A Comparison of

The Book of Mormon

and

The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain

first published Jan 11, 2014

last edited Mar 9, 2014

Joseph most likely grew up reading a school book called The Late War by Gilbert J. Hunt and it heavily influenced his writing of The Book of Mormon.

Summary

In October 2013, the authors conducted a data analysis comparing The Book of Mormon to over 100,000 books from the pre-1830's era. Out of the top matches, we discovered a book called The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain, a scriptural style account of the War of 1812 published in New York in 1816. Between 1817 and 1819 it was marketed "for the use of schools throughout the United States" under the title The Historical Reader.

Interesting Parallels

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
4th of July ... 26:1
the fourth day of the seventh month, which is the birth day of Columbian Liberty and Independence, the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges. Alma 10:6
Teancum ... 27-28 ... near Moravian Town ... And it came to pass ... the army ... were under ... a chief warrior, whom they called Tecumseh [...] smote their chief warrior [Tecumseh], and slew him ... he fell to the earth. ... people of Morianton ... And it came to pass ... the army ... was led by a man whose name was Teancum [...] they did pursue Teancum, and slew him ... he was dead, and had gone the way of all the earth. Alma 50:33,35, Alma 62:36-37
Striplings ... 35:5-6 two thousand hardy men, who ... fought freely for their country ... Now the men of war ... were ... men of dauntless courage. two thousand of those young men ... to defend their country. ... they took their weapons of war, ... were all young men, and they were exceeding valiant for courage, ... Alma 53:18-20
Americas ... 20:11-16 ... the land ... most plentiful ... yielding gold and silver, and ... all manner of creatures which are used for food, And ... the huge mammoth that once moved on the borders ... It is more wonderful than the elephant; ... the land, ... exceeding rich, ... of gold, and of silver, and ... all manner of ... animals which were useful for the food of man. And ... cureloms and cumoms; ... and more especially the elephants ... Ether 9:17-19
Forts ... 29:20-23 [men] were prepared ... and they let loose their weapons of war ... and smote ... with great slaughter. And the deep ditch that surrounded the fort was strewed with their slain and their wounded. [men] were prepared, with their swords and their slings, to smite ... with an immense slaughter ... ditches ...filled up in a measure with their dead and wounded. Alma 49:20-25
More Forts ... 51 it came to pass ... on the tenth day of the eighth month ... the people began to fortify ... and entrench the high places round about the city. And ... build their strong holds ... it came to pass ... on the tenth day of the month ... the Nephites had dug a ridge of earth ... so high [...] round about ... the city ... And ... built a strong hold ... Alma 49,52
Casualties ... 23:24 ... fought ... and there were many slain and wounded on both sides ... fought ... and there were many slain on both sides Alma 52:35
Standard ... 6-7 sent forth a Proclamation, ... abroad ... And it came to pass, that a great multitude flocked to the ... standard of Columbia...they came in battle array against the ... sent a proclamation throughout ... the land; ... And it came to pass that thousands did flock unto his standard [of liberty] ... they ... went down with their armies ... against the ... Alma 61-62
Cataclysms ... 19:37-44 ...thunders: ... as the mighty earthquake, which overturneth cities. And the whole face of the earth ... overshadowed with black smoke; so that, for a time, one man saw not another: ... sharp rocks had fallen upon them: ...thunder, ... did shake the whole earth ... cities were sunk, and ... the face of the whole earth... could feel the vapor of darkness ... so that ... for the space of three days, that there was no light seen; ... great destruction had come upon them. 3 Nephi 8
Liahona ... 50:24 made partly of brass ... with curious works, like unto a clock; and as it were a large ball. a round ball of curious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles 1 Nephi 16:10
Weapons ... 19:13 And ... weapons of war were of curious workmanship And ... weapons of war ... of exceedingly curious workmanship Ether 10:27
51:3-10 it came to pass that the husbandmen ... gathered together, and pitched their tents, [and] assembled together ... And the people shouted with a loud voice, ... it came to pass that ... the people gathered themselves together ... And ... pitched their tents ... ye should assemble yourselves together ... And they all cried with one voice, ... Mosiah 2-4
53:4 ... it came to pass, that they gathered together their army ... their navy ... on the borders of the ... land of Columbia ... ... it came to pass that they gathered together all their people ... their flocks ... near the borders of the ... land of Zarahemla Alma 27:13-15
13:20 Now when Carden heard these words, his heart leaped with joy; Now when he had said these words, his heart was swollen ... with joy; Alma 17:29
35:34 And the chief warriors gave up their instruments of destruction, and laid them at the feet of Jackson... And ... their chief captains, ... threw down their weapons of war at the feet of Moroni... Alma 52:38
3:29 ... people to rise up one against another, and ... their own children. ... people to rise up in rebellion against their brethren. Helaman 1:7
44:21 ... go with all our might against their chief city ... go forth with all our might against the Lamanites, who were in the city Alma 58:13
34:10 it came to pass, in the same year, that the people of Columbia were revenged of the evil: it came to pass that in the same year that the people of Nephi had peace restored unto them, Alma 50:37

Note: Some of these parallels were found through manual search, but were deemed interesting enough to highlight here.

How rare are the 4gram matches?

While the above parallels are interesting, we believe that the more powerful connection between the two texts is the computer-aided discovery of matching, rare 4-grams.

If a 4 word phrase (4-gram) showed up less than once per thousand books, we considered it to be a rare 4-gram. After all biblical matches were removed from the comparison, the computer algorithm found over 100 rare 4-grams shared by both The Book of Mormon and The Late War. To put this into perspective, we found that The Late War contained more rare 4-gram connections to The Book of Mormon than 99.999% of the other books published before 1830. For comparison purposes, we chose an arbitrary book from Joseph Smith's time, Pride and Prejudice, and compared it to The Book of Mormon. The comparison showed a very low number of rare 4-gram matches per 1,000 words. The Late War, on the other hand, scored significantly higher:

Chiasmus

While chiasmus is a pattern that shows up in many English texts, some consider it to be an important marker that differentiates modern and ancient styles of writing. We don't believe this is the case—The Late War contains several significant chiastic structures. For instance:

Introduction

The War of 1812 was to Joseph Smith what 9/11 was to many of us—very real, and very recent in memory. Why does The Book of Mormon include so much war? Could the War of 1812 have played a part in inspiring Joseph's imagination when he wrote The Book of Mormon?

We believe that like all creative works, The Book of Mormon is a remix—it was remixed from ideas and books contemporary to Joseph. One of those books was Gilbert J. Hunt's The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain, a historical account of the War of 1812 published in New York in 1816. Between 1817 and 1819 it was marketed "for the use of schools throughout the United States" under the title The Historical Reader. It was a historical account of the then-recent War of 1812, written in the "scriptural style". The Book of Mormon is one book of several in this genre. When The Late War was published, Joseph would have been 12 years old.

Interestingly, an academic in New York named Samuel Mitchill wrote a letter of endorsement for Hunt's work, published in the preface of The Late War. Mitchill was pleased that a historian had used the "scriptural style" as a popular means of encouraging children to turn to the Holy Scriptures. When Joseph sent Martin Harris to seek endorsements for The Book of Mormon, one of the people he visited was the same Samuel Mitchill. Could Joseph have sought Mitchill's endorsement because of his support for The Late War, a book that held similarities to The Book of Mormon?

Without a strong link between the two books, the similarities would be difficult to explain. There are over 100 rare phrases that bind The Book of Mormon to The Late War (phrases that do not show up in other contemporary books—or if they do, only once or twice per thousand books). In addition, the two books use very similar language while detailing shared events and themes such as battles at forts and rivers, weapons of curious workmanship, 2,000 soldiers (including striplings), bands of robbers, martyrs burned, righteous vs. savage natives, cataclysmic events, Christopher Columbus, false prophets, fighting for the cause of liberty, freemen vs. men of the king, and silver plates and engravings in brass, among many others (and those further documented by Ryan Thomas).

Table of Contents

  1. TL;DR
  2. Summary
  3. Introduction
  4. Table of Contents
  5. Samuel Latham Mitchill
  6. Availability to New York Students
  7. It Came to Pass
  8. Chiasmus
  9. Description of the Americas
    1. Cureloms as Mammoths?
  10. Warfare
    1. Battles at Forts
    2. Battles at Rivers
    3. Battle Casualties
    4. Weapons of War
    5. 2,000 Soldiers, and Striplings
    6. Band of Robbers
    7. Pitching Tents
    8. Burned Martyrs
    9. Mourning the Dead
  11. Native Americans
    1. Righteous vs. Savage Indians
    2. Missionary Work to Natives
    3. Anti-Nephi-Lehis?
    4. Three Nephites?
  12. Travel by Ship
    1. Jaredite Barges?
    2. Faraway Lands
  13. Cataclysms
  14. Troubling Inception
  15. Liberty
    1. Flocking to a Symbol of Liberty
    2. Cause of Liberty
  16. Spiritual Being Entering Hearts
  17. Using "Lion" Figuratively
  18. Teancum / Tecumseh
  19. Christopher Columbus
  20. 4th of July
  21. Nephi, Fulton Build a Ship
  22. Liahona?
  23. Silver Plates, Brass Plates
  24. False Prophets
  25. Freemen vs. Kingmen
  26. Tender Women
  27. Rare Phrase Matches
  28. BYU Study 2009
  29. Linguistics
    1. Hebraisms
    2. Cognate Accusative
    3. Whirlwind
    4. Adverbials
    5. Negative Questions
    6. Construct State
    7. Compound Prepositions
  30. Why War?
  31. Authors
  32. Credits

Samuel Latham Mitchill

Joseph Smith probably directed Martin Harris to visit Samuel L. Mitchill, in addition to Martin's famed visit to Professor Charles Anthon. From the Palmyra Freeman, 1829:
So blindly enthusiastic was Harris, that he took some of the characters interpreted by Smith, and went in search of some one, besides the interpreter, who was learned enough to English them; but all to whom he applied (among the number was Professor Mitchell, of New York,) happened not to be possessed of sufficient knowledge to give satisfaction! Harris returned, and set Smith to work at interpreting the Bible.
In the preface to the 2nd and 3rd editions of Gilbert J. Hunt's The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain, Samuel Mitchill endorsed Hunt's book which was "written in the ancient historical style" or "scriptural style" (the description changed between editions). Mitchill wrote:
It seems to me one of the best attempts to imitate the biblical style; and if the perusal of it can induce young persons to relish and love the sacred books whose language you have imitated, it will be the strongest of all recommendations.
Hunt explained his own intention as well:
The author having adopted for the model of his style the phraseology of the best books, remarkable for its simplicity and strength, the young pupil will acquire, with the knowledge of reading, a love for the manner in which the great truths of Divine Revelation are conveyed to his understanding, and this will be an inducement to him to study the Holy Scriptures.
Samuel Mitchill was a strong proponent of a theory of the origins of Ancient Americans that is largely compatible with the Book of Mormon:
Professor Samuel L. Mitchill, formerly of Columbia College, had concluded that two main groups of people once dominated the Americas—the Tartars of northern Asia and the Australasians of the Polynesian islands. Furthermore, they fought one another for many years, culminating in great battles of extermination in what later became upstate New York. This New York theory has much in common with the Book of Mormon. While visiting Professor Charles Anthon in New York in 1828, Martin Harris also met with Mitchill, an encounter that lent support to Harris's work on the Book of Mormon. — Abstract from A Nation Now Extinct

The endorsements in The Late War are clearly an effort to give the book legitimacy, hence improving its marketability. Hunt is quite wise in getting the endorsement of Mitchill, who was well-known as a sort of human encyclopedia. The endorsement from Picket (also in the preface to The Late War) would get him into the educational market, as well. Joseph Smith may well have thought that such an endorsement from Mitchill and Anthon would legitimize the book. — grindael

Ultimately, Mitchill (as well as Charles Anthon), did not endorse The Book of Mormon.

Availability to New York Students

How available was The Late War to students of New York? Hunt intended to sell the book to students, but did it reach his intended audience?

  1. The number of copies present in libraries today is relatively large, showing that many copies were indeed printed; and
  2. Most copies which I see show considerable wear, suggesting
    1. that they were used heavily over the years, and
    2. that most copies were logically read to death and no longer survive at all (which lends more significance—for presumed large numbers printed—to the number which still survive, than if those modern survivals were all in fresh, unread condition).
  3. — Rick Grunder

There are 158 copies of The Late War listed in the world's largest open library system, the OCLC:

The OCLC system lists 158 copies of the book, in its various 1816-1819 editions, in libraries worldwide. Plus, there are many smaller libraries which don't participate in the OCLC system, and then there are also individual collectors. A friend of mine has several copies and sold many more, much of these in his personal collection acquired that pre-date Hofmann. — Joe Geisner

It seems the book was widely available at the right time and in the right location, but did it reach Joseph Smith in particular? The probabilistic evidence for this is clear from this research; however, there is further reason to believe that Joseph had access to the book: he was closely connected to at least 3 teachers. His father, Joseph Smith Sr. was a teacher during the off season. His wife, Emma Hale Smith, was also a teacher. In addition, Oliver Cowdery's involvement began when as a traveling teacher he lodged with the Smiths.

Another way to look at this question is, given that the War of 1812 was such a prominent historical subject, one that would have been taught and discussed at great length during Joseph Smith's teenage years, what textbook other than The Late War was more likely to have been used to cover this subject matter by teachers he knew?

It Came to Pass

The BibleThe Late WarBook of Mormon
390 occurrences of the phrase "it came to pass" 76 occurrences of the phrase "it came to pass" 1322 occurrences of the phrase "it came to pass"
790,930 words total in book 59,679 words total in book 272,004 words total in book
Density: 0.049% Density: 0.12% Density: 0.48%

Description of the Americas

Both books share a striking similarity in their describing the Americas. The types of things worthy of mention are alike—metals, fruits, and animals. It's noteworthy that The Book of Mormon lists European animals instead of animals native to America (such as the tapir); and, oddly, in the same section that The Book of Mormon mistakenly includes elephants as native to America, The Late War mentions the elephant in comparison to mammoths.
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
20:11-16 Now the land of Columbia is a most plentiful land, yielding gold and silver, and brass and iron abundantly. Likewise, all manner of creatures which are used for food, and herbs and fruits of the earth: From the red cherry, and the rosy peach of the north, to the lemon, and the golden orange of the south. And from the small insect, that cheateth the microscopic eye, to the huge mammoth that once moved on the borders of the river Hudson; on the great river Ohio; and even down to the country of Patagonia in the south. Now the height of a mammoth is about seven cubits and a half, and the length thereof fourteen cubits; and the bones thereof being weighed were more than thirty thousand shekels; and the length of the tusks is more than six cubits. It is more wonderful than the elephant; and the history thereof, is it not recorded in the book of Jefferson, the scribe? the Lord began again to take the curse from off the land, and ... they became exceeding rich, having all manner of fruit, and of grain, and of silks, and of fine linen, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious things; And also all manner of cattle, of oxen, and cows, and of sheep, and of swine, and of goats, and also many other kinds of animals which were useful for the food of man. And they also had horses, and asses, and there were elephants and cureloms and cumoms; all of which were useful unto man, and more especially the elephants and cureloms and cumoms.

And I did teach my people to build buildings, and to work in all manner of wood, and of iron, and of copper, and of brass, and of steel, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious ores, which were in great abundance.

Ether 9:17-19, 2 Nephi 5:15

Cureloms as Mammoths?

Orson Pratt said that a "curelom" was a "mammoth":
Now to prepare them against these contingencies, and that they might, have fresh air for the benefit of the elephants, cureloms or mammoths and many other animals, that perhaps were in them, as well as the human beings they contained, the Lord told them how to construct them in order to receive air, that when they were on the top of the water, whichever side up their vessels happened to be, it mattered not; they were so constructed that they could ride safely, though bottom upwards and they could open their air holes that happened to be uppermost" (Orson Pratt, JoD 12:340).

See also wikipedia

Warfare

Battles at Forts

The elements of the Croghan/Moroni battles are very similar, sharing phraseology and a basic plot: the protagonist men prepare for battle at their fort, the enemy attacks, the ditches around the fort are filled with the enemy's bodies, the enemy flees into the forest.

Some may argue that this structure is a scène a faire—that this is a basic structure common to many battles; however, there are distinctive elements to these descriptions that raise the question, how could two battles separated by nearly 2,000 years be described by two different people in so similar a manner? In the context of the strong evidence of a connection between The Late War and The Book of Mormon is it reasonable to conclude that the structure is coincidental rather than imitative?

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
29:20-23 But the men of Croghan were prepared for them; and they let loose their weapons of war upon them, and set their destroying engine to work, and smote the men of Britain, hip and thigh, with great slaughter.

And the deep ditch that surrounded the fort was strewed with their slain and their wounded. So the host of Britain were dismayed and overthrown, and fled in confusion from the fort into the forest; from whence, in the dead of the night, they went into their vessels, and departed from the place. Now the loss of the men of Britain was about an hundred two score and ten; and of the men of Columbia there was one slain and seven wounded.

Moroni ... had been preparing the minds of the people to be faithful unto the Lord their God; yea, he had been strengthening the armies of the Nephites, and erecting small forts, or places of resort; throwing up banks of earth round about, to enclose his armies, and also building walls of stone to encircle them about, round about their cities, and the borders of their lands;

Thus they were prepared, yea, a body of their strongest men, with their swords and their slings, to smite down all who should attempt to come into their place of security by the place of entrance; and thus were they prepared to defend themselves against the Lamanites.

And it came to pass that the captains of the Lamanites brought up their armies before the place of entrance, and began to contend with the Nephites, to get into their place of security; but behold, they were driven back from time to time, insomuch that they were slain with an immense slaughter. Now when they found that they could not obtain power over the Nephites by the pass, they began to dig down their banks of earth that they might obtain a pass to their armies, that they might have an equal chance to fight; but behold, in these attempts they were swept off by the stones and arrows which were thrown at them; and instead of filling up their ditches by pulling down the banks of earth, they were filled up in a measure with their dead and wounded bodies. Thus the Nephites had all power over their enemies; and thus the Lamanites did attempt to destroy the Nephites until their chief captains were all slain; yea, and more than a thousand of the Lamanites were slain; while, on the other hand, there was not a single soul of the Nephites which was slain. There were about fifty who were wounded, who had been exposed to the arrows of the Lamanites through the pass, but they were shielded by their shields, and their breastplates, and their head-plates, insomuch that their wounds were upon their legs, many of which were very severe. And it came to pass, that when the Lamanites saw that their chief captains were all slain they fled into the wilderness. And it came to pass that they returned to the land of Nephi, to inform their king, Amalickiah, who was a Nephite by birth, concerning their great loss.

Alma 48:7-8, Alma 49:20-25

Battles at Rivers

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
47:2-5 And the battle raged with great violence, and the men of Britain strove hard to pass over the river called Saranac; But the men of war of Columbia, who were upon the opposite side of the water, opposed them, and slew them with great slaughter. And the brave Grosvenor, and Hamilton, and Riley, and the gallant Cronk, drove them back from crossing the bridges. Likewise, many were slain in the river, so that the waters of the Saranac were dyed with the blood of the servants of the king. But Alma, with his guards, contended with the guards of the king of the Lamanites, until he slew and drove them back; and thus he cleared the ground, or rather the bank, which was on the west side of the river Sidon, throwing bodies of the Lamanites which had been slain, into the waters of Sidon, that thereby his people might have room to cross and contend with the Lamanites and the Amlicites, on the west side of the river Sidon. Alma 2:34

Battle Casualties

Historical works describing the War of 1812 use quite a bit of variation in describing casualties. For instance:
leaving the field strewed with the carnage of more than 2000 wounded, dead and dying" — History of the United States of America, published 1828
The loss of Guerriere was 15 killed, 64 wounded, and 21 missing — The Annals of America, published 1829

It's interesting that The Book of Mormon doesn't include "dying" or "missing" in their battle numbers, and that they are reported, typically, as "slain", like The Late War. One interesting difference is that The Book of Mormon does not mention the "maimed", however.

Frequent reports of the number slain appear throughout the text, rather in the style of the daily reports in the Book of Mormon. And as in the Book of Mormon, near-miraculous differences can occur between casualty numbers of the wicked vs. the righteous. — Rick Grunder, Mormon Parallels

In both books:

The righteous protagonists triumph over the more numerous foe, and the enemy army consistently outnumbers the righteous protagonists. — Ryan Thomas, Direct Literary Dependence?
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
8:18-19 Now the slain, the maimed and the captives of the host of Britain that day, were about a thousand fighting men: And the loss of the men of Columbia was about three hundred slain and wounded. Yea, we did go forth against the Lamanites; and in one day and a night, we did slay three thousand and forty-three; we did slay them, even until we had driven them out of our land. And I, myself, with mine own hands, did help to bury their dead. And behold, to our great sorrow and lamentation, two hundred and seventy-nine of our brethren were slain. Mosiah 9:18-19
49:18-20 Nevertheless, they received the reward of their unrighteousness, for much damage was done to their vessels, and their slain and wounded were two hundred two score and ten.

Of the people of Columbia two only were slain and seven maimed ! ! And the valiant deeds of Samuel gained him a name amongst the brave men of Columbia.

And it came to pass that there were two hundred, out of my two thousand and sixty, who had fainted because of the loss of blood; nevertheless, according to the goodness of God, and to our great astonishment, and also the joy of our whole army, there was not one soul of them who did perish; yea, and neither was there one soul among them who had not received many wounds.

And now, their preservation was astonishing to our whole army, yea, that they should be spared while there was a thousand of our brethren who were slain.

Alma 57:25-26
49:35-36 35 And the slaughter on board the ships was dreadful; and about three hundred of the men of Britain were slain, and the Hermes was blown out of the water into the air with an awful noise. The loss of the people of Columbia that day, was four slain and five maimed. Thus had Moroni and Pahoran obtained the possession of the city of Nephihah without the loss of one soul; and there were many of the Lamanites who were slain. Alma 62:26
54:24 Seven hundred of the servants of the king were slain; and their whole loss that day was two thousand six hundred valiant men, who had fought under Wellington, the champion of England. there was a large number which were desirous to possess the land of their inheritance; wherefore, they went up into the wilderness. And their leader being a strong and mighty man, and a stiffnecked man, wherefore, he caused a contention among them; and they were all slain, save fifty, in the wilderness, and they returned again to the land of Zarahemla. Omni 1:28
54:27-28 The loss of the army of Jackson was only seven slain and seven maimed, a circumstance unparalleled in the annals of history: howbeit, there were about two score slain and wounded upon the other side of the river.Now the whole loss of the king's army, from the time they came against the country of Louisiana until their departure, was about five thousand. Thus the Nephites had all power over their enemies; and thus the Lamanites did attempt to destroy the Nephites until their chief captains were all slain; yea, and more than a thousand of the Lamanites were slain; while, on the other hand, there was not a single soul of the Nephites which was slain. Alma 49:23-24

Weapons of War

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
46:6 And they began to prepare their battering rams, their bombs and their rockets, and all kinds of instruments of destruction; and they entrenched themselves round about. Therefore the people of the Nephites were aware of the intent of the Amlicites, and therefore they did prepare to meet them; yea, they did arm themselves with swords, and with cimeters, and with bows, and with arrows, and with stones, and with slings, and with all manner of weapons of war, of every kind. Alma 2:12
19:13 And their weapons of war were of curious workmanship [footnote: rifles], and they sent forth balls of lead; such as were unknown to Pharaoh when he followed the Children of Israel down into the red sea. [Moroni and Pahoran] slew many of them, and took their provisions and their weapons of war. Alma 62:15
54:7 Their polished steels, of fine workmanship, glittered in the sun, and the movement of their squadrons was as the waving of a wheat-field, when the south wind passeth gently over it. And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground, and weapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war. Jarom 1:8
12:12, 13:13, 50:7 Now these steam-boats were cunningly contrived, and had abundance of curious workmanship therein, such as surpassed the comprehension of all the wise men of the east, from the beginning to this day.

However, the people of Columbia were pleased with the noble conduct of Jones, and for his valiant acts they gave him a sword of curious workmanship.

And when Carden came on board the ship of the Columbia, he bowed his head, and offered to put his sword, of curious workmanship, into the hands of Decatur.

And it came to pass that they did worship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. And the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship.

And they did make all manner of weapons of war. And they did work all manner of work of exceedingly curious workmanship.

1 Ne 18:1, Ether 10:27

2,000 Soldiers, and Striplings

The Late War does not include the phrase "stripling soldiers" like the Book of Mormon; however, it does share the same context as the distinctive Book of Mormon story: striplings in battle, including a band of 2,000 courageous soldiers who volunteer in a desperate fight for the freedom of their country against an oppressive king (Amalickiah / King George III).
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
35:5-6 Immediately Jackson took two thousand hardy men, who were called volunteers, because they fought freely for their country and led them against the savages. Now the men of war that followed after him were mostly from the state of Tennessee, and men of dauntless courage. Now behold, there were two thousand of those young men which entered into this covenant, and took their weapons of war to defend their country. And now behold, as they never had hitherto been a disadvantage of the Nephites, they became now at this period of time also a great support; for they took their weapons of war, and they would that Helaman should be their leader. And they were all young men, and they were exceeding valiant for courage, ... Alma 53:18-20
14:22, 6:2 And the small band of Columbia fought desperately, and the slaughter was dreadful ; and the pure snow of heaven was sprinkled and stained with the blood of men !

And to a certain chief captain called William, whose sir-name was Hull, was given in trust a band of more than two thousand chosen men, to go forth to battle in the north.

But behold, my little band of two thousand and sixty fought most desperately; yea, they were firm before the Lamanites, and did administer death unto all those who opposed them. Alma 57:19
19:32, 28:2 About this time, a stripling from the south, with his weapon of war in his hand, ran up to Zebulon, and spake unto him, saying... (See also 1 Sam. 17:56)

And the vessels of war of Columbia that were upon the waters of the lake were not yet prepared for battle ; the name of the commander whereof was McDonough, (a stripling).

... the remainder I took and joined them to my stripling Ammonites, and took our march back to the city of Judea.

And now it came to pass that Helaman did march at the head of his two thousand stripling soldiers, to the support of the people in the borders of the land on the south by the west sea.

Alma 56:57, 53:22
19:48 The magic of his words gave joy to their hearts ; for they loved him as they loved their own father. For as I had ever called them my sons, (for they were all of them very young,) even so they said unto me, Father, behold, our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we shall fall; Alma 56:46

Band of Robbers


Jean Lafitte was a "sea-robber"
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
49:37-38, 1:18 About this time a band of sea-robbers and pirates, who had established themselves upon the island of Barrataria, were committing great wickedness and depredations and were ready to assist the men of Britain.

But a valiant man, called Daniel, sir-named Patterson, went against them with his small fighting vessels, and scattered them abroad, and took their vessels, and destroyed their petty establishment of sea-robbery.

Now these things pleased the pirates and the cruisers and all the sea-robbers of Britain mightily, inasmuch as they could rob with impunity the commerce of Columbia, under the cloak of British honor.

And it came to pass that the Lamanites did hunt the band of robbers of Gadianton; and they did preach the word of God among the more wicked part of them, insomuch that this band of robbers was utterly destroyed from among the Lamanites.

And it came to pass that it was expedient that there should be a stop put to this work of destruction; therefore they sent an army of strong men into the wilderness and upon the mountains to search out this band of robbers, and to destroy them.

And it came to pass in the commencement of the eighty and first year they did go forth again against this band of robbers, and did destroy many; and they were also visited with much destruction.

Helaman 6:37,Helaman 11:28,30
There are numerous references to destroying robbers in the Book of Mormon and none in the Bible. While there are no doubt other potential sources (and I wouldn't make the claim that the robbers in the Book of Mormon are solely based on this one passage) it is interesting that both the Late War and the Book of Mormon speak of going against the band of robbers and destroying them. — Hasa

Pitching Tents on the Borders

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
11:17 And the army of Columbia went into winter quarters; for the earth was covered with snow, and the waters of the great lakes, on the borders of which they had pitched their tents, were congealed. ... And it came to pass that Teancum and his men did pitch their tents in the borders of the land Bountiful; and Amalickiah did pitch his tents in the borders on the beach by the seashore, and after this manner were they driven. Alma 51:32

Burned Martyrs

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
14:39-41 For the savages put the burning brand to the houses, from which they could not flee, and burnt them alive therein. And the flames and the smoke arose! and their cries and their groans reached the high chancery of heaven, Where they will stand recorded, until the coming of that Day for which all other days were made. And when Amulek saw the pains of the women and children who were consuming in the fire, he also was pained; and he said unto Alma: How can we witness this awful scene? Therefore let us stretch forth our hands, and exercise the power of God which is in us, and save them from the flames. But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that they may do this thing, or that the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day. ... Now it came to pass that when the bodies of those which had been cast into the fire, were consumed, and also the records which were cast in with them Alma 14:10-11

Mourning the Dead

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
19:57-60 Oh! earth, how long shall thy inhabitants delight in warfare? when shall the old men cease to weep for their children? Behold you lonely widows; they weep for their husbands and their children; but they shall see their faces no more! The fair daughters of Columbia sigh for the return of their beloved. Seest thou those little ones? they fly to their disconsolate mother, they leap with joy at the name of the father! but he shall never return! And my soul was rent with anguish, because of the slain of my people, and I cried: O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord! O ye fair ones, how could ye have rejected that Jesus, who stood with open arms to receive you! Behold, if ye had not done this, ye would not have fallen. But behold, ye are fallen, and I mourn your loss. O ye fair sons and daughters, ye fathers and mothers, ye husbands and wives, ye fair ones, how is it that ye could have fallen! But behold, ye are gone, and my sorrows cannot bring your return. Mormon 6:16-20
And it came to pass that many means were devised to reclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; but it all was vain, for they delighted in wars and bloodshed, and they had an eternal hatred against us, their brethren. And they sought by the power of their arms to destroy us continually. Jacob 7:24

Native Americans

Righteous Indians vs. Savage Indians

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
1:19 (Grunder p. 731) Furthermore, have not the servants of the king leagued with the savages of the wilderness, and given unto them silver and gold, and placed the destroying engines in their hands? Thereby stirring up the spirit of Satan within them, that they might spill the blood of the people of Columbia; even the blood of our old men, our wives, and our little ones! But it came to pass in the fifty and sixth year of the reign of the judges, there were dissenters who went up from the Nephites unto the Lamanites; and they succeeded with those others in stirring them up to anger against the Nephites; and they were all that year preparing for war. Helaman 4:4

Missionary Work to Natives

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
26:18-21 (Grunder, p. 731) Now there were some amongst the tribes of the savages who had been instructed in the ways of God, and taught to walk in the path of righteousness; For the chief governor of the land of Columbia, and the great Sanhedrim of the people, had taken them under their care, And sent good men amongst them to preach the gospel, and instruct them in the sublime doctrine of the Saviour of the world. And they hearkened unto the preachers, and were convinced, and their natures were softened.

yea, having been instructed in the same knowledge of the Lord ...

Now it came to pass that after the sons of Mosiah had done all these things, they took a small number with them and returned to their father, the king, and desired of him that he would grant unto them that they might, with these whom they had selected, go up to the land of Nephi that they might preach the things which they had heard, and that they might impart the word of God to their brethren, the Lamanites--

and [Ammon] also made known unto them concerning the coming of Christ ...

And it came to pass that after he had said all these things, and expounded them to the king, that the king believed all his words.

Alma 47:36, Alma 18:1,39,40
26:21 And they hearkened unto the preachers, and were convinced, and their natures were softened. And behold, I [the Lamanite king] thank my great God that he has given us a portion of his Spirit to soften our hearts, that we have opened a correspondence with these brethren, the Nephites. Alma 24:8

Anti-Nephi-Lehis?

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
26:22-28 Amongst these tribes [the tribes of the savages who had been instructed in the ways of God, see above] were those who were called, the Six nations of New-York Indians: And their eyes were opened, and they saw the evil and the wickedness of Britain. So their chiefs and their counsellors rose up and made war against the province of Canada, and fought against the hired savages of the king of Britain. But in all their acts they suffered not the spirit of barbarians to rule over them. They remembered the good counsel given to them by their aged chief. And when the red savages and the men of Britain fell into their hands, they raised neither the tomahawk nor the scalping knife. Nay, they treated them kindly; and those who were slain in battle they disturbed not; and their humanity exceeded the humanity of the white men of Britain. Now there was not one soul among all the people [the Anti-Nephi-Lehis] who had been converted unto the Lord that would take up arms against their brethren; nay, they would not even make any preparations for war; yea, and also their king commanded them that they should not.

And now it came to pass that when the king had made an end of these sayings, and all the people were assembled together, they took their swords, and all the weapons which were used for the shedding of man's blood, and they did bury them up deep in the earth.

And thus we see that, when these Lamanites were brought to believe and to know the truth, they were firm, and would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin; and thus we see that they buried their weapons of peace, or they buried the weapons of war, for peace.

Alma 24:6, 17, 19

Three Nephites?

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
35:19 And he marched with his army through the wilderness more than an hundred miles, to a town built upon a place called by the savages the Holy-Ground, where three of the Indian prophets dwelt. And when he had spoken unto them, he turned himself unto the three, and said unto them: What will ye that I should do unto you, when I am gone unto the Father? ... Behold, I know your thoughts, and ye have desired the thing which John, my beloved, who was with me in my ministry, before that I was lifted up by the Jews, desired of me. Therefore, more blessed are ye, for ye shall never taste of death; but ye shall live to behold all the doings of the Father unto the children of men, even until all things shall be fulfilled according to the will of the Father, when I shall come in my glory with the powers of heaven.

Therefore the true believers in Christ, and the true worshipers of Christ, (among whom were the three disciples of Jesus who should tarry) were called Nephites, and Jacobites, and Josephites, and Zoramites.

3 Nephi 28:4-7, 4 Nephi 1:37

Travel by Ship

Jaredite Barges?

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
52:4, 28:12, 15:30 Now they sat their engines to work with dreadful violence; but in about the third part of an hour the barges of the king's ship were overcome.

Howsoever, they cut down the tall trees of the forest, and hewed them, and built many more strong vessels; although they had no gophar-wood amongst them in these days. And they made stories to them, even to the third story, and they put windows in them, and they pitched them within and without with pitch; after the fashion of the ark.

And the fish of the sea, even the mighty whales, fled from the noise of the ship.

And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did go to work, and also his brethren, and built barges after the manner which they had built, according to the instructions of the Lord. And they were small, and they were light upon the water; and they were built after a manner that they were exceeding tight; even that they would hold water like unto a dish; and the bottom thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the sides thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the ends thereof were peaked; and the top thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the length thereof was the length of a tree;

O Lord, behold I have done even as thou hast commanded me; and I have prepared the vessels for my people, and behold, there is no light in them. Behold, O Lord, wilt thou suffer that we shall cross this great water in darkness? And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared, What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels? For behold, ye cannot have windows, for they will be dashed in pieces; neither shall ye take fire with you, for ye shall not go by the light of the fire: for behold, ye shall be as a whale in the midst of the sea;

And it came to pass that when they were buried in the deep, there was no water that could hurt them, their vessels being tight like unto a dish, and also they were tight like unto the ark of Noah;

Ether 2:17, Ether 2:23, Ether 6:7

Faraway Lands

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
15:2-3, 6-7 It came to pass, that one of the strong ships of the king had approached the country of the south, which lieth many thousand miles off. And the ship was called Java, after one of the sweet scented islands of the east; where the poppy flourishes, where the heat of the sun is abundant, and where the Bohon Upas emits its deadly poison ... So as he passed along, nigh unto the coast of Brazil, where the sun casteth the shadow of a man to the south at noon day: (A place unknown to the children of Israel, in the days of Moses) And it came to pass that one other ship also did sail forth; and whither she did go, we know not. And it came to pass that in this year there were many people who went forth into the land northward. And thus ended the thirty and eighth year. Alma 63:8-9

Cataclysms

In both books we have references to: thunder, large groups of people falling to the earth, rocks being raised and falling causing deaths, fragments of rocks, the face of the earth, and thick darkness which prevents anyone from seeing each other or anything around them. It is also interesting that there are mentions of sinking and drowning in the Book of Mormon which would make more sense if The Late War had been an influence, since it includes descriptions of water battles. — Hasa
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
19:37-44 But as the young man returned to where the army stayed, behold! the black dust in the hold caught fire, and it rent the air with the noise of a thousand thunders: And the whole army fell down upon their faces to the earth; and the stones, and the fragments of rocks, were lifted high; and the falling thereof was terrible even unto deaths Yea, it was dreadful as the mighty earthquake, which overturneth cities. And the whole face of the earth round about, and the army of Zebulon, were overshadowed with black smoke; so that, for a time, one man saw not another: But when the heavy clouds of smoke passed away towards the west, behold the earth was covered with the killed and the wounded. Alas! the sight was shocking to behold; as the deed was ignoble. About two hundred men rose not: the stones had bruised them; the sharp rocks had fallen upon them: They were wedged into the earth: their weapons of war were bent down into the ground with them; their feet were turned towards heaven; their limbs were lopped off. ... in that day that he shall suffer death the sun shall be darkened and refuse to give his light unto you; and also the moon and the stars; and there shall be no light upon the face of this land, even from the time that he shall suffer death, for the space of three days, to the time that he shall rise again from the dead. Yea, at the time that he shall yield up the ghost there shall be thunderings and lightnings for the space of many hours, and the earth shall shake and tremble; and the rocks which are upon the face of this earth, which are both above the earth and beneath, which ye know at this time are solid, or the more part of it is one solid mass, shall be broken up;

And there was also a great and terrible tempest; and there was terrible thunder, insomuch that it did shake the whole earth as if it was about to divide asunder. And the city of Zarahemla did take fire. And the city of Moroni did sink into the depths of the sea, and the inhabitants thereof were drowned. And the earth was carried up upon the city of Moronihah, that in the place of the city there became a great mountain. And there was a great and terrible destruction in the land southward. But behold, there was a more great and terrible destruction in the land northward; for behold, the whole face of the land was changed, because of the tempest and the whirlwinds, and the thunderings and the lightnings, and the exceedingly great quaking of the whole earth; And the highways were broken up, and the level roads were spoiled, and many smooth places became rough. And many great and notable cities were sunk, and many were burned, and many were shaken till the buildings thereof had fallen to the earth, and the inhabitants thereof were slain, and the places were left desolate. And behold, the rocks were rent in twain; they were broken up upon the face of the whole earth, insomuch that they were found in broken fragments, and in seams and in cracks, upon all the face of the land. And it came to pass that when the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the storm, and the tempest, and the quakings of the earth did cease—for behold, they did last for about the space of three hours; and it was said by some that the time was greater; nevertheless, all these great and terrible things were done in about the space of three hours—and then behold, there was darkness upon the face of the land. And it came to pass that there was thick darkness upon all the face of the land, insomuch that the inhabitants thereof who had not fallen could feel the vapor of darkness; And there could be no light, because of the darkness, neither candles, neither torches; neither could there be fire kindled with their fine and exceedingly dry wood, so that there could not be any light at all; And there was not any light seen, neither fire, nor glimmer, neither the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars, for so great were the mists of darkness which were upon the face of the land.

Helaman 14:7, 3 Nephi 8:6

Troubling Inception

Both The Late War and The Book of Mormon share an anecdote of leaders considering a problem which has never been dealt with before. In The Late War, it is a military leader, captain Carden, who is troubled with the capture of a British war ship as he contemplates the geopolitical implications of the act. In The Book of Mormon, it is a spiritual leader, Alma, who contemplates what should be done with dissenters who are causing trouble in the church, in the context of separation of church and state.
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
13:17 And after they had eaten and drank, Carden opened his mouth, for he was troubled in his mind, and spake unto Decatur, saying: Lo! if this thing which hath happened be known unto the king, that one of the vessels of Britain hath struck her flag, and become captive to a vessel of the United States, what shall be done unto the captain thereof? for such a thing hath not been heard of among the nations of the earth. Now there had not any such thing happened before, in the church; therefore Alma was troubled in his spirit, and he caused that they should be brought before the king. Mosiah 26:10

Liberty

Flocking to a Symbol of Liberty

The context for the passages in both books is people choosing sides in a civil war between one side that is loyal to a king and the other side that is in favor of "freedom" from kings. — Juggler Vain
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
6:14 And it came to pass, that a great multitude flocked to the banners of the great Sanhedrim. And behold, I have sent a proclamation throughout this part of the land; and behold, they are flocking to us daily, to their arms, in the defence of their country and their freedom, and to avenge our wrongs.

And it came to pass that thousands did flock unto his standard, and did take up their swords in the defence of their freedom, that they might not come into bondage.

Alma 61:6, Alma 62:5
p. 184, 2nd ed. What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep, as it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave. O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave. O! thus be it ever when freemen shall stand, Between their lov'd home, and the war's desolation. Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the Heaven rescu'd land, praise the Power that hath made and preserv'd us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto—"In God is our trust;"

[Moroni] rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it—In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children—and he fastened it upon the end of a pole... and he took the pole, which had on the end thereof his rent coat, (and he called it the title of liberty) and he bowed himself to the earth, and he prayed mightily unto his God for the blessings of liberty to rest upon his brethren, so long as there should a band of Christians remain to possess the land ... —A chosen land, and the land of liberty.

[Moroni caused the flag to be] hoisted upon every tower which was in all the land, which was possessed by the Nephites; and thus Moroni planted the standard of liberty among the Nephites.

Alma 46:12,36 (Grunder p. 729)

Cause of Liberty

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
24:15 But if, peradventure, we should be overcome, even then shall not the sacred cause of LIBERTY perish, neither shall the people of Columbia be disheartened. And it came to pass that Moroni commanded that his army should go against those king-men, to pull down their pride and their nobility and level them with the earth, or they should take up arms and support the cause of liberty. Alma 51:17
54:13 And Jackson spake, and said unto his captains of fifties, and his captains of hundreds, Fear not; we defend our lives and our liberties, and in that thing the Lord will not forsake us. And it came to pass that the Lamanites promised unto Alma and his brethren, that if they would show them the way which led to the land of Nephi that they would grant unto them their lives and their liberty. Mosiah 23:36

Spiritual Being Entering Hearts

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
3:17 Moreover, Satan entered into the heart of one of the governors of the east, and he was led astray by the wickedness thereof, even Caleb the Strong. And behold, the Holy Spirit did come down from heaven, and did enter into their hearts, and they were filled as with fire, and they could speak forth marvellous words. Helaman 5:45

Using "Lion" Figuratively

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
17:3, 33:11 They hid themselves in the wilderness; they couched down as a lion; and as a young lion, they watched for their prey.

But the army of Columbia rushed upon them with the fierceness of lions.

And it came to pass that the battle became exceedingly sore, for they fought like lions for their prey. Mosiah 20:10
55:21 And it came to pass, when the news of peace was spread abroad, that the temples of the Lord were opened, and the people of Columbia praised God for his goodness; yea, they thanked him that he had strengthened their arms, and delivered them from the lion's paw.
2:7 But the wickedness of the kingdom of Great Britain, and the cruelty of the princes thereof, towards the peaceable inhabitants of the land of Columbia, may be likened unto the fierce lion, when he putteth his paw upon the innocent lamb to devour him.
Now the people having heard a great noise came running together by multitudes to know the cause of it; and when they saw Alma and Amulek coming forth out of the prison, and the walls thereof had fallen to the earth, they were struck with great fear, and fled from the presence of Alma and Amulek even as a goat fleeth with her young from two lions; and thus they did flee from the presence of Alma and Amulek. Alma 14:29
That they both use 'lion' isn't particularly strange since the bible is full of figurative language around the subject.

What strikes me about this is that there were actually no lions in the Americas at any time during the Book of Mormon period.

So for Joseph to have used lions figuratively is anachronistic in my opinion. It makes no sense for him to have used them, it makes no sense for Jesus to have spoken to the Nephites about Lions, since they wouldn't have been familiar with them, and it makes no sense for Mormon to have used them since he wouldn't have known about them either. (Or am I wrong?)

It does make sense if Joseph was being influenced by the Bible and The Late War. Interestingly, Joseph doesn't use 'eagle' (as does Hunt and the Bible) which wouldn't have been anachronistic in a Book of Mormon setting.

Mary

Teancum / Tecumseh

Before this computer-aided research, many researchers such as Vernal Holley in 1992 had speculated that there was a connection between Tecumseh and Teancum since both sounded similar, and both were connected to Moravian Town/Morianton. FairMormon responded to the Teancum/Tecumseh parallel this way:

Teancum supposedly derived from Tecumseh...A place not named until 1912

Tecumseh, the supposed origin of Teancum, requires considerable creativity to even make the words the same...

But could Joseph have known about Tecumseh, Ontario? As a prophet of God, yes, but as a plagiarizer, unlikely. Tecumseh, Ontario did not get this name until 1912. ... Desperate to save this idea, other critics have suggested the town of Tecumseh, Michigan instead of the Tecumseh, Ontario, replacing a ridiculous candidate with one that is merely silly (and even further from Joseph Smith than its later Canadian cousin).

We were surprised, while reading The Late War, to discover Tecumseh and his army go to Moravian Town. In addition, their leader was slain in a similar way to Teancum. We do not believe Joseph plagiarized from The Late War, but that it may have influenced some of his wording or ideas.

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus was a controversial figure—was he a brutal slave master, or an inspired leader? Whatever he was, The Late War and The Book of Mormon share the same high regard for Columbus. The Late War esteems him so highly that,
Hunt almost always refers to America as the land of "Columbia," following the example of Richard Snowden. — Rick Grunder, Mormon Parallels, p. 732
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
20:3-5,9-10 Moreover the name of the country was called after the name of a great man, who was born in a place called Genoa; being in Italia, on the sea-coast. His name was Christopher, sir-named Columbus. As the righteous man struggleth against wickedness, so did he against ignorance and stupidity.

Now when the people heard that Columbus had found a new land, they were astonished beyond measure, for it was many thousand miles off; moreover, some of them strove to rob him of the honor, and he was treated wrongfully. But his name was lifted up above his enemies, and it shall not be lost.

And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land. 1 Ne 13:12

4th of July

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
26:1
the fourth day of the seventh month, which is the birth day of Columbian Liberty and Independence, the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges. Alma 10:6

Significance

Not all books mention dates, but when they do they can be expressed in various formats:

While it may seem odd that both books mention the same date, expressed in the same format, it's not impossible for this to show up by chance. For example the 4-gram phrase "of the seventh month" shows up numerous times in the bible which disqualified it from our initial search algorithm.

However, the 4-gram, "seventh month, which is" turns out to be many times more rare than the actual date match itself. The fact that this rare 4-gram is accompanied by the exact same date makes it even more rare. This was manually discovered long after the computer algorithm had already established that The Late War was significantly connected to The Book of Mormon.

Reign of the Judges

The Reign of the Judges was a government system based on Judges that supplanted the Reign of the Kings in The Book of Mormon.

This change in the Nephite government was apparently devastating to those of high birth, because they later plotted to overthrow the free government and bring back the old system of Monarchy:

[King-men] were desirous ... to overthrow the free government, and to establish a king over the land. And those who were desirous that Pahoran should remain Chief Judge over the land, took upon them the name of freemen; and thus was the division among them: for the freemen had sworn or covenanted to maintain their rights, and privileges of their religion, by a free government.

Notice that the free government is the Nephite system of judges, which is supported by the freemen. The dynamics are similar in The Late War, where we find freemen fighting to maintain a free government in the Second War for American Independence against the servants of the King:

... they were ready and well prepared to meet the servants of the king. Nevertheless, it was so that the freemen who came to the defence of the city, built strong holds and forts, and raised up fortifications

Counting the years of freedom from kings

It is also interesting to note that both The Book of Mormon and The Late War not only replaced the monarchy with a free government, but also used the transition as a date marker. Both books count how many years had passed since the new government had started. Notice that the wording is very similar in both books:

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
NOW it came to pass ... in the thirty and sixth year after the people of the provinces of Columbia had declared themselves independent of all the kingdoms of the earth; And now it came to pass in the twenty and ninth year of the reign of the Judges ...
... in the thirty and seventh year of the independence of the people of Columbia ... And it came to pass in the thirty and ninth year of the reign of the Judges ...
AND it came to pass, on the fourth day of the seventh month, which is the birth day of Columbian Liberty and Independence ... Behold, now it came to pass in the sixty and ninth year of the reign of the Judges over the people of the Nephites ...
Now on the twenty-sixth day of the ninth month, being in the thirty and ninth year of Columbian Independence, It came to pass, that a certain ... And it came to pass that in the eightieth year of the reign of the Judges over the people of Nephi, there was a certain ...

While the 4th of July is not used in the Book of Mormon as a national holiday marking the beginning of the Reign of the Kings, it is however used in a phrase that links the two ideas--and this is consistent with our hypothesis that The Late War was previously read by Joseph Smith and subconsciously affected his choice of words and writing style in The Book of Mormon.

Nephi, Fulton Build a Ship

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
50:3-7 Now the name of this man was Robert, sur-named Fulton; ... like other men of genius, in these days, he was spoken of but slightly at first; for the people said, Lo! the man is beside himself and they laughed at him; nevertheless, he exceeded their expectations. For it came to pass, that ... he was enabled to construct certain curious vessels, called in the vernacular tongue, steam-boats. Now these steam-boats were cunningly contrived, and had abundance of curious workmanship therein, such as surpassed the comprehension of all the wise men of the east, from the beginning to this day; And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall shew thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters. ... And when my brethren saw that I was about to build a ship, they began to murmur against me, saying: Our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship; yea, and he also thinketh that he can cross these great waters. And thus my brethren did complain against me, and were desirous that they might not labor, for they did not believe that I could build a ship; neither would they believe that I was instructed of the Lord. ... and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. ... And it came to pass that after I had finished the ship according to the word of the Lord, my brethren beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceeding fine; wherefore, they did humble themselves again before the Lord. 1 Nephi 17:8,17-18, 18:1-2,4

Liahona?

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
50:24 Now these wonderful torpedoes were made partly of brass and partly of iron, and were cunningly contrived with curious works, like unto a clock; and as it were a large ball. And it came to pass that as my father arose in the morning, and went forth to the tent door, to his great astonishment he beheld upon the ground a round ball of curious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles; and the one pointed the way whither we should go into the wilderness.

And now my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director; our fathers called it Liahona, which is interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it. And behold, there cannot any man work after the manner of so curious a workmanship. And behold, it was prepared to show unto our fathers the course which they should travel in the wilderness.

1 Nephi 16:10, Alma 37:39

An early prototype of a clockwork Torpedo, with semi-spherical ends, circa 1810.
Made of cork, copper and brass, within which is set a "piece of clockwork moved by a spring".

Silver Plates, Brass Plates

Engraved silver "plate" awarded to Oliver Perry
Did The Late War inspire Joseph to consider brass as a storage medium for the deeds of an ancient people?
Historical inscriptions or records engraved on brass surfaces are not mentioned in the Bible, but are highly important throughout the Book of Mormon in the brass plates of Laban. — Rick Grunder, Mormon Parallels, p. 732
In addition to mentioning brass as a medium of record, The Late War refers to a "silver plate" awarded to Captain Oliver Perry from the people (the government of Pennsylvania).
The Late WarBook of Mormon
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36:26, 31:33 But the imaginary evils which the children of men commit are oftentimes graven in brass, whilst their actual good deeds are written in sand.

Likewise, the people gave him [Oliver Perry] much silver plate, with gravings thereon, mentioning his deeds.

And these things which testify of us, are they not written upon the plates of brass which our father Lehi brought out of Jerusalem?

And it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the record of my people. And upon the plates which I made I did engraven the record of my father, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and also many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them.

And they brought a record with them, even a record of the people whose bones they had found; and it was engraven on plates of ore.

3 Nephi 10:17, 1 Nephi 19:1, Mosiah 21:27

False Prophets

The Late WarBook of Mormon
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35:29 (Grunder, p. 731) Manahoee, their chief prophet, was smitten in the mouth, and slain, and two other false prophets were slain with him. Now when Alma had said these words, Korihor was struck dumb, that he could not have utterance, according to the words of Alma.

and as he went forth amongst them, behold, he was run upon and trodden down, even until he was dead.

Alma 30:50,59
4:11-13, 35:20 Now, there was a certain hypocrite whose name was Elijah, and he was a false prophet in the east, and led astray those of little understanding: moreover, he was an hireling, and preached for the sake of filthy lucre. And he rose up and called himself a preacher of the gospel, and his words were smooth, and the people marvelled at him; But he profaned the temple of the Lord, and he strove to lead his disciples into the wrong way.

Now there were lying prophets among the savages, even as there were in the days of old, among the children of Israel; and they prophesied according to their own wishes;

O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God?

And after there had been false prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people, and all these having been punished according to their crimes ...

Yea, and they also became idolatrous, because they were deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests; for they did speak flattering things unto them.

Mormon 8:38, WoM 1:16, Mosiah 11:7

Freemen vs. Kingmen

The War of 1812 has also been called the "2nd War of Independence" because it settled once and for all the sovereinty of the United States of America, and separated the nation from Great Britain. During this conflict, however, the question of loyalty arose among the colonists once more—would they be true to their new and fledling nation ("freemen"), or yield to the strong ties that they had to their mother country ("Tories")? This division plays out in The Book of Mormon as a battle of might and will between the "freemen" and the "king-men".
The Late WarBook of Mormon
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3:15-18, 38:18 Now it happened about this time that there were numbers of the inhabitants of the country of Columbia whose hearts yearned after the king of Britain. These men were called Tories, which signifieth, in the vernacular tongue, the blind followers of royalty.

Inasmuch as he put the wise men of the king to their wits end ; for they were unable to out-sail him and take him captive.

And it came to pass that those who were desirous that Pahoran should be dethroned from the judgment seat, were called king-men, for they were desirous that the law should be altered in a manner to overthrow the free government, and to establish a king over the land.

And it came to pass that Moroni commanded that his army should go against those king-men, to pull down their pride and their nobility and level them with the earth, or they should take up arms and support the cause of liberty.

Alma 51:5,17
51:7, 38:26-27, 48:12

Nevertheless, it was so that the freemen who came to the defence of the city, built strong holds and forts, and raised up fortifications in abundance, inasmuch as the whole place was as it were one camp.

Nevertheless, David said unto the captains of the king, Come singly, and not like cowards, upon me ; then shall ye receive the thunders of the freemen of Columbia abundantly; And her liberty shall not suffer, although in the contest ye may destroy my vessel upon the face of the waters.

With the spirit of freemen, they grasped their weapons of war in their hands, and went out to meet them without fear ; resolved to conquer or to die.

And those who were desirous that Pahoran should remain Chief Judge over the land, took upon them the name of freemen; and thus was the division among them: for the freemen had sworn or covenanted to maintain their rights, and privileges of their religion, by a free government.

And except ye grant mine epistle, and come out and show unto me a true spirit of freedom, and strive to strengthen and fortify our armies, and grant unto them food for their support, behold I will leave a part of my freemen to maintain this part of our land, and I will leave the strength and the blessings of God upon them, that none other power can operate against them

Alma 51:6, Alma 60:25

Tender Women

The Late War reveals a cultural attitude toward women that is shared by The Book of Mormon. Women are often spoken of as "tender" and "fair", prey to the lusts of men.
The Late WarBook of Mormon
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21:40-43, 21:4, 35:28 Instead of protecting the tender women, the fairest work of God, the life of the world; behold! What hast thou done? See! The shrieking matron cast herself into the waters that she may escape thy brutal violence: but all in vain; her garments are torn from her; she becomes a prey to thy savage lust. Not she alone, but her daughter, and her fair sisters, have fallen into the unhallowed hands, and been defiled! Oh, Britain! The voice of violated chastity riseth up against thee; the mark of the beast is indelibly printed in thy forehead:

And the old men, the little children, and the women, yea, the fair daughters of Columbia, were compelled to fly from the wickedness of the barbarians.

Seven hundred and fifty of the savage warriors were found slain in battle; and two hundred two score and ten women and children became captives to the army of Columbia.

And it came to pass that those who tarried with their wives and their children caused that their fair daughters should stand forth and plead with the Lamanites that they would not slay them. And it came to pass that the Lamanites had compassion on them, for they were charmed with the beauty of their women. Therefore the Lamanites did spare their lives, and took them captives and carried them back to the land of Nephi, and granted unto them that they might possess the land ...

And also it grieveth me that I must use so much boldness of speech concerning you, before your wives and your children, many of whose feelings are exceedingly tender and chaste and delicate before God, which thing is pleasing unto God;

And I will not suffer, saith the Lord of Hosts, that the cries of the fair daughters of this people, which I have led out of the land of Jerusalem, shall come up unto me against the men of my people, saith the Lord of Hosts. For they shall not lead away captive the daughters of my people because of their tenderness, save I shall visit them with a sore curse, even unto destruction; for they shall not commit whoredoms, like unto them of old, saith the Lord of Hosts. ... Ye have broken the hearts of your tender wives, and lost the confidence of your children, because of your bad examples before them; and the sobbings of their hearts ascend up to God against you. And because of the strictness of the word of God, which cometh down against you, many hearts died, pierced with deep wounds.

Mosiah 19:13, Jacob 2:7

Rare Phrase Matches

These phrases are rare—meaning that they are not found in other contemporary books of Joseph's time, and that they are not found in the King James Version of the bible. The strength of the argument that The Book of Mormon is a remix of The Late War rests on the cumulative improbability of finding all of these phrases somewhere else. No other book, aside from The First Book of Napoleon, approaches the density of rare phrases (4grams, specifically) that are shared by The Book of Mormon.

(For further information about this graph, see Hidden in Plain Sight on AskReality.)

Note that there are perhaps thousands of matching phrases between The Late War and The Book of Mormon, but we do not consider "common phrases" to be important in linking the two books. For example, phrases from the bible that are found in both books such as "Blessed are the peace-makers, for they shall be called the children of God" do not meaningfully connect the two—it's simply understood that they have a common ancestor, and we ignore those influences.

Word phrases that match exactly are bold red; words that are synonymous, or have some connection (but not an exact match) are italicized orange.

The Late WarBook of Mormon
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34:10 But it came to pass, in the same year, that the people of Columbia were revenged of the evil: And it came to pass that in the same year that the people of Nephi had peace restored unto them, Alma 50:37
2:9 And if, peradventure, the people of Columbia go out not to battle against the king, then will the manifold wrongs committed against them be increased tenfold, and they shall be as a mock and a bye-word among all nations. And because they turned their hearts aside, saith the prophet, and have despised the Holy one of Israel, they shall wander in the flesh, and perish, and become a hiss and a by-word, and be hated among all nations. 1 Nephi 19:14
3:33-34 Now the smooth words of Satan tickled Caleb mightily, and he hearkened unto the counsel of the wicked one. For the good counsel given unto him was as water thrown upon a rock. Laman was angry with me, and also with my father; and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman

O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolish of men! When they are learned, they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves. Wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness, and it profiteth them not.

1 Nephi 3:28, 2 Nephi 9:28
15:2,7 It came to pass, that one of the strong ships of the king had approached the country of the south, which lieth many thousand miles off... (A place unknown to the children of Israel, in the days of Moses) And it came to pass that one other ship also did sail forth; and whither she did go, we know not. And it came to pass that in this year there were many people who went forth into the land northward. Alma 63:8-9
23:24-25 The officers and soldiers of Columbia fought bravely, and there were many slain and wounded on both sides; Nevertheless, the army of the United States rested nigh unto the place. And it came to pass that they fought on both hands with exceeding fury; and there were many slain on both sides; yea, and Moroni was wounded and Jacob was killed.

And it came to pass that he fought with Lib, in which Lib did smite upon his arm that he was wounded; nevertheless, the army of Coriantumr did press forward upon Lib, that he fled to the borders upon the seashore.

Alma 52:35, Ether 14:12
43:11-12 For, in the mean time, Hardy had sent a messenger to the inhabitants, saying, If ye will not prove wicked, and will refrain from sending your evil torpedoes amongst our vessels, then will we spare your town. But God did call on men, in the name of his Son, (this being the plan of redemption which was laid) saying: If ye will repent and harden not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten Son; Alma 12:33
26:1 AND it came to pass, on the fourth day of the seventh month, which is the birth day of Columbian Liberty and Independence, I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart, even until the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges. Alma 10:6
3:32 Then shall thy name be proclaimed with the sound of the trumpet throughout all the earth ; and thou shalt be a prince and a ruler over this people. ...on the morrow I shall proclaim unto this my people out of mine own mouth that thou art a king and a ruler over this people, whom the Lord our God hath given us. Mosiah 1:10
2:8 Nevertheless, the lamb shall not be slain; for the Lord will be his deliverer. Now we see that Ammon could not be slain, for the Lord had said unto Mosiah, his father: I will spare him, and it shall be unto him according to thy faith—therefore, Mosiah trusted him unto the Lord. Alma 19:23
53:4 So it came to pass, that they gathered together their army ... and the name of the chief captain of the navy was Cochrane And it came to pass that they gathered themselves together, and did consecrate Amlici to be their king.

And it came to pass that they gathered together all their people; yea, all the people of the Lord ...

Alma 2:9, Alma 27:14
35:42 For although the king, who calleth himself our father, across the great waters, did put the instruments of death into our hands, and give us the black dust in abundance; nevertheless he deceived us; And they journeyed in the wilderness, and were brought by the hand of the Lord across the great waters, into the land where Mosiah discovered them; Omni 1:16
19:3,7 And the vessels of war of Columbia that were upon the waters of the lake called Ontario, were commanded by a brave man, whose name was Chauncey. ... On the same day the sails of the vessels were spread to the winds of heaven, and they moved towards a place called Little York, in the province of Canada. And it came to pass that the wind did never cease to blow towards the promised land, while they were upon the waters; and thus they were driven forth before the wind; Ether 6:8
36:5 And in the hope that the war might speedily cease, and an end be made of the shedding of blood, the great Sanhedrim of the people wished to push their armies into the heart of the provinces of the king, even to Montreal. And it came to pass that Moroni and Pahoran went down with their armies into the land of Zarahemla, and went forth against the city, and did meet the men of Pachus, insomuch that they did come to battle. Alma 62:7
48:34-35 Now when the men of Columbia heard that Ross, the chief captain of the king, was slain, and the host of Britain was compelled to flee from before the city, they were exceedingly rejoiced. And the brave defenders of Baltimore had great praise and honor given them throughout the land. And it came to pass that when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren, he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me and return to the city of Jerusalem.

and they were exceedingly rejoiced because of the liberty which had been granted unto them.

Behold, now it came to pass that the people of Nephi were exceedingly rejoiced, because the Lord had again delivered them out of the hands of their enemies; therefore they gave thanks unto the Lord their God;

1 Nephi 4:30, Mosiah 29:39, Alma 45:1
44:21 Lo! we are stronger than the host of Columbia; therefore, let us go with all our might against their chief city, and make capture thereof And thus we did go forth with all our might against the Lamanites, who were in the city of Manti Alma 58:13
49:15, p. 311 Now Lloyd, who commanded the Plantagenet, was the chief captain of the squadron of the king

And thirty of the barbarians were slain, among whom was their chief captain, whose name was Rais Hammida

Now Gid was the Chief Captain over the band which was appointed to guard them down to the land.

Zerahemnah, who was their Chief Captain, or their chief leader and commander

Alma 57:29, Alma 43:44
41:10 The huge engines of destruction roared as the loud thunder, and the blaze thereof was like unto flashes of lightning. and the brightness thereof was like unto the brightness of a flaming fire, which ascendeth up unto God forever and ever, and hath no end 1 Nephi 15:30
15:27 Now, after the servants of the king were taken from the wreck And it came to pass that all they who loved the king, when they heard these words, came forth and pursued after the servants of the king. Alma 47:28
10:19 Nevertheless, the same day a mighty host of savages and soldiers of the king, came forth again to battle, and rushed upon the people of the United States And it came to pass that on the morrow they did go again to battle, and great and terrible was that day Ether 15:17
53:17 However, he fought bravely against them, and slew numbers of them; [Moroni] did cause that his men should march forth against them, and slew many, and surrounded many others, and took them prisoners Alma 62:25
55:36 However, when he saw the strong ships of Columbia were about to destroy the town, he paid the money... And now it came to pass that while he was going about to destroy the church of God... Mosiah 27:10
p. 44 Footnote when a mighty and a blood-thirsty enemy appeared before his battlements They were a wild, and ferocious, and a blood-thirsty people Mosiah 10:12
40:3 And a part thereof moved towards Plattsburgh, on lake Champlain and a part thereof, brought forth wild fruit Jacob 5:45
38:23 He looked around, and behold! he saw two of the strong ships of Britain approaching And it came to pass that he turned him about, and behold, he saw through the cloud of darkness the faces of Nephi and Lehi Helaman 5:36
19:11 And the place where the host of Columbia landed was to the west of the town, about twenty and four furlongs Therefore, when ye are about twenty and four years old I would that ye should remember the things that ye have observed concerning this people Mormon 1:3
21:33 Nevertheless, they prevailed over him, and slew seven of his men, and wounded others I defended thy servants and thy flocks, and slew seven of their brethren with the sling and with the sword Alma 18:16
p. 314 the great Sanhedrim of the people honored him for his gallant exploits and gave unto him and his brave officers and mariners, an hundred thousand pieces of silver ...the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read 1 Nephi 1:11
34:5 Moreover, they were a nation of savages that dwelt in the back-woods and the wilderness round about the states of Georgia, Tennessee, and the Mississippi Territory. Therefore the Lamanites could have no more possessions only in the land of Nephi, and the wilderness round about. ... Alma 22:34
6:11 From this place, he sent forth a Proclamation, which the great Sanhedrim had prepared for him; and the wisdom thereof appeareth even unto this day. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Behold the world and the wisdom thereof 1 Nephi 11:35
11:4 [he made a proclamation,] and the words thereof pleased the young men, so that they went in numbers and joined Alexander the Lord God will deliver again the book and the words thereof to him that is not learned 2 Nephi 27:19
13:20 Now when Carden heard these words, his heart leaped with joy; Now when he had said these words, his heart was swollen within him, and he sunk again with joy; Alma 17:29
19:13 And their weapons of war were of curious workmanship, and they sent forth balls of lead; [Moroni and Pahoran] slew many of them, and took their provisions and their weapons of war. Alma 62:15
37:3 And they were eager to be led onto the battle ; but the term for which their services were engaged expired, and they returned every man to his own house. [King Benjamin] dismissed the multitude, and they returned, every one, according to their families, to their own houses. Mosiah 6:3
20:8 And the place was inhabited by wild savages, and they were naked. Now the heads of the Lamanites were shorn; and they were naked, save it were skin which was girded about their loins Alma 3:5, Mosiah 10:8
15:36 The wise men and the orators were mute; they gaped one upon another, and wist not what to say. And he shall stand with fear, and wist not what to say.

and they durst not open their mouths, even one to another, and wist not what it meant

Helaman 9:30, 3 Nephi 11:8
15:11 Therefore, if ye go over to fight against them, ye will be as sheep going to the slaughter, and ye shall never again return to the house of your fathers, for ye will be destroyed. And ye shall never endure the pains of death; ... 3 Nephi 28:8
44:11 [Washington] where the great Sanhedrim assemble themselves together. ... as often as it was in their power to assemble themselves together Mosiah 18:25
26:10 However, while they were yet carrying them away, there came a band of men after some years had passed away, there came a man among the people of Nephi Jacob 7:1
2:11 Gird on your swords and go forth to battle against the king; even against the strong powers of Britain; and the Lord God of Hosts be with you. and he went to battle against the king, Amgid, and they fought for the space of many years Ether 10:32
36:16 Wilkinson, the chief captain who went before the host of Columbia, had been sick many days, and was unable to go forth against them himself. yea, we will go forth against them in the strength of the Lord, and we will put an end to this great iniquity. Alma 61:18
13:30 But the storm arose, and the sea beat upon the vessels, and they were cast away, and they parted asunder, upon an island which lieth far to the south, and both vessels were lost. and the wild branches began to be plucked off, and to be cast away; and they did keep the root and the top thereof, equal, according to the strength thereof. Jacob 5:73
19:6 And Henry and Zebulon, whose surname was Pike, were the chief captains of the host of Columbia. And thus he did appoint chief captains of the Zoramites, they being the most acquainted with the strength of the Nephites Alma 48:5
48:1 all the barbarities they committed at Washington, the chief city Amalickiah marched ... to the city of Nephi, which was the chief city Alma 47:20-21
48:34 the host of Britain was compelled to flee from before the city, they were exceedingly rejoiced. Yea, even those who had been compelled to flee from the land of Manti, ... And thus being exceedingly numerous Alma 59:6-7
16:37-38 Now the wise men of Britain heard those things with sorrow; and they spake one to another concerning the matter: But they wist not what to do; therefore there arose a warm dispute concerning the matter, but not unto bloodshed. Alma 51:4
20:6 it came to pass, in the fourteen hundred and ninety-second year of the Christian era, that he crossed the waters of the mighty deep they were driven by Lehi into the waters of Sidon, and they crossed the waters of Sidon. Alma 43:40
18:28 after she departed from the land of Columbia, and passed a great way to the south after he departed from the land of Middoni he was led by the Spirit to the land of Nephi Alma 22:1
49:40 From whence they sent forth the weapons of war and the black dust among the savages, to destroy the people of Columbia Therefore they sent their armies forth; yea, even the king himself went before his people; and they went up to the land of Nephi to destroy the people of Limhi. Mosiah 20:7
53:5 And they essayed to go against the city of New-Orleans Amalickiah would not suffer the Lamanites to go against the city of Nephihah to battle Alma 51:25
2:15 And the Decree was signed with the hand writing of James, the chief Governor of the land of Columbia. Now there was no lawyer nor judge nor high priest that could have power to condemn any one to death save their condemnation was signed by the governor of the land. 3 Nephi 6:22
49:45 Jackson, the chief captain ... granted unto him and his people, even the Spaniards. therefore the king of the Lamanites granted unto him and his brethren ... Mosiah 24:1
14:38 Neither did the sick and wounded escape, who had gathered themselves together in the houses, that they might be sheltered from the piercing cold And it came to pass that they had gathered themselves together upon the top of the mount which was called Antipas, in preparation to battle. Alma 47:7
8:5-6 And he spake unto his officers and his men that were under him, saying, Let every man be at his post ... when Jesus had said these words, he spake unto his disciples, one by one, saying unto them, What is it that ye desire of me, after I am gone to the Father? 3 Nephi 28:1
13:5 [Decatur] used no entreaty with his men, for they all loved him Teancum and his men, for they were great warriors Alma 51:31
53:24 and the host of Britain arrayed themselves in their might to go against the hold of Jackson with their whole force they did exert themselves in their might to do according to the words of Lachoneus 3 Nephi 3:16
1:14 the Prince Regent, who governed the nation in the name of the King his father; for, lo! the King was possessed of an evil spirit, and his son reigned in his stead. they were free from the oppressions of the king, his father; for that his father had granted unto him that he might reign over the people who were in the land of Ishmael Alma 21:21
7:16 Moreover, the cowardice of his heart caused him to make a league with the slaves of the king, in the which he gave unto them the whole territory over which the people had entrusted him to preside And he gave battle unto Shule the king, in the which he did obtain the land of their first inheritance Ether 7:16
7:20 And the band that went forth, was entrapped at Brownstown, by the cunning savages, that laid wait for them therefore [Limhi] gathered his people together, and laid wait for them in the fields and in the forests. Mosiah 20:8
41:8-9 and the battle waxed hot beyond measure. And it lasted for the space of seven hours And there began to be a war between the sons of Akish and Akish, which lasted for the space of many years Ether 9:12
46:18 Then began their destroying engines to utter their voices, and it was like unto the voice of mighty thunders he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder.

And I looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the tree which my father had seen

1 Nephi 17:45, 1 Nephi 11:18
35:32 And so the judgment of the Lord fell upon them for their unrighteousness, and for their wicked and murderous deeds. and the severity of the Lord fell upon them according to his judgments, which are just Omni 1:22
18:9 Moreover, the captain of the Hornet was a valiant man, and his name was Lawrence. Now the leader of those who were wroth against their brethren was a large and a strong man; and his name was Amalickiah. Alma 46:3
2:7 But the wickedness of the kingdom of Great Britain... may be likened unto the fierce lion, when he putteth his paw upon the innocent lamb to devour him. And now, the words which I shall read are they which Isaiah spake concerning all the house of Israel; wherefore, they may be likened unto you, for ye are of the house of Israel. 2 Nephi 6:5
51:11 were my strength as unimpaired as my love for my country, and that soul which still animates me, ye would not have found me in the rostrum, but in the midst of the battle! For I am assured that if ye had known me ye would not have suffered that I should have worn these bands. For I am Ammon, and am a descendant of Zarahemla ... Mosiah 7:13
29:1 Nevertheless, it came to pass, that Harrison, the chief captain of the north west army, had placed a captain, a young man, in the hold called Fort Stephenson, to defend it. Nevertheless, it came to pass that Pahoran was appointed by the voice of the people to be chief judge and a governor over the people of Nephi. Helaman 1:5
7:47 Nevertheless, the people of the United States, even the great Sanhedrim, were not disheartened; neither were they afraid Nevertheless, the people of the church did have great joy because of the conversion of the Lamanites Helaman 6:3
6:15 Nevertheless, they knew not that they were to be entrapt. And they were a people friendly one with another; nevertheless they knew not God; Mosiah 24:5
5:4, 33:3 Now the armies of the king of Britain, are they not numbered and written in the book of Hume, the scribe?

Now the army of Proctor was mighty; for he had a thousand horsemen

Now the armies of the Lamanites, which had followed after the people of king Limhi, had been lost in the wilderness for many days.

Now the army of Zerahemnah was not prepared with any such thing...

Mosiah 23:30, Alma 43:20
20:11 Now the land of Columbia is a most plentiful land, yielding gold and silver, and brass and iron abundantly. Now the land of Moron, where the king dwelt, was near the land which is called Desolation by the Nephites. Ether 7:6
29:23 Now the loss of the men of Britain was about an hundred two score and ten ; and of the men of Columbia there was one slain and seven wounded. Now the loss of men, women and children on both sides was so great that Shiz commanded his people that they should not pursue the armies of Coriantumr; wherefore, they returned to their camp. Ether 14:31
38:39 Now when the people of Columbia beheld the valiant Porter, they were rejoiced with exceeding great joy; And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts. Mosiah 18:11
21:26 Britain in her folly had invented a new instrument of destruction, which they called Congreve Rockets the great plan of destruction which they had laid for those who believed in the words of the prophets had been frustrated 3 Nephi 1:16
28:23 Thus committing a sin, by violating the eighth commandmant of God, which saith, THOU SHALT NOT STEAL. For I remember the word of God, which saith by their works ye shall know them Moroni 7:5
54:10 the battering-rams of the king began to utter their noises Now the servants of the king began to murmur Alma 17:28
10:16, 54:21 and the army of the king fled: and Chrystie was wounded in the palm of his hand.

for the warriors of the king fled in confusion

Now the servants of the king fled; and the servants of Amalickiah raised a cry Alma 47:25
53:16 Jackson went out with his army against them Jacob, who was a Zoramite, would not come out with his army to meet them upon the plains. Alma 52:20
25:6 Now it came to pass, in the second year of the war, on the twenty-third day of the sixth month, And now it came to pass in the second month of this year, there was brought unto us many provisions Alma 56:27
13:28 Not many days after those things, it came to pass, that the hearts of the lords and the counsellors of Britain were rejoiced. And it came to pass that the hearts of the sons of Mosiah, and also those which were with them, took courage to go forth unto the Lamanites Alma 17:12
3:29 Inasmuch as it may cause the people to rise up one against another, and spill the blood of their own children. therefore, he was about to flatter away those people to rise up in rebellion against their brethren. Helaman 1:7
32:7 And when he saw the men of Columbia approach, he destroyed the fort Therefore when Zerahemnah saw the men of Lehi on the east of the river Sidon, ... they were struck with terror. Alma 43:53
3:35 But when the chief governor and the great Sanhedrim of the people saw the wickedness of Caleb, their hearts were moved with pity toward him and his followers Now it came to pass that when Nephi, the son of Nephi, saw the wickedness of his people, his heart was exceedingly sorrowful. 3 Nephi 1:10
3:5 For, verily, shall we suffer these cunning Yankees to beard the mighty lion ... ? And Alma cried, saying: How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? Alma 14:26
38:26 Nevertheless, David said unto the captains of the king, Come singly, and not like cowards, upon me; then shall ye receive the thunders of the freemen of Columbia abundantly; by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; 2 Nephi 31:13
19:33-34 Behold! a man of Britain appeareth in the fort ; suffer me, I pray thee, to slay him, for he is busied with the destroying engines: But Zebulon said, Nay ; we are yet a great way off. I command you to bring Abinadi hither, that I may slay him: for he hath said these things, that he might stir up my people to anger Mosiah 11:28
15:12 Even as the wickedness of the war, which the great Sanhedrim have made, against the king, cannot prosper, so shall ye fall a prey to the folly thereof. Even as this scalp has fallen to the earth, which is the scalp of your chief, so shall ye fall to the earth except ye will deliver up your weapons of war and depart with a covenant of peace. Alma 44:14
55:29-30 And the beauty thereof was as if, from the blue and spangled vault of heaven, it had showered diamonds; And all the nations of the earth beheld the glory of Columbia. and the beauty thereof was far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and the whiteness thereof, did exceed the whiteness of the driven snow. 1 Nephi 11:8
26:24 So their chiefs and their counsellors rose up and made war against the province of Canada, and fought against the hired savages of the king of Britain. ... for [their laws] were established according to the minds of them which was their chiefs and their leaders. 3 Nephi 7:14
14:40 And the flames and the smoke arose! and their cries and their groans reached the high chancery of heaven, they did rend the air with their cries, and their howlings, and their mournings, for the loss of the slain of their people. Ether 15:17
42:20 he took and destroyed their strong holds, and slew many of them, [robbers began to sally forth from] their strong holds, and their secret places 3 Nephi 4:1
53:24 the captains and the host of Britain arrayed themselves in their might to go against the hold of Jackson with their whole force. and they did exert themselves in their might, to do according to the words of Lachoneus. 3 Nephi 3:16
23:24 The officers and soldiers of Columbia fought bravely, and there were many slain and wounded on both sides And it came to pass that they fought on both hands with exceeding fury; and there were many slain on both sides; yea, and Moroni was wounded and Jacob was killed. Alma 52:35
15:22 But when Bainbridge, who saw this, came down upon them a second time, they humbled themselves, and drew down the British cross. they humbled themselves, and put their trust in the true and living God Alma 5:13
42:6 And on the fifteenth day of the month, after they had prepared themselves, they rushed forth with all their might against the strong hold of Columbia. and they did follow Ammon, and they rushed forth with much swiftness, and did head the flocks of the king Alma 17:32
34:6 So about this time they took their weapons of death in their hands, and went against the strong hold of Fort Minims for they took their weapons of war, and they would that Helaman should be their leader Alma 53:19
33:30 when the Prince Regent, and the chief counsellors, and the wise men of Britain, heard the tidings, for a truth, that their fleet and their army were captured, they were astonished beyond measure. Now it came to pass that after Alma and his brethren, and his sons, had heard these prayers, they were astonished beyond all measure. Alma 31:19
17:17 the slaves of Britain ... for they were like unto a giant going out against a bulrush. And they were like unto the Jews, which were at Jerusalem 1 Nephi 2:13
39:9 And he received great praise throughout the land for this gallant exploit. there was a cry of war heard throughout the land; for behold, the armies of the Lamanites had come Alma 16:1-2
46:9-10 In the meantime, Downie, the chief captain of the fleet of Britain upon the lake, had prepared himself to assist Prevost on a certain day appointed. When he was to come out against the fleet of Columbia, which was commanded by the gallant Macdonough. And when we saw that they were making preparations to come out against us, behold, I caused that Gid, with a small number of men, should secrete himself in the wilderness Alma 58:16
7:26 Inasmuch as they were compelled to flee before the arms of Columbia: and Miller gat great honor thereby. And their armies were so numerous, that the remainder of the people of Nephihah were obliged to flee before them Alma 59:8
40:9 it came to pass, that Jacob, the chief captain of the host of Columbia, ... crossed the river and captured fort Erie And it came to pass that Jacob, being their leader ... led the Lamanites forth to battle Alma 52:33
45:23 Now the art of printing was not known among the ancients ; for it was invented in these latter days therefore Kishkumen was not known among the people of Nephi, for he was in disguise at the time that he murdered Pahoran Helaman 1:12
28:8 Moreover, the wickedness which had been committed at Hampton, was noised abroad, even from the shores of Virginia to lake Champlain. and whosoever of those which belonged to their band, should reveal unto the world of their wickedness and their abominations, should be tried, not according to the laws of their country, but according to the laws of their wickedness, which had been given by Gadianton and Kishkumen Helaman 6:24
53:16-17 But, that the host of Britain might be discomfited at the onset, Jackson went out with his army against them; but the men of war of tbe king were twofold greater than the men of Columbia, so Jackson was unable to drive them away. However, he fought bravely against them, and slew numbers of them; albeit, the slain and maimed of Columbia were about two hundred, so Jackson drew back to his entrenchments, and strengthened himself there. And it came to pass that Teancum made preparations to make an attack upon the city of Mulek, and march forth with his army against the Lamanites; but he saw that it was impossible that he could overpower them while they were in their fortifications; therefore he abandoned his designs, and returned again to the city Bountiful, to wait for the coming of Moroni, that he might receive strength to his army. Alma 52:17
43:6 Although Hardy, the chief captain of the king's ships, had threatened to destroy the place ; saying, Remove from the town your women and your children, who are innocent and fight not. may the peace of God rest upon you, and upon your houses and land, and upon your flocks and herds, and all that you possess; your women and your children, according to your faith and good works Alma 7:27

BYU Study 2009

Sara Cranford study of The Late War, 2009
  Topics: Book of Mormon, Translation
  Author: Gilbert J. Hunt
  Title of Book: The Late War, Between the United States and Great Britain
  Title of Article:
  Title of Periodical:
  Place of Publication: New York
  Publisher: Daniel D. Smith
  Date of Publication: 1819
  Library Location: Microfiche Z 1201.S32 Unit 179, 17184-18187
  

Nature of Source: Grunder describes this as an "essentially naive, jingoistic, but extremely popular panoply of American virtues in the face of British wickedness in the war of 1812." However, he justifies putting it on the list because Hunt writes his book in biblical style, which, according to Grunder, illustrates "the ease with which works that sounded like the Bible could be written and marketed in the early United States."

Comment: The author admittedly tries to imitate Biblical style in his writings. He divides his book into chapters and verses and uses similar wording as the Bible. His work does not include books (like Matthew, Mark, etc.) but instead just has chapter and verse numbers. To the untrained eye, the book clearly does resemble Biblical style. However, a trained scholar in ancient texts would easily be able to pick out obvious differences. Furthermore, there is clearly a major difference in content between Hunt's book and the Book of Mormon. Joseph did not try to merely write a familiar historical event in Biblical fashion. His book was of a content never before heard, an entirely new history, and one that he claimed to be directly from God.

Excerpt (pages):
"17 Now it was on the eighteenth day of the fifth month, in the same year, in the afterpart of the day..." (310).
"24 Now these things happened nigh unto a place called Carthagene, on the borders of Spain, and when the Spaniards beheld the skill and prowess of the people of Columbia, they were amazed" (311).
"2 But lo! When his fleet arrived there..." (315).
"39 Now it came to pass, when Jackson heard that Pensacola, the capital of west Florida, had become a resting place for the enemies of Columbia..."(263).
Length of Relevant Material: 317 pps.

Hebraisms

The presence of hebraisms and semiticisms in The Book of Mormon is important to some scholars, as well as leaders of the LDS church, who believe the Book of Mormon is a translation of an ancient record:
If anyone is foolish enough or misled enough to reject 531 pages of a heretofore unknown text teeming with literary and Semitic complexity without honestly attempting to account for the origin of those pages—especially without accounting for their powerful witness of Jesus Christ and the profound spiritual impact that witness has had on what is now tens of millions of readers—if that is the case, then such a person, elect or otherwise, has been deceived; and if he or she leaves this Church, it must be done by crawling over or under or around the Book of Mormon to make that exit. — Apostle Jeffrey R. Holland

From the FAIR wiki:

The presence of hebraisms does not prove the Book of Mormon is an ancient record, but they suggest that the translation was (at times, at least) relatively 'tight,' and require the critic to explain where Joseph Smith would have picked up such expressions in rural New York of the 1820s.

For a Semiticism to be strong evidence it must be:

FAIR wiki

Cognate Accusative

the word denoting the object of a verb is sometimes derived from the same root as the verb itself. "Behold," says the prophet Lehi, "I have dreamed a dream." — FAIR wiki
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
8:21 And the great Sanhedrim honored Isaac with great honor Behold, I have dreamed a dream 1 Nephi 3:2
13:4 he spake unto Decatur, saying And I did teach my people to build buildings 2 Nephi 5:15
38:39 they were rejoiced with exceeding great joy
1:10-11 therefore they murmured, and their murmurings have been heard

Whirlwind

Claim:
If Joseph had authored the Book of Mormon rather than translated it, he naturally would have used tornado rather than whirlwind as a reflection of his "vocabulary, environment, and perceptions" or his "language and vernacular." He certainly would have had no way of knowing that whirlwind was the legitimate choice as a reflection of Maya languages from Mesoamerica....

Joseph's choice of whirlwind rather than tornado went beyond his upstate New York "vocabulary, environment, and perceptions" or "language and vernacular."

The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
9:1 NOW the movements of the enemy were as the motion of a whirlwind, which passeth from the north to the south, and from the east to the west. for behold, the whole face of the land changed, because of the tempest, and the whirlwinds, and the thunderings, and the lightnings 3 Nephi 8:12

Negative Questions

In Hebrew, questions that require a yes or no answer are prefixed by ha (an interrogative particle), and negative questions are prefixed by halo (the particle plus the word for no). In contrast to a "simple question, when the questioner is wholly uncertain as to the answer to be expected," these negative questions, Hebrew scholars have pointed out, sometimes have an "exclamatory nuance" or "a special force of asseveration" (i.e., they are being used for rhetorical effect, conveying positive or even emphatic force). [...]

One good example of a potentially Hebrew-based negative question in the Book of Mormon comes from Helaman 9, where Nephi is accused of murdering the chief judge, Seezoram. In prophetically sending the authorities to the true assassin, Seantum, Nephi instructs them to ask Seantum, "From whence cometh this blood [on your cloak]? Do we not know that it is the blood of your brother?" (Helaman 9:32). In other words, "We do indeed know that it is the blood of your brother."

Ben Spackman "Negative Questions in the Book of Mormon", by Ben Spackman, Insights, Vol. 26, Issue 4.
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
3:23-24 For, lo! are not the fighting men of Britain in multitude as the sand on the sea shore? and shall we prevail against them? Are not the mighty ships of the king spread over the whole face of the waters? is not Britain the "bulwark of our religion?" For do ye not remember the priests of thy father, whom this people sought to destroy? And are they not in the wilderness? And are not they the ones who have stolen the daughters of the Lamanites? Mosiah 20:18
5:4 Now the armies of the king of Britain, are they not numbered and written in the book of Hume, the scribe? is not their name a terror to all nations? ... and behold are we not broken off from the house of Israel, and are we not a branch of the house of Israel? 1 Nephi 15:12
6:38 if injury can be prevented, shall we not rather with our might endeavor to help him? Know ye not that he was holy? 2 Nephi 31:7
16:32 Lo ! are we not the faithful servants of the king, our master ? have we not given unto him the one half of our whole substance? ... Is it not the loftiness of thy vineyard—have not the branches thereof overcome the roots which are good? Jacob 5:48
For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have ... ? Mosiah 4:19
And now, is not this grievous to be borne? And is not this, our affliction, great? Now behold, how great reason we have to mourn. Mosiah 7:23
ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true Moroni 10:4
For behold, doth not my voice shake the earth? And can ye not also behold me before you? Mosiah 27:15
Behold, I can tell you—did not my father Alma believe in the words which were delivered by the mouth of Abinadi? And was he not a holy prophet? Did he not speak the words of God, and my father Alma believe them? Alma 5:11
Now was not this exceeding joy? Alma 27:18
Is it not as necessary that the plan of redemption should be made known unto this people as well as unto their children? Alma 39:18
Is it not as easy at this time for the Lord to send his angel to declare these glad tidings unto us as unto our children, or as after the time of his coming? Alma 39:19
They have fled; does not this testify against them? Alma 47:34

Construct State

When English shows a possessive or descriptive relationship between two nouns, it usually puts the possessive or descriptive noun first: the king's house or wood house. Hebrew, however, uses the opposite order: house the king (which would usually be translated house of the king) or house wood (house of wood). If the Hebrew word order is kept in the English translation, the word of must be added, even though it does not exist in the Hebrew.

The Book of Mormon contains a large number of what appear to be translations from the Hebrew preserving the Hebrew word order:

— The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon, by John A. Tvedtnes
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
3:4 rod of iron... hewers of wood... drawers of water rod of iron 1 Nephi 8:19
3:33 words of Satan words of plainness Jacob 4:14
26:18 ways of God... path of righteousness works of righteousness Alma 5:16
15:17 balls of lead... balls of iron chains of hell Alma 5:7
21:38 pen of iron voice of the Spirit 1 Nephi 4:18
skin of blackness 2 Nephi 5:21
night of darkness Alma 34:33
plates of brass 1 Nephi 3:24

Compound Prepositions

Hebrew often uses compound prepositions, made up of a preposition plus a noun, in places where English would normally use just a preposition. For example, Hebrew uses compound prepositions that would be translated literally as by the hand of and by the mouth of. English would normally use just by. The Book of Mormon contains many examples that appear to show the influence of this Hebrew use of compound prepositions: — The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon, by John A. Tvedtnes
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
43:2 But it was lighted up by the hand of heaven ye shall be taken by the hand of your enemies Mosiah 17:18
I have also acquired much riches by the hand of my industry Alma 10:4
sold into Egypt by the hands of his brethren Alma 10:3
Hebrew uses another compound preposition that would be translated literally as from before the presence of or from before the face of. English would normally use simply from. The influence of the Hebrew can be seen in these Book of Mormon passages: — The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon, by John A. Tvedtnes
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
48:34 the host of Britain was compelled to flee from before the city they fled from before my presence 1 Nephi 4:28
he had gone from before my presence 1 Nephi 11:12
they were carried away ... from before my face 1 Nephi 11:29

Adverbials

Hebrew has fewer adverbs than English. Instead, it often uses prepositional phrases with the preposition meaning in or with. The English translation of the Book of Mormon contains more of these prepositional phrases in place of adverbs than we would expect if the book had been written in English originally—another Hebraism. — The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon, by John A. Tvedtnes
The Late WarBook of Mormon
LocationQuotationQuotationLocation
7:43 with reverence with patience Mosiah 24:15
8:48 with joy with joy Jacob 4:3
14:21 with great violence with much harshness 1 Nephi 18:11
17:15, 14:36 in sorrow

in abundance

in spirit and in truth Alma 34:38
16:34 in safety in righteousness 1 Nephi 20:1
16:37 with sorrow with gladness 2 Nephi 28:28

Why War?

Lesson 31: "Firm in the Faith of Christ", Book of Mormon Gospel Doctrine Teacher's Manual, (1999), p.138

"Why do you think Mormon included so much information about war in the Book of Mormon?"

Sources

There are 3 editions of The Late War:
1 expand TLW to "The Late War Between the United States and Great Britain from June 1812 to February 1815"

The 1817 and 1819 editions are almost identical. The authors have a word-for-word comparison of the 1816 and 1819 editions available here.

The full, manually corrected texts are also available.

Authors

For further information about the computer analysis of 130,000 books that lead to the discovery of The Late War, please see our notes on the Hidden in Plain Sight study.

Credits