulitzer Prizes.
_The Oxford History of the American People_ ch. 12 [1965]

-

-

These are the times that try men's souls. The summer
soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink
from the service of his country; but he that stands it
*now,* deserves the love and thanks of man and
woman.
--Thomas Paine [spelled Pane prior to 1774] (1737—1809)
English-American writer and political pamphleteer.
Opening words, "The American Crisis" (a pamphlet) [23 December 1776]
(Written after Washington's retreat from New Jersey.)


Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must,
like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it.
--Thomas Paine [spelled Pane prior to 1774] (1737—1809)
English-American writer and political pamphleteer.
"The American Crisis" no. 4 [12 September 1777]

-

You cannot, I venture to say, *you cannot conquer America.*
If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign
troop was landed in my country, I never would lay down my
arms, never — never — never!
--William Pitt, the Elder, also called (from 1766) 1st Earl of Chatham
(1708—1778) British statesman, twice virtual prime minister
[1756—1761, 1766—1768].
(On the British use of Hessian mercenaries [18 November 1777].)

To conquer a great continent of 1,800 miles,
containing three millions of people, all indissolubly
united on the great Whig bottom of liberty and
justice, seems an undertaking not to be rashly
engaged in ... It is obvious, my lords, that you
cannot furnish armies, or treasure, competent to the
mighty purpose of subduing America [and] whether
France and Spain will be tame, inactive spectators of
your efforts and distractions, is well worthy the
consideration of your lordships.
--Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden (1714—1794)
English jurist.
In the House of Lords [16 March 1775].

-

Don't one of you fire 'til you see the whites of their eyes.
--Colonel William Prescott (1726—1795)
at Bunker Hill, Massachusetts [17 June 1775].

also note:

The British commanders for this engagement were General Thomas Gage and General Sir William Howe. These two generals were highly skilled in leading legions of British troops in battle. The Americans commanders were Colonel William Prescott, General Israel Putnam and Joseph Warren. These generals were fairly skilled in combat . . . On June 16, 1775 (at night) more than 1,000 patriots (rebel fighters), under the command of General Prescott, marched to Breed's Hill over the Charlestown neck and fortified it with trenches, bales of cotton and hay by the morning of June 17. After they were done with this, General Israel Putnam took some men and began to fortify Bunker Hill.

. . The losses were astounding for the British with more than 1,000 men lost, wounded or prisoners. The Americans only lost about 400 or less. By the military tradition of the time, the British won because at the end of the battle they had possession of the field. The casualties however, tell a different story. This attack was immortalized forever in American history. First, because it was the first serious defeat for the British and secondly due to a famous quote attributed to one of the American commanders. To preserve the American's gunpowder, he ordered the patriots, "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!"

& note:

Silent till you see the whites of their eyes.
--Prince Charles of Prussia at Jagendorf [23 May 1745]

No firing till you see the whites of their eyes.
--Frederick the Great at Prague [6 May 1757]

-

If the British went out by Water, we would shew two Lanthorns
in the North Church Steeple; and if by Land, one, as a Signal.
--Paul Revere (1734—1818)
American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution.
1798 letter to Jeremy Belknap.

You see those red coats yonder! They must fall
into our hands in fifteen minutes, or— Molly Stark
is a widow.
--John Stark (1728—1822)
American revolutionary officer.
Before the Battle of Bennington [16 August 1777].
Quoted in "New Hampshire Sentinel" [20 July 1819].

-

I think I can announce it as a fact, that it is not the
wish or interest of that government, or any other
upon the continent, separately or collectively, to set
up for independency. I am as well satisfied as I can
be of my existence that no such thing is desired by
any thinking man in all North America.
--George Washington (1732—1799)
American general and commander-in-chief of the
colonial armies in the American Revolution [1775—1783]
and first president of the United States [1789—1797].
To Captain Robert Mackenzie [9 October 1774]
in M.J. Cohan and John Major {eds.}
_History in Quotations_ [2004] p. 502.


The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether
Americans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any
property they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are
to be pillaged and destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of
wretchedness from which no human efforts will deliver them. The
fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage
of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the
choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We
have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.
--George Washington (1732—1799)
American general and commander-in-chief of the
colonial armies in the American Revolution [1775—1783]
and first president of the United States [1789—1797].
Address to the Continental Army before the
Battle of Long Island [27 August 1776].


Our cause is noble; it is the cause of Mankind!
--George Washington (1732—1799)
American general and commander-in-chief of the
colonial armies in the American Revolution [1775—1783]
and first president of the United States [1789—1797].
Referring to the Revolutionary War in a letter
to James Warren [31 March 1779].

-

The enemy killed, scalp't, and most barbarously
murdered thirty-two women and children ... burnt
twenty-four houses with all the grain [and] committed
the most inhuman barbarities on most of the
dead.
--Survivor's account of an Indian attack led by the
British on Cherry Valley, New York [November 1778],
in M.J. Cohan and John Major {eds.}
_History in Quotations_ [2004] p. 508.


end page



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