Ben Franklin's World

We often ask why some Americans chose to remain loyal to the British and why they did not want to seek independence. But the question some Americans asked at the time of the Revolution focused more on navigating daily life: How could they protect their families, property, and honor when neighbors, committees, and crowds decided what side they were on?
Today we’re joined by three guests who will help us investigate the American Revolution through Loyalist eyes and explore how Loyalists experienced the American Revolution.
Timothy Compeau, an Associate Professor of History at Huron University College at Western University in London, Ontario; Bonnie Huskins who teaches history at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick; and Kacy Tillman, a professor of English and Writing at the University of Tampa.
Timothy's Book | Bonnie's Work | Kacy's Book
Show notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/452
EPISODE OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:06:07 The Origins and Definitions of the Term “Loyalist”
00:11:11 Common Misconceptions about Loyalists
00:22:52 How Communities Identified their Loyalist Neighbors
00:31:34 How Everyday Loyalists Experienced the Revolution
00:40:19 Women Loyalists and the Fear of Violence
00:50:40 Black Loyalists and the Search for Freedom
01:00:05 Post-War Animosities Between Loyalists and Revolutionaries
01:09:12 What We Still Get Wrong About the Revolution
RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES
🎧 Episode 085: American Loyalists in Canada
🎧 Episode 126: The Reintegration of American Loyalists
🎧 Episode 380: The Tory's Wife
🎧 Episode 421: Loyalism and Revolution in Georgia
🎧 Episode 441: The Escapes of David George
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What would it take for you to forgive a neighbor who sided against you in a civil war? And what would you say to win back a community that you had fought against?
In our last episode, we explored loyalism across the Atlantic World and met Loyalists who, as serious political actors, had their own ideas about how the British Empire should operate. But the story of Loyalism didn’t end with the founding of the United States, nor with the end of the war.
In this revisited episode, Rebecca Brannon explores how South Carolina’s War for Independence was a true civil war, one that pitted neighbor against neighbor and, in some instances, fathers against sons.
Rebecca’s Book | Website
RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES
🎧 Episode 126: Reintegration of Loyalists in South Carolina
🎧 Episode 294: 1774: The Long Year of Revolution
🎧 Episode 330: Loyalism in the British Atlantic World
🎧 Episode 380: The Tory’s Wife
🎧 Episode 421: Loyalism and Revolution in Georgia
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🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World
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WHEN YOU'RE READY
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*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

In the late winter of 1775, colonists in a village outside of New York City hoisted the royal standard of King George III 75 feet into the air.
The standard raisers signed their names to a proclamation pledging to defend the king and his government. For them, defending the British crown did not mean surrender; it served as a clear statement of what it still meant to be British.
In Episode 451, we explored a court-martial trial that allowed us to see how early Americans thought about what it would mean to be an American after independence.
In this revisited episode, historian Brad Jones helps us take up the other half of that question: what did it mean to be British during the age of the American Revolution? And why did answers to this question take different forms around the Atlantic World?
Brad’s Book
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American history is in the news a lot these days. We see and hear about fights over monuments, textbooks, and the stories we should include or exclude from our museums and historic markers.
What these stories overshadow is the great demand for more history in the United States. A coalition of historians and history organizations noticed this demand and decided to feed it by organizing a new initiative: A We Want More History weekend, which takes place September 25-27.
In this bonus episode, we’re joined by Beth English, the Executive Director of the Organization of American Historians, and Kate Masur, the John D. MacArthur Professor of History at Northwestern University. The guest historians share more about the origins of the national, coordinated weekend of history programs, how we can get involved, and where to find more information.
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*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.

In December 1777, Continental Army Colonel David Henley climbed off his horse to discipline a drunk British prisoner of war who was screaming epithets about Americans and vowing to fight for his king. Henley struck the prisoner, one of 6,000 in his care, with his sword.
The wound was minor, but Major General John Burgoyne cited this incident when he accused Henley of plotting to murder British prisoners of war. Burgoyne demanded a formal court-martial.
Professor Timothy Breen joins us to examine Henley’s trial with details from his new book, The American Revolution on Trial. Timothy asks a question most grand narratives of the American Revolution skip past: What did it actually feel like, in real towns among real people, to stop being British? What did it mean to be American?
Timothy’s Book
Show notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/451
EPISODE OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:04:43 The 250th Anniversary and the Limits of Grand Narratives
00:09:31 How Timothy Found the Henley Court-Martial Transcript
00:13:26 Major General John Burgoyne and Aristocratic Privilege
00:23:00 Competing Ideas of Honor During the Revolution
00:29:53 Inside the Cambridge Prisoner of War Camps
00:36:23 The Two Incidents that Led to the Court-Martial
00:45:25 The Verdict and What Happened Next for Henley and Burgoyne
00:48:37 How Early Americans Judged the Revolution and the New Nation
00:53:41 What Happened to the British and German POWs in Cambridge
RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES
🎧 Episode 048: Dangerous Guests: Enemy Captives During the War for Independence
🎧 Episode 122: The Men Who Lost America
🎧 Episode 374: The American Revolutionary War in the West
🎧 Episode 414: Robert Newburgh’s Trials: Queerness & Reputation in Revolutionary America
🎧 Episode 434: The Frank Brothers: Freeborn Black Soldiers in the American Revolution
SUPPORT OUR WORK
🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World
REQUEST A TOPIC
📨 Topic Request Form
📫 liz@benfranklinsworld.com
WHEN YOU'RE READY
🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter
👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community
🌍 Join the History Explorers Club
TAKE THE QUIZ
🧭 Discover How You Explore History (under 2 minutes)
👉 https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/quiz
LISTEN 🎧
🍎 Apple Podcasts
💚 Spotify
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CONNECT
🦋 Liz on Bluesky
👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn
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SAY THANKS
💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts
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*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast.