William Howe

David Maltbie: The ‘Other’ Nathan Hale

September 29, 2026 by Chris Kretz Leave a Comment

The story of Nathan Hale is a foundational myth of the American Revolution: an earnest but inexperienced patriot takes on the role of spy and unfortunately ends up a martyr to the cause.

Hale was identified by Major Robert Rogers, who pretended to be a fellow patriot, got him to reveal his mission over a drink before arresting him. When searched, British forces found hidden notes and military drawings. Under the laws of war, captured spies were not granted military trials or treated as prisoners of war. [Read more…] about David Maltbie: The ‘Other’ Nathan Hale

New York’s Great Warpath & Historian Harrison Bird

September 14, 2026 by Anthony F. Hall Leave a Comment

Lake George, NY resident Harrison Bird (1910-2003) belonged to a rare class of historians, those whose situate the local within the continental and, indeed, the global.

In four books published by Oxford University Press – Navies in the Mountains (1962), March to Saratoga (1963), Battle for a Continent (1965) and Attack on Quebec (1968) – Bird wrote about Lake George, Lake Champlain, Fort Ticonderoga, Saratoga, Quebec and the northern waterways not as isolated historic sites, but as parts of one strategic corridor: the route by which empires, armies, navies and ambitions moved between Canada and the Hudson Valley. [Read more…] about New York’s Great Warpath & Historian Harrison Bird

Naval Power & The 1776 Taking of New York City

September 11, 2026 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

The occupation of New York Harbor, and the capture of the city of New York were the most conspicuous British successes of the summer and fall of 1776 during the Revolutionary War. In June, Commodore Peter Parker (1721-1811) and General Henry Clinton (1730-1795) were meeting with defeat at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island at Charleston, SC, and Benedict Arnold was racing to construct a makeshift naval fleet to stall a British invasion from Canada on Lake Champlain.

At the same time, two brothers, General Sir William Howe (1729 –1814) and Commander-in-Chief of the North American Station, Richard Howe (later Earl Howe, 1726-1799), were arriving in New York Bay. [Read more…] about Naval Power & The 1776 Taking of New York City

HMS Cerberus: The Warship That Brought Burgoyne, Clinton, and Howe to the Colonies

October 8, 2025 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

A few weeks after the April 1775 battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts, the British warship HMS Cerberus, a 28-gun frigate, arrived in Boston harbor carrying three British generals that would go on to play key roles in the American Revolution: John Burgoyne, Henry Clinton, and William Howe.

The very name of the sixth-rate ship, Cerberus, did not go unnoticed to Bostonians. Cerberus was a mythical Greek god, a monstrous three-headed dog often called the “hound of Hades.” [Read more…] about HMS Cerberus: The Warship That Brought Burgoyne, Clinton, and Howe to the Colonies

Burning of Kingston History, Commemoration Events

September 28, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

During the American Revolution, the small town of Kingston, Ulster County, New York, appears twice as a key location in numerous historical accounts; once as the meeting point for New York politicians, and once as the focal point of British retaliation.

The first meeting resulted in Kingston’s role as the birthplace of the State of New York. One month later, in retaliation for aiding the patriots, the British burned Kingston to the ground. [Read more…] about Burning of Kingston History, Commemoration Events

Did George Washington Burn New York City?

May 24, 2023 by Alan J. Singer 1 Comment

August 27, 1776, British troops under General William Howe attacked American forces commanded by George Washington in the Battle of Brooklyn. Assailed from three sides, Washington and the main body of the Americans escaped across the East River to Manhattan and then fled north, ultimately crossing the Hudson River, then known as the North River, to New Jersey.

If Washington and his troops had been captured either in Brooklyn or Manhattan, the American Revolution would likely have ended soon after it began. [Read more…] about Did George Washington Burn New York City?

William Howe

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