Nathan Hale was a schoolteacher from Connecticut and joined the Continental Army during the early days of the Revolutionary War. In the summer of 1776, as General George Washington’s forces faced increasing pressure from the British, Hale volunteered to gather intelligence on British troop movements and strategies.

Knowing that this was an act of spying punishable by death, Hale travelled to behind enemy lines to British-controlled Long Island. Just over a week later the British captured New York City. A key account by a Loyalist shopkeeper claims that British Major Robert Rogers of the Queen’s Rangers recognised Hale in a tavern and managed to expose his allegiance to the Patriot cause.

Hale was soon taken into custody and documents found in his possession, including his Yale diploma bearing his real name, left no doubt about his true identity and purpose. He was swiftly subjected to a trial by British authorities, found guilty of spying, and condemned to death as an illegal combatant. He was hanged on the morning of 22 September.

News of the execution was passed to American Captain William Hull the next day. It is in his account that Hale’s final words are recorded, ‘I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.’ While there have been questions over the reliability of the account since Captain Hull was not an eyewitness to Hale’s speech, those words have since been celebrated as an embodiment of the spirit of sacrifice and commitment to the cause of American independence. Hale himself is considered an American hero, and continues to be commemorated across the nation.