Women's Role In The Revolutionary War

The Revolutionary War was a time of discourse and fighting. The newfound American colonies, and soon self-declared nation, were conflicting heavily with their Mother kingdom. Slavery in the United States was on the rise, and the war was getting more brutal with each instance. Women’s rights were starting to gain traction alongside this. When soldiers were being deployed more and more, their wives, sisters, and mothers followed. Although women did stay home and take care of land while their husbands went to war, a number of women decided to take matters into their own hands. They had even become so familiar with the military camp ways that they learned to make profit from doing laundry. From being camp caretakers to secret soldiers and spies,
They often came to the military alongside their husband’s enlistment for food, work, and shelter. Despite their new, important role in the military, they were first unaccepted. “Women’s Service with the Revolutionary Army,” an article describing the roles women held in the Revolutionary Army, showed an excerpt of a letter written by George Washington about the camp followers."The multitude of women in particular, especially those who are pregnant, or have children, are a clog upon every movement. The Commander in Chief earnestly recommends it to the officers to use every reasonable method in their power to get rid of all such as are not absolutely necessary." (Women’s Service with the Revolutionary Army) Washington was aware of how the families being sheltered were heavily dependent on the number of men enlisting. He wished to do anything to get rid of this dependency, as he likely saw the families being hosted as an unnecessary use of resources. However, this was soon changed as the need for women workers became larger as the war went on. Women were used as camp workers to the fullest extent. This was because the army could have camp workers while not having to lose men who could fight on the