The American Revolution

1775-1783
British Strengths
When war erupted in 1775, it seemed clear that Britain would win. It had a large, well-
organized land army, and the Royal Navy was unmatched on the sea. Many of the British
troops in the e!olutionary War were !eterans who had fought in the "rench and Indian
War. #n the other hand, the $mericans had only a collection of undisciplined militiamen
who had ne!er fought %efore. &he $merican na!y was small and no match for the
thousand ships in the royal fleet. &he state of the army did impro!e after George
Washington whipped the ontinental Army into a professional fighting force, %ut the
odds still seemed hea!ily stac'ed in Britain(s fa!or.
American Strengths
)onetheless, the $mericans %elie!ed that they did ha!e a strong chance of success. &hey
had a lot at sta'e* unli'e the British, they were fighting on their home turf to protect their
own homes and families. +erhaps most important, they were also fighting a popular war
,a ma-ority of the colonists were patriots who strongly supported the fight for
independence. "inally, though most $mericans had no pre!ious military e.perience, their
militia units were usually close-'nit %ands of men, often neigh%ors, who ser!ed together
in defense of their own homes. &hey elected their own officers,usually men who did
ha!e some military training %ut who also 'new the territory well. &his nati!e officer
corps was a great source of strength, and as a result, $merican morale was generally
higher than morale in the oyal $rmy.
The Battle o! Bun"er #ill$ Boston$ %assachussets &'une 17$ 1775(
&he Battle of Bun'er /ill is the first ma-or %attle and !ictory of the e!olutionary War
for the $mericans. &he British suffered hea!y losses* o!er 011 wounded and 223 'illed,
including a nota%ly large num%er of officers. &he Battle of Bun'er /ill gi!es the
$mericans the confidence that they can and will fight against the British. "ollowing the
Battle of Bun'er /ill, &homas +aine pu%lishes the pamphlet, Common Sense, con!incing
many undecided $mericans to support the %attle for independence. In Common Sense,
+aine compared $merica to a child that has outgrown the need for its mother 45ngland6.
The Battle o! Trenton$ Ne) 'ersey &*ecem+er ,-$ 1775(
&his %attle, %est 'nown for its depiction in the painting, Washington 7rosses the
8elaware, too' place the day after 7hristmas, 1775. In this %attle, $merican forces led
%y 9eorge Washington, captured a fort manned %y 9erman mercenaries called /essians.
&he fort is captured with little resistance, and inspired soldiers to ser!e longer and
attracted new recruits to the cause.
The Battle o! Saratoga$ Ne) .or" &Se/tem+er-0cto+er$ 1777(
$fter numerous %attles, the turning point in the war came in 1777 at the Battle o!
Saratoga in upstate )ew :or'. When $merican forces won, their !ictory encouraged
1rance to pledge its support for the ;nited <tates in the 1ranco-American Alliance of
1770. $ year later, S/ain followed suit and also entered the war against Britain. <pain,
hoping to see Britain dri!en out of )orth $merica, had tacitly supported the $mericans
%y pro!iding them with munitions and supplies since the %eginning of the war. &heir
entry as com%atants too' pressure off the $mericans, as Britain was forced to di!ert
troops to fight the <panish elsewhere. "inally, the Netherlan2s entered the war against
Britain in 1701.
Winter at 3alley 1orge &Winter 1777-1778(
Washington and his men endure winter at =alley "orge, +ennsyl!ania. $ low point for the
$merican army, o!er 2,511 men die due to disease and hunger. With the help of
Washington(s presence, the winter at =alley "orge im%ued into soldiers a strong will to
perse!ere, endure, and later triumph o!er o%stacles and %ring independence to the ;nited
<tates.
ontinuing 4o/ular Su//ort
&hough the war went on for se!eral years, $merican popular support for it, especially
after "rance and <pain entered the fray, remained high. &he moti!ation for re%ellion
remained strong at all le!els of society, not merely among $merican military and political
leaders. Many historians %elie!e that it was this lasting popular support that ultimately
ena%led the ;nited <tates to fight as long as it did. $lthough the ;nited <tates did not
really >win? the war,there were no clearly decisi!e %attles either way,it was a%le to
sur!i!e long enough against the British to come to an impasse. "rench and <panish
assistance certainly helped the $mericans, %ut without the grassroots support of a!erage
$mericans, the re%ellion would ha!e @uic'ly collapsed.
The Surren2er at .or"to)n$ 3irginia &0cto+er 15$ 1781(
"ortified %y the "ranco-$merican $lliance, the $mericans maintained an impasse with
the British until 1701, when the $mericans laid siege to a large encampment of British
forces under 6or2 harles orn)allis at .or"to)n, =irginia. <cattered %attles persisted
until 170A, %ut the British, weary of the stalemate, decided to negotiate peace.
The 4eace o! 4aris
&he war came to an official close in <eptem%er 170A, when Britain, the ;nited <tates,
"rance, and <pain negotiated the 4eace o! 4aris. &he treaty granted land %etween the
$ppalachian Mountains and the Mississippi i!er to the $mericans and recognized the
;nited <tates as a new and independent country. &he last British forces departed )ew
:or' in )o!em%er 170A, lea!ing the $merican go!ernment in full control of the new
nation.