The American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) was between the Great Britain and the original thirteen colonies. The colonies fought for their independence from Great Britain. During the Revolutionary War there were many spies who invaded enemy lines and made a huge influence on the outcome of the War. They spied on the British to either ensure colonies' leaders safety or gain information about their enemies. The Culper Spy Ring was organized by Benjamin Tallmadge in 1778 and consisted of 20 people who gathered information about British Army and passed it along to George Washington. The Culper Spy Ring was a spy network of people working together and using unique ways of communication and passing along secret messages in order to succeed in the War of American Independence.
Some of the spies who helped the colonists included Nathan Hale, Benjamin Tallmadge, Austin Roe, Abraham Woodhull, Anna Strong, Robert Townsend, and James Armistead Lafayette.
Some of the spies who helped the colonists included Nathan Hale, Benjamin Tallmadge, Austin Roe, Abraham Woodhull, Anna Strong, Robert Townsend, and James Armistead Lafayette.
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Nathan Hale was a captain in the Continental Army. He volunteered to go in disguise behind the enemy lines in order to gain the information about British troop movements. Hale was a real patriot who was captured and executed as a spy by the British Army. His Last words were, "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country."
Nathan Hale was a captain in the Continental Army. He volunteered to go in disguise behind the enemy lines in order to gain the information about British troop movements. Hale was a real patriot who was captured and executed as a spy by the British Army. His Last words were, "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country."
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In 1778 Benjamin Tallmadge created a spy ring In New York City where British headquarters were located. He recruited his friends to work as spies and served the colonists until the end of the Revolutionary War.
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Austin Roe was a tavern owner who served as a courier for colonists. He used an excuse for buying supplies for his business so that he can make long and dangerous trips to Manhattan to carry information to the colonists. These trips were dangerous because any civilian who was traveling alone was suspicious to the British Army and could have been attacked or killed. However, Austin Roe did not have any problems due to his experience in his tavern.
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Abraham Woodhull was one of the members of the Culper Spy Ring and was a childhood friend of Benjamin Tallmadge. He would pass messages and was almost caught at one time. After that he enlisted Robert Townsend so that he could gather information about British Army. Abraham Woodhull continued spying until the end of the war and was an important member of the Spy Ring.
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Anna Strong's assignment in the Culper Spy Ring was to give signals to Abraham Woodhull. Since she was a mother of nine children and had a lot of laundry, she used to pass messages by hanging laundry in a certain way, which would help Abraham Woodhull find his informant and gather information from him.
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Robert Townsend was a spy who hid his identity for over a century. Only in 1930 one of the historians compared Robert Townsend's handwriting to the handwriting of one of the members of the Culper Spy Ring and concluded that it was the same person. He gathered information, wrote his reports for George Washington in invisible ink and concealed it in blank paper.
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James Armistead Lafayette was an enslaved African American who served the Continental Army by giving false information to the British and detailed intelligence to the Americans. He was a double-agent who helped America win its Independence.