A Brief History of the Kentish Guards
The Kentish Guards were formed on September 24, 1774 to protect the
Town of East Greenwich, Rhode Island from Tory attack; and were
chartered by the Colonial Assembly on October 29, 1774 as an “elite
militia,” taking extra responsibility for their own training and
equipment. Using the Kent County Court House as their armory, the
Kentish Guards were present when the Rhode Island Navy was enacted
there in 1775. They built Fort Daniel in Cowesett, armed it with
cannon, and garrisoned it throughout the war, protecting Warwick Bay
from naval attack.
The Guards were also present at the formation of the Continental Army
during the Siege of Boston in 1775, where General Washington noticed
how exceedingly well the Kentish Guards were trained, equipped, and
disciplined. Thirty-five members of the Guards were subsequently to
serve as officers in the Continental Army, foremost among them Major
General Nathanael Greene, the “Savior of the South” and, by the end of
the war, second only to Washington.
Initially the Guards rotated guard duty with other militia companies,
but, with the British invasion of Newport in 1776, they were on
continuous duty from May 1, 1776 to June 1, 1781. They patrolled
Warwick Neck, Prudence Island, Warren, Bristol, Tiverton, Portsmouth,
Middletown and Newport. In the summer of 1776 the Guards recaptured a
ship previously seized by the British Navy. During this engagement they
suffered their only casualty; Edward Pearce was shot in the arm and had
it amputated. Always keeping a detachment at Fort Daniel, they were the
sole defenders of East Greenwich in 1777 and 1778, and countered
several attacks launched on Potowomut and Warwick Neck (to the East),
and Quidnessett and Wickford (to the South).
In August 1778 Kentish Guards Commander, Colonel Richard Fry took
command of a regiment of Independent Militia Companies at the Battle of
Rhode Island in Portsmouth and Middletown. In the summer of 1779
twenty-six Guardsmen destroyed a British artillery battery on Conanicut
Island (Jamestown). After the British evacuation from Newport, the
Guards patrolled Sachuset Beach to help prevent a British return.
The Guards were again ordered to Newport in 1780 and 1781 to reinforce
the travel-weakened French Army, and were present in Newport during
General Washington’s visit there. After the war, the Kentish Guards
continued to provide local defense when many other militia companies
were disbanded or became volunteer fire departments. During this period
even the United States Army and Navy were temporary disbanded.
In 1807 all of the officers of the Kentish Guards were court-marshaled.
The commander, Colonel David Pinnegar, was ordered to select six
Guardsmen to be drafted for federal service; Colonel Pinnegar believed
that the Kentish Guards Charter allowed for the call up of the whole
unit for state duty, but not for drafting individual members for
federal service. Colonel Pinnegar and all the other line officers were
removed from office without any further penalty in a politically
controversial trial. But the Guards continued under new officers. They
served guard duty at the old Fort Adams in Newport during the War of
1812.
In 1842 a state constitutional crisis brought about the existence of
two rival state governments: one operating under the charter
granted by Charles II in 1663, and the other, a reform government led
by Thomas Dorr. Both parties sought to avoid conflict, but Dorrite
hotheads attempting to seize a state armory in Providence sparked a
confrontation on May 17th. The “Charter Government” called out the
militia, ending the rebellion in a bloodless battle the following day
in Providence. The Kentish Guards received the call to arms personally
from Adjutant General Elisha Dyer, who had gone to East Greenwich in a
wagon during the night. The Guards marched to Providence, but were too
late for the initial “battle.” However, they were called
quell a dangerous riot in Pawtucket on June 27th, which turned out to
be the bloodiest and most difficult engagement of the Dorr War. Here
Kentish Guards Commander, Colonel George Allen, took charge of six
militia companies besides the Guards halting a mob preparing to attack
Pawtucket and restoring order (picture the recent movie Gangs of New
York). In gratitude for their services, the state gave the Guards a
grant of one thousand dollars, with which they built their current
armory on the corner of Peirce and Armory Streets in East Greenwich in
1843.
During the Civil War, the Kentish Guards organized
two companies for federal service: Company “H” of the 2nd Rhode Island
Volunteers and Company “H” of the 7th Rhode lsland Volunteers. Each saw
extensive service in the Peninsular Campaign in Virginia. The 2nd RI
distinguished itself covering the retreat of the Union Army at the
First Battle of Bull Run, one of only three regiments to hold their
ground in this battle, and again in the Battle of the Wilderness, being
the last unit out.
The Guards were last on alert during the Spanish-American War when the
Spanish Navy menaced the East Coast of the United States. At the turn
of the Twentieth Century they declined the offer to joint the National
Guard system then being made; the KG’s chose to continue under their
old charter under which they elect their own officers and have control
of their own affairs.
The Kentish Guards still continue to serve under their Charter of 1774
and are the sixth oldest military organization in the United States in
continuous existence. The Governor commissions their elected officers
and the Guards are inspected and regulated by the Rhode Island’s
Adjutant General. The Governor most recently activated the Guards in
1994 for ceremonial duties connected with the commissioning of the USS
Rhode Island. They receive a state stipend for the maintenance of their
armory, and the state runs an annual musket and rifle qualification and
competition for its militia companies.
On call for local emergencies, Guardsmen patrolled the
hurricane-damaged waterfront in 1956, and controlled traffic during the
town’s tercentennial in 1977. They are usually called upon on by state,
civic, and educational organizations for patriotic, historical,
educational, and ceremonial duties.