Sentiments of a British-American Woman by Owen S. Ireland

Author:Owen S. Ireland [Ireland, Owen S.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780271079288
Goodreads: 34951078
Publisher: Penn State University Press
Published: 2017-12-14T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 9

“Unleash the Dogs of War”

Joseph returned to Esther in Philadelphia in November 1775, but the fighting and its disruptions followed him home, and for the next two and a half years Esther and Joseph lived in the cockpit of the war of the American Revolution. In the spring of 1776, the British evacuated Boston, and then, before the end of that year, defeated the Continental Army in Brooklyn, chasing Washington the length of Manhattan and across New Jersey to the Delaware River within sight of Philadelphia. When the next campaign began in 1777, they attacked Pennsylvania from the south, defeated Washington at Brandywine Creek and at Germantown, and then occupied Philadelphia for the winter of 1777–78.

These were the two worst years of Esther’s life. She endured physical disruption, emotional turmoil, transient living, protracted separation from her husband, and the death of her daughter and the birth of her son, both in a remote area of New Jersey. Her persistent dispute with Joseph over how he should serve his country intensified her suffering. Not until the fall of 1778, three months after the British evacuation of Philadelphia, did she again feel safe with her children and secure and united in purpose with her husband. In these crucial years, few, if any, patriot women of Esther’s status paid a higher price for their commitment to the American cause.

But that was still in the future, and for now she was content. Joseph had returned to her, and she once again presided over her own household. Martha Washington’s visit added some excitement. Traveling from Virginia to join her husband at camp with the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts, Mrs. Washington stopped in Philadelphia for a protracted stay with Esther, who welcomed her into her home.1 This visit may well have been part of the general’s campaign to bring Joseph back to him in Cambridge, a social occasion with a political agenda, a practice Esther knew well. Indeed, at a dinner in the Reed home in June 1775, Washington had persuaded Joseph to ride with him as far as New York City when the general left to take command of the fledgling Continental Army assembling in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Equally significant for Esther’s future, Martha’s visit also established a personal friendship between the two women that was brought to full flower when Martha again spent time in Esther’s household in June 1780.

In midwinter, rumors of a British peace offensive offered hope of an end to the troubles, but Dennis reported from London that the ministry was preparing for a “bloody campaign” and that America could expect little support from the people of Great Britain. Those at home who paid attention to public affairs, he wrote, generally supported the government, while the rest were “immersed in business or sunk in sensuality.” Much to America’s disadvantage, the ministry had persuaded the English landed interest that Americans were rebelling in order to avoid any taxes and that subduing America would reduce the land tax in Britain. The ministry

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