1776-77 Developments New Jersey Loyalist military units saw action in New Jersey and surrounding states.
Lieutenant Colonel John Morris and the 300 men of his 2nd Battalion of the New Jersey Volunteers provided artillery support for the British beginning in November 1776. They learned artillery skills on the job. Morris competed enthusiastically for recruits near his home in Monmouth County. They saw action near New Brunswick, Sandy Hook and eventually New York to supplement British forces. Second Battalion ranks increased with Patriot deserters leaving Valley Forge. The battalion's artillery assignment continued through 1779 ["A History of the 2nd Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers," The On-Line Institute for Advanced Loyalist Studies, accessed 15 Nov 2017. http://www.royalprovincial.com/military/rhist/njv/2njvhist.htm.]. After the late 1776 Battles of Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey was cleared of British troops and reconciliation was offered to former Patriot soldiers. Soon both Tories and Whigs were severely persecuted by Hessians, causing Tories to question their loyalty to England and …show more content…
Tories openly supported the English Crown in defiance of Whig and Patriot viewpoints. New Jersey law was changed permanently to punish treason and Tory counterfeiters who tried to interfere with Continental money distribution. Many Loyalists avoided prosecution by escaping behind British lines now formed at Staten Island and Sandy Hook. This development encouraged Loyalists to join the British in fighting the Patriots [McCullough, 1776, 262]. Soon British forces controlled the entire state of New Jersey. Many disgruntled Patriot soldiers joined British ranks [Beatty, 24-28, 30-31]. Loyalist spies used British techniques to produce invisible writing for spy activities and documents. [John A. Nagy, George Washington's Secret Spy War: The Making of America's First Spymaster (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2016),
Lieutenant Colonel John Morris and the 300 men of his 2nd Battalion of the New Jersey Volunteers provided artillery support for the British beginning in November 1776. They learned artillery skills on the job. Morris competed enthusiastically for recruits near his home in Monmouth County. They saw action near New Brunswick, Sandy Hook and eventually New York to supplement British forces. Second Battalion ranks increased with Patriot deserters leaving Valley Forge. The battalion's artillery assignment continued through 1779 ["A History of the 2nd Battalion, New Jersey Volunteers," The On-Line Institute for Advanced Loyalist Studies, accessed 15 Nov 2017. http://www.royalprovincial.com/military/rhist/njv/2njvhist.htm.]. After the late 1776 Battles of Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey was cleared of British troops and reconciliation was offered to former Patriot soldiers. Soon both Tories and Whigs were severely persecuted by Hessians, causing Tories to question their loyalty to England and …show more content…
Tories openly supported the English Crown in defiance of Whig and Patriot viewpoints. New Jersey law was changed permanently to punish treason and Tory counterfeiters who tried to interfere with Continental money distribution. Many Loyalists avoided prosecution by escaping behind British lines now formed at Staten Island and Sandy Hook. This development encouraged Loyalists to join the British in fighting the Patriots [McCullough, 1776, 262]. Soon British forces controlled the entire state of New Jersey. Many disgruntled Patriot soldiers joined British ranks [Beatty, 24-28, 30-31]. Loyalist spies used British techniques to produce invisible writing for spy activities and documents. [John A. Nagy, George Washington's Secret Spy War: The Making of America's First Spymaster (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2016),