From the towns of New England to the plantations of South Carolina, local militia commanders and their chaplains rushed to build fortifications and eventually a Continental Army to repel the British incursions of 1775 and 1776. The colonials realized collectively that any threat to civil liberty was also an implied threat to religious freedom. Not all colonists were united in this effort, perhaps not more than one-third of the population. Nevertheless, volunteers arrived from every colony. Some were commanders who led their troops on the battlefield. Others were chaplains who, in General Washington's estimation, "animated the soldiery and impressed upon them a knowledge of the important rights we are contending for." This is the story of that unusual but vital partnership. --John W. Brinsfield, US Army Chaplain Corps Historian, 2002-2011