S03E14: Hessians: Mercenaries, Rebels, and the War for British North America

With less than 45,000 troops to their name and crippled by debt, the British Empire was desperate. Knowing that a conscript draft would be unpopular and over budget, Parliament turned to the disunited states of the Holy Roman Empire to fill their ranks. Although often called “mercenaries,” the German soldiers recruited to fight in North America were anything but, and most were forced to serve against their will. On this episode we discuss the Hessians. Remember, my new book “Hessians: Mercenaries, Rebels, and the War for British North America will be released this spring.