Marie -- > I've read that at times, German officials delayed reporting Hessian > desertions in order to continue receiving payment from the British. How > likely is this to happen? How long could this have been delayed? In the case of the your ancestor who was in the Ansbach-Bayreuth troops, I have examined some of the muster-rolls/ paybooks submitted to the British for payment. The troops were mustered then passed in revue before a British officer on a semi-anual basis. The reporting periods were 25 June to 24 Dec then 25 Dec to 24 June. If a man was not present, then the payroll contained a written report explaining his absence; i.e., on picket duty, in the hospital, deserted, died, etc.. The pass en revue sometimes wasn't held for several months afyer the end of the reporting period. For example, the 24 Dec 1782 pass en revue was conducted on 13 March 1783 (changes between 25 Dec 1782 and 13 Marc 1783 are noted); however, the 24 June 1783 pass en revue was conducted 25 June 1783 at Harlem. Städtler lists your man as: "Rührschneck, Johann, Gemeiner, A I. Juni 1783" Translated this says he was a Private in A I (which was the Leibkompanie of the Ansbach Regiment {sometimes called "1st Battalion, Ansbach-Bayreuth Regiment} commanded first by Obrist [Colonel] Friedrich Ludwig Albrecht von Eyb who returned to Europe and was superseded on 05 May 1778 by Obrist August Valentin von Voit von Salzburg). The phrase "Juni 1783" indicates that the last record of the man was June 1783 following the 25 June 1783 pass en revue. It is my educated guess that he was listed in the musterroll for 25 Dec 1782 to 24 June 1783 covering von Voit's company but that Städtler could find no diembarkation return for him in the Sep 1783 returns in Germany. My experience is that men marked "Juni 1783" either deserted after or never existed, being "phantoms" resultant from the open-loop data base used by Städtler. In your case, your Rührschneck remained in America. I only have copies of the payrolls for thr A-B Jägers so can only guess at Rührschneck's service. "A I" surrendered with Cornwallis at Yorktown in Oct 1781 and became POWs at Winchester VA before moving to Frederick MD. "Juni 1783' suggests he was repatriated, returned to New York, drew some pay and decided he was going to stay in America. <clip> If a Hessian POW signed an oath of allegiance and paid his $80 for freedom > at the end of the war, would the German Army records still reflect him as > being a "deserter"? <clip> The A-B's would list him as a deserter. There was no $80 fee after the peace treaty was signed. Bob Brooks