Georgia was the youngest and least developed of the thirteen colonies, founded in 1733 and under royal government only since 1752. With no established planter aristocracy or strong Revolutionary leadership class and flanked by Spanish Florida to the south and Creek, Cherokee, and Choctaw territory to the west, Georgia relied heavily on the British Empire for defense. Loyalism was consequently strong, especially in the backcountry. Georgia was the only colony where stamps were actually issued under the Stamp Act, drawing resentment from neighboring colonies. The Revolution proceeded in fits and starts, with Patriot infighting epitomized by the duel between Lachlan McIntosh and Button Gwinnett. Georgia’s porous southern border with British-held Florida was a violent frontier contested by Loyalists, enslaved people seeking freedom, and Indigenous nations. The Revolution was profoundly disruptive, displacing populations of every background, and historians observe it was nearly a miracle that Georgia joined the other twelve colonies rather than remaining in the Empire as the Caribbean colonies did.
Interviewees
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Stan Deaton
- Dr. Elaine B. Andrews Distinguished Historian, Georgia Historical Society
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Christy Crisp
- Vice President of Education and Programs, Georgia Historical Society
