The militia played a big role in early tensions between the colonies and Great Britain. For example, the minute men were militia men that were trained to right on a minutes notice. They were the people who fought the British in the battle of Lexington and Concord.
Great Britain forces were considered the strongest around that time, with many well trained soldiers, and their weapons were also superior to the colonist's, but the american militia had the home field advantage, they knew the ground better, they could communicate faster and they could gather local support more efficiently; they basically were ready for the battle faster that any other army, providing a rapidly deployed force allowing the colonies to respond immediately to Great Britain threats.
