Colonists who opposed American Revolution all but forgotten(Justifying NY TIMES)

San Diego UNION ^ | 4 July 2006 | Cynthia Crossen

[cripplecreek]

We have far too much nearly forgotten history of American sacrifice in this country. (I've been digging in Michigan history a lot lately)

I wonder how many Kentuckians know the phrase "Remember the River Raisin"? It's the result of a massacre of nearly 700 Kentucky soldiers by British and Indians in 1813. In fact several Kentucky counties are named after soldiers who fought here.

[Pharmboy]

Lee was a self promoter. He indeed kept putting Washington off as The General kept asking him him to join him with hsi troops in NJ. What Lee, in fact, did do was go to Basking Ridge, NJ, with a small escort and pleasure himself with the Widow White. Banastre Tarleton ("Bloody Ban" of the southern campaign's infamy later on in the RevWar, the model for "Tavington" in The Patriot) was in the area and heard of Lee's presence and captured him. This was long before Monmouth.

And yes--there had been doubters of Washington's abilities, but he had strong support also. The doubts subsided after Trenton and Princeton--for the most part.

[PzLdr]

I bet those folks all worked for , or read, the NEW YORK TIMES.

[Enterprise]

Others believed only oligarchies of well-bred intellectuals were competent to govern a country.

Mexico in a nutshell.

New Jersey too.

[Raycpa]

These days, the Colonists who opposed the revolution have been all but forgotten.

Not in the church I used to go to. There the pastor was warned not to support the King again from the pulpit. He did and was forcibly removed by the men of the parish. He was about to be tarred and feathered when one of the leaders talked them out of it. That was the man's last time at the church.

And no, he was not forgotten.

[freedom moose]

Thanks Caipirabob

[Raycpa]

Some were tarred and feathered. Hundreds were jailed. One Delaware loyalist, convicted of aiding and abetting the enemy, was sentenced to be hanged “but not 'til you be dead for you must be cut down alive ... and then your head must be severed from your body and your body divided into four quarters and these must be at the disposal of the Supreme Authority of the state.”

How times change.

Today he would be awarded a Pulitzer or a Profile in Courage Award.

[cajungirl]

I swear I read this article in the Wall Street Journal.

And it is interesting. What I could understand was the fear of a revolution and the desire not to be part of it. This was not something I couldn't understand. Who in heck doesn't fear what happens and what the outcome is of a revolution.

This is interesting. And I don't think the writer was making a political point vis a vis today.

It has always amazed me how the founding fathers handled our revolution. There was no bloodbath after i.e. The French. A testament to what kind of people we are from.

[ladyjane]

There were many Indians on Cape Cod. Still are.

[DejaJude]

These days, the Colonists who opposed the revolution have been all but forgotten.

Men with little ambition, little vision and even less daring are very forgettable. Wonder what the world would be like today if we had remained a colony?

[xp38]

Roughly the same has been argued about the Rosenbergs and other communists in America by leftist academiics.

[muawiyah]

One might presume the "white men" of Barnstable were the only people with a vote. And yes, there were Brotherton Indians there ~ they didn't vote. And the women didn't vote either. Neither did the young boys.

However, I don't think that's the point the writer was making.

[ladyjane]

In Cambridge, MA there were many who supported the Crown and many who were neutral. Brattle Street is still called Tory Row. It was where the wealthy Loyalists lived. They were driven out of town and many went to Canada. Their church was closed for ten years. Part of it was burned and there are still bullet holes in the walls. It is a beautiful church. Church of England, of course. Their silver service was a gift from William and Mary and is kept in the vault at the Museum of Fine Art.

[Phsstpok]

Kenneth Roberts, considered by many to be the finest novelist writing about the Revolutionary War period (see link above for examples - you'll probably recognize some), wrote an excellent book about the loyalists called Olver Wiswell. It makes a very good read and puts forward reasonable and understandable motivations, both base and noble, for why these folks took the positions they did.

The core motivation of the main character is a combination of loyalty and fear.  Their loyalty was to what was then the most free and equitable political system on the planet. The traditions of Great Britain included things such as the Magna Charta, noble things to be revered as guarantors of freedom as well as bulwarks against anarchy and mob rule.  The English form of government was arguably the best avaialble at the time and the arguments for throwing it off provided no promises that what replaced it would be better or even anywhere near as good.

You have only to study the French Revolution that happened not long afterwards to see just what it was these people had to fear. The fact that our revolution turned out as it did is a credit to the extraordinary men who saw us through that period. They were people who showed rare selflessness and discipline. We are truly blessed that we had them to lead us. Other people have not been so lucky.

I can forgive someone for being skeptical of a "great leader" claiming to be "above all that," given the ample evidence we can all point to.  All men are subject to temptation and very few have what it takes to carry through and do the right thing.  Washington's character, perhaps above all, set the moral tone for our government and the men who run it.  His rejection of a crown and insistence on serving only two terms as president have left an amazing example that has served us well.  FDRs rejection of that honorable tradition did much to tarnish the nobility of government service, particularly within his party.  It's all about them, not about us.  It explains a lot.  They are much closer to Robespiere than Washington.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who has an open mind and an interest in our history.

[muawiyah]

Might take a look at how many Hoosiers know what it was about. Kentucky militiamen had a habit of moving up North even in those days.

There were only 100 families living in Detroit at that time. We have an old chest of drawers one of the family members living there built "way back when". It's got parts cut out of a cherry tree that must have been 20 feet WIDE.

[King Moonracer]

Its called the dustbin of history and these objectors are in it.  Maybe we should hunt down the descendants of these losers and allow them to open casinos too; it seems to be the American way lately.

[MarkL]

Something else that's lost here is the fact that things most definately would NOT be the same today if there were no Revolutionary War. They seem to think that had we not broken from the British, we would be the same as we are today. We would be independant today, like Canada and Austrailia, they say.

I say, NOT SO!

It was the fact that we were independant of Britian long before WWI that allowed us to enter that war the way we did. And in WWII, would the US have been the "Arsenal of Democracy" that we were, had we not been independant?

I would love to see a book by a (an?) historian who looks at how things might have been different at every key juncture in American history, had we NOT fought the Revolutionary war, and become independant. For instance, does anything doubt for a moment that in the British military, George Patton, Douglass MacArtur, and Omar Bradley would have had a very hard time getting commands, due to their "personalities?"

Mark

[longtermmemmory]

AMAZING the GALL of the anti-american NYT has to publish THIS tripe on the Fourth of July celebration.

How can anyone advertise on the NYT?

[longtermmemmory]

The unelected are stuggling to keep their desk jobs in DC.

[AnalogReigns]

In Pilgrim and Puritan days sure, but the 1770s? What have you been smoking???