A soldier assigned to the 3rd Infantry Regiment, known as \”The Old Guard,\” holds a wreath during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Va., June 14, 2013. The ceremony was held to commemorate the Army\’s 238th birthday

(U.S. Army Center of Military History) -When the American Revolution broke out, the rebellious colonies did not possess an army in the modern sense. Rather, the revolutionaries fielded an amateur force of colonial troops, cobbled together from various New England militia companies. They had no unified chain of command, and although Artemas Ward of Massachusetts exercised authority by informal agreement, officers from other colonies were not obligated to obey his orders. The American volunteers were led, equipped, armed, paid for, and supported by the colonies from which they were raised.