Loyalist (American Revolution)

When the American colonies decided they wanted to be their own country, not everyone agreed! Some people, called Loyalists, wanted to stay part of Great Britain and be ruled by the King. They were like the kids on the playground who didn't want to join the new game.

They believed it was better to stick with what they knew. These Loyalists were also called Tories or King's Men because they were loyal to the King!

It was a really hard time, and people had to choose sides. If you were a Loyalist, your neighbors who wanted to break away might not be your friends anymore. They might even call you names like 'persons inimical to the liberties of America,' which is a fancy way of saying they thought you were against freedom.

It was like picking teams for a big game, but this game was about whether a whole country would be free or not!

Some Loyalists were brave and wanted to fight for the King. They promised to join the British army, and sometimes they did! At one point, there were actually more Loyalists fighting for the British than George Washington's main army! But the British army couldn't always protect them, so not as many Loyalists fought as they first thought they would.

When the war ended and the colonies became the United States, many Loyalists decided to leave. About 15 out of every 100 Loyalists packed their bags and moved to other parts of the British Empire. Some went to Great Britain, and many went to Canada, where they were called United Empire Loyalists. They were given land or money to help them start over in their new homes.