Emerging Revolutionary War Emerging Revolutionary War

On September 20, 1777 an American force under General Anthony "Mad Anthony" Wayne was surprised and routed by British forces under General Charles Grey. Wayne's entire division was put to flight losing nearly 300 men (with the British losing just a dozen). Called by many the "Massacre at Paoli", the fight was one of many that was part of the 1777 Philadelphia Campaign.


Join ERW as we welcome back historian and author Michael C. Harris, expert on the Philadelphia Campaign, as we discuss the battle, its role in the campaign, the personalities and the myths around Paoli. Harris is now working on his third volume in his much acclaimed Philadelphia Campaign trilogy, that will include the Battle of Paoli.

Approximately 5,000 African-American or Black soldiers fought for the patriot cause in the American Revolution. Some joined state militias, some joined the Continental Army, and some sailed the seas with the fledgling navies of the United Colonies. William and Benjamin Frank were two of those 5,000. Both were free Blacks from Rhode Island who enlisted in the 2nd Rhode Island Regiment in 1777. Their father was a veteran of the French and Indian War, so the family was well-established in military tradition.

The 2nd Rhode Island fought and defended Fort Mercer during the campaigns of 1777 and survived harsh winters at Valley Forge and Morristown before returning to Rhode Island to literally defend the hearth and home from the British. Author and historian Dr. Shirley L. Green, adjunct professor at the University of Toledo, a 26-year veteran of the law enforcement community, and current Director of the Toledo Police Museum in Ohio, “takes the reader on a journey based on her family’s history, rooted in its oral tradition.”

Her book Revolutionary Blacks, Discovering the Frank Brothers, Freeborn Men of Color, Soldiers of Independence was published by Westholme Publishing in November 2023.

Join Emerging Revolutionary War historians Mark Maloy, Rob Orrison, and Mark Wilcox as we discuss the Irish in the American Revolution. We’ll talk about the Irish who fought with Washington’s army, those who fought with the British, and how the events in American ultimately spilled over into Ireland and the Rebellion of 1798. We'll also discuss how we have come to remember the role of the Irish in the Revolution. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

From the hard lessons learned on the battlefields of New York, to his appointment as Quartermaster General during the harsh winter at Valley Forge, his role in convicting the British spy who colluded to obtain the plans to West Point, to the godsend who took command of the ragged remnants of the Southern Continental Army, Nathanael Greene's complex perseverance and brilliant strategies broke military doctrines.

Join ERW as we welcome author Salina Baker as we discuss her historic novel about Nathanael Greene. We will discuss the life of Greene, his wartime experiences, why he has been forgotten by many and why she found his life story so interesting.

Join Emerging Revolutionary War as we chat with historian and author Patrick O'Kelley about the brutal civil war that broke out in North Carolina in 1781. Whigs (commonly known as Patriots, supporting American Independence) and Tories (supporting loyalty to Great Britain) fought a brutal and bloody war against each other in eastern/central North Carolina called "The Tory War." Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene, wrote that the war in the Carolinas ‘Nothing but blood and slaughter has prevailed among the Whigs and Tories, and their inveteracy against each other must, if it continues, depopulate this part of the country.’


Patrick O'Kelley has authored numerous books on the American Revolution, including his four-volume all-encompassing series on South Carolina in the American Revolution titled "Nothing But Blood and Slaughter: The Revolutionary War in the Carolinas" and "“Be Cool and Do Mischief: Francis Marion’s Orderly Book.”

“Their Immortal Honour Made a Brave Defense” The Maryland Line was one of the preeminent stalwarts of the American army, both in the northern and southern theaters of the war. Join Emerging Revolutionary War historians in a discussion about the men from the Old Line State and their military acumen during the American Revolutionary War. The discussion will also highlight their memory and memorialization.