Nathan Hale’s 271st birthday falls on D-Day. Nathan was a Patriot, soldier and spy for the Continental Army during the Revolution. He was born on 6 June, 1755 in Coventry, Connecticut. Hale attended Yale and graduated with honors in 1773 and became a teacher and was classmates with a Benjamin Tallmadge.

When the American Revolution began in the spring of 1775, Hale joined a Connecticut militia unit and within five months was elected first lieutenant. The company fought at Bunker Hill but Hale remained behind, possibly hindered by his teaching contract in New London which did not yet expire. In July, his friend and former classmate Benjamin Tallmadge sent Hale a letter to convince him to fight. The letter worked, and Hale accepted a commission as first lieutenant in the 7th Connecticut Regiment.

When the Continental Army moved to New York to defend the city from a British attack, Hale went in the ranks. The defense failed. Washington needed information about troop movements and asked for volunteers to stay behind for the dangerous intelligence gathering mission. Hale volunteered, and Washington accepted his service. When he entered the British controlled city in September 1776, Hale had disguised himself as a teacher looking for work.

Unfortunately, Hale did not operate long. There are a few stories as to how Hale was discovered. One written by a Connecticut shopkeeper and loyalist stated that Major Robert Rogers of the Queen’s Rangers recognized Hale in a tavern and approached him pretending to be a Patriot. When Hale exposed himself, Rogers and his men apprehended Hale in Queens. Another story tells that Hale’s Loyalist cousin Samuel Hale turned him in.

At the time, spies were hanged as illegal combatants so therefore they deserved no trial in the eyes of the redcoats. The British held Hale in captivity for a day, and a British officer wrote how well Hale composed himself. On the morning of September 22nd, Hale marched to the Park of Artillery and was hanged at the age of twenty-one.

There are no official records of Hale’s speech before his hanging. Though his last words may have been longer than those remembered, one line in particular stood out: “I only regret, that I have but one life to lose for my country.” A British officer wrote in his diary about the end of Mr. Hale,  “He behaved with great composure and resolution, saying he thought it the duty of every good Officer, to obey any orders given him by his Commander-in-Chief; and desired the Spectators to be at all times prepared to meet death in whatever shape it might appear.” May this hero and martyr of the American cause for freedom Rest in Peace and forever be remembered for the principles which define both him and the American Spirit.