Defiant loyalists paid dearly for choosing wrong side in the American Revolution

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/meet-the-defiant-loyalists-who-paid-dearly-for-choosing-the-wrong-side-in-the-american-revolution-180986716/

by bookofjoe • 1 year ago

112 50 1 year ago

smithsonianmag.com

saysjonathan• 1 year ago

Now I want to see 'Tories' used derisively in modern American politics.

dontlaugh2• 1 year ago

Go ahead.

In the UK there’s regular Tories (Conservative Party), red Tories (Labour Party under Blair or Starmer), tartan Tories (SNP), etc.

In the US it seems like you only have red and blue Tories.

shortrounddev2• 1 year ago

Actually there's a massive difference between Democrats and Republicans in the US, and that difference matters a lot

moogleii• 1 year ago

Recently learned that one of Ben Franklin's sons was a loyalist. He fled to England after the war.

jplrssn• 1 year ago

As did everyone else who read the article :-)

chasil• 1 year ago

The recent series with Michael Douglas makes repeated mention of William Franklin.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_(miniseries)

Balgair• 1 year ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Franklin

Not only was William a loyalist, he was the last colonial governor of New Jersey and was one of the chief leaders of the loyalists. His early years and heritage are just crazy stuff, even for our times.

There is a good reason you've not heard about ol William before, because his story and relationships are totally nuts. My lord, the conflicts of interest are at actual war.

Imagine if Putin's bastard son was one of Zelensky's most important generals.

FridayoLeary2• 1 year ago

What’s more, much of the population, “probably a statistical majority, [just] wanted to get on with their own lives without worrying about declaring their allegiance to one side or the other,”

Still the same today.

morkalork• 1 year ago

The absolute truth right here. Just go on reddit to see it any time a roadway gets blocked on protest.

aaomidi2• 1 year ago

Reddit is one of the most as astroturfed platforms out there.

disposition2• 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing, I’ve always enjoyed the Smithsonian magazine and its articles, hope to visit some day.

I’m hoping all the RIFs, reductions / eradication of IMLS, etc. don’t reduce the gains in & sharing of knowledge from these institutions, but if I am being honest it kind of feels like it’s purposeful destruction.

So I’ll enjoy it while we have it.

mcphage• 1 year ago

I’m planning to take my kids to Washington this summer to see the Smithsonian museums. It doesn’t seem like a great time to go to Washington, but I don’t know if they’ll be there, or in what state, next summer or the summer after.

ben7799• 1 year ago

I have always thought the fact Boston was a hotbed of revolution and New York city was a loyalist stronghold (as the article mentions) has had some small subconscious effect on the ongoing rivalry between the two cities all the way to the present day.

We joke about the Red Sox and the Yankees but deep down there is this smidgen of it that goes all the way back.

Also from the article, amazing how William Franklin has been almost erased by history even though Benjamin Franklin is endlessly discussed in elementary history in the US. A fascinating addition to the story. I'm sure historians are familiar with this, but it's likely something every day Americans should all know about. I know it was not mentioned in my education through high school, including AP history. There was scant discussion of loyalists, the Tories were definitely mentioned but it was not covered in the same way the community & family divisions of the Civil War were.

taeric• 1 year ago

This feels odd. Many people paid dearly for being involved, period? It isn't like we have any dynasties that survived through the era, did we?

Specifically, 46 people signed the declaration of independence. How many of those are remembered today? Do I expect that people on the "other side" had it worse? Yeah, but this framing implies a spoils system.

This always makes it odd to read about narratives that go about people's connection to family land. It is almost anti American in how we were founded and grew. I know we have a few estates that are named and known. Is that a larger number than I realize?

runako• 1 year ago

Sharp contrast here with the aftermath of our bloodiest war.

sys32768• 1 year ago

American descendants of loyalists often hide their roots.

I know this because my grandmother told me a few years before she passed that her father, a mason and devoted patriot, once confided a scandalous family secret: there are loyalists in our family tree.

Sadly, grandma's research never got her to the root of this claim despite much research, but thanks to online resources and some helpful Canadians, I discovered the truth.

Grandma's grandfather had emigrated from New Brunswick, Canada, during the Civil War, in which he served the Union.

It turns out his great-grandfather was a captain in the Queen's Guard during the American revolution, born in Connecticut. He and his wife and children had fled after the war with other loyalists to New Brunswick, Canada. They suffered many deprivations, although the loyalist commission board compensated them about half their worldly goods they lost in America.

This captain had married a woman whose brother fought for the Americans at Bunker Hill.

While researching my grandmother's grandfather from Canada, I discovered a telling white lie: he would tell the local busybody newspaper that he was visiting his sister in New York. Thing is, he had no sister in New York. Instead, I discovered the Canadian newspapers not long after were reporting he had arrived from America to visit his sister in New Brunswick.

I was blown away by all this rich history, but when I shared my discoveries with all the remaining family on that side, nobody expressed excitement. In fact, the one person who used to call me up to discuss family history, stopped calling me.

sa46• 1 year ago

Other fun fact, Army Rangers trace their lineage to Rogers’ Rangers. Rogers fought for the crown in the Revolutionary War.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogers'_Rangers

Defiant loyalists paid dearly for choosing wrong side in the American Revolution

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