During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian revolutions. By the eighteenth century, as the American colonists began to think of freedom from England, they thought of other freedoms as well. In 1777, Thomas Jefferson drafted the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. In 1789, freedom of religion became the law of the land with the passage of the First Amendment to the Constitution.
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Battle of Monmouth and the Legend of Molly Pitcher
According to legend, at the Battle of Monmouth (June 28, 1778), Mary Hays, wife of artilleryman William Hays, carried water to cool both the cannon and the soldiers in her husband’s battery—hence the nickname “Molly Pitcher.” Legend also asserts that when William Hays collapsed or was wounded, she took her husband’s place in ...
Gen. Washington: “To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest Glory to laud the more distinguished Character of Christian.”
General Washington wrote at Valley Forge, May 2, 1778: “To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest Glory to laud the more distinguished Character of Christian.” ...
Washington on His Ragged Army: “men without clothes to cover their nakedness, without blankets to lay on, without shoes… marching through frost and snow…”
Valley forge April 21st 1778 Dr Sir On saturday evening1 I had the pleasure to receive your favor of the 16th Inst. I thank you very much for your obliging tender of a friendly intercourse between us; and you may rest assured, that I embrace it with chearfulness, and shall write ...
Did Isaac Potts Really See Washington Pray at Valley Forge?
One of the legends or myths of Valley Forge is that Washington prayed for his country here. We do not say that he did not pray at Valley Forge (he assuredly did), there simply is an open question as to how he did so and if he actually was witnessed ...
General Washington and his Troops arrive at Valley Forge
The images are heartrending, dramatic and so powerful that they are embedded in the nation's historical consciousness: Bloody footprints in the snow left by bootless men. Near naked soldiers wrapped in thin blankets huddled around a smoky fire of green wood. The plaintive chant from the starving: "We want meat! ...
Quakeress and Ardent Patriot, Lydia Darragh, Risked her Life to Warn Washington of Secret British Plans for a Surprise Attack.”
Lydia Darragh was a Quaker woman who crossed enemy lines during the British occupation of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her mission was to pass information to General George Washington and the Continental Army, warning them of an impending British attack. Lydia Barrington was born in 1729 in Dublin, Ireland. On November 2, 1753, ...
The Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation, passed by the US Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, was enacted on March 1, 1781 as the founding constitution of the United States of America. The "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union" established the United States of America as a sovereign nation governed by the United States in ...
The Continental Congress made a National Thanksgiving Day Proclamation
As printed in the Journals of Congress below... IN CONGRESS – November 1, 1777 Forasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with gratitude their obligation to him for benefits received, and to implore such farther blessings as ...
Thomas Paine: “THOSE who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, …undergo the fatigues of supporting it”
THOSE who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it. The event of yesterday was one of those kind of alarms which is just sufficient to rouse us to duty, without being of consequence enough to depress our fortitude. It is not ...
Congress Proposes Purchase of 20,000 Bibles
In colonial America, Bibles had to be imported from Britain, as the British government strictly regulated the printing of religious materials. It was illegal to print Bibles in the English language without a license from the king. In 1589, Queen Elizabeth I had granted Christopher Barker the title of Royal ...
