The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution
Before the American Revolution, the Fight for Liberty Began in North Carolina

The Regulators Movement in colonial North Carolina was one of the earliest and most powerful acts of rebellion against British rule in America—five years before the official start of the American Revolution. In the 1760s and early 1770s, thousands of backcountry settlers rose up to protest excessive taxation, corrupt royal governors, and a justice system that favored the wealthy elite.This gripping historical account uncovers how the Regulator Rebellion helped ignite revolutionary ideas in the Southern colonies and reshaped the political landscape of the American frontier. The conflict alienated Loyalists, radicalized future Patriots, and forced many to take sides in a brewing civil war. In fact, the movement’s legacy played a crucial role in the Revolutionary War’s Southern Campaign, where the final and most brutal battles were fought—and lost. Join Author Marcia Phillips for the forgotten history of the first American freedom fighters who challenged tyranny and laid the groundwork for independence. The story of the Regulators is essential to understanding how the struggle for American liberty began not in Boston, but in the hills and backcountry of pre-Revolutionary North Carolina.

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The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution
Before the American Revolution, the Fight for Liberty Began in North Carolina

The Regulators Movement in colonial North Carolina was one of the earliest and most powerful acts of rebellion against British rule in America—five years before the official start of the American Revolution. In the 1760s and early 1770s, thousands of backcountry settlers rose up to protest excessive taxation, corrupt royal governors, and a justice system that favored the wealthy elite.This gripping historical account uncovers how the Regulator Rebellion helped ignite revolutionary ideas in the Southern colonies and reshaped the political landscape of the American frontier. The conflict alienated Loyalists, radicalized future Patriots, and forced many to take sides in a brewing civil war. In fact, the movement’s legacy played a crucial role in the Revolutionary War’s Southern Campaign, where the final and most brutal battles were fought—and lost. Join Author Marcia Phillips for the forgotten history of the first American freedom fighters who challenged tyranny and laid the groundwork for independence. The story of the Regulators is essential to understanding how the struggle for American liberty began not in Boston, but in the hills and backcountry of pre-Revolutionary North Carolina.

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The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution

The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution

by Marcia Phillips
The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution

The Regulator Movement in North Carolina: Prelude to the Revolution

by Marcia Phillips

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Overview

Before the American Revolution, the Fight for Liberty Began in North Carolina

The Regulators Movement in colonial North Carolina was one of the earliest and most powerful acts of rebellion against British rule in America—five years before the official start of the American Revolution. In the 1760s and early 1770s, thousands of backcountry settlers rose up to protest excessive taxation, corrupt royal governors, and a justice system that favored the wealthy elite.This gripping historical account uncovers how the Regulator Rebellion helped ignite revolutionary ideas in the Southern colonies and reshaped the political landscape of the American frontier. The conflict alienated Loyalists, radicalized future Patriots, and forced many to take sides in a brewing civil war. In fact, the movement’s legacy played a crucial role in the Revolutionary War’s Southern Campaign, where the final and most brutal battles were fought—and lost. Join Author Marcia Phillips for the forgotten history of the first American freedom fighters who challenged tyranny and laid the groundwork for independence. The story of the Regulators is essential to understanding how the struggle for American liberty began not in Boston, but in the hills and backcountry of pre-Revolutionary North Carolina.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781467171090
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date: 03/03/2026
Series: American Heritage
Pages: 132
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

Marcia Dollar Phillips manages Davie County Public Library’s Martin-Wall History Room and works as a metadata specialist for Wake Forest University’s Z. Smith Reynolds Library Special Collections Department with the Baptist Historical Collection. She is also the author of Davie County Mavericks and Historic Shallow Ford, both published by The History Press. In her spare time, she loves to travel and restore a centennial home. She can be resourced at marciadphillips.com or contacted at mphistory1@gmail.com.

Table of Contents

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1. Roots

2. Religions

3. Relocators

4. Relationships

5. Rustics

6. Reactionaries

7. Reasons

8. Righteous

9. Reaction

10. Revenge

11. Retaliation

12. Reckoning

13. Retreat

14. Revolution

15. Results

Conclusion

Bibliography

Index

About the Author

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