1st Maryland Regiment
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| 1st Maryland Regiment | |
|---|---|
 1st Maryland Regiment holding the line at the Battle of Guilford |
|
| Active | 1776-1783 |
| Allegiance | Continental Congress of the United States |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | 728 soldiers(1776) re-organized to 611 soldiers(1781) |
| Part of | Maryland Line |
| Battles/wars | Monmouth; Battle of Camden and Guilford Court House |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
Colonel William Smallwood |
| New York and New Jersey campaigns participation, 1776–1777 |
|---|
| Long Island –White Plains – 1st Trenton – 2nd Trenton – Princeton – Forage War |
| Philadelphia campaign participation, 1777–1778 |
|---|
| Brandywine –– Paoli - Germantown – White Marsh – Matson's Ford – Monmouth |
| Southern theater campaign participation, 1780–1783 |
|---|
| Camden – Cowpens – Guilford Court House – Hobkirk's Hill – Eutaw Springs – Yorktown |
Contents |
[edit] 1st Maryland Regiment
The 1st Maryland Regiment (Smallwood's Regiment) originated with the authorization of a Maryland Battalion of the Maryland State Troops on January 14, 1776 which was organized in the spring at Baltimore, Maryland (three companies) and Annapolis, Maryland (six companies) under the command of Colonel William Smallwood consisting of eight companies and one light infantry company from the northern and western counties of the colony of Maryland.
On 6 July 1776 the Maryland Battalion was assigned to the main Continental Army. On 12 August 1776 it was assigned to Stirling's Brigade and five days later (17 August 1776) adopted into the main Continental Army. On 31 August the Maryland Battalion was re-assigned from Stirling's Brigade to McDougall's Brigade. On 19 September 1776 the Maryland Independent Companies were assigned to the Maryland Battalion. This element was relieved from McDougall's Brigade on 10 November 1776. From 10 December 1776 to January 1777 the element was assigned to Mercer's Brigade. In January 1777 this element was re-organized to eight companies and was re-designated as the 1st Maryland Regiment and assigned to the 1st Maryland Brigade on 22 May 1777 of the main continental Army. On 12 May 1779 the regiment was re-organized to nine companies. On 5 April 1780 the 1st Maryland Brigade was re-assigned to the Southern Department. On 1 January 1781 it was re-assigned 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 July 27, 1783 at Baltimore and disbanded on November 15, 1783.
The Maryland Battalion distinguished itself at the Battle of Long Island by singlehandedly covering the retreat of the American forces against numerically superior British and Hessian forces. Thereafter, General George Washington relied heavily upon the Marylanders as one of the few reliable fighting units in the early Continental Army. For this reason, Maryland is sometimes known as "The Old Line State." [1]The 175th Regiment Maryland National Guard claims descent from "The Maryland Line".
[edit] References
- Wright, Richard K. [1983]. "Lineage", The Continental Army (HTML) (in English), Washington, D.C.: Center of Military Hisory. Retrieved on 29 May 2006.
[edit] Further reading
- Balch, Thomas [1857]. Papers Relating Chiefly to the Maryland Line During the Revolution (in English), 218 pgs.
- Christian, Bernard [1900] (1972). Muster Rolls & other Records of Service of Maryland Troops in the American Revolution 1775-1783 ((HTML)), Reprint (in English), Baltimore, Maryland: Lord Baltimore Press, Maryland Historical Society, 736 pgs. Retrieved on May 29.
