Rise To Rebellion: A Novel of the American Revolution

Cambridge, Massachusetts, November 1775

On October 16, Admiral Graves’s gunships reduce the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts, to ashes. Meanwhile, Franklin visits Cambridge, and he is impressed by a robust, disciplined Continental Army. He informs Washington that the congress has been in contact with an agent of the French government, who may be willing to supply them with arms. The Continental Army staged an assault in Canada, hoping to control Montreal and Quebec and prevent the British from seizing them and severing New England from the other colonies. The French covet those territories and will likely help the rebels if they control them. King George also hired 20,000 mercenaries to bolster his army.

Franklin departs Cambridge for Boston. Abigail Adams is also there, melting pewter for musket balls.

Philadelphia, November 1775

Adams is despondent over the congress’s lack of progress, and a dysentery epidemic is sweeping through Braintree. Adams fears for his family’s health. He receives a letter informing him of the destruction of Falmouth. Adams realizes that every act of British barbarism unites the colonies more than political rhetoric. Richard Henry Lee summons them to the congress to address an official decree from the king.

Hancock notes that the conservatives’ last petition to the king, the Olive Branch Petition, was ignored. The king’s decree is an official declaration of war with the colonies. They are severed from the British Empire, and the congress is now an independent body representing the colonies.

Braintree, Christmas 1775

John Adams is appointed Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Court but turns it down because of his congressional obligations. Adams’s primary goal is the formation of an American government. On Christmas, Adams and Abigail reflect on their time apart. She has reservations about the formation of a national government and the difficulties of getting all 13 colonies to agree. Further, she worries that equal representation will omit many voices, including women. When Adams tells her that the government will be controlled by “men of property,” she counters, “you will soon find there to be a second revolution” (403).

January 1776

Adams bids a sad farewell to Abigail and heads back to Philadelphia. He is plagued by doubts about the diverse cultures of the colonies and wonders how many colonists truly want revolution. When he reaches New York, he finds Thomas Paine’s Common Sense circulating.

Philadelphia, January 1776

Franklin worries that accepting military help from France could lead to unwanted dependence. Meanwhile, his age catches up with him, and he renews his friendship with Strahan, who informs him of a new, more aggressive secretary for colonial affairs, George Sackville. With almost no opposition in Parliament, the king has nearly unchecked power in his quest to

Franklin and other delegates discuss Common Sense—Paine’s treatise arguing for independence—and its popularity in the colonies. It has changed the minds of many former loyalists. Richard Henry Lee enters the room with news that “[t]he British have burned Norfolk” (412) at the order of Virginia’s loyalist colonial governor.

Franklin rereads Common Sense and realizes its primary thesis—a monarchy is fundamentally untenable as a form of government—is applicable to the Continental Congress, a body composed entirely of wealthy men. He sees the logic in Adams’s desire to form an American government, an alternative all 13 colonies can unite behind.

Cambridge, January 1776

The colonial effort to capture Montreal and Quebec kills hundreds of troops. Washington struggles to form a disciplined fighting force, and many soldiers’ enlistments will soon expire, requiring him to recruit and train new soldiers from scratch. The British attack on Falmouth, however, spurs many men to re-enlist.

Washington appoints Henry Knox to retrieve the cannons from Ticonderoga and bring them to Boston. Washington surveys the harbor, assessing the British fleet. The Continental Congress approved funding for a small colonial navy, whose goal is to raid British ships, seizing cargo or entire vessels. Washington wonders why the harbor is clogged with so many empty vessels and considers that Howe may be preparing to leave Boston. He decides they must engage the British as soon as possible. Washington wonders why Howe hasn’t attacked yet, finally realizing he doesn’t have the manpower to hold his ground. Washington strategizes, but he needs Knox to return with the cannons.

January 25, 1776

Washington grows anxious at Knox’s delay, but after a six-week journey, he returns with 59 pieces of artillery.

February 16, 1776

As he plans his assault, Washington assesses his senior officers. Charles Lee, Henry Knox, and Nathaniel Greene are rising stars. He dislikes his second-in-command, Artemas Ward. At a meeting of his commanders, he unveils his plan—to entrench on the hills of Dorchester Heights and place their artillery there, in range of Boston and the British ships. When Howe launches a full-scale assault on the hills, Washington’s troops will sweep into Boston from the north and occupy the town. Howe will have no base to return to. Lee questions if Washington has considered every contingency, like Howe burning Boston to the ground.

March 4, 1776

The initial bombardment lasts three days, a diversion from the real artillery being placed in Dorchester Heights. Washington’s troops take their position on the hills and wait for dawn.

March 5, 1776

As the cannon begins their assault, Howe moves his troops to Castle William, although he leaves Boston more heavily guarded than Washington anticipated. Washington orders his troops to move against Boston that evening, and he expects an assault on Dorchester Heights the following morning. A storm that evening foils Howe’s efforts to land his troops on the shore. Several days later, the British sail out of the harbor. They have not taken Washington’s bait.

March 18, 1776

Washington’s troops occupy Boston and find a fair amount of gunpowder and musket shot left behind. Washington is confident that Howe’s army retreated to New York. As he tours the city, he finds the meeting hall—the gathering place of the original protests—has been defiled by British troops.

Philadelphia, May 15, 1776

British General Henry Clinton plans to land 2,000 troops in North Carolina. Colonial troops defeated 1,700 Scots loyalists at nearby Moore’s Creek Bridge days before. Adams realizes that no foreign nation will consider the colonies an independent entity unless they are ruled by a functioning government. With each colony essentially without a government, as most of the royal governors have fled, the congress urges each colony to elect its own assembly. Even staunch loyalists understand the importance of this process since they can no longer depend on the protection of British troops. Meanwhile, Adams sends Silas Deane, a Connecticut delegate, to France as America’s first international representative.

June 7, 1776

Adams grows impatient with the congress. He feels they are out of touch with the colonists, who are eager to move forward. At that day’s session, Richard Henry Lee proposes a complete break with England and the formation of foreign alliances. The ovation from the gallery suggests strong support for the measure, although Maryland and Pennsylvania waver. The congress appoints a committee, including Adams, Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson, to draft an official declaration of independence.

Philadelphia, June 1776

Franklin and a small delegation travel to Montreal to secure an alliance with Canada. The colonies’ anti-Catholic bias and General Benedict Arnold’s ill-treatment of the locals doom the mission from the start.

June 15, 1776

The harsh cold of Canada takes a physical toll on Franklin. While recuperating at home, his grandson, Temple, delivers a letter from Franklin’s son, William, and Franklin regrets their estrangement.

June 21, 1776

At Jefferson’s residence, Franklin presents a first draft of the Declaration of Independence. Adams is pleased, and the committee makes small adjustments. As they adjourn, Franklin stops by the Pennsylvania State House, where the assembly is debating the resolution of independence. As he approaches the chamber, the delegates burst out in a flurry of anger and confusion. The assembly has been dissolved, the forces for independence clamoring for a new state constitution. The conservative Dickinson is ousted, and Franklin consoles him with the inevitability of America’s course. Dickinson is not assuaged. All colonies but Maryland and New York have voted for independence.

June 28, 1776

Adams, Franklin, and Jefferson finish their revisions and prepare to present the declaration to the congress. Lee reports that Maryland has voted in favor of independence.

Philadelphia, July 2, 1776

Dickinson makes a final, hopeless plea against independence, and Adams says that the people have decided, and no monarch or ministers can supersede that. The congress votes unanimously in favor (New York abstains) of Lee’s resolution for independence. After the congress contributes additional revisions, Jefferson drafts the final version.

July 4, 1776

John Hancock reads the final draft to the congress, and it is approved.

New York, July 9, 1776

Washington’s troops fortify Manhattan Island, and Howe retreats to Halifax to regroup and assemble his mercenaries. The Declaration of Independence fills Washington with resolve. They are fighting for a single, united country. Washington addresses his army in lower Manhattan, where the Declaration of Independence is read aloud. A crowd topples a statue of King George. The lead will be melted down into musket balls. As Washington gazes south toward Staten Island, he sees the British fleet, massing for invasion. With the resolve of the congress behind him, he hopes his army can match the colonies’ spirit.