A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution

As the American Revolution broke out in New England in the spring of 1775 dramatic events unfolded in Virginia that proved every bit as decisive as the battles of Lexington and Concord and Bunker Hill in uniting the colonies against Britain. Virginia, the largest, wealthiest, and most populous province in British North America was led by Lord Dunmore. With a patriot army marching on Norfolk, the royal governor freed the enslaved and sent them into battle against their former owners. In retribution, furious rebels burned Norfolk to the ground on January 1, 1776. The port’s destruction and Dunmore’s emancipation prompted Virginia’s patriot leaders to urge the Continental Congress to split from Britain, breaking the deadlock among the colonies and leading to adoption of the Declaration of Independence.