Page 220 - Conflitti Militari e Popolazioni Civili - Tomo I

220 XXXIV Congresso della CommIssIone InternazIonale dI storIa mIlItare • CIHm

The British Occupation of Newport, Rhode Island, 1776-1779

CHARLES NIEMEYER

During the American War for Independence, a conflict that would last over eight years,
the British Army eventually occupied for various periods of time five major colonial Ameri-
can coastal cities: Boston, Massachusetts, 1775-1776, New York City, 1776-1783, Newport,
Rhode Island, 1776-1779, Savannah, Georgia, 1778-1782, and Charleston, South Carolina,
1780-1783. However, of these five cities, Newport would arguably suffer the most damage
during its occupation and would never recover its former place as one of America’s leading
maritime centers of economic production.
Founded in 1639, the city of Newport was renowned for its fine deep water harbor and its
close proximity to the Atlantic trade routes. In fact, Newport had grown so rapidly from its
founding that it boasted a pre-war population of approximately 11,000 souls. The town was
th
considered the 5 largest city in all of British North America, ranking immediately behind
Boston in terms of tonnage and productivity of its international seaport. However, by 1779,
the picture for Newport had substantially changed. In just three years the town lost nearly
three-quarters of its total pre-war population and all of its port facilities and wharves lay in
ruins. As a direct result of the war, the city never recovered from its effects and would largely
remain in a state of economic and social decline for the next 60 years. Why was this so? What
had happened to Newport that clearly did not take place in other occupied cities such as New
York City and Charleston, South Carolina whose status as economic centers of maritime
production quickly recovered following the cessation of hostilities in1783?
Much of the answer to these questions lies in understanding the nature of the occupation
of the town and Rhode Island’s role in the American rebellion. In fact, the colony for years
prior to the outbreak of war had a well deserved reputation as a center for colonial opposition
to the Crown and, more ominously, for smuggling. For example, in 1765, Royal authorities,
attempting to enforce the widely unpopular Stamp Act, (a tax passed by Parliament to raise
revenue for the Crown), were violently attacked by the townspeople of Newport and forced
to flee to Royal Navy ships in the harbor for their own personal safety. In 1772, a Royal Navy
sloop, the HMS Gaspee, in the process of chasing what was believed to be an American
coastal smuggler, accidentally ran aground not far from Providence, Rhode Island. While
waiting for the tide, the Gaspee was attacked by local militiamen. Lieutenant Dudingston,
the Gaspee’s Captain, had been shot by one of the attackers and left for dead on the beach
(he later recovered). The Gaspee was then ransacked and burned to the waterline. it was
one of the most sensational events of the time and when in early 1773, the British Admi-
ralty convened a court of inquiry in Newport to identify the perpetrators, not a single local
citizen could be found to testify as to what happened. Thus it was clear from the outset of
hostilities that the town was dominated by those who called themselves Sons of Liberty.
In fact, the antagonism between Royal authority and the colony itself went so deep that many
Crown officials openly and derisively referred to Rhode Island as “Rogue Island.” And by
December 1776, following a highly successful campaign against the Americans in New York