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The Deserters - Hessian Mercenaries

© Mark W. Swarthout

Almost every family has a family legend about some ancestor that fought in the American Revolution. And we are always attempting to find that individual. I will never forget finally finding my first ancestor who had participated in the birth of this country, Johann Georg Schimmel. And it was not even too disappointing to realize that he had fought for the 'wrong' side!

Most of us recall George Washington's famous Christmas raid across the Delaware River, surprising a large British Force in the dead of night. And some of us may remember that the majority of the force consisted of Hessian Mercenaries, hired by King George to subdue those uppity colonists.

What may not be as well know as that the majority of the Hessian ranks consisted of young men, many in their late teens and early twenties, that had no other way of making a living. They were second third and fourth sons with no hope of inheriting any land or money from their fathers. They would be lucky to serve as an apprentace and learn a trade, if their father could afford the fees. Or they might find themselves reluctantly supported by the older siblings, at their beck and call.

Another large percentage of the soldiers were impressed into service from the streets, from debtors' prisons and criminal courts. And the colonists offered up to 50 acres of land to those that would desert their units and switch sides.

So it should come as little surprise that many of these young men choose not to return to Germany with their units. In some cases the percentage of deserters was as high as eighty percent, preferring to risk being shot as a deserter then returning to an unknown future in already over crowded area, as well as further combat operations. As a result, over 4,800 of the 30,000 German soldiers stayed in the colonies. Of the rest a little over half returned, the rest died as a result of combat, disease or accident.

Given their origins, they typically migrated toward other German speaking communities, predominantly those in the Pennsylvania area, helping to bolster the Pennsylvania Dutch communities.

There are some unit histories available, typically written by genealogists. Roots-Web.com includes an American Revolutionary Hessians thread full of inquiries and responses.

But one of the best starting points is a web site set up by the Johannes Schwalm Historical Association, Inc., Hessian Soldiers. They provide excellent guidelines for finding out more about these elusive military men.

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