Although the war imposed obligations on youths, military service promised young men in their teens and early twenties alternate paths forward in life. 'Going for a soldier' forced young men to confront profound uncertainty, and even coercion, but also offered them novel opportunities.
Their experiences of coming of age during the upheavals of war provide a novel perspective on the Revolutionary era, eliciting questions of gender, family life, economic goals, and politics. Young Continental soldiers carried a heavy burden in the American Revolution.
