The colonies had maritime experience—they had sailed with the British Navy, they had operated on privateering vessels—but they didn’t have a navy of their own. And that’s the challenge as the Revolution begins. On land, you can turn militias into an army, but there’s no equivalent at sea. If they’re going to stand up to the British, they have to build a naval presence from the ground up. 

In this bonus episode of Revolution Revisited, host Maggie Creech and guest Dr. Kylie Hulbert explore the origins and challenges of the Continental Navy during the American Revolution. They discuss how a collection of colonies with maritime experience but no unified naval force attempted to build a navy from scratch, the competition with privateers for sailors, and the critical role that naval power, especially from international allies, played in securing American independence.

Inside the Episode:

At the start of the American Revolution, the colonies faced a massive problem at sea. They had the sailors and the experience, but they lacked a unified naval force capable of challenging the British Royal Navy. In this episode, we follow the 1775 push to create the Continental Navy, a movement led in part by John Adams. We’ll look at the immediate hurdles they faced including limited funding, scarce resources, and a desperate competition for talent with privateers. We’ll also explore the people on the decks, from green recruits to the skilled African American pilots whose knowledge of local waterways proved essential.

TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00 Welcome to Revolution Revisited and Forming the Continental Navy
• 00:47 Guest Introduction: Historian Dr. Kylie Hulbert
• 01:16 The Colonial Maritime World and British Naval Dominance
• 03:43 Why the Colonies Had No Navy at the Start of the Revolution
• 04:30 John Adams Pushes for a Continental Navy
• 05:40 Debate in Congress: Navy as a Step Toward Independence
• 07:15 Building a Navy from Scratch: Ships, Money, and Manpower
• 09:20 Early Steps Toward Formation in Late 1775
• 10:30 State Navies and the Struggle for Unity
• 12:30 Pirates vs. Privateers vs. Naval Sailors Explained
• 15:40 Privateering vs. Navy Service: Risk, Reward, and Recruitment Challenges
• 18:25 Who Served: Crews, Skills, and Life at Sea
• 21:00 African American Sailors and Their Contributions
• 25:34 Stories of Individual Sailors and Service
• 28:30 John Paul Jones and Criticism of Privateers
• 30:00 Early Naval Engagements and Missed Opportunities
• 32:03 The French Navy and the Turning Point at Sea
• 34:53 The Global Nature of the American Revolution
• 36:30 Why Britain Ultimately Lost the War
• 38:24 The End of the Continental Navy
• 40:08 Closing Thoughts and Episode Wrap-Up

RELATED CONTENT:

• Virginia Museum of History & Culture
• Revolution Revisited Podcast
• Dr. Kylie Hulbert - Hampden-Sydney College
• The Untold War at Sea: America’s Revolutionary Privateers
• The Continental Navy in Virginia during the American Revolution