10 Weirdest Facts About the American Revolution: Jefferson, Betsy Ross and the Ethiopian Regiment

In the classic film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, one of the characters offers the statement When the legend comes true, print the legend. Although the line was meant to reflect the Wild West, it could also apply to the American Revolution. Rarely has a historical event occurred over the years with strange legends that have been adopted as irreproachable fact. To celebrate the Fourth of July holiday weekend, here are 10 of the weirdest facts about the American Revolution that are far more interesting than the bland legends that obscured them. Paul Reveres Companions: Most Americans know the story of how Massachusetts silversmith Paul Revere walked through the night shouting The Brits are coming! as an alert to American colonial militia before the battles of Lexington and Concord. Although Reveres' heroism is unquestioned historically, most people don't realize he didn't act alone. In fact, three other men William Dawes, Samuel Prescott, and Israel Bissell were also on horseback that night, alerting their countrymen to the attack to come. Unfortunately for them, the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow omitted them from his 1861 poem Paul Reveres Ride, which beatified Revere while condemning his countrymen to generations of obscurity. An unlikely breakthrough: When American colonists went to war with the British, tens of thousands of black slaves escaped from captivity and joined the British, who promised them freedom in exchange for their military service. The result was the first organized all-black military battalion in America: The Ethiopian Regiment, which fought in 1775 and 1776 under the command of Lord Dunmore. For Americans fighting the British, having black ex-slaves fighting as freemen against them was a source of outrage. Indeed, the Declaration of Independence cited this situation when it reproached the Crown for having excited among us domestic insurrections. Author? Author ? : And speaking of the Declaration of Independence, a legend that has completely obscured a strange fact concerns its authorship contrary to popular belief, Thomas Jefferson was not the only author of the text. In fact, Jefferson was part of a five-man committee that included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Although it is known that Jefferson authored the first draft, it is unclear what alterations and modifications the other four men made before it was submitted to the Continental Congress where delegates heavily edited the work, the the finished document was at least a quarter shorter than the version created by the committee. An ironic champion of freedom: The delegate of the Continental Congress from Maryland, known as Charles Carroll of Carrollton, had the distinction of being the only Roman Catholic signatory to the Declaration of Independence and the only one not elected . In 1704, the colonial legislature of Maryland passed a law prohibiting Catholics from holding office. Carroll, a wealthy landowner, became a prominent opponent of British colonial rule and helped organize pro-independence factions in Maryland. Although he signed the Declaration of Independence, he was not elected to become Maryland's delegate to the Continental Congress until July 4, 1776, which brings us to our next weird fact. Signing at the X: In the popular imagination, the entire Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, which made that date Independence Day. But that's not what happened. When the Continental Congress voted to approve the Declaration, there was no legal requirement for delegates to sign it immediately. John Hancock, in his role as President of Congress, was the sole signer of the original paper document. Most of the Congress delegates signed on August 2, 1776, and some of those signers were not involved in its passage. The document's last signature came from Matthew Thornton of New Hampshire on November 4, 1776, shortly after he entered Congress. Another Country: The American Revolution created two independent nations: the United States of America and the Republic of Vermont. Yes, little Vermont was once its own country. Due to a territorial dispute with New York, Vermont was excluded from the Continental Congress and was not one of the original ex-colonies to form the United States. Not welcomed by the newly formed breakaway country, the state of Vermont declared its independence on January 15, 1777. But no other country would recognize it, and on March 4, 1791, it agreed to become the 14th state of the United States. Breaking the diplomatic ice: While the European powers were delighted that their British rivals were engaged in a costly war against their American colonies, none were immediately eager to grant diplomatic recognition to the breakaway nation. As a result, the first country to recognize the new United States came from an unlikely corner. On December 20, 1777, the Kingdom of Morocco became the first country to recognize independence from the United States when Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah allowed ships sailing under the American flag to enter his country's ports. But Morocco's generosity was unknown to the Americans until Benjamin Franklin, then serving as an emissary to France, received news of the sultan's action in April 1778; the two countries would not sign official diplomatic relations papers until 1787. The Flag Hag: Most Americans associate Betsy Ross with creating the flag. However, there is no evidence that this Philadelphia seamstress was commissioned to create a national flag or made one on her own initiative. Ross' intrusion into vexillology was the work of his grandson, William J. Canby, who presented a research paper in 1870 claiming that Ross's flag had been adopted by General George Washington. At the time, very few women were widely known as heroines of the American Revolution, and Ross' story was quickly repeated as an example of the contribution of womanhood to American freedom. Today, no historian accepts Ross's story, although mention of his name still resonates with many Americans for his alleged flag-making. The Making of a Traitor: In April 1781, an enslaved black man known only as Billy was indicted for allegedly joining British forces to fight against the Americans. For this act of treason, prosecutors called for his conviction and execution. However, two members of the jury protested to Thomas Jefferson, then Governor of Virginia, to grant Billy clemency. They argued that since his status as a slave denied him citizenship of the state, he had no legal allegiance to the state and could not be found guilty of being a traitor. Jefferson agreed and granted a temporary reprieve, with the state legislature later pardoning him. What happened to Billy afterwards is unknown. Photo: William Daniels as John Adams in the 1972 1776 film version, Courtesy Columbia Pictures. 2022 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.