The American mythology is that George Washington and Marie-Joseph du Motier (Marquis de La Fayette) and the Continental Army defeated Charles Cornwallis (also a Marquess) at Yorktown in October of 1781 and the British immediately surrendered and went home. It’s a nice story but it does not pass the sniff test. Why would Brittan surrender. …
Continue reading “The Critical Role of Spain in the American Revolution”
On After witnessing the massive overnight British bombardment of Fort McHenry during the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key composed the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner” in September 1814 but this did not become our national anthem for another 117 years. Even though throughout the 19th century, “The Star-Spangled Banner” was regarded as the national …
Continue reading “The “Star-Spangled Banner” becomes the US national anthem (March 3, 1931)”
3 March 1776 Two weeks to the day after leaving Cape Henlopen, Delaware, ships of the Continental Fleet under Esek Hopkins rendezvoused three leagues north of Nassau harbor in the early morning hours of Sunday, 3 March 1776. The sounds of alarm that greeted the Americans’ careless show of force argued the wisdom of an …
Continue reading “US Marines in the American Revolution — Landing at New Providence”
I have all these 18th C portraits that cycle through my PC desktop wallpapers. I am not sure why but today, this one caught my attention. Let me draw your attention to his hands… While this hand gesture is often seen as a victory sign (“V for Victory”), with the palm outward, and still today …
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. February 27, 1776 Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge The royal governor of North Carolina, Josiah Martin, began to muster the Loyalist militia in order to suppress the unrest including …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge”
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. February 27, 1776 Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge The royal governor of North Carolina, Josiah Martin, began to muster the Loyalist militia in order to suppress the unrest including …
Continue reading “Historical Tidbits — Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge”
A lot of people consider lobster to be a culinary delicacy. In 17th century colonial America, however, it wasn’t exactly desirable. The seafood was mostly fed to those with little say in their diets, such as prisoners and indentured servants working off their contracts. Seen as the cockroach of the sea, 17th century European settlers …
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. February 24, 1801 Marbury vs Madison Politics in 1800 were contentious. Thomas Jefferson and his political party, the Democratic-Republicans, had soundly beaten John Adams, a Federalist, in the …
General Washington had the first public celebration of his birthday done by his wife, Martha, at the encampment at Valley Forge in the winter of 1778. The next official acknowledgement of Washington’s birthday would not occur for fifty-four years. At the recommendation of Henry Clay of the Senate and Philemon Thomas of the House, Congress …
Valentines Day(2/14) 1873, Joe Johnson of Lockport, New York was celebrating his good fortune. His friend and brewery owner John Gibson agreed to Johnson fulfilling a dream by spending a night in the brewery. It was a ill-conceived celebration; his body was found, head hanging down into a wooden, open-tank of beer. His glee over …
Continue reading “Civilized Men Drink Their Beer from Glasses — and for good reasons!”
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 