It’s George Washington’s birthday today, but I’m not writing about our president’s purported penchant for cherry-tree chopping. (Yes, it’s also a Day of Alliteration. It’s a rainy Monday. We all do what we can to pull through.) In today’s tale, Washington’s not quite a hero, and Lord Dunmore’s Ethiopian Regiment takes center stage.

Samuel Johnson wrote in 1775, “How is it that we hear the loudest yelps for liberty among the drivers of Negroes?” The American revolutionaries called for freedom, but Johnson (among others) pointed out the hypocrisy in this proclamation of liberty from people who owned slaves. Thomas Jefferson is often cited as the perfect example of this disconnect between ideal and reality; while he so eloquently expressed the ideals of liberty, he was a slave-owner.

Slavery had been abolished in England in 1772, but in its colonies, the practice was still going strong. In 1775, Crispus Attucks, a black man, became the first martyr of the American Revolution, and black soldiers fought at the early important battles of the war: Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill. But when Washington took charge of the Continental Army, he decreed that recruitment of black soldiers was at an end, and he later purged the remaining soldiers from his army. It seems the idea of armed blacks was a great enough threat to risk losing a war for.

With this ban, the embattled royal governor of Virginia, John Murray, earl of Dunmore, saw his chance. On Nov. 14, 1775, he issued a proclamation declaring that he’d free any slaves who joined the Loyalists in their fight — if they belonged to Patriots, that is. (Loyalists could keep their slaves, continuing our theme of “freedom for everyone…when it suits our interests.”) Three hundred men joined up almost immediately, and they became known as Lord Dunmore’s Ethiopian Regiment. The white reaction to Dunmore’s proclamation was predictably panicky — according to PBS, the Virginia Gazette advised slaves to “cling to their kind masters.” It’s estimated that 800 slaves fought in the regiment, wearing uniforms embroidered with “liberty to slaves.” Colonel Tye is the most famous of the regiment, a guerrilla commander who terrified Patriot forces. (Learn more about Colonel Tye on PBS.)

When the Continental Army fell apart due to smallpox and deserters, Washington was forced to reconsider the decision to ban black soldiers. Now that the cause was in dire straits, the slaves were needed. In the end, according to the National Park Service, it’s estimated that at least 5,000 black soldiers fought as Patriots. Not that they were accorded the liberty that was won with their help.

Thanks to listener Katie for suggesting this topic.