| Butler's Rangers | |
|---|---|
 A soldier in Butler's Rangers during the American Revolutionary War, wearing a green wool coat, buff trousers, and a brass regimental plate on a round wool hat, from a 1910 painting by American artist Charles M. Lefferts. | |
| Active | 1777-1784 |
| Country |  Great Britain |
| Branch | British provincial unit |
| Type | Light infantry |
| Role | Maneuver warfare Unconventional warfare |
| Size | 573 men in 10 companies (1783)[1] |
| Engagements | American Revolutionary War
|
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Lieutenant Colonel John Butler Captain Walter Butler Captain William Caldwell Captain Peter Hare Captain John McDonell |
Butler's Rangers (1777–1784) was a Loyalist provincial military unit of the American Revolutionary War, raised by American loyalist John Butler. Most members of the regiment were Loyalists from upstate New York and northeastern Pennsylvania. Their winter quarters were constructed on the west bank of the Niagara River, in what is now Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. The Rangers fought principally in New York and Pennsylvania, but ranged as far west as Ohio and Michigan, and as far south as Virginia and Kentucky.
The Rangers were engaged in numerous violent raids that characterized the northern frontier of the American Revolutionary War, such as the Battle of Wyoming in July 1778 and the Cherry Valley massacre of November 1778. These actions earned the Rangers a reputation for ruthlessness.
- ^ Smy, William A. An Annotated Nominal Roll of Butler’s Rangers 1777-1784: with Documentary Sources. Friends of the Loyalist Collection at Brock University, 2004.