Section 4-Polling Question

1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D

How important do you think planning is to the successful outcome of a project?

A. Very important

B. Somewhat important

C. Somewhat unimportant

D. Very unimportant

Chapter 6 The American Revolution (1776-1783)

Lesson 4 The Final Years

Essential Question

• How did the Battle of Yorktown lead to American independence?

How did the Battle of Yorktown lead to American independence?

The French Arrive

• July 1780- French warships appeared off the coast of Newport, Rhode Island
• Carrying needed aid: soldiers commanded by Comte de Rochambeau
• The British soon arrived and trapped the French troops
• Autumn 1780- Washington waited for a second fleet of French ships
• Washington also kept an eye on the British army in New York that General Clinton commanded
• Washington planned to attack the British when the second French fleet arrived
• The French fleet did not set sail until summer of 1781

Washington’s Plans

• Washington heard that Cornwallis was camped at Yorktown, Virginia
• Lafayette kept them on the Yorktown peninsula
• Washington also learned that Admiral Francois de Grasse, the French naval commander, was heading toward Chesapeake Bay instead of New York
• Washington changed his plans and headed south to Yorktown
• Washington kept his new strategy (plan of action) secret

Washington’s Secret Plan

• Washington wanted Clinton to think the Patriots still planned to attack the British in New York
• This would keep Clinton from sending aid to Cornwallis
• Rochambeau joined with Washington in July and the two armies moved south
• The soldiers did not know where they were heading
• Troops marched 200 miles in 15 days
• General Clinton didn’t detect the forces leaving
• Three groups (Wahington’s, Rochambeau’s, and de Grasse’s) would meet at Yorktown

The Siege of Yorktown

• The plan worked perfectly
• The British were confused
• End of September 1781- 14,000 American and French troops trapped Cornwallis’ 8,000 British and Hessian troops at Yorktown
• De Grasse’s fleet kept the Cornwallis from escaping by sea
• Clinton’s and the rest of the British army was still in New York

Battle of Yorktown

• October 9- Americans and French began a bombardment
• A Hessian soldier said “One saw men lying everywhere… whose heads, arms, and legs had been shot off”
• British supplies began to run low
• British soldiers were wounded and sick
• Cornwallis realized that the situation was hopeless
• October 19- Cornwallis surrendered his troops to the Patriots at the Battle of Yorktown
• Patriots took 8,000 British prisoners and more than 200 guns

After Yorktown

• Fighting did not end
• The British still held Savannah, Charles Town, and New York
• A few more battles took place, but the victory at Yorktown convinced the British that the war was too costly to pursue (continue)
• Both sides sent delegates to Paris to work out a treaty
• The United States were represented by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay
• The American congress ratified (approved) the preliminary treaty in April 1783 and the final version of the Treaty of Paris on September 3, 1783

The Treaty of Paris

• Triumph for the Americans
• Great Britain recognize the US as an independent nation
• The British agreed to withdraw all their troops
• The US also got fishing rights of the coast of Canada
• The US agreed that the British merchants could collect debts that Americans owed them
• Loyalist property was also to be returned

Section 4

1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D

Which of the following is NOT a provision of the Treaty of Paris?

A. The Loyalists would have a � year to move to British territory.

B. Britain would withdraw its troops � from American territory.

C. Americans could fish in the � waters off the coast of Canada.

D. British merchants could collect � debts the Americans owed them.

The Newburgh Conspiracy

• Washington’s army was headquartered in Newburgh, New York
• The Congress refused to fund the soldiers’ pensions and failed to provide them with other pay
• The army got mad and said they would use force against the Congress
• Washington knew this was dangerous and he persuaded the angry soldiers to be patient
• Washington urged Congress to meet their demands
• Congress responded to Washington and met the demands

Washington Resigns

• November 1783- British troops left New York
• December 4, Washington said farewell to his troops
• Washington formally resigned three weeks later
• “Having now finished the work assigned me I retire… and take my leave of all the employments of public life”
• Washington returned home to Mount Vernon, Virginia in time for Christmas
• He planned to remain and live quietly with his family

Why the Americans Won

• They were fighting on their own land
• The British had to send troops from thousands of miles away
• The British depended on the sea and once the French blocked their ships they were helpless
• Americans knew the local terrain and where to lay an ambush (Surprise attack)
• The British had trouble controlling the American countryside once they occupied the cities

More of Why the Americans Won

• Help from other nations
• The French and Spanish helped the American cause
• The American Revolution was a peoples movement
• It depended on the determination and spirit of all Patriots

Influence of the American Revolution

• The ideas of the Declaration of Independence influenced other revolutions
• The French Revolution
• The French Colony of Saint Domingue
• The principles that “Men are born and remain free and equal in rights” guided these revolutions

Essential Question

• How did the Battle of Yorktown lead to American independence?

How did the Battle of Yorktown lead to American independence?

​

- The British losses at Yorktown convinced Britain that the war was too costly to pursue.

True

False

lost

False

Paris

True

False

Retire and go home to Mount Vernon

False

Americans

True

Chapter 6 Lesson 4 Quiz

Due to George Washington's strategy, Charles Cornwallis was defeated at the

1. Battle of Boston.
2. Battle of Yorktown.
3. Battle of New York.
4. Battle of Chesapeake.

What Patriot victory convinced the British that the war was too difficult and costly to pursue?

1. Battle of Chesapeake
2. Battle of New York
3. Battle of Yorktown
4. Battle of Boston

The British recognized the United States as an independent nation in the

1. Treaty of Paris.
2. Treaty of the United States.
3. Treaty of Great Britain.
4. Treaty of America.

Which foreign troops helped defeat Charles Cornwallis?

1. Spanish
2. African
3. French
4. German

The British were attacked in the Mississippi Valley and along the Gulf of Mexico by forces from

1. France.
2. Africa.
3. Germany.
4. Spain.

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