General's Role In The Revolutionary War

The only important people in war were the soldiers, the domestic help, or the General's. They had the most dangerous jobs. If the General’s didn’t give the right directions, he could lose an army, if the soldiers took one false step and had gotten wounded, they could die, and if a soldier had a chance of survival and the domestic help didn’t aid him in a mannerly amount of time, they could be put to blame for the death of the soldier. But what about the spies, where do they have a role in this? They were the ones who risked their life getting the information for generals or other commissioners, who would then use that information to defeat their rival. But no one really thinks about the small people. Sometimes they are the ones who do the
biggest jobs. Not only were men spies, but women were as well. The main points will be about how people became spies, the spies who had contributed the most, and what they are remembered for. The Sons of Liberty was a secret(spy) agency made up of printers, publishers, and soon craftsmen and ordinary workers as well.
Before they became a secret spy agency, they were a group of men who had disliked the stamp tax and wouldn’t stand for it anymore. They encouraged propaganda and had grown to be in almost every city in the colonies. As the Sons of Liberty and other Patriot groups gained more people,the news of rebellion kept spreading, soon reaching General Thomas Gage’s ears. He was the commander of all the British troops in North America. He knew the propaganda was leaning toward revolution so he sent out counterspies to join the Sons of Liberty. Little did he know, the Sons of Liberty were planting their spies wherever they could as well. “America was an ideal place for the dangerous game of spy vs.spy. People on both sides spoke the same language and could easily make believe they were Tories or
Patriots”(Allen,20)
The Daughters of Liberty, another secret spy agency, was in help of the Patriots for when they needed them. They campaigned against buying products made in England. “The young women among them were said to have vowed not to marry a man who bought English-made goods”(Allen, 19). There were many other spy groups such as the Culper Spy Ring who served General George Washington as well.
Benjamin Franklin was born the tenth child out of seventeen.
His family was not wealthy as interpreted, “As a child, his father planned for him to be a clergyman, but they were in no financial state for that to happen”(1, Pavao). He later worked for his brother in his printing shop. He was very abusive toward him and having had enough, he ran away. He ended up on a ship and spent the last of his money on bread for a meal. A woman named Deborah Read saw him on the streets and felt bad for him thus taking him into her home. Later she would be his wife and mother to his son, William. He got involved with the spy system and was sent over to England many times to spy on parliament. This hadn’t raised suspicion because of his family’s loyalty to the
crown.
Before Nathan Hale became a spy, he joined the military following five of his brothers footsteps who had served at the Battles of Lexington and Concord. “ Having graduated with honors from Yale University at the tender age of 18, he was given the rank of 1st Lieutenant when he joined the Continental Army”(1, Pavao). Within a few months, he was upgraded to captain. He volunteered as a spy and was given the cover of a school teacher. Waving down a ship at Oyster Bay thinking it was American Patriots he fled, realizing it was the British once they docked. They captured him finding his true identity and arrested him. He was sentenced to be hanged the very next with the evidence of papers found on him.
Miss Jenny, one of the very few women spies, served the British. She was taken hostage by the French General Marquis de Lafayette while on her way to the British base. “She was beaten and raped as they tried to wrench her story out”(1,Pavao). She was sent to Washington and through merciless questioning, they still couldn’t get the truth out of her. She was returned to the French camp where they cut off her hair to humiliate her before being released.
Ann Bates, wife of a British soldier, went undercover as a patriot to spy on General George Washington’s White Plain’s headquarters. “She had the opportunity of going through their whole army and remarking at the same time the strength and situation of each brigade, and the number of cannon,with their situation and weight of ball each cannon was charged with”(1, Mount Vernon Ladies’). With this knowledge the British strengthened their forces resulting in a win at Newport.