Diseases, ecology, and environmental disruption

Herrmann, Rachel B. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1676-7164 2026. Diseases, ecology, and environmental disruption. Kars, Marjoleine, McDonnell, Michael A. and Schocket, Andrew M., eds. The Cambridge History of the American Revolution. Volume 2: Revolution, Cambridge University Press, pp. 325-344. (10.1017/9781009628136.018)

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Abstract

The chapter discusses four seasons: winter, the campaigning season of summer and autumn, spring, and the rainy season in Sierra Leone, where formerly enslaved colonists migrated. Weather and climate acted upon soldiers, civilians, Native Americans, and people of African descent, who in turn reacted. In springtime people learned about crop failures the previous autumn, hoarded food and gouged prices, and migrated in search of better options. Summer, autumn, and the rainy season fostered malaria, yellow fever, meat spoilage, cattle deaths, insect pests, and hurricanes. People responded with campaigns of crop destruction and animal theft, and by rioting. Wintertime made apparent scurvy and salt shortages. Soldiers and Native Americans relocated to forts, Indigenous peoples ate more famine foods, and everyone suffered from the sense of isolation that arose from a dearth in news. Throughout the Revolution, people suffered from the smallpox, mutinies, and self-interest that challenged humans’ resilience.

Item Type:	Book Section
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > History, Archaeology and Religion
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
ISBN:	9781009628136
Last Modified:	24 Feb 2026 15:05
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/185150

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