Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1971 Desertion in the American Army During the Revolutionary War. James Howard Edmonson Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Edmonson, James Howard, "Desertion in the American Army During the Revolutionary War." (1971). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 2116. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/2116 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. i r S- I y I 72-17,75^ EDMONSON, James Howard, 1931- DESERTION IN THE AMERICAN ARMY DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, Ph.D., 1971 History, modern University Microfilms, A XEROX Company, Ann Arbor, Michigan © 1972 JAMES HOWARD EDMONSON ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. DESERTION IN THE AMERICAN ARMY DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of History by James Howard Edmonson B.A., Sanford University, 1957 B.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1961 M.A., Louisiana State University, 1963 December, 1971 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PLEASE NOTE: Some pages may have indistinct print. Filmed as received. University Microfilms, A Xerox Education Company Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express appreciation to Dr. R. Don Higginbotham, formerly professor of history at Louisiana State University, now at the University of North Carolina, for his constructive suggestions, and patience, in guiding the preparation of the dissertation. The author also wishes to thank Dr. John L. Loos, chairman of the history department, Louisiana State University, for reading and commenting on the manuscript, and Dr. T. Harry Williams, Dr. Burl Noggle, Dr. Patrick C. Lipscomb, III, and Dr. Cecil V. Crabb, Jr., who served as faculty committee. Mr. Howard Wehmann and Miss Mary Johnson, archivists at the National Archives, Washington, D.C., rendered valuable aid in suggesting sources and locating documents. Many thanks also to Mr. Harold Bass, librarian at the Emma Waters Summar Library, Union University, Jackson, Tennessee, and numerous staff librarians at the Library of Congress, Louisiana State University, Vanderbilt University, Memphis State University, New York Public Library, Cossitt Public Library, Memphis, Tennessee, Birmingham Public Library, and military libraries at Fort Hood, Texas, Fort Polk, Louisiana, and Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Acknowledgment is also expressed to Mr. Frank Morse, Mount Vernon Library, Mount Vernon, Virginia, for his kind considerations, and to Mr. Albert W. Haarmann, military historian, retired from the ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. iii U.S. Air Force, for his assistance with military units. Last, and most importantly, appreciation is expressed to my wife, Frances, for typing the manuscript — several times. Thanks also go to Bonnie Carmack who typed the final version and to my three children * who waited patiently six years while the work was in progress. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. FOREWARD In no war where Americans have been engaged in battle against foreign foes, except the American Revolution, has desertion been classified as a major issue, although it has always been a concern of military commanders. It is ironic that it should have been so serious a factor during the period when Americans were fighting to establish a new nation based on lofty principles. Since 1783, generations of Americans have pointed with pride to the gallant little army that persevered and finally won independence for the United States. However, Americans have closed their eyes too long to the hardships that some men were unable to endure, as if desertion were un­ thinkable for patriots and too unpleasant to concern us now. This study will explore the problem of desertion in the American army during the War of the Revolution as fully as possible. A look at the laws passed by the states and the central government that pertain to desertion, both in the Continental army and the militia forces, will show the efforts of Congress and the states to deal with shirkers. The causes of desertion will be dealt with in three chapters followed by a chapter on the extent of desertion, which makes an attempt to establish how many men left illegally from the American service. The chapter on apprehension will show the various means used by the army to retrieve their runaways. Two chapters iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. V are concerned with the prevention of the crime: they deal with the army's attempts to correct grievances and to improve the recruiting system and describe the types of punishments to which deserters were subject. The concluding chapter considers the effect of desertion on military operations. Many questions have been raised about the problem of desertion in the army during the American Revolutionary War. Some of these questions will be answered in this study, but no doubt more will be raised than answered. It is conceded that much additional work needs to be done in this area, especially since this investigation is principally devoted to the American field army under Washington's immediate command. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................. ii FORWARD ...................................................... iv LIST OF TABLES ................................................ viii ABSTRACT ...................................................... ix CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION: THE PROBLEM OF DESERTION ............ 1 II. MILITIA LAWS .................................. 15 III. STATE DESERTION L A W S ................................. 38 IV. CONTINENTAL CONGRESS' DESERTION LAWS ................ 63 V. CAUSES OF DESERTION: PHYSICAL FACTORS .............. 99 VI. CAUSES OF DESERTION: MILITARY FACTORS .............. 136 VII. DOMESTIC, POLITICAL, AND OTHER CAUSES OF DESERTION ..... ............................. 177 VIII. THE EXTENT OF D E S E R T I O N ............................. 217 IX. THE APPREHENSION OF D E S E R T E R S ...................... 262 X. THE PREVENTION OF DESERTION - PART I ................ 290 XI. THE PREVENTION OF DESERTION - PART I I .............. 322 XII. CONCLUSION........................................... 357 vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vii BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................. 387 APPENDICES.................................................... 418 I. PRESIDENTS OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS ........ 419 II. LOCATION OF CONGRESS DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 420 III. STATE GOVERNORS DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR . 421 VITA .......................................................... 423 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I. GENERAL RETURNS FOR THE CONTINENTAL A R M Y ................. 242 II. NUMBER OF MEN FURNISHED BY EACH STATE IN THE W A R .............................................. 250 III. ROSTERS OF STATES' CONTINENTAL TROOPS ................. 252 viii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT This is a study of desertion, in the American army during the Revolutionary War. Emphasis is placed on the following facets of the subject: laws, regulations, and policies enacted by governing bodies to combat desertion; reasons men deserted; extent of illegal departures; capture of deserters; action by authorities to prevent desertion; punishment of deserters; and effect of desertion on the operation of the army. The states passed numerous laws to regulate the activities of militia forces and state lines serving with the Continental army. These laws provided punishment for men who refused to report when ordered and for those who left the service prior to the termination of their legal tour of duty without proper authorization. Additional state laws prohibited civilians from assisting known army runaways. The Continental Congress enacted the Articles of War (1775- 1776) to govern the army. Several provisions in the Articles of War gave the army authority to apprehend deserters, bring them to trial, and, if convicted, impose punishment ranging from reprimands and whippings (not to exceed one hundred lashes) to the death penalty. Soldiers deserted the service for a variety