colonial militia
Provincial volunteer soldiers
A colonial militia was a military force composed of civilian settlers in a territory under the rule of a distant power, organized for local defense rather than as a professional standing army.
In American history, colonial militias were groups of armed colonists who could be called up to protect their communities against threats from Indigenous peoples, rival European powers, or eventually the British crown itself.
The colonial militia trained on the village green each month.
These forces formed the foundation of the Continental Army during the American Revolution.
- French and Indian War1750s colonial North American conflict
- American RevolutionColonial separation from Britain
- MinutemenColonial instant-ready militia
- civic dutyObligation owed to community
- defense forcesNation's military personnel
British colonies · volunteer soldiers · musket balls · armories · Lexington and Concord · town meetings · home guard · redcoat soldiers · citizen soldiers · conscription · skirmishers · Bunker Hill · guerrilla warfare · Concord · powder horns · self-governance · Revolutionary War · volunteer
- Colonial AmericaGeorge Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Benjamin Franklin, Declaration of Independence
- colonial historycolonization, colonies, pilgrims, Jamestown, Plymouth
- colonial enterprisesBritish East India Company, Dutch East India Company, East India Company, Hudson's Bay Company, chartered companies
- Colonial EraEast India Company, British Raj, Dutch East Indies, trading post, royal charter
- Colonial LouisianaNew Orleans, Louisiana Purchase, French Quarter, governors, Acadians
- Colonial VirginiaJamestown, James River, tobacco cultivation, Powhatan, Pocahontas
colonial militiaregular army
Nation's permanent military force
standing army · regulars · career soldiers · mercenaries · line infantry
colonial militianational guard
Domestic military reserve force
United States Army · Department of Defense · NATO forces · peacekeeping forces