Militia During The American Revolution

America took on an almost impossible task during the American Revolution. In order to fight against Britain, the colonists had to be creative, loyal and dedicated to the cause of independence. They were outmanned, had few supplies and were untrained in military tactics; nevertheless America won the war against great odds. In part, the American Revolution was fought by small groups of militia. The militia was emergency soldiers with little military training whose goal was to protect their towns from foreign invasions. The Minutemen of Massachusetts were one of the most well-known militia groups and were comprised of men between the ages of 16 and 60. The Minutemen were well-trained and drilled between the Boston Tea Party and the battles of Lexington and Concord. This group of men was different than other militia groups in that they were ready for battle because of training. Unfortunately, other groups of American militia did not fair out as well as the Minutemen. During the early years of the war, when faced with the highly trained British army, the militia ran away. In addition, these militia units would move back and forth from the front lines of fighting in order …show more content…
Washington did not believe that the militia would help during the war. In the early stages of the war, Washington was correct. The militia performed poorly at Brandywine Creek in 1777 and then again at Germantown on October 4, 1777 (174). The failure at these battles was due not only to the militia retreating, but also to bad luck and confusion. Washington’s plan at Germantown was sound, but complicated for an army containing so many militias. During the battle at Camden, SC, later in the war, members of the militia threw away their arms and ran. As the war raged on, Washington did not comprehend how important the militia would be to the success of the American