The Revolution Begins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EiSymRrKI4&index=7&list=PL8dPuuaLjXtMwmepBjTSG593eG7ObzO7s
Soldiers
British
● Used to winning
● Well equipped
● Well fed
● Well trained
Patriot● Young soldiers, under 16
● Little money or property
● Low pay, harsh conditions, high chance of death
● Could pay to have slave or someone else take your place
● African Americans fight for both sides - British soldiers promise them freedom if they help their cause
● Women (Patriots) = run farms and businesses, raising money for supplies, making clothes, messengers, nurses and spies.
● Native Americans typically side with British
Minorities in the War
Tori/Loyalists Patriots
● ⅕ of the people are loyal to the British
● Mainly found in the South and New York
A Country Divided
● ⅖ of the people loyal to the Patriots
● Mainly found in the New England colonies and Virginia
British
● Best army and navy in world● More soldiers + hessians● Superior weapons ● Controlled major cities =
Boston and NYC● Richest nation in the world ● Strong organized government
Advantages
Patriots
● Better leadership = Washington
● Home field advantage● Guerrilla style warfare● Foreign aid from France,
Spain and Holland● Motivation
British
● Distance - can take weeks tomonths to get there
● Gentlemen style warfare
● Empire around the world toworry about
Disadvantages
Patriots
● Had to start navy and army from scratch
● No formal government to make decisions
● Scarce supplies: money, clothing, food, guns, ammo
British
● Occupy coast - use their navy
● Get more loyalists
● Crush the army before they gained momentum
Early Strategies
Patriots
● Score early victories
● Which will gain more support - at home and abroad
● Get support from Spain and France
British
VICTORY # 1
Canada
Patriots
Leaders = Benedict Arnold and General Montgomery
Cities = Quebec and Montreal
Outcome: Montgomery wins Montreal in 1775 but he and Arnold lose Quebec. No chance of taking Canada.
British
Leaders = General William Howe
Year = 1776
Troops = 32,000
Outcome: Howe is able to push Washington and his troops back across the Hudson into New Jersey. British now control New York.
New York
Patriots
Leaders = General George Washington
Year = 1776
Troops = 23,000
Outcome: General Washington and his troops get their butts kicked. They are pushed back into New Jersey.
New York
Patriots
Leaders = Washington
Troops = 24,000
Outcome: Washington is able to take the Hessians by surprise at Trenton and defeat Cornwallis at Princeton. Thanks to the victory more Patriots enlist in the army and other re-enlisted.
Battle of Trenton and Princeton
British
Leader = Hessian soldiers and General Cornwallis
Year = December 25th, 1776 and January 2, 1777
Outcome: German mercenaries are caught unaware after celebrating Christmas and are defeated. 900 prisoners are taken. Cornwallis tries to defeat Washington at Princeton but is forced to flee.
Battle of Trenton and Princeton
British
Leader = General John Burgoyne and General Howe
Year = 1776
Outcome: Burgoyne would invade from Canada and take Fort Ticonderoga back. Howe would sail up the Hudson and attack from the south. Howe instead took Philadelphia and Burgoyne was forced to surrender at Saratoga to Horatio Gates. TURNING POINT!
Battle of Saratoga
Patriots
Leaders = General Horatio Gates
Outcome: Patriots block Burgoyne’s path by funneling them into thick forest, cutting down trees and damming the rivers to create obstacles. Militia are able to use Guerilla warfare against them. France and Spain decide to help out!
http://my.hrw.com/ss_2012/ms_ushist/eactivities/Animated_History/ah07_anim_warmiddle.html
Battle of Saratoga
● Marquis de Lafayette - Frenchmen who brought his own troops, ship and money to help the Patriots.
● France finally agrees to alliance - sends guns, money and ships.
French Assistance
Baron Friedrich von Steuben - Prussian military officer. Led with fear and respect. Made the army a force by drilling them in basic military drills.
Foreign AssistanceBernardo de Galvez - small army of Spanish soldiers, French Americans, colonists and Native Americans to help in the South.
Patriots
Leader = Washington
Year = 1777 - 1778
Troops = 12,000
Outcome: Lack of supplies, food and shelter lead to the death of ¼ of the soldiers. Von Stueben drilled soldiers while they were waiting at Valley Forge.
Valley Forge
Patriots
Leader = John Paul Jones
Outcome: America has to build navy from scratch. British have the best navy in the world. Instead of attacking directly, they attack their supplies. Get more ships from France and Spain.
Privateers = Privately owned ship that the government gives permission to attack an enemy’s merchant ship during war.
War at Sea
British
Native Americans will usually ally themselves with the British because they promise them they can keep their land.
War in the West
Patriots
George Rogers Clark takes a group of men over the mountains and captures important forts and trading posts.
British
Leader = General Henry Clinton
Year = 1778 - 1780
Outcome: Plan to use the Loyalists/Torie’s living in the South. Very brutal fighting. Britain sick of the war and want it to end. British take Georgia and then Charleston, South Carolina with minimal casualties. War is going in their favor.
War in the South
Patriots
Leader = General Horatio Gates and General Nathanael Greene
Outcome: Gates fails to drive British out of S.C. To attack British troops start to use Guerrilla warfare in the South.
Francis Marion becomes known as the Swamp Fox
War in the South
Patriots
Leaders = General Washington, General Greene, Lafayette
Outcome: Greene’s army begins harassing Cornwallis in Carolina. Lafayette blocks Cornwallis at Yorktown. Washington comes down from Virginia. French naval fleet seized control of the Chesapeake Bay. Keep attacking for weeks.
http://my.hrw.com/ss_2012/ms_ushist/eactivities/Animated_History/ah07_anim_waryork.html
Yorktown
British
Leader = General Cornwallis
Year = October 19th, 1781
Outcome: British now control the South, New York and Philadelphia. Cornwallis moves 7,200 to Yorktown, VA. Unable to escape by land or sea. Must surrender to Washington along with 8,000 men. Last major battle of the war
Yorktown
● Great Britain recognizes United States independence
● New boundarieso W to Mississippio N to Canada o S to Florida
● Each side pays war debts.
Treaty of Paris 1783
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