In the American Revolutionary War units of the Continental Army were assigned to any one of seven regional or territorial departments to decentralize their command and administration. This was necessary because the regiment was the largest permanent unit in the Continental Army. A superior headquarters, above regiment, was needed if more than a few regiments were stationed in the same department. Although brigades, divisions, and field armies existed, they were temporary units which did not necessarily include all the units assigned to a department. Nor did field armies include establishments of the staff, such as magazines of the Quartermaster General's Department, or hospitals of the Hospital Department. The militia in a department was usually at the disposal of the department commander.
The 2nd Rhode Island Regiment was authorized on 6 May 1775 under Colonel Daniel Hitchcock in the Rhode Island Army of Observation and was organized on 8 May 1775 as eight companies of volunteers from Providence County of the colony of Rhode Island. As part of a brigade organized under Nathanael Greene, the unit participated in the Siege of Boston during the remainder of 1775. Some elements accompanied Benedict Arnold's expedition to Quebec late in the year. The unit was renamed the 11th Continental Regiment on the first day 1776.
The 2nd Maryland Regiment origins were authorized on 14 January 1776 in the Maryland State Troops as seven independent companies. From 7 to 14 March 1776 the companies were organized from various counties from the eastern region of the colony of Maryland. From 6 July to 15 August 1776 the companies were assigned to the main Continental Army and officially adopted on 17 August 1776. In January 1777 the seven companies were organized as the 2nd Maryland Regiment with one additional company added. On 22 May 1777 the regiment was assigned to the 2nd Maryland Brigade in the main Continental Army. On 12 May 1779 the regiment was re-organized to nine companies. The 2nd Maryland Brigade was reassigned to the Southern Department on 5 April 1780. On 1 January 1781 the regiment was reassigned to the Maryland Brigade of the Southern Department. The regiment would see action during the New York Campaign, Battle of Trenton, Battle of Princeton, Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, Battle of Monmouth, Battle of Camden and the Battle of Guilford Court House. the regiment was furloughed 1 January 1783 at Charleston, South Carolina and disbanded on 15 November 1783.
The 1st Continental Light Dragoons, also known as Bland's Horse, was a mounted regiment of the Continental Army organized between 13 June and 10 September 1776 in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was made up of men from eastern and northern Virginia for service with the Continental Army.
The 5th North Carolina Regiment was assigned on March 26, 1776, to the Continental Army in the Southern Department. It was organized in the spring of 1776 at Wilmington, North Carolina, as eight companies of volunteers from the districts of New Bern, Edenton and Hillsborough of North Carolina. On 5 February 1777, the regiment was assigned to the main Continental Army and assigned to the North Carolina Brigade on 8 July 1777. The regiment was reduced to a cadre on 1 June 1778 at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania and was assigned to the Southern Department. The regiment was re-organized to nine companies during the fall of 1778 at Halifax and assigned on 11 January 1779 to Sumner's Brigade. On 3 June 1779, this brigade was redesignated as Armstrong's Brigade. The regiment was captured by the British Army on 12 May 1780 at Charlestown, South Carolina and was officially disbanded on 1 January 1781.
The 1st South Carolina Regiment (Infantry) was authorized on June 6, 1775, at Charleston, South Carolina, for service with the South Carolina State Troops. On November 4, 1775, the unit was adopted into the Continental Army and on February 27, 1776 was assigned to the Southern Department. The regiment saw action at the Siege of Savannah and the Siege of Charleston. The British Army captured the regiment at Charleston on May 12, 1780, together with the rest of the Southern Department.
The 3rd South Carolina Regiment was an infantry regiment of the South Carolina Line during the American Revolutionary War. Raised in the western part of South Carolina, the regiment fought in the Siege of Savannah and the Siege of Charleston, surrendering to British forces in the latter.
The 4th South Carolina Regiment was raised on November 13, 1775, at Charleston, South Carolina, for service with the South Carolina Troops and later became part of Continental Army.
The 5th South Carolina Regiment was raised on February 22, 1776, at Charleston, South Carolina, for service with the South Carolina Troops and later assigned to the Continental Army. The regiment saw action at the Siege of Savannah. The regiment was merged into the 1st South Carolina Regiment on February 11, 1780.
The 6th South Carolina Regiment was authorized on 28 February 1776 in the South Carolina State Troops and was organized during the spring of 1776 as five companies of volunteers from the northwestern region of the colony of South Carolina. It may have been composed exclusively of expert riflemen from the colony.
The 1st Georgia Regiment was raised by Lachlan McIntosh on November 4, 1775, at Savannah, Georgia for service with the Continental Army. The regiment saw action in Florida in 1777 and 1778, the Siege of Savannah and the Siege of Charleston. The regiment was captured along with the rest of the American southern army at Charleston, South Carolina on May 20, 1780, by the British Army. The regiment was reformed on January 1, 1783, as the Georgia Battalion and disbanded on November 15, 1783.
The 2nd Georgia Regiment was raised on July 5, 1776, at Williamsburg, Virginia for service with the Continental Army. The regiment saw action in Florida in 1777 and 1778, the Siege of Savannah and the Siege of Charleston. The regiment was captured along with the rest of the American southern army at Charleston, South Carolina, on May 20, 1780, by the British Army. The Regiment was disbanded on January 1, 1781.
The 3rd Georgia Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Georgia Line during the American Revolutionary War. Raised in Georgia but recruited in North Carolina, the regiment fought in the Siege of Savannah was surrendered to the British in the Siege of Charleston.
The 4th Georgia Regiment was an American infantry unit raised for service with the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. The regiment was formed in February 1777 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from British deserters and Colonel John White was appointed its commander. The unit soon acquired a bad reputation for plundering the area in which it camped and was moved far from Philadelphia. In December 1777 it was assigned to the Georgia Brigade and took part in operations in Florida in 1778. It fought at Savannah in 1779 and was captured by the British at Charleston in May 1780.
The New Hampshire Line was a formation within the Continental Army. The term "New Hampshire Line" referred to the quota of numbered infantry regiments assigned to New Hampshire at various times by the Continental Congress. These, together with similar contingents from the other twelve states, formed the Continental Line. The concept was particularly important in relation to the promotion of commissioned officers. Officers of the Continental Army below the rank of brigadier general were ordinarily ineligible for promotion except in the line of their own state.
The Rhode Island Line was a formation within the Continental Army. The term "Rhode Island Line" referred to the quota of numbered infantry regiments assigned to Rhode Island at various times by the Continental Congress. These, together with similar contingents from the other twelve states, formed the Continental Line. The concept was particularly important in relation to the promotion of commissioned officers. Officers of the Continental Army below the rank of brigadier general were ordinarily ineligible for promotion except in the line of their own state.
Lachlan McIntosh was a Scottish American military and political leader during the American Revolution and the early United States. In a 1777 duel, he fatally shot Button Gwinnett, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
