S.W. O'Connell

Find me on my Amazon Author Page amazon.com/stores/author/…… And at my website swoconnell.com

Rev War Tales Mad Anthony’s March 26 May 1781, York, Pennsylvania. Brigadier General Anthony Wayne finally departed with roughly 950–1,000 Pennsylvania Continentals to reinforce the Marquis de Lafayette in Virginia. The march followed weeks of severe discipline problems. In mid-May, discontented troops threatened mutiny at York; Wayne responded forcefully with courts-martial. On May 20 and 22, several soldiers were sentenced to death, and four to seven ringleaders were executed to restore order. The troops remained sullen as they marched out on the 26th. Wayne’s swift, harsh action prevented a full-scale uprising and allowed the column to proceed south, crossing the Potomac by May 31 and joining Lafayette in early June. Wayne’s firmness kept the column intact for the Virginia campaign. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

The latest edition of the Yankee Doodle Spies Blog profiles another historical character from my upcoming novel, The South Spy. Meet a South Carolina patriot who was thrust into the bitter fighting that swept his home state. yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com/2026/05/defend…

Rev War Tales Cartel Cancelled 26 May 1776, Montreal, Canada. Colonel Benedict Arnold led a relief force to Quinze Chiens (Fifteen Dogs) on the Ottawa River. There, he overtook Captain George Forster’s smaller British, Canadian militia, and Indian force, which was holding nearly 500 American prisoners captured earlier at the Cedars (Les Cèdres). Facing Arnold’s superior numbers but wary of Indian threats to massacre the captives, both sides negotiated. They agreed to a prisoner exchange without further fighting: the Americans would be released immediately on the condition that Congress later free an equal number of British prisoners. The deal was struck, though Congress later repudiated it. This ended the Battle of the Cedars during the failed American invasion of Canada. The cartel (agreement) was controversial and ultimately not honored by Congress. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Rev War Tales Gathering Storm 25 May 1780, Detroit, Indian Territory (present-day Michigan). British Captain Henry Bird of the 8th Regiment of Foot departed with approximately 150 regulars, militia, and French-Canadian volunteers, accompanied by about 100 Odawa and Ojibwe warriors and artillery. Their objective was to capture the key American garrison at the Falls of the Ohio River (Fort Nelson at modern Louisville, Kentucky), commanded by George Rogers Clark. As the expedition moved via the Great Lakes and inland rivers, hundreds more Indian warriors joined, swelling the force to roughly 800–1,000. Though the campaign ultimately shifted to attacking interior Kentucky settlements such as Ruddle’s and Martin’s Stations rather than Louisville, it remained a major British-Indian offensive in the Western Theater. The raid succeeded tactically but failed to take Fort Nelson. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Defiant Doyenne yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com/2024/02/defian…

America 250 Mega Deal! The price of the series' inaugural novel is now set as the lowest possible. Paperback cut to $12.76! Kindle reduced to an amazing $3.76! Audible to $7.76! Let the spirit of 76 provide you with your first journey into the American Revolution as you've never experienced it. Go to Amazon and click today! The Patriot Spy is the introductory book in the Yankee Doodle Spies series, an informative and entertaining ride through the American War for Independence. In the midst of the battle for New York, General George Washington taps Lieutenant Jeremiah Creed and his band of spies to penetrate British lines in a desperate gambit to save the Continental Army. amazon.com/Patriot-Spy-S-…

Rev War Tales Rhode Island Burning 25 May 1778, Newport, Rhode Island. Approximately 500 British and Hessian soldiers under Lt. Col. John Campbell launched a destructive raid on Warren and Bristol, Rhode Island. Departing Newport the previous evening, the force landed near Bristol Neck early the next morning. Meeting only light resistance from the local militia, they burned a sixteen-gun privateer sloop, a storehouse filled with gunpowder, a bridge, cannon carriages, and more than 125 boats and batteaux along the Kickemuit River. In Warren, troops torched more than twenty homes, a Baptist church and parsonage, and other structures. The raid aimed to deny the Patriots access to naval resources and supplies in the Mount Hope Bay region. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Tradesman Spy yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com

Rev War Tales Dream Team Arrives 25 May 1775, Boston, Massachusetts. British Major Generals William Howe, Henry Clinton, and John Burgoyne arrived aboard HMS Cerberus with reinforcements. Their landing bolstered Gen. Thomas Gage’s garrison to roughly 6,500 veteran regulars, creating what some called a formidable “dream team” of senior commanders. However, the dispatch of three high-ranking generals also revealed Parliament’s eroding confidence in Gage’s leadership after the clashes at Lexington and Concord. The new arrivals immediately joined planning to break the ongoing Siege of Boston, setting the stage for the bloody Battle of Bunker Hill just weeks later. This infusion of talent and troops marked a major escalation in the early stages of the Revolutionary War. The move reflected London’s doubts about Gage. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Rev War Tales Chesapeake Chaos 24 May 1779, Portsmouth, Virginia. Commodore Sir George Collier and Maj. Gen. Edward Mathew’s British amphibious force concluded a highly successful three-week raid and departed for New York. Landing on May 10, the combined naval and army expedition of roughly 2,000 troops captured Fort Nelson with little resistance. Over the following weeks, they ravaged the Elizabeth River region, burning Suffolk, occupying Norfolk, and destroying Patriot supplies and tobacco stores. British forces captured 17 ships as prizes, sank or destroyed about 130 other vessels and craft, freed roughly 90 Loyalists, and liberated around 55 enslaved people who joined their lines. The raid severely disrupted Virginia’s economy and military support for the southern theater. The operation highlighted British naval mobility and the destructive nature of raids in the Chesapeake. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

James Otis, Jr. Is a character in my upcoming novel about Dr. Joseph Warren. I spent a lot of time with him. His struggles with mental health and the effects it had on his family and friends were heartbreaking to write. Especially as he reached the point where his family had a court find him "distracted," and he was taken away. The irony of that was that Thomas Hutchinson, who served as Chief Justice during the writs of assistance case he battled with James in 1761, held James' future in his hands.

Young Hickory at War yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com/2024/06/young-…

Rev War Tales Sir William Farewell 24 May 1778, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. British Commander-in-Chief Sir William Howe formally relinquished command and sailed for England aboard HMS Andromeda. His departure followed the extravagant Mischianza farewell gala on May 18, organized by Captain John André. Frustrated by inadequate support from London and criticism after the Saratoga disaster, Howe had resigned months earlier. He was succeeded by Sir Henry Clinton. Howe arrived in America in 1775 aboard HMS Cerberus as part of the “dream team” of generals meant to assist Gage. Howe’s three-year command brought major victories in New York and Philadelphia but failed to crush the rebellion, marking a turning point as British strategy shifted. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

My vintage Yankee Doodle Spies Blog post for Memorial Day: A Yankee Doodle Memorial… yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-yank…

Rev War Tales Washington Confers 24 May 1776, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. General George Washington arrived to confer with the Second Continental Congress on critical military matters as the push toward independence intensified. Fresh from commanding forces in New York, Washington met with delegates amid growing calls for a formal break with Britain. Congress subsequently appointed two key committees: one, including Richard Henry Lee and John Adams, to consult with Washington, Horatio Gates, and Thomas Mifflin on planning the ensuing campaign; the other to explore recruiting Native American allies or securing their neutrality amid fears of British influence over tribes. These steps strengthened the Patriot strategy on the eve of the Declaration of Independence. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Rev War Tales Electrifying Lawyer 23 May 1783, Andover, Massachusetts. James Otis Jr., a fiery Patriot leader and early architect of the American Revolution, died at age 58 after being struck by lightning while standing in a doorway, watching a thunderstorm. Born in 1725, Otis rose to prominence in the 1760s as a Boston lawyer. His electrifying (sic) 1761 argument against British writs of assistance helped ignite colonial resistance and popularized the phrase “taxation without representation is tyranny.” A 1769 altercation with Crown customs official John Robinson left him with a severe head injury from a cane blow, which accelerated his mental instability and effectively ended his public career. Otis’s early passion profoundly influenced figures such as Samuel and John Adams. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales

Great way to celebrate America 250! #RevWar Action & Intrigue at its best! Follow General George Washington's intelligence war against the British in these great Revolutionary War historical novels, available at Amazon and other fine booksellers. amazon.com/stores/author/…

First Commander yankeedoodlespies.blogspot.com/2018/03/people…

Rev War Tales Southern Savagery 23 May 1781, Augusta, Georgia. Patriot forces under Lt. Col. Henry “Light-Horse Harry” Lee and Colonel Elijah Clarke captured Fort Grierson during the Second Siege of Augusta. The small Loyalist outpost, defended by roughly 80 Georgia militia under Col. James Grierson, was quickly encircled. As the Loyalists attempted to flee along the Savannah River toward the stronger Fort Cornwallis, Clarke’s vengeful Georgia militiamen refused quarter. Nearly all 80 Loyalists were killed or captured, including Col. Grierson, who was among those slain. This swift victory cleared the way for Lee’s Legion and supporting troops to press the siege against the main British position at Fort Cornwallis, helping secure Patriot control of the Georgia backcountry. #RevWar #History #AmRev #RevWarTales