People of the Revolution

Count Comte Rochambeau

I aided Washington at Yorktown by leading my French soldiers in our successful effort at boxing the British in and forcing them to surrender

Marquis de Lafayette

I am a French nobleman who was inspired by the Declaration of Independence and came to join the patriot cause and fought on the colonists side during the American Revolution. George Washington and I became good friends!

Haym Salomon

I am a Polish-born Jewish immigrant and considered a financial hero. I helped raise most of the money to finance the American Revolution. Fluent in German, I talked a lot of those Hessians into leaving the British army!

Bernardo de Galvez

I am a Spanish governor. I allowed the Patriots to use the Port of New Orleans during the American Revolution and provided the Continental Army with cattle from Spanish herds in Texas.

Wentworth Cheswell

I am a free African American and like Paul Revere I made and all night ride warning my New Hampshire community of a British invasion.

John Adams

I am a lawyer and politician. I helped defend British soldiers after the Boston Massacre. I was a strong supporter of independence in the 2nd Continental Congress and also on the committee to write the Declaration of Independence.

Patrick Henry

I am a patriot from Virginia, and one of my famous quotes is, "Give me liberty, or give me death"!

James Armistead

I am a slave from Virginia who worked as a spy for Marquis de Lafayette. I gave the Americans important information about the British military and their movements during the American Revolution.

King George III

I angered many colonists during my time as ruler of Britain and the colonies. The colonists listed their grievances (complaints about me!) when they declared their independence.

Mercy Otis Warren

I anonymously wrote many pieces of propaganda supporting the Patriot cause during the American Revolution, including poems and plays about political drama.

Samuel Adams

I helped start the Sons of Liberty and committees of correspondence and organized many of the protests in Boston like the Boston Tea Party.

Abigail Adams

I requested that my husband and the government "remember the ladies" in their political discussions. I was one of the first advocates for women's rights.

Frederick Von Stueben

I trained Washington's troops at Valley Forge and helped them to become more

Thomas Jefferson

I was a delegate from Virginia to the 2nd Continental Congress and was the chief writer of the Declaration of Independence.

John Hancock

I was a leader of the Sons of Liberty in Boston and the president of the Second Continental Congress. I signed the Declaration of Independence first and signed it really big so that King George III could read it without his glasses.

Thomas Paine

I was a leading propaganda writer of my time. One of my most famous pamphlets influenced people to favor independence and was called "Common Sense" and another one encouraged Washington's troops and was called "The Crisis".

Benjamin Franklin

I was a member of the committee to write the Declaration of Independence. I also helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris of 1783-- the peace treaty that ended the American Revolution. Before all of this, I was a famous author, humorist, scientist, and inventor. I was pretty brilliant.

George Washington

I was a soldier in the French and Indian war. I was chosen to be the commander in chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution.

Nathan Hale

I was a spy who was captured and hanged by the British. My last words became famous: "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country!"

General Cornwallis

I was the British general who was surrounded by the Americans on land and the French by sea so I was forced to surrender in the final battle of the American Revolution at Yorktown.

John Paul Jones

My ship was sinking and on fire, but when the British told me to surrender, I yelled instead, "I've not yet begun to fight!" My men and I went on to win the battle, I became a naval hero, and am considered the Father of the U.S. Navy.

Crispus Attucks

Part African, part Native American. My death at the Boston Massacre is considered to be the first casualty of the American Revolution.