Patriots of Color at Valley Forge

While history often frames the Revolution in white, up to 8,000 people of African descent fought for liberty. 700 of them endured the winter of 1777 at Valley Forge.

For these men, the musket was a tool for two revolutions: one for a new nation, and one for their own soul-deep freedom.

Crispus Attucks, a man of African and Native heritage, was the first to shed blood for American rights. His death in 1770 set the stage for all who followed.

In the freezing huts of Valley Forge, the army was integrated. Black and white soldiers suffered and survived side-by-side—a level of unity not seen again until the Korean War. French allies called them "the most neatly dressed, the best under arms, and the most precise" in the army.

In February 1778, a radical law allowed enslaved men to enlist in exchange for immediate freedom. This gave birth to the 1st Rhode Island Regiment.

Encamped at the Forge at age 18, Hull served for six years. He remains one of the most well-documented Black patriots of the era.

James Armistead Lafayette acted as a double agent, spying on Cornwallis. His intelligence was the key to the victory at Yorktown.

"All men are born free and equal." Patriots of Color used the Revolution’s own rhetoric to sue for and win their freedom.

Whether fighting for the Continentals or seeking protection with the British, for these men, the Revolution was a singular "freedom struggle." The struggle didn't end in 1783. It took another 82 years to fulfill the promise these patriots fought for at Valley Forge.

They were architects of a freedom they were often denied. Today, their names return to the center of the American story—ensuring the winter at Valley Forge is remembered for the resilience and courage of the Patriots of Color who defined their own future.