Quartering troops in Early America with John McCurdy [Audio podcast episode]
Document Type
Presentation or Lecture
Publication Date
2019
Department/School
History and Philosophy
Publication Title
Conversations at the Washington Library Podcast
Abstract
In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson criticized George III for "Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us" in the years before the American Revolution. To hear Jefferson tell it, quartered troops had long been a problem in early America. In this episode, Dr. John McCurdy of Eastern Michigan University reveals how the history of accommodating troops in North America is more complicated than you might think. Far from being an objectionable practice that motivated Americans to revolt against the British, colonists accepted that quartering soldiers was a necessary and even welcome event under certain conditions. McCurdy, who is the author of the new book, Quarters: The Accommodation of the British Army and the Coming of the American Revolution, will reshape what you know about the relationship between soldiers, civilians, and space in the era of the American Revolution.
Recommended Citation
McCurdy, J. (Guest expert) & Ambuske, J. (Host). (2019). Quartering troops in Early America with John McCurdy (No. 132) [Audio podcast episode]. In Conversations at the Washington Library. https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/podcast/quartering-troops-in-early-america-with-john-mccurdy
Comments
J. McCurdy is a faculty member in EMU's Department of History and Philosophy.