George Washington’s Crossing of the Delaware River in the Dead of the Night on Christmas
So why were Washington and his bedraggled Continental Army trying to cross an ice-choked Delaware River on a cold winter’s night? It wasn’t just to …
1776
Thomas Paine publishes “The American Crisis”: “These Are the Times That Try Men’s Souls… Tyranny, Like Hell, is Not Easily Conquered”
The days of December 1776 were some of America’s darkest times. Thomas Paine epically captured the moment in “The American Crisis.” “These are the times …
Continental Congress Calls for a Day of Fasting and Humiliation for the Soldiers
Because of the distressing condition of the tattered but unbowed soldiers, the American Continental Congress called for a day of fasting and humiliation: Resolved, That …
The Heroics of Margaret Corbin, the First Woman in U.S. History to be Awarded a Military Pension.
A similar story to that of the famous Molly Pitcher is that of Margaret Cochran Corbin, wife of artilleryman John Corbin. On Nov. 16, 1776, …
King George III speaks for first time since American independence declared
On October 31, 1776, in his first speech before British Parliament since the leaders of the American Revolution came together to sign of the Declaration of Independence that summer, King George III acknowledges …
American Patriot Nathan Hale was Hanged for Spying on British Troops: Last Words, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
As he was led to the gallows, Hale’s famous last words—inspired by a line from Joseph Addison’s popular play, Cato, reportedly were—“I only regret that …
The first Submarine, the Turtle, is Launched in a Mission to Sink a British Flagship
Innovation is the word to best describe America’s first submarine. David Bushnell from nearby Westbrook, Connecticut was a Yale graduate interested in creating an explosive …
Washington Crossing The East River and the Miracle at the Battle of Long Island
There is not a famous painting of this river crossing on the night of August 29/30, 1776 unlike the crossing of the Delaware before the …
The First Group of Hessian Mercenaries Arrive to Staten Island, NY
In December 1775, British Colonel William Faucitt and Hessian minister Martin Ernst von Schlieffen drafted a treaty promising the Hessian Landgraf Friedrich II a large …
Delegates sign the Declaration of Independence
Members of Congress affixed their signatures to an enlarged copy of the Declaration of Independence a month after Congress had approved the declaration of independence …