Unnatural Rebellion: Loyalists in New York City During the Revolution by Ruma Chopra

The book is an in depth examination of the situation that loyalists in New York City during the American Revolution. It cuts through all class and religions and races.

Thesis: The antagonistic relationship between loyalist civilians and the British military curbed the loyalist reach. In preserving, their military authority in New York City, the British sacrificed the legitimacy of the loyalist alternative.

Thoughts:

Intro/Chapter 1:

-Loyalists wanted to defend their privileged and free lives under the empire. They believed the "patriots" were the ones that were repressing liberty because under the rule of the empire, the colonists were allowed to prosper.
- "unnatural rebellion" was a common theme and it signified alarm, horror and revulsion toward breaking/ rebelling from the British empire.
- Overall sentiment in NYC was that American liberty rested upon British Crown.
- Extremely diverse population with a mix of Englishmen, Scot, Irish, Dutch, Germans, Scandinavians, Africans with all the religions that comes with it. Including Dutch Reformed, Anglican, Presbyterian, among others.
Diversity hurt NYC as speaking as one voice.
- Merchants and landholders with close ties to royal gov't or transatlantic commerce dominated NYC.
-The Seven Years War made everyone very rich and then a recession hit when British troops went home.

Chapter 2
- British reaction to Boston Tea Party provided a base for colonial rebellion. Everyone in the colonies (including Loyalists) believed that Parliament went about the wrong way after the Boston Tea Party. The reason the British were so harsh was because they saw the Massachusetts conflict as a microcosm for what happens when the common people have power and rule. In NYC, British government refusal to compromise with New York leaders, that wanted to keep an advantageous position between the colonies and empire, led to fuel for the radicals/rebels in the colonies that said the British were suppressing their will to live.  

Chapter 3
After the British took NYC, the loyalists and the British army and authority believed the "rebellion" would be put down quickly. And New Yorkers welcomed the British with jubilation because the "rebels" left no option for the colonists in NYC. You were either with us or against us. They treated loyalists with extreme violence and harshness. Also, loyalists believed that prosperity would return with the British control of NYC because the that would have to be the port in the Northern colonies to import and export goods. But the British also upset the colonists with their leniency on the rebels. They gave three proclamations to the "rebels" and this upset loyalists because they felt the only way to quell this rebellion was to instill fear into the rebels, but the British government was into reconciliation and tried not to alienate anyone. Plus the loyalists wanted normal life to resume once the British took back NYC. It didn't happen and military rule was put into place.   The question also arose about why didn't the loyalists write their own constitution. First it was a illegal because Parliament only had the power to make laws and the loyalists could not come to a consensus on what it should say. The loyalists believed in negotiation not arms.

Chapter 4
The British thought the war was going to end soon because the rebel armies were so badly equipped and damaged. They were constant reports of desertion and the army was in tatters. However, British general Howe fumbled badly in 1777. Even though, the losses at Trenton and Princeton were not huge battles; they were colonial victories and boosted morale for the rebellion. This allowed the French to officially announce an alliance with the colonies, which the loyalists feared more than anything cause the Catholic tyranny had an opportunity to aid in weakening the British empire and now it had become a global war. Also, Clinton changed the war strategy by a focus on defending the West Indies and campaigning in the Southern colonies. Toward the end of this, a combination of British setbacks and British neglect of the loyalists along with an indefinite war alienated many New York loyalists.

Chapter 5
The alienation and non use of loyalists in the NY area continued to plague and strain the relationship between the British and loyalists because the British refused to use the loyalists in real combat situations. The British commanders saw them more as slave labor and could take the place of British regulars who did logistical work along with the slave population that the British offered freedom too if they came to the British side. The loyalists were seen as unequal to British regulars because they did not have the proper training or upbringing. Furthermore, the British authority did not trust the loyalists to serve in combat. However, it did not serve the British well to not use the loyalists in combat because it could have provided a boost on the battlefield. Whether they would have made a substantial impact is unknown.

Chapter 6
The influx of "refugees" into NYC also complicated the situation between loyalists and the British government. Between the years of 1777 to 1781, NYC's population more than doubled to around 25,000. They came from throughout the colonies because they were looking for work and they were looking for basic supplies that they needed to survive and it was hard to get those types of things elsewhere. New York was a big port and still received imports. The British government doled out some money for support but it was not nearly enough to sustain the populations that came in. However, there were steps taken at this point to establish a civilian rule in NYC again. But there were again problems with the British...They could not satisfy several important groups. There could satisfy the white underclass because there were not enough supplies to go around for everyone and they felt entitled and should be the first to get some and get the most. They could not satisfy blacks because they wanted protection and freedom and got neither because there was extreme disdain of slaves from loyalists that they were just taking up space and needed supplies. Also, alienate were the early loyalists who felt like they should receive higher priority because they announced their loyalty to the crown in the beginning and should be served first. The later loyalists were also upset because they wanted the British crown to keep their promise of amnesty and prosperity if they pledged their allegiance to the crown. All loyalists were divided on issues and all were alienated by the crown.

Chapter 7
In 1780, it was clear to the loyalists in NYC that the British commanders or authority would trust them in situations that were vital to British success in the war. British authority completed loyalist pleas and did so throughout the war. In the beginning, the British authorities tried to appease loyalists by saying they would look at all options, later in the war, they just ignored their requests. Loyalists knew the war effort was failing, mostly cause of British military incompetency. At this point, NYC loyalists realized that they would not play a role at all in the British strategy to win the war and had to wait to hear results from the South. While they trickled in. It did not improve their moods.

Chapter 8/ Conclusion
Loyalists took the brunt of the war because they played no real role in the British strategy and on top of facing the violence of the rebels and the British soldiers. The loyalists sacrificed everything for the greater good of the empire and when the British lost; they got everything taken. The patriots hated them for their siding with the British tyrannical government and crown while, the British authorities saw them as annoying and irritating and a waste of time. The British promised them rewards and they got nothing. The end result was that the NYC loyalists were the road kill in a collision of British imperialists and American colonists. They cursed the rebels publicly and the British privately. Carrying with them an almost equal knowledge and suspicion of the United States and the British Empire.

5 sentences:
Loyalism in New York City was defined by a tense relationship between the loyalists and British authorities. The New York City loyalists became increasingly annoyed with the British and the alienated by the British by their lenient policies toward the rebels and a negligent policy toward the wants and demands of the loyalists. Ultimately in New York, loyalists had a more difficult time dealing with British authorities than the rebels because British commanders showed incompetence throughout the war, British authorities refused to use loyalists in positions that mattered because they lacked trust in loyalists and the British took advantage of the loyalists desire for reunion. Loyalists in NYC demonstrated that loyalists bore the brunt of the consequences during the revolution and in the aftermath of the revolution and paid the worst price for wanting to protect their liberty as British citizens.