About This Book

In the aftermath of the battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775 and the start of the Revolutionary War, it was not clear whether the colonies outside of New England would participate militarily in the conflict. Troops from the four New England colonies surrounded Boston immediately after the fighting at Lexington and Concord, and two months into the standoff the Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, assumed authority over the New England army, but the middle and southern colonies had yet to see armed conflict or bloodshed with British forces.
In United for Independence: The American Revolution in the Middle Colonies, 1775–1776, historian Michael Cecere examines how the inhabitants of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland reacted to the outbreak of war in Massachusetts. Leaders in these middle colonies, influenced by strong Loyalist sentiment within their borders and, in some cases, among themselves, fiercely debated whether to support the war in New England. Congress’s decision in the summer to establish a continental army, and its authorization for an invasion of Canada, both of which involved troops from the middle colonies, set the stage for their full-scale involvement in the Revolutionary War.
Using primary source extracts and proceeding chronologically from the spring of 1775 to the fall of 1776, the key events in each of these colonies is presented, from the political struggles between Whigs and Tories, through the failed Canadian expedition, to the loss of Long Island and New York City. Designed for readers to understand the sequence of events that transformed a resistance movement into a war for independence, United for Independence provides an important overview of events in the middle colonies at the start of the Revolutionary War that complements other works that focus on specific military clashes and campaigns.

MICHAEL CECERE received an MA in history and an MA in political science from the University of Akron. An award-winning public school teacher, now retired and living in Williamsburg, Virginia, he is the author of a number of books of American Revolution history, including the companion volume March to Independence: The American Revolution in the Southern Colonies, 1775–1776, The Invasion of Virginia, 1781, and General Peter Muhlenberg: A Continental Officer of the Virginia Line.

Praise for United for Independence:

“United for Independence is a solid summary of the first year of the Revolution in the Middle colonies and is savvy to include references to things going on in other places that impinged on those events, particularly the inclusion of Canada and the decision to extend the narrative to the fall of New York. The survey is comprehensive and the sources cited appropriate for a work at this scale. It is an enjoyable, lucid, and highly readable addition to the literature on the American Revolution.”—Robert N. Fanelli, Trustee, Swan Historical Foundation, Secretary, Washington Crossing American Revolution Round Table