William Chaplin
MSA SC 3520-16821
Biography:
Born in Colchester, Essex County, England, William Chaplin immigrated to the American colonies prior to the American Revolution. Although little is known of his early life, Chaplin claimed to own a plantation near Baltimore, Maryland. [1]
Chaplin enlisted as a private in the First Maryland Regiment’s Fourth Company on January 20, 1776. Chaplin and the other Maryland soldiers spent the first half of the year training in Baltimore. In July of 1776, the entire First Maryland Regiment received orders to travel to New York. George Washington feared an imminent British attack and desperately needed reinforcements. The Marylanders arrived in New York later that month. [2]
On August 27, 1776, the Fourth Company participated in the Battle of Brooklyn. British soldiers outflanked the Marylanders in a surprise attack. The Marylanders retreated, fighting their way toward the Gowanus Creek. Although some companies successfully escaped the battle by crossing the swampy creek, several other companies, including the Fourth Company, remained trapped. The remaining Marylanders charged British lines several times, suffering heavily in the process. William McMillan, a sergeant in the Fourth Company, described how:
We were surrounded by Healanders [Scottish Highlanders] [on] one side, Hessians on the other...My captain was killed, first lieutenant was killed, second lieutenant shot through the hand, two sergeants was killed; one in front of me… two corporals killed. All belonged to our Company.”
The Fourth Company lost eighty percent of its soldiers that day, but Chaplin luckily survived the battle. [3]
Chaplin remained in the First Regiment throughout the rest of 1776 and 1777, participating in “several actions with the King’s troops.” Fighting at battles like White Plains, Brandywine, and Germantown secured the Marylanders’ legacy as one of the most effective fighting forces in the Revolution. In the winter of 1777-1778, William Smallwood sequestered his soldiers in Wilmington, Delaware, protecting the region from a potential British invasion. [4]
Chaplin’s faith in the American cause began to waver during the winter of 1777-1778, perhaps caused by poor conditions, low supplies, and little pay. On March 5, 1778, Chaplin decided to leave the army altogether and left Wilmington, deserting alongside sixteen other soldiers. Although Chaplin’s superiors noted his absence the following day, Chaplin successfully arrived in Philadelphia, where he “took the oath of allegiance” to the British crown. After being “treated with great humanity by the British officers,” Chaplin requested “to leave America.” [5]
Along with “upwards of two hundred British and Irish deserters from the Provincial army,” Chaplin left Philadelphia on board a fleet of ships bound for England on March 9, 1778. After arriving at Whitehaven, Cumbria County on May 27, 1778, Chaplin described his experiences to a British newspaper. Chaplin also gave what he believed to be accurate information regarding the strength of the Maryland Line and the Continental Army. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about Chaplin’s life after he returned to England. [6]
-James Schmitt, Maryland Society Sons of the American Revolution Research Fellow, 2019
Notes:
[1] Morning Post and Daily Advertiser (London, England), 2 June 1778, p.2.
[2] Muster Rolls and Other Records of Service of Maryland Troops in the American Revolution, Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 12; Mark Andrew Tacyn, “‘To the End:’ The First Maryland Regiment and the American Revolution” (PhD diss., University of Maryland College Park, 1999), pp. 44-45.
[4] Morning Post and Daily Advertiser.
[5] Morning Post and Daily Advertiser; Archives of Maryland Online, vol. 18, p. 91.
[6] Morning Post and Daily Advertiser.
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