Was the American War of Independence a civil war?

Dr Eamonn O’Keeffe invites a panel of experts to explore issues of identity, patriotism and loyalty on the road to revolution. ------------- The American War of Independence (1775-83) is often presented as a struggle for liberty - a rebellion by colonists against remote British rule. But behind this narrative lies a complex web of loyalties, ideologies and divisions. Our international panel of experts delves into some of these tensions, exploring how competing perspectives - political, social and cultural - can reshape our understanding of this pivotal conflict. Released on 19 April 2025, this discussion is part of the National Army Museum’s American Revolution series, marking the 250th anniversary of the start of the American War of Independence. https://www.nam.ac.uk/whats-on ------------- The panellists: Dr Eamonn O’Keeffe is the National Army Museum Junior Research Fellow at Queens’ College, Cambridge. He completed a DPhil at the University of Oxford in 2022. Eamonn’s work has received the André Corvisier Prize, awarded by the International Commission for Military History, and the Pollard Prize, awarded by the Institute for Historical Research. Steven Pincus is the Thomas E Donnelly Professor of History at the University of Chicago and interim Director of the Nicholson Center for British Studies. He is a historian of Britain and its Empire, and has written numerous books on 17th- and 18th-century British history, including one on the origins of America’s Declaration of Independence. David Armitage is the Lloyd C Blankfein Professor of History, Chair of the Committee on Degrees in Social Studies and former Chair of the Department of History at Harvard University, where he teaches intellectual history and international history. David is the author or editor of 19 books, including 'The Declaration of Independence: A Global History'. Dr Megan King is an early-career researcher specialising in practices of civil resistance in Revolutionary America. Megan is the project coordinator for the Age of Revolution Educational Legacy Project, which is graciously supported by Waterloo200 and based at the University of Kent. She also serves as a manager at Benjamin Franklin House. ------------- Follow the National Army Museum on: Web: https://www.nam.ac.uk/ Facebook:   / nationalarmymuseum   Twitter:   / nam_london   Instagram:   / nam_london   Email: https://nam.ac.uk/newsletter-signup