The Service and Sacrifice of the British Soldier in Boston
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- Опубликовано: 11 сен 2024
- The American War of Independence is monolithic mythos that continues to impact our world in every single day in so many facets. It's flatly engrained in the conciseness of the American spirit. The British regulars who served are nothing more than a side note. Today, we take a humanistic look at their lives during the occupation of Boston in the early 1770s.
This video is part of the "War is Hell" collaboration, be sure to check out the other videos in the project here: • "War is Hell: No Matte...
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These first hand accounts are priceless. The British soldiers were just ordinary people trying to do their jobs. The everyday nuances of the American Revolution need more attention like this.
As a Vietnam veteran, I can shout a hearty AMEN to this video. As with the British Redcoats, we were much maligned.
Cheers, mate! Thanks for stopping by and watching!
there's a lot of correlation between the AWI and the Vietnam War.. including the public opinion and vast distances between theater of war and the homeland.
A wonderful look at lives nearly forgotten. Thank you.
Thank you for the kind words and stopping by!
The week before the start of Pandemic, to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Boston Massacre, the Baylor Law School and History Department put on a mock trial performance of the trial of Privates Hugh White and Hugh Montgomery. The law students were the prosecution and defense, the law professor and local judges were the justices, and we history students who took a special class were the witnesses. We had to read a lot and research our characters. Mine was John Goldfinch, Captain, 14th Regiment of Foot, who helped kick off the events that ultimately led to the Horrid Incident (as it was referred to at the time).
That’s a splendidly cool story! What a cool way to bring history and education together!
Who won the case?
@@primalreversion7034 Privates Hugh White and Hugh Montgomery were found not guilty, when in real life Montgomery was found guilty, but the charge was reduced to manslaughter under benefit of clergy. He was then branded on the thumb and released.
An interesting story I came across whilst researching the 47th Regiment- Lt. R. Gold was a widower, who brought his two children to Boston when the regiment was garrisoned there starting in late 1774. He was killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June of 1775. His children were left in Boston as orphans. I haven't dug into it to find out why Lt.Col Nesbitt, or even Col Sir Guy Carleton didn't sponsor the children's shipment back home as happened occasionally (per article by D. Hagist). As far as I know the two children were just left in Boston.
Another tragedy of the British service here that I think has been overlooked.
Thanks for doing this video, and thanks to all of you for covering these topics! It's a great collaboration and really great content!
Wow! That's incredibly sad!
@@nickwoodbury132 Yeah. I should go back and find the article or book I found the excerpt from. Because I think there is paperwork in the form of a report or possibly even a pension request for Lt. Gold's children. But essentially yeah, they were orphaned in Boston in '75/'76.
I feel bad for these British soldiers. They didnt want to opress colonialists or uphold some unfair system, they merely were serving their country.
Oppressed? 🙄
Britons in Britain paid taxes, why shouldn't Britons in America? Especially after all the assistance they'd had in not becoming French a few years previously.
And as redcoats were paid from the public purse, it was in their interest to bring the tax-dodgers to heel.
Even that is a simplistic one-sided view. Not all colonists supported the rebellion, so the soldiers were fighting to protect them from the rebels. One man's oppression is another's maintaining law, order and peace.
The British had established peace and limits on expansion with the natives, the rebelling colonists wanted the right to expand out of the colonies and conquer new lands and fortunes, the soldiers were protecting the peace with the natives.
The rebels sided with Britain's enemies, nations who wanted to conquer and oppress the British people at worst, or simply to steal and harass her colonies and trade, the soldiers were fighting in opposition of that treasonous action by the rebels.
In other words, there was a lot more to the rebellion/independence war, than the simple "no taxation without representation" propaganda.
It's not as if Independence brought freedom from oppression,...slavery continued, and ultimately a civil war was fought that involved a troubling use of conscription to force American to fight American in order to impose as Federal rule over unwilling States,...a certain amount of oppression there on both sides, no? The Natives of course suffered worse of all in the colonies breaking away from Britain, they lost everything and suffered far worse than taxes without voting rights.
Hope we never lose sight of our humanity and humility and shun those that seek to destroy or take it away from us.
Couldn’t have said it better!
I maintain my statement that the American Revolution was Britain's Vietnam. Terror, confusion, guilt, division, misery in a hostile clime, hatred both abroad and at home, atrocities witnesses and committed, civil war, outrage at home, terror of annihilation from rival superpowers, ending in exhaustion and humiliation. It's amazing, but should be expected, to find that most soldiers just ask "why" in every war.
or rather Vietnam, was America's American Revolution
I love your videos
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
I’d completely agree, the populace in Britain was largely sympathetic as we know from newspaper articles etc and hence why so little resources were dedicated to it.
Thank god the French showed up otherwise we’d have been toast lmfao
Washingtons strategy reminds me of How Chi Minh's strattegy
Thank you for the reminder that war cannot be romanticized or sanitized, like it has been many times etc....
Hope that I’ve made at least a wee dent in the stupid notion!
TFW he slammed the orderly book shut before the ink dried-
But seriously, an excellent video. I'm always on the lookout for stories of ordinary soldier life during the AWI, this is a nice roundup of several.
Glad to hear that you enjoyed it!
It’s weird walking around the common where there is a British mass grave and random markers on battle road with no names on them.
It’s really a little eerie.
@@TheFarOffStation I work for the MBTA which is our subway system. Redcoats are often scene in the tunnels and stations under the mass grave.
Really like your conversational and approachable presentation. Love this collaboration as I’ve found some great new channels! Thanks!
Thank you for the very kind words! Very happy to hear you’ve found some splendid new channels to watch!
A most excellent video on a very important topic. Great work!
Thank you so much, old boy!
Great vid! Found you via Atun-Shei - looking forward to more!
Thank you! Happy to have you along!
Contrary to popular myth, the Boston Tea Party was caused by low taxes. High taxes on tea created a smuggling trade, so the British reduced the tax rate to undercut the smugglers. This meant many smugglers would make a loss on their smuggled tea, so they raided ships to pour the tea into the bay and ensuring their tea could be sold at a profit. It is contrary to the causes of the independence movement (motivated by opposition to high taxation), but remains in folklore as the first major act or rebellion.
Ha, I'm happy that for whatever reason I found your channel even before watching this vid-collab. Now I feel verified in my former assumption that you are, indeed, noteworthy. ^^
Greetings from Germany!
Glad you’re along for this ride! Thank you for the very kind words!
Cheers from America!
I spent time as a reservist in the Royal Welch Fusiliers in the early 90s. I remember that on St. David's Day, the officers would come around with laced tea for the men (too much rum, though, IMO). Messages of well-wishes were read out from other regiments, including the US.
That’s a fantastic story!
Well done, Jonathan!
Glad to hear that you enjoyed it!
We forget the lives and actions of individuals unless they were in some way heinous. A soldier saving a drowning boy only to lose his life doesn't fit the desired national narrative so tends to not get mentioned.
jeez louise, that poor tailor. I can't imagine how awful it would be to be executed by "my side" for making a mistake like that.
Then again, it still would have sucked even if he *was* trying to desert.
It’s terrible. Hopefully we can use these lessons to be better humans.
I'd like to hear what explanation he gave for having most of his clothes about his person when he went for his walk... I think he was trying to desert, but possibly because he wasn't thinking straight due to drink. Sad that getting drunk is still treated as a worthy objective on a night out to this day, with inevitable bad outcomes. Military punishments generally were harsh back in the day.
Interesting to get this ground level perspective.
Well done!
Thanks, old boy!
Great video 👍
Great video! Well done! Fascinating to look at garrison life!
Thank you for the most kind words! Glad you enjoyed it!
It’s like how when I was visiting revolutionary war sites I was having fun learning but I was very mindful that men just like me fought and died on the very land I stood on
Reverence is important.
Great video and stories.
Thank you!
Wow, who's that poser you got to do the voice-over for the "18-pound shot" line? Dude didn't even try to do an accent, smdh.
Looks like I’m going to have to forward your disappointment to him, it’s unacceptable that you feel this way.
@@TheFarOffStation Hope you didn't pay him anything...
F…..
Do you mean Fergeson, because that accent was totally out of place to my ears.
@@thumper8684 No, I mean the line that I voiced.
A general look at military punishments might be interesting in terms of understanding the environment soldiers operated in.
Brandon F has some videos on the topic!
You must remember that no mater how decent individual British soldiers were, they still represented a Parliament and monarch who were in trouble financially after the French and Indian war/ 7 Years war. King George III and many in Parliament were determined to tax the colonies who resisted such efforts. Of course the colonists thought this was unjust and common British soldiers were representatives of injustice to the patriots. If memory serves, the British soldiers didn’t earn that much and took jobs in Boston at lower wages than working Colonists, which caused a lot of resentment. Hate ran deep as the war progressed. Hatred not only for the Brit soldiers, but also for the Loyalists, many of whom had to leave the country afterwards Even Benjamin Franklin never spoke to his Loyalist son again. This happened in many families.
Here from collab, recognize some of the voices. Great work!
Thank you so much!
Another great video
Very well done kind sir, very well done. Keep up the good work.
Thank you for the kind words!
Excellent video Sir…
Thank you very much!
I love the backround
Thank you!
I appreciate this
I'm going to have to find some Continental channels to balance out the Tories clogging up my feed. Might start thinking that I'd be better off with a monarch on my money.
Thank you for the sobering look into the everyday hardships of the common soldier.
You couldn't have that!
A voice over cameo by the Lord Rivers. Huzzah ! New (old) sub. Well done 👍🏼
That’s indeed him, he’s unmistakable! Thanks for stopping by!
Sorry I missed this when it was released.
Chris is once again doing his part.
Now we know some of their stories.
Love your videos!! Are you from Malaysia, or Asia in general? What connects you to its history?
Thank you! I have family from Hong Kong!
If not already done, it would be interesting to dig into the actual level of support for the AWI - it's my understanding that more colonists were loyal or neutral than for the rebellion. I also read that Washington et al didn't originally seek independence at all, just a level of political representation that wasn't even enjoyed by people back in Britain. Oh yes, and to pay less tax... (My understanding is that said tax was to cover defence cost etc and that the Crown actually made a loss on the Colonies - it would be interesting to look at that too.)
You’re pretty much on the money. If you want to watch some content on it, Brandon F. has a video on it: ruclips.net/video/roOyq6cBUmM/видео.html
The low tax rate made sense in the very early days of settlement construction, but by this period the ports and plantations of America were, from the UK standpoint, well able to contribute more to their defence.
All war is hell it is sad that people do not understand this fact with talking about the 18th century
It really rather is. It shouldn’t have to be such a wild notion.
The you inform you are wearing appears to have the yellow facings of the Colonial Militia. Is that correct?
This is the uniform of a Corporal of the 10th Regiment in 1775-76. A regular army regiment.
❤
That Atun-Shei I hear?
It is indeed! Good voice recognition!
I also heard Brandon F and Chris the redcoat
The barrack guaaard
The legend continues
How would the lads keep there uniform clean? Yours is spotless, I wonder how dirty they would have been back in the day. I also wonder how many of the ‘redcoats’ were local lads and how many of them were from England?
Cleanliness was pretty important to the army, as filth brings disease and the like. This would of course get dirty but things would be washed. Also, for Harrison troops, they very likely we keeping last years clothing allotment for dirty duties to keep their new uniform in good shape. In 1775, units were primarily made up of of English, Irish and Scottish soldiers. In 76, many regiments, including the 10th, received German recruits.
If you’re interested in cleanliness, Chris the Redcoat has a pretty thorough video on it here: m.ruclips.net/video/qgyjACytIKM/видео.html
1776 Population of 13 colonies 2.5 million
Same time population of Britain only 800.000
According to Google...
I double checked and got the same answer...
I saw it I read it , but its hard to believe it,
If anything I expected it to be the other way round..
I’d normally say “this is hype” but man…
This is certainly a more complicated one, isn’t it…
I prefer to remember the great sacrifices made by members of the continental army. They had no luxury of writing around a fireplace during winter. They were spent without blankets ,food and many endured diseases ,starvation and harsh frostbite .Things were so rough George Washington had to deal with the constant threats of desertion
Very nice short and sweet. Brandon's was a bit just bit over the top.
I don’t think anyone did 1918
This is true
o7
Wellington never lost a battle - Napoleon lost a few , Wellington is the better leader .
Napoleon fought 43 battles and won 38. Wellington fought 32 and won 32. The five that Napoleon lost were forced upon on him and was always at a disadvantage. Without the Prussians Wellington would have lost at Waterloo.
@@rexbarron4873 yeah but Wellington had style 😉
@@rexbarron4873the “without the Prussian” argument is nonsense.
The prussians agreed to come to wellingtons aids, and history is not a case of “well if this didn’t happen this would”.
Wish I didn’t live in ohio, I would join the 10th regiment of foot in no time 😂
Check for local units in your area, there’s very likely something!
Ok not to sound weird but how old are you? Bc you look like you could be anywhere from 16 to 30 lmao
Well I suppose that you failed in the first regard. It's a teensy bit odd.
@@TheFarOffStation fair enough. Good channel regardless.
Soldier wouldn't have posh accent.
Well, the higher-ups sure do.. ;P
But then that's the brass, not the "soldier".
@@R3tr0humppa Quite true. However the RP accent we all know did not exsist until until the wireless and the BBC radio broadcasts. Accents of Officer would be similar to thier county accent but a bit more well spoken. As in Norfolk accent, a local would say, u all roght, and the offcier would say, are you all right. But now with today posh accent.
great vid but the britlove is kinda weird. those that serve the cause of oppression never deserve sympathy, regardless of the time period they existed in.
It could have been worse, you might instead be speaking French.#mon dieux #sacre bleu# .
@@johnpoile1451 hon hon hon eiffel tower baguette oui oui
Then as now, it's disproportionately the poor who end up joining the armed forces because it keeps them out of poverty. I have some sympathy for the individuals who get funneled into the death machine, it's all part of the same horror show serving to line the coffers of the rich.
@@00muinamir as i have no sympathy for russian soldiers in 2022, i have no sympathy for british soldiers in 1778
@@andrew20222 and I have no sympathy for US soldiers in Vietnam.
Or in Afghanistan.
Or in their wars against the native Americans.