with Andrew Sola and Prof. Donald F. Johnson (North Dakota State U.)

“He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.”

In today’s episode, we explore Grievance #11 in the Declaration of Independence, which condemns the deployment of British regular troops in American towns and cities during peacetime.

Topics include:

-the long British tradition disapproving of standing armies on British soil

-the long British tradition of allowing for political protest and dissent without fear of punishment by a standing army

-the cooperation between the British Army and Colonial militias during the 7 Years’ War

-the reasons why King George deemed it necessary to station 10,000 British troops in the North American colonies after the end of the 7 Years’ War, namely to manage the conflicts between eager colonists who wanted to expand westward and native peoples who wanted to hold the line

-the1768 riots in Boston after the seizure of John Hancock’s ship, The Liberty, an event which then prompted the deployment of British troops

-the Boston Tea Party of 1773 and the British response to it: the declaration of martial law in 1774 followed by the Coercive Acts aka the Intolerable Acts, which were enforced by General Thomas Gage

-an explanation of the phrase “without the consent of our legislatures,” which highlights both the role of colonial militias for self-defence and also the importance of the norma of legislative approval for any deployment of troops in the Colonies

Prof. Johnson’s book can be found here:

Occupied America: British Military Rule and the Experience of Revolution

The cover image is a portrait of Gen. Thomas Gage, commander of British troops in North America until 1775.