Pembroke in the Military
Pembroke’s military history begins in 1635, before the town was even incorporated, when the people of the area were instructed to be armed. In 1643, the towns of Plymouth, Duxbury, and Marshfield were instructed to form a militia company. At that time, Pembroke was still primarily part of Duxbury. The number of men each town was required to send to fight depended on its population. The company’s first call to war was in 1665. They were to defend the English against the Dutch in the Colony of New Amsterdam, which is present day New York. Southeastern Massachusetts was also involved with the King Phillips war in 1695, and the French and Indian War in 1754. Pembroke residents then became Minutemen on April 19th, 1775, when they answered the call to take up arms, this time against the English. Pembroke had sent over 500 men to fight the war, certainly a large number for a town with a population of barely 1,500.