Ch. 6 - The American Revolution

Section 1: The Early Years

1. Americans divided
• Independence declared July 4, 1776
• About 20-30 percent of Americans were still Loyalists:
• Those that supported Britain during the war
• Also known as Tories
• Many located in New York & the South
• Sometimes changed sides depending upon which army was closer
• About 40-45 percent are Patriots:
• Those that supported independence
• Many located in New England & Virginia
• The rest remain neutral

Section 1: The Early Years

• Most Native Americans fight for British – WHY?
• Afraid that if Americans won, they would take their lands west of Appalachians
• Some Native Americans side with Patriots
• What about African Americans/enslaved?
• Lord Dunmore offers freedom to enslaved African Americans that run away from plantations to fight for the British
• About 25,000 fight for British
• In response, all States, except for South Carolina, admit African Americans into army (by the end of the war) – why were they reluctant to do so?
• About 5,000 fight for Continental Army in hopes of earning greater freedoms after the war

Section 1: The Early Years

2. British Advantages:
1. Strongest navy in the world
2. Experienced, well-trained army
3. Wealth of a world-wide empire
4. Larger population

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Section 1: The Early Years

3. Patriot Advantages:
1. British relied on mercenaries (hired soldiers) to fight
• Hessians (Germans) were motivated by $$$ rather than a cause
2. Knowledge of the land
3. MOST IMPORTANT - Fought on own Soil
• Greater spirit and determination to protect it
4. General George Washington

Hessian soldier

Section 1: The Early Years

4. Raising an Army
• Congress had difficulty raising an army and $$$ to supply the troops – Why?
• Each State recruited soldiers & provided money for the Continental Army (huge problem)
• Soldiers signed up for one year of service (though Washington appealed to them to serve longer)
• Women served in the army in a few cases
• Molly (Hayes) “Pitcher”: carried water to tired soldiers on the battlefield
• Deborah Sampson: dressed up as a man & fought in several battles
• Margaret Corbin (pic): took her husband’s place on battlefield after he fell

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Section 1: The Early Years

5. Washington’s early strategy:
1. Keep his army in the field (together) – don’t get captured
2. Fight/Win small battles
• Guerrilla Warfare: surprise hit-and-run attacks
3. Avoid major battles until the army is larger

General George Washington

Section 1: The Early Years

6. Fighting in New York
• British Commander – General William Howe sent 32,000 Redcoats to New York City
• Patriots had around 20,000 troops
• Longest Battle = Battle of Long Island (August 1776)
• Fighting lasts several months; British crush the Americans who were outnumbered & ran short of supplies
• British note that many of the dead had no shoes, socks or jackets and knew the Patriot army would have a difficult winter as they had no blankets
• British capture famous American spy, Nathan Hale -
• Sentenced to be hanged by British; body is left up as an example
• Famous last words: “ I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”

Section 1: The Early Years

7. A Low Point for the Patriots
• Winter 1776-1777, the Patriot Cause near collapse
• Size of Continental Army dwindled
• Some completed their service; some ran away
• Washington pleaded with Continental Congress for more troops

Section 1: The Early Years

8. Battles of Trenton & Princeton, New Jersey (1776)
1. British remain in NY for the winter
2. Washington moves his army to New Jersey after losing NY
3. Typically, no fighting takes place during winter
4. In desperate need of a victory, Washington decided to attack on Christmas Day to catch the British by surprise
5. What happened?
• Washington & his troops crossed the Delaware River and surprised 1,500 Hessians who were “asleep” after a Christmas night celebration
• More than 1,000 killed or captured
6. Follow it up with another victory at Princeton 8 days later
7. Victories serve as a huge morale booster for the Continental Army & convinces soldiers to stay in the army

Section 2: The War Continues

1. Patriots slow the British Plans
1. British plan was to have all 3 armies meet in Albany, however their plans are delayed:
1. William Howe sends word that he is going to go to Philadelphia instead of Albany
2. Benedict Arnold’s (Continental Army) troops defeat Barry St. Leger’s men at Fort Stanwix

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Fort Stanwix

Section 2: The War Continues

2. Battle of Saratoga
1. British General John Burgoyne moved too slowly and also was delayed.
• After recapturing Fort Ticonderoga from the Americans, he sends troops to capture supplies at Bennington, VT but is defeated by a local militia called the Green Mountain Boys
• Desperate for supplies, Burgoyne takes his army towards Saratoga, NY

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Ft. Ticonderoga

Section 2: The War Continues

• Led by Horatio Gates, the Continental Army surrounds Burgoyne on his way to Saratoga
• Series of battles break out between the British & American troops, known as Battles of Saratoga
• Benedict Arnold (who had been shot in the leg), forced the British to retreat to the south
• Burgoyne’s army is soon surrounded by Horatio Gates
• Reinforcements that Burgoyne was expecting did not arrive and he was forced to surrender - 5,700 soldiers in total
• General William Howe resigns and is replaced by General Henry Clinton
• Saratoga is considered to be the TURNING POINT of the war for the Americans

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Painting of Burgoyne surrendering to Horatio Gates, October 17, 1777

(Benedict Arnold should have been the one to accept the surrender…)

Section 2: The War Continues

• Results of the Battle of Saratoga:
1. Helps convince European nations that Americans might win the war, and they agree to support the Continental Army

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• Benedict Arnold angry about lack of recognition, betrays his army & fights with the British for the remainder of the war.

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Section 2: The War Continues

3. Gaining Allies
1. Victory at Saratoga boosted American spirits:
• Was a turning point in the war
• Ben Franklin was in France trying to get Britain’s rivals to help the Americans
2. FRANCE
• After Saratoga, King Louis XVI announced support for America
• Declared war on Britain
• Sent $$$, equipment, and troops to help the war effort

Section 2: The War Continues

• Spain (hated Britain also):
• Declared war on Britain in 1779
• Opened Mississippi River for States to use
• Fought British troops around Louisiana
• Forced Britain to fight in many different places (divide and conquer)

Section 2: The War Continues

4. Winter at Valley Forge (1777-1778)
1. British were staying in Philadelphia for the winter
2. Washington and his 15,000 troops were at Valley Forge, 20 miles west of Philadelphia
• Conditions for the Continental Army were terrible:
• Lacked decent food, clothing, shelter
• Lacked blankets, shirts, many barefoot
• Washington struggled to keep the army together:
• Many deserted: left the army without permission
• Officers resigned
3. Somehow they survived the winter and new soldiers joined in the Spring
4. Spirits rose with news of French Alliance

Washington at Valley Forge, 1777-78

Section 2: The War Continues

5. Help from Overseas
1. French – Marquis de Lafayette:
• Trusted aide of Washington

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• Germans - Friedrich von Steuben:
• Trained troops at Valley Forge

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• Spanish – Juan de Miralles:
• Helped raise $$$ for American cause

Marquis de Lafayette

Section 2: The War Continues

6. Financial Problems
1. Continental Congress had problems raising money for the war:
1. Had no power to tax
2. Tried to print paper money, but printed too much and created inflation (currency became worthless)

Section 3: The War Moves South

1. Glory at Sea
1. Britain used its powerful navy to blockade American ports and prevented American allies from sending troops

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• Continental Congress ordered building of 13 warships
• Unsuccessful – only two made it to sea
• Others destroyed or captured by British

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• Privateers – private merchant ships with weapons were more successful than the American navy against the British

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• Congress authorized 2,000+ privateers to attack British ships

Section 3: The War Moves South

• First great success story at sea came from naval officer John Paul Jones:
• Raided British ports during the war
• 1779, Jones’s ship, the Bonhomme Richard, fought the British warship, the Serapis, for several hours.
• During the battle, the British captain asked Jones if he wished to surrender.
• Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight.”
• In the end, the Serapis surrendered
• Jones became the 1^st American naval hero (even though the Bonhomme Richard sank not long after the battle).

“I have not yet begun to fight.”

-John Paul Jones

Bonhomme Richard vs. Serapis

The Deadly Embrace: BONHOMME RICHARD and HMS SERAPIS, 8:30pm Sept. 23, 1779

Section 3: The War Moves South

2. Struggles in the South
1. 1778 Britain’s new strategy was to attack the South where they had the most Loyalists
• British General Lord Charles Cornwallis captured Savannah, Charles Town (worst defeat of the war), & Camden easily but had difficulty controlling all of the land after their victories

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• In response, Americans used guerrilla warfare: Surprise hit and run attacks
• Francis Marion: “The Swamp Fox”
• Used the swamps of South Carolina as a base of operations
• Fought using guerrilla warfare, harassing the British and keeping their troops tied down in South Carolina.

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The character, Benjamin Martin

from The Patriot, most closely

represents Francis Marion

Section 3: The War Moves South

3. Patriot Victories in the South
1. Americans defeat British at King’s Mountain forcing the British to retreat
• Victory brought new support for independence from Southerners
2. General Daniel Morgan defeated Cornwallis’ forces at Cowpens, SC forcing the British to retreat again (True turning point!!!)
• Cornwallis & the British are forced to abandon the Carolina campaign in the South and head north toward Virginia; nearly capture Thomas Jefferson while heading toward Yorktown, Virginia

Section 4: The War is Won

Section 4: The War is Won

1. Change in Plans
1. By 1781, both sides needed a decisive victory to win the war
2. British were expecting an attack on New York City because Washington was camped north of the city.
3. Washington wanted to attack the British at Yorktown instead.
4. The plan:
1. French navy would arrive at Yorktown
2. Washington and French commander Comte de Rochambeau would move their troops to Yorktown to join the Continental Army troops already there
• Marched 200 miles in 15 days
3. Washington’s troops had to move carefully & secretly! – Why???
• Needed the British to still believe he was going to attack New York
5. British forces in New York figure it out too late!!!

Section 4: The War is Won

2. Siege of Yorktown
1. Siege: surrounding a city and not allowing supplies in
2. How long? Begins Sept 28, ends October 19, 1781
3. What happened?
• In Yorktown, 14,000 American and French troops surrounded 7,500 British and Hessian troops
• French navy kept British from escaping or getting supplies
• Americans and French bombarded Yorktown daily
4. After weeks of constant warfare, British surrender 8,000 troops

Cornwallis failed to surrender to

Washington citing “illness” and sends

a lower ranking officer to surrender

Section 4: The War is Won

3. Independence
1. Victory at Yorktown convinced British to end the war – Why?
• Fighting was too expensive and they had lost too many soldiers
2. Both sides met in Paris to work out a treaty
• American Representatives: Ben Franklin, John Adams, & John Jay
3. Continental Congress ratified treaty in April 1783; treaty signed in September 1783
4. Britain also made peace with France and Spain

Section 4: The War is Won

4. The Treaty of Paris
1. Results:
1. Great Britain recognized United States as an independent nation
2. Nation extended from Atlantic Ocean to Mississippi River and from Canada to Florida
3. British would withdraw troops from American territory
4. Americans agreed that British merchants could collect debts owed them
5. Congress agreed to advise the states to return Loyalist property

Section 4: The War is Won

5. Washington’s Farewell
1. With war over, Washington resigns command and returns to Mount Vernon
2. Planned to live quietly with his family
3. He felt he had completed his duty as a citizen, and gave up power

Section 4: The War is Won

6. Why the Americans won
1. Fought on own land
2. British couldn’t control frontier (easy to ambush)
3. General George Washington
4. Help from French and Spanish
5. #1 reason - Determination and spirit of the American people to be free

Section 4: The War is Won

7. Influence of the American Revolution
1. Directly inspired the French Revolution 10 years later
2. Ideals of the revolution spread all over the world

The End!

Section 1: The Early Years

9. British Strategy for Victory
1. Britain planned to take the Hudson River Valley (Albany, NY) to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies

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• 3 British armies plan to meet in Albany:
1. General “Gentleman” John Burgoyne: attack south from Canada; receives his nickname because he liked to PARTY & celebrate his victories (very slow moving because of it)
2. Lieutenant Colonel Barry St. Leger : attack from the west
3. General William Howe: attack north from New York City

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• Howe wins the Battle of Brandywine first, capturing Philadelphia and causing the Continental Congress to flee
• Washington counters by attacking at Germantown, but was forced to withdraw

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Section 1: The Early Years

3. General John Burgoyne moves too slowly
• Captured Fort Ticonderoga from Americans
• Sends troops to capture supplies at Bennington, VT but is defeated by local militia called Green Mountain Boys
• Desperate for supplies, Burgoyne heads toward Saratoga, NY

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Ft. Ticonderoga

• End of 6.1

Life on the Home Front

• War changed lives of all Americans
• Women took over men’s responsibilities at home
• Some questioned their role in society
• Women wanted equal education
• Abigail Adams pushed her husband, John Adams, to include women’s rights into their laws

Treatment of Loyalists

• Many Loyalists fought with the British against the Patriots

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• Some were spies or informants

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• Many fled the colonies during the war

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• If they stayed, they were treated harshly
• -jailed
• -tarred and feathered
• -property taken
• - or worse

Hopes for Equality

• The Declaration of Independence led some to question slavery
• Many religious Northerners wanted it to be outlawed (not going to happen for a lonnnnng time)

War in the West

• Important battles took place on the western frontier

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• Involved Native Americans, most of whom sided with the British
• Many raids on American settlements

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• Victory at Vincennes
• George Rogers Clark – Virginian Lt. Colonel
• Captures several British outposts on western frontier
• Helped strengthen American position in West

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George Rogers Clark

Help from Spain

• Bernardo de Galvez – Spanish governor of Louisiana
• Loaned $$$, supplies, and allowed Americans to trade through New Orleans

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• After Spain declared war on Britain, his armies took key British ports and helped secure America’s western and southern borders

Haunted painting of Bernardo de Galvez

British Retreat

• British commander General Cornwallis marches north to Virginia (almost capturing T. Jefferson)

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• Washington sends Lafayette and General Anthony Wayne to attack Cornwallis at Yorktown

General Cornwallis

Anthony Wayne