Departments of the Continental Army
The entire Continental Army of the American Revolutionary War was organized into six departments for command and administrative purposes. Each department had a semi-autonomous commanding general . The Continental Congress acted through and with the department commanders.
During the war, Congress retained the authority to appoint or remove these commanders. In practice, when an urgent need arose, a commander was often appointed by George Washington ( commander-in-chief of the Continental Army) or a state president, but this had yet to be confirmed by Congress. Many of these appointments were confirmed by Congress. This practice, along with the Army and Navy Committees of Congress, set the standard for subsequent civilian control of military affairs, as set forth in the United States Constitution.
The department commanders and their staffs worked directly with the governments of the states in their department. At first these were all provisional or ad hoc governments, but this practice continued as more official or more structured governments emerged in these states. Usually the commanders were major generals , keeping George Washington the most senior general during the war .
The departments
There were six departments, although not all of them were active throughout the war:
The Eastern Department was formed in the states that had originally sent troops in support of the siege of Boston . In that sense it existed before the Continental Army. It was primarily the department of New England , but also included the states of Massachusetts , New Hampshire , Connecticut, and Rhode Island .
The Northern Department were the parts of New York north of New York City . At first it was called "New York Department", but after the formation of the Highland Department on November 12, 1776, it was only referred to as the Northern Department. This department was the only one to survive after the war to defend the border outposts against the Indians .
The highlands department was the smallest territorially and was formed to defend the Hudson River north of New York. After the British took New York City, the defensive positions north of the city were of critical importance. The presence of British naval forces in New York added to the importance of the Hudson River and both warring parties recognized the value of controlling this waterway. The Americans built fortifications, including West Points with its chain across the river. The British tried to gain control through the Saratoga campaign in 1777 .
The middle department comprised the states of New Jersey , Pennsylvania , Delaware and Maryland . It was usually referred to simply as the main army because George Washington was its commander throughout the war.
The Southern Department included Virginia , North Carolina , South Carolina, and Georgia and the western border lands south of Virginia. This department was the most independent because of its geographic location and the need for year-round operations, while most of the northern departments suspended offensive operations during the winter and spring. The Southern Department was also the only one whose command structure was broken up twice. The first time at the surrender of Charleston on May 12, 1780 and the second time at the Battle of Camden on August 16, 1780.
The Western Department comprises the border territories west and northwest of Virginia and Pennsylvania. It stretched from Pittsburgh to the Illinois area and north to the southern Michigan peninsula .
The Department of Canada reflected the ambitions of Congress and some Americans more than that there were actual operations. The area was never under the control of the Continental Army. After the invasion of Canada failed, all troops were withdrawn in July 1776 and the Department of Canada ceased to exist.
List of department commanders
| department | commander | Appointment date |
|---|---|---|
| Main army | George Washington | June 16, 1775 |
| Eastern | George Washington | June 16, 1775 |
| Artemas Ward | April 4, 1776 | |
| William Heath | March 20, 1777 | |
| Horatio Gates | November 7, 1778 | |
| Northern | Philip Schuyler | June 25, 1775 |
| Horatio Gates | August 19, 1777 | |
| John Stark | April 17, 1778 | |
| Edward hand | October 19, 1778 | |
| James Clinton | November 20, 1778 | |
| John Stark | June 25, 1781 (2nd time) | |
| William Alexander | October 15, 1781 | |
| John Stark | November 21, 1781 (3rd time) | |
| William Alexander | August 29, 1782 (2nd time) | |
| Southern | Charles Lee | March 1, 1776 |
| Robert Howe | September 9, 1776 | |
| Benjamin Lincoln | September 25, 1778 | |
| Horatio Gates | June 13, 1780 | |
| Nathanael Greene | October 31, 1780 | |
| Western | Edward hand | April 10, 1777 |
| Lachlan McIntosh | May 26, 1778 | |
| Daniel Brodhead | March 5, 1779 | |
| William Irvine | September 24, 1781 | |
| Highlands | William Heath | November 12, 1776 |
| Alexander McDougall | December 21, 1776 | |
| Israel Putnam | May 12, 1777 | |
| Alexander McDougall | March 16, 1778 (2nd time) | |
| Horatio Gates | November 24, 1778 (3rd time) | |
| Alexander McDougall | May 20, 1778 | |
| William Heath | November 27, 1779 (2nd time) | |
| Robert Howe | February 21, 1780 (representative) | |
| Alexander McDougall | June 21, 1780 (4th time) | |
| Benedict Arnold | August 3, 1780 | |
| George Washington | September 25, 1780 (representative) | |
| Alexander McDougall | September 28, 1780 (5th time) | |
| Nathanael Greene | October 5, 1780 | |
| William Heath | October 17, 1780 (3rd time) | |
| John Paterson | May 11, 1781 (representative) | |
| Alexander McDougall | June 24, 1781 (6th time) | |
| William Heath | January 18, 1782 (4th time) | |
| Henry Knox | August 24, 1782 | |
| Canadian | Richard Montgomery | December 9, 1775 |
| David Wooster | December 31, 1775 (representative) | |
| Charles Lee | February 17, 1776 (rejected) | |
| John Thomas | March 6, 1776 | |
| John Sullivan | June 1, 1776 | |
| Horatio Gates | June 17, 1776 (not started) |