During the American Revolution, black men, both enslaved and free, fought in the Continental Army. Blacks served alongside whites while in pursuit of liberty and independence. In the 1851 painting of Washington Crossing the Delaware, artist Emanuel Leutze shows a black soldier at Washington’s side in their boat as they cross the river to secure a much-needed victory at Trenton, New Jersey, on December 26, 1776.
When the war began, General George Washington initially banned black men from the Continental Army. However, as manpower shortages worsened and the British began actively recruiting enslaved men, the Continental Army reversed its policy, enlisting both free and enslaved black men.
Between 220,000 and 250,000 soldiers and militia served the American cause in total, with black soldiers making up approximately four percent of the Patriots’ numbers. Of the 9,000 Black soldiers, 5,000 were combat-dedicated troops. The average length of time in service for a Black soldier during the war was four and a half years, which was eight times longer than the average period for White soldiers. Thus, although blacks were only four percent of the manpower base, they accounted for around a quarter of the Patriots’ man-hours, including supportive roles.
Once the rebellion began, Prince Estabrook, a black soldier, was one of the first to fall on Lexington Green in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775. Other Black men fought to defend nearby Concord Bridge later in the day.
Black soldiers served in mostly integrated units at this time. Black soldiers fought alongside White Patriots at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Estimates indicate that between 20 and 40 men of color participated in the initial battles, serving as minutemen and militia members.
The vast majority of black Patriots fought in integrated regiments alongside white soldiers. The First Rhode Island Regiment is the most famous regiment that included Black soldiers. In 1778, the Rhode Island Assembly voted to allow “every able-bodied negro, mulatto, or Indian man slave in this state to enlist into either of the Continental Battalions being raised.” The assembly further stipulated that “every slave so enlisting shall, upon his passing muster before Colonel Christopher Greene, be immediately discharged from the service of his master or mistress and be absolutely free.”
Rhode Island Enslavers opposed this new law, and in June 1778, the state repealed this provision. However, 100 blacks enlisted during that four-month period. Another 44 enlisted after June of 1778. In total, 144 blacks enlisted in the First Rhode Island Regiment out of 225 soldiers.
At least a dozen Black men fought at the Battle of (the mislabeled) Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775.
Cuff Whittenmore was cited for “fighting bravely” and allowed to keep a sword he captured from a British officer. Another black soldier, Peter Salem, a veteran of the Battle of Concord Bridge,
killed yet another senior British officer in the fight. Later, 14 American officers signed a document recognizing Salem Poor as “a brave and gallant soldier.” In John Trumbull’s famous painting of the battle, two black people are depicted.
Blacks also served in the ranks of the allies of the American rebels. Six hundred of the 3,500 French troops who fought to retake Savannah, Georgia, in the fall of 1779 were black freemen and slaves recruited in France’s Caribbean colonies. The Spanish governor of Louisiana, Bernardo de Galvez, also employed black soldiers in his campaign against the British in theMississippi Valley and along the Gulf Coast.
In the years after the Revolution, blacks received little credit for their participation and support. It was not until September 16, 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that one of the earliest and best summaries of their service appeared in an article entitled “Negro Soldiers in the Revolution” in the Army and Navy Journal: “The record is clear that from the beginning to the conclusion of the war of the Revolution, Negroes served in the Continental Armies with intelligence, courage, and steadfastness, and that important results in several instances are directly traceable to their good conduct.”
