Army in the Age of the American Revolution

"And I do hereby further declare all indented servants, Negroes, and others, (appertaining to Rebels), free, that are able and willing to bear arms, they joining His Majesty’s Troops, as soon as may be, for the more speedily reducing the Colony to a proper sense of their duty, to His majesty’s crown and dignity." On November 7th, 1775, Lord Dunmore made his fated proclamation; this utterance changed the course of the American Revolution for the African-American. If the subject is to be justified then a historical context for Dunmore’s proclamation must be provided. What was the position of the British army at the end of 1775? Had the rhetoric of American liberty accounted for the African-American? The injustices served out to the African-American between 1775 and 1776 by the white American patriot made the British promise of emancipation both appealing and logical. Lord Dunmore and the British commanders were sensitive to these Negro injustices: the decision to recruit the black bondsmen, therefore, was based on pragmatic and strategic reasoning.

At the end of 1775 His Majesty’s army was in a hapless position. From the beginning of

any Love to your fellow-men, Break these intollerable yoaks, and Let their

It was not just the Negro slave who was conscious of the discrepancies of the white patriot language of liberty during the revolution. The case of Lemuel Haynes perhaps serves as the best illustration of the inconsistencies of the American rhetoric. Haynes was a mulatto; he was also the indentured servant of a white Congregationalist deacon, David Rose. Due to the philanthropic deposition of his master he had gained all the benefits and privileges of an affiliated family member. In 1775, now released from servitude, he joined his classmates in fighting for the "sacred cause of liberty" by serving as a minuteman in the Continental army. He served as a private in the army at the battle of Lexington and Concord. During his time as a New England serviceman between 1775 and the fall of 1776 he moved from a position of unquestioning patriotism to political criticism.

Events from the start of the American Revolution in the spring of 1775 up until the signing of the Declaration of Independence had marginalized the Negro cry for liberty. The developed political opinion of Lemuel Haynes reflected the injustice done to the African-American community during the formative stages of the revolution. By the fall of 1774 and the spring of 1775 black slaves had begun to see the British flag as an image of salvation. His Majesty’s army by the fall of 1775 was already in a critical position; a lack of manpower was stifling their cause. George Washington and Thomas Gage were both aware of the destructive potential of arming the black bondsman. In conclusion: it was the political and social climate that encouraged Lord Dunmore to make his infamous proclamation. The British were sensitive to the political position of the African-American community: they also had their own practical and strategic motives for making the perilous decision.

and you Sink under them: for god will not hold you guiltless."

names Be remembered no more, Least they Be retorted on your own necks,

Some topics in this essay:
Lord Dunmore, Thomas Gage, Dunmore Washington, Brion Davis, American Revolution, Land Love, Lord Dunmore’s, Lemuel Haynes, Declaration Independence, Determination Somerset’s, lord dunmore, british army, majesty’s army, american revolution, lord dunmore’s, declaration independence, black bondsmen, dunmore’s proclamation, black slaves, black slave, status black slave, british promise emancipation, 1775 fall 1776, british army 1775, lord dunmore’s proclamation,