Lindsey Graham

And across the colonies, men of all ages enlisted in militias.

One 16-year-old volunteer recalled, the whole country became electrified and almost everyone young and old were formed into companies.

But most colonists were not yet fighting for independence.

Instead, they steeled themselves for battle to defend their rights and freedoms as subjects of the British Empire.

So even as they hurled down the path of rebellion, few could imagine the long, bloody war to independence that lay ahead.

From Audible Originals, this is Episode 1 of our six-part series on the American Revolution for American History Tellers.

In the next episode, after the bloody Battle of Bunker Hill, newly appointed Commander-in-Chief George Washington struggles to transform a patchwork of amateur militias into a unified army.

The Second Continental Congress gathers in Philadelphia, and patriots and loyalists debate whether to take the unprecedented step of declaring independence from Great Britain.

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You can listen to all episodes of American History Tellers ad-free by joining Audible.

And to find out more about me and my other projects, including my live stage show coming to a theater near you, go to notthatlindseygram.com.

That's notthatlindseygram.com.

American History Tellers is hosted, edited, and produced by me, Lindsey Graham for Airship.

This episode is written by Ellie Stanton, edited by Dorian Marina.

Senior producers are Alita Rosansky and Andy Herman.

Managing producer, Desi Blaylock.

Audio editing by Mohamed Shazi.

Music by Thrum.

Sound design by Molly Bach.

Executive producer for Audible, Jenny Lauer Beckman.