Bedel's Regiment was first raised as a single company of
rangers
A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to:
* Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
in
Coos, New Hampshire on May 26, 1775 under the command of
Timothy Bedel for the protection of northern
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
during the early days of the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of ...
. Between July 1775 and January 1776 eight more companies of rangers were recruited from the
frontier
A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts ...
men of northern New Hampshire as the regiment joined the
Continental Army and took part in the
Siege of Fort St. Jean
The siege of Fort St. Jean (September 17 – November 3, 1775, also called St. John, St. Johns, or St. John's, french: Siège du Fort Saint-Jean) was conducted by American Brigadier General Richard Montgomery on the town and fort of Saint-Jea ...
and the
Battle of The Cedars during the
Invasion of Canada. Most of the regiment was captured at The Cedars but were exchanged for British soldiers captured during the Canadian campaign eight days later. With the ending of the enlistments of the soldiers the regiment was disbanded on January 1, 1777 at Coos, New Hampshire.
Sources
*{{cite book, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XSDnxlK1sMUC, title=State Builders: An Illustrated Historical and Biographical Record of the State of New Hampshire, publisher=State Builders Publishing Manchester, NH, year=1903, editor=Willey, George Franklyn
External links
Bibliography of the Continental Army in New Hampshirecompiled by the
United States Army Center of Military History
The United States Army Center of Military History (CMH) is a directorate within the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The Institute of Heraldry remains within the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the A ...
Ranger Service compiled by Albert S. Batchellor of the New Hampshire Society of
Sons of the American Revolution
The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR or NSSAR) is an American congressionally chartered organization, founded in 1889 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. A non-profit corporation, it has described its purpos ...
1900.
Military units and formations established in 1775
Coös County, New Hampshire
New Hampshire regiments of the Continental Army