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As we celebrate the 4th of July, here is a quick round up of facts no one talks about.

Fascinating Fact 1– General George Washington, commander of the Continental Army was desperate for information on the enemy. If you watch ‘‘TURN: Washingtons’s Spies’ on AMC you can see this unfold.  Back then, there was simply no reliable intelligence network that existed on the Patriot side at that time. That changed in 1778, when a young cavalry officer named Benjamin Tallmadge established a small group of trustworthy men and women from his hometown of Setauket, Long Island. Known as the Culper Spy Ring, Tallmadge’s homegrown network would become the most effective of any intelligence-gathering operation on either side during the Revolutionary War.

Fascinating Fact 2 -There was actually 3 Presidents before Washington. From 1774 to 1789, the Continental Congress served as the government of the 13 American colonies and later the United States. Almost every significant political figure of the American Revolution served in the Continental Congress, including Samuel Adams, John Adams, John Hancock, John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Patrick Henry and George Washington. The first President of Congress was Peyton Randolph of Virginia, who was elected on September 5, 1774, to preside over the First Continental Congress. He was followed by Henry Middleton in 1775.  Henry Laurens of South Carolina was elected in November 1777. He was the last to serve before the official election of George Washington as President of The United States of America.

Fascinating Fact 3

The numbers of the battle will stun you.Fascinating Fact 4

Benedict Arnold was once a member of the Sons of Liberty. The Sons of Liberty was an organization that was created in the Thirteen American Colonies. The secret society was formed to protect the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British governmentThis fact just throws me. It proves how complicated these men were. Although Benedict Arnold is certainly one of the most familiar names from the American Revolution, his heroics in support of the patriot cause have been overshadowed by his notorious duplicity.

Fascinating Fact 5

There was a group of women that lead the charge as well.  They were called the Daughters of Liberty. The Daughters of Liberty signifies the formal Patriot association that was formed in 1765 to protest the Stamp Act and later the Townshend Acts, as well as a general term for women who identified themselves as fighting for liberty during the American Revolution.The main task of the Daughters of Liberty was to protest the Stamp Act and Townshend Acts through aiding The Sons of Liberty in boycotts and non-importation movements prior to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. The Daughters of Liberty participated in spinning bees, helping to produce homespun cloth for colonists to wear instead of British textiles. Women were also used as the enforcers of these movements because they were the ones responsible for purchasing goods for their households. They saw it as their duty to make sure that fellow Patriots were staying true to their word about boycotting British goods.