To be apart of the minutemen group you were originally apart of the milita which was volunteers. They were chosen by their commanding officers from the milita if they had certain requirements. These requirements were necessary when joining. Their officers looked for enthusiasm, reliability, and physical strength.
Minutemen in the Revolutionary war
Question #1: What was required to become apart of the minutemen?
To join you had to be a male that was no more than 25- 30 years old. It was important that you were very healthy as well. Minutemen were also required to be able to fight in a minutes notice. They were counted on to be quick and ready to fight.
The minutemen were part of the army and fought along side them.
The men were mobile and could assemble quickly.
http://www.ushistory.org/people/minutemen.htm
VIDEO LINK:
https://study.com/academy/lesson/minutemen-in-the-revolutionary-war-definition-history.html
Question #2: How did minutemen help the colonies and in the war?
Minutemen played an important part in the war. They were always the first to show at a battle and were ready to fight at all times. They would always have the appropriate equipment on hand and ready to begin fighting in the battle at a minutes notice.
One of the many things that the minutemen did, was warn the colonist of british regulars. (as shown in this photo)
Minutemen also protected the colonies in many ways. They were the first to spread the news of British regulars. You may have heard the phrase, ¨The British are
coming!¨ This phrase was used to warn the people of british soldiers. When the men from the army would get injured or killed they would also take their place to protect the colonies at all cost.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h3963.html
This is just another image showing how the minutemen protected the colonies at this time.
Question #3: Did the minutemen have any issues or difficulties?
Although the minutemen were very helpful during the war, they also had some problems. Minutemen rarley landed a shot were they intended it to be. This impacted their supplies as well. They majorly lacked the supplie of gun powder.
They also lacked central command and leadership which was important at this time in the war. These problems soon lead to the dissolution of the minutemen. Although the minutemen lacked central command, they were still better organized than any other part-time military.
This picture shows the lack of command between the men.
These problems lead to the deaths of many men.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/united-states-and-canada/us-history/minutemen