The American

Revolution 1776 - 1783

Terms and People

• Thomas Paine – American colonist and author of Common Sense

• Richard Henry Lee – delegate who introduced a resolution calling for independence to the Second Continental Congress

• resolution – formal statement of opinion

• preamble – introduction

• grievance – formal complaint

Americans

Divided The issue of separating from Great

Britain divided American society.

Estimates vary, but historians

believe that roughly 30% of

Americans were Loyalists,

roughly 30% were Patriots, and

the other 40% were Neutral or

undecided. Most Americans did

not support the Revolution.

The war divided Native Americans

and African Americans as well.

Differences over the war even split

families. For example, Benjamin

Franklin’s son William was a

loyalist. Franklin and his son

stopped speaking. William & Benjamin Franklin

Published in early 1776, Thomas

Paine’s helped

convince many Americans that a

complete break with Britain was

necessary.

In Common Sense, Paine made powerful arguments in favor of independence.

George III

is a

“royal

brute.”

Kings

should not

rule over

people.

Americans

should

govern

themselves.

In May of 1776, Virginia delegate Richard

Henry Lee introduced a resolution to

Congress declaring that the colonies should

be free and independent states.

Congress formed a committee to write a

statement explaining the reasons for

independence.

The statement was to be presented to

Congress, and the question of independence

was to be put to a vote.

Richard Henry Lee

Virginia’s Resolution

The Declaration

drafting committee

included

Roger Sherman,

Benjamin Franklin,

Robert Livingston,

Thomas Jefferson,

and John Adams.

Weeks before the Continental

Congress issued the Declaration of

Independence, Abigail Adams wrote

a letter to her husband John. The

letter admonished “In the new code

of Laws which I suppose it will be

necessary for you to make I desire

you would Remember the Laidies.”

Abigail continued “If perticuliar

care and attention is not paid to the

Laidies, we are determined to

forment a Rebellion, and will not

hold ourselves bound by any Laws

in which we have no voice, or

Representation.”

Remember the Laidies

Abigail Adams

explained the reasons

for breaking with

Britain and declared

the colonies free and

independent states. It

also stated that people

have the right to Life,

Liberty, and the

Pursuit of Happiness.

The colonists believed that the British

government had abused its powers by

taking away their rights.

has four

main parts:

1. The Preamble

2. Declaration of Natural Rights

3. List of Grievances

4. Resolution of Independence

The Declaration was adopted by

Congress and signed by John Hancock on

July 4, 1776. On August 2, 1776, a

parchment paper copy of the Declaration

was signed by 56 persons.

The Declaration of Independence begins has four parts, beginning with a preamble.

Preamble

Declaration of

Natural Rights

List of Grievances

Resolution

of Independence

The preamble states the reason for writing the document - to

explain why the colonists were breaking ties with Britain.

To begin the explanation, Jefferson declared that everyone has unalienable rights.

Preamble

Declaration of

Natural Rights

List of Grievances

Resolution

of Independence

Governments are created to protect those rights.

If a government violates those rights, the people must change their government.

The British government, Jefferson argued, had violated the colonists’ rights.

Preamble

Declaration of

Natural Rights

List of Grievances

Resolution

of Independence

To prove this, he presented a long list of grievances, including that the colonists were:

• denied trial by jury

• taxed without their consent

Therefore, Jefferson concluded, the colonies are free and independent states.

Preamble

Declaration of

Natural Rights

List of Grievances

Resolution

of Independence

All ties between the colonies and the British government are now dissolved.

Although the document was signed primarily on August 2, Americans still celebrate July 4th as Independence Day.

Today, the Declaration of Independence remains a source of inspiration for Americans and for people around the world.

The Declaration of Independence was approved by Congress on July 4, 1776.

John Trumbull’s famous painting of the Declaration of Independence being signed

was created between 1817 and 1819. Question: Does this image help historians

understand what happened at the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776?

Interact with History

Terms and People

• Nathan Hale – Connecticut officer and

American spy who was executed by the British

• alliance – formal agreement between two

powers to work together toward a common goal

• Marquis de Lafayette – French noble and high-ranking officer in Washington’s army

• cavalry – units of troops on horseback

• Friedrich von Steuben – German baron who

helped train the Continental army

In July 1776, British General Howe arrived

in New York with 130 ships carrying

32,000 well trained men. This was the

largest expeditionary force Great Britain

had ever assembled. Included in this force

were 9,000 Hessian soldiers.

Redcoats & Hessians

George Washington had approx. 19,000 poorly

trained, undisciplined, & poorly equipped troops

to defend all of New York City. The soldiers needed

everything from blankets and food to ammunition.

They fired their muskets off in camp, ruined their

flints, used their bayonets to cut food, and often

didn’t clean their muskets. There were also conflicts

between men from different regions of the colonies.

Muskets were the primary weapon used

during the Revolutionary War. Rifles took

a long time to load, and had no bayonets.

The Myth of

the Colonial

Rifleman

British Americans

Compare and contrast the British and the American armies during the Revolutionary War:

The Empire

Strikes Back

Washington

had his

army fortify the

Brooklyn Heights

hoping that the

British would attack

head-on like they did

at Bunker Hill.

Instead, General

William Howe

outflanked the

continental Army

and dealt

Washington a

humiliating defeat.

A Strategic

Retreat

Washington’s

Army retreated

from the superior

British forces. The

stunned British

followed the

continental army and

defeated them again

near Kip’s Bay.

Nathan Hale volunteered to go

behind enemy lines and report

on British troop movements.

During his mission, New York

City fell to British forces, and

Washington was forced to

retreat to the island's northern

tip.

On September 21, a quarter of

the lower portion of

Manhattan was burned in a

fire. After the fire, the British

rounded up any Patriots and

Hale was captured. He is best

remembered for his speech

before being hanged, in which

he said, "I only regret that I

have but one life to give for my

country.”

Nathan Hale

The Turtle, the first

combat submarine, was

built by the Americans.

It’s mission, to attach a

bomb to a British warship

in New York Harbor, was

a failure.

STRANGE but True

After losing the Battle of White

Plains on October 28, Washington

retreated further north. Howe returned

to Manhattan and captured Fort

Washington and Fort Lee in mid

November, taking over 3,000

prisoners. Washington brought much

of his army across the Hudson into

New Jersey, but was immediately

forced to retreat.

The British gained control

of New York harbor and

the surrounding areas,

and held New York City

until the war ended in 1783.

Washington managed to

withdraw the core of his

army and avoided a decisive

defeat that could have ended

the war.

American morale was very low. The

Continental Army had been ousted from

New York and forced to retreat across New

Jersey. Ninety percent of the Continental

Army that had been at Long Island was

gone. Many men had been captured or

deserted, feeling that the cause for

independence was lost.

Congress and some officers were losing

faith in George Washington. Washington

also expressed some doubts. He wrote to

his cousin in Virginia, "I think the game is

pretty near up.”

Trenton, a small town in western New

Jersey, was occupied by 1,400 Hessian

soldiers. Washington's force comprised

2,400 men. The Continental Army needed

a victory, so Washington devised a plan to

cross the Delaware River on Christmas

night and surround the Hessian garrison.

The Game is Pretty Near Up

December 25, 1776. Because of

freezing temperatures and a mix of sleet,

snow and icy rain, the Hessian troops at

Trenton felt secure enough to pull back

their picket sentries. Desperate for a

victory, Gen. George Washington led

columns of Continental Army soldiers

across the icy Delaware River under

cover of that same storm. Though not all

the American forces managed to get

across, those that did defeated the

Hessian troops and broke a long string

of demoralizing battlefield losses.

Washington Crossing the Delaware

Washington’s daring plan caught the Hessian troops in Trenton by surprise. The

Americans captured or killed more than 900 Hessians and gained needed supplies.

Washington Crossing the Delaware

Washington’s crossing of the icy Delaware River probably looked more like this.

A

D

a

r

i

n

g

P

l

a

n

The Battle of Trenton

Washington followed

up his victory at Trenton

by attacking the British

garrison at Princeton.

These victories helped to

keep the American army

together and even began

to attract new recruits.

The Battle of Princeton

The British

Strategy

The overall

British strategy

was to (1) seize the

Hudson Valley and

isolate the New England

Colonies, (2) capture

Philadelphia, and (3)

capture Charles Town a

southern port closer to

the West Indies.

The strategy to capture the Hudson Valley called

for three armies to meet at Albany.

In June 1777, British General John

Burgoyne attempted to divide the

rebellious colonies by moving south from

Quebec to gain control of the Hudson

River valley, separating the New England

states from those to the south. After an

early success at Ticonderoga, his

campaign had become bogged down in

difficulties.

Barry St. Leger's expedition down the

Mohawk River valley had turned back

after the failed Siege of Fort Stanwix and

the bloody Battle of Oriskany.

This was one the few battles in the war

where almost all of the participants were

North American: Loyalists and Native

Americans fought against Patriots in the

absence of British soldiers. For the

natives of the Iroquois nations, the battle

marked the beginning of a civil war.

The Battle of Oriskany

On August 4, Burgoyne received a

message from General Howe. He

would not be coming north to Albany

because he decided to invade

Pennsylvania to try to capture General

Washington and Philadelphia – where

the Continental Congress met.

Burgoyne’s army was exhausted from

a 25 mile march through a swampy

wilderness and needed the support of

Howe’s troops.

Although General Howe defeated

Washington’s army at the Battle of

Brandywine and captured

Philadelphia, his decision not to

rendezvous with Burgoyne at Albany

may have been a strategic blunder.

Jane “Jenny” McCrea

was a loyalist and the

fiancé of an officer in

General Burgoyne’s army.

She was captured and killed by

Iroquois warriors while on her

way to meet her future husband.

News of McCrea’s death helped

to rally Colonial Militia against

the British in rural New York.

Jenny McCrea

The Battles of Saratoga

The Turning Point of the War

Benedict Arnold’s inspired leadership at Freeman’s Farm and Breymann’s

Redoubt forced General Burgoyne’s army to retreat. The Continental army

surrounded Burgoyne and forced him to surrender his army.

Daniel Morgan’s Virginia Riflemen

Breymann’s Redoubt

Burgoyne’s Surrender at Saratoga

Battle of

Saratoga

The Battle of Saratoga was a turning point for the Americans.

• Ended British threat to New England

• Lifted Patriot spirits

• Convinced Europeans Americans could win

Soon after Saratoga, France agreed to support American independence.

The War Comes to the Hudson Valley

General Washington surveys the construction of a chain across the Hudson.

The War Comes to the Hudson Valley

A depiction of the

American victory at

Stony Point, N.Y.

This map shows the Battles

at Fort Clinton and Fort

Montgomery near Bear Mtn.

The War Comes to the Hudson Valley

On October 16, 1777,

the British arrived in Kingston.

Looking upon Kingston as a

"hotbed of perfidy and sedulous

disloyalty to King George III and

His Majesty's Parliament," the British

punished Kingston for hosting the

revolutionary State government,

and for generously providing

Washington's army with wheat

and other food supplies. Under the

command of Major General John

Vaughan, the British troops moved

into Kingston's Stockade area

and set fire to every building,

largely succeeding in burning

the city to the ground.

To defeat the mighty British

army, the new United States

needed the help of a foreign ally.

In the fall of 1776, Congress sent

Benjamin Franklin to Paris.

His job was to persuade

France to join our side.

After hearing of the American

victory at Saratoga, King Louis

XVI recognized U.S.

independence. In 1778, France

signed two treaties of alliance

with the United States.

France sent badly needed funds,

supplies, and troops to America.

France also persuaded Spain to

help.

France Joins the War

A Female Paul Revere

16-year-old Sybil

Ludington lived in

Fredericksburg, NY,

and her father was the

commander of a local militia.

When British troops captured

and burned nearby Danbury,

CT, she rode alone through

the night to raise the militia.

Because of her brave actions

the militia marched quickly

into Danbury and forced the

British out. She has since

been called “the female

Paul Revere.”

This statue of Sybil

stands in Carmel, N.Y.

The British

Strategy

Part II

The overall

British strategy

was to (1) seize the

Hudson Valley and

isolate the New

England Colonies, (2)

capture Philadelphia,

and (3) capture

Charles Town a

southern port closer to

the West Indies.

The Battle of Brandywine

The Battle of

Brandywine,

September 11, 1777,

was a decisive victory

for the British and left

Philadelphia, the

revolutionary capital,

undefended. During

the battle, General

Howe again managed

to outflank

Washington’s

defenses. The British

captured Philadelphia

on September 26,

beginning an

occupation that would

last until June 1778.

The Battle of Brandywine

Colonel Patrick Ferguson developed the

first breech-loading rifle used by the British

army. An adaptation of a French design, it

was loaded by rotating the trigger-guard to

lower a threaded bolt, allowing access to the

breech. It performed impressively in trials,

firing up to six well-aimed shots per minute,

and Ferguson was given command of a

detachment of green-clad riflemen.

At the Battle of Brandywine in 1777,

Ferguson had a high ranking rebel officer in

his sights, but because the officer's back was

to him he passed up the shot. Moments later

Ferguson was struck in the right elbow by a

musket ball, landing him in a field hospital.

While there, Ferguson learned the officer he

could have shot was none other than

George Washington.

The Man Who Nearly Killed Washington

The Battle of Germantown General Howe divided his forces

between Philadelphia and

Germantown, 5 miles north.

Washington saw an opportunity and

decided to attack the British garrison at

Germantown. His plan was to attack

the British at night with four columns

from different directions. Washington

hoped to surprise the British in much

the same way he had surprised the

Hessians at the Battle of Trenton.

Heavy fog made it impossible to

coordinate the complicated attack. If

Washington's plan had been executed

successfully, it might have brought the

war to a sudden end. Coupled with

Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga, the

defeat of Howe at Germantown would

probably have been too much for the

British government to endure.

Valley Forge

By the time the Continental army reached

their winter camp at Valley Forge in

southeast Pennsylvania, they were

desperately short of supplies. Soldiers did

not have winter clothing or blankets and

many didn’t even have shoes. Food was

also in short supply.

During the winter of 1777-1778, nearly a

quarter of the troops died from

malnutrition, exposure, or diseases such as

smallpox and typhoid.

Despite these hardships the soldiers trained

under Baron von Steuben’s direction.

They practiced marching, learned how to

handle their weapons properly, and how to

charge with bayonets. By spring, the

inexperienced Americans were a

disciplined and skilled fighting force.

The Harsh Winter of 1777-1778 at Valley Forge

European Officers that Helped the Americans

Baron de Kalb was

a Prussian officer

who also served in

the French army.

Baron von Steuben

a Prussian officer,

trained the

Continental Army

at Valley Forge.

Tadeusz Kościuszko was a

Polish Colonel of Engineers

in the Continental Army.

Marquis de Lafayette

was a French

nobleman who was

one of Washington’s

most trusted

commanders.

Kazimierz Pułaski was a

Polish cavalry officer.

General Washington reviews his newly trained and winter

hardened troops prior to the Battle of Monmouth.

Molly Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth 1778

Terms and People

• enlist – sign up for duty

• civilian – person not in the military

• continental – paper money printed by the

Continental Congress

• George Rogers Clark – Virginian who led American

troops against the British on the western frontier

• John Paul Jones – American naval commander who won

a key battle against the British

• privateer – armed civilian ship given its government’s

permission to attack enemy ships and keep their goods

African Americans fought on both sides during the American Revolution.

African Americans Patriots British

If they fought for the British, however, enslaved people were offered their freedom.

African Americans in the War

At first, George Washington refused to accept African American soldiers.

Washington reversed his policy, however, after so many African Americans began to join the British forces.

By the end of the war, more than 7,000 African Americans had fought for the Patriots.

African Americans in the War

Women were affected by the war, often taking

on new responsibilities.

Men who

enlisted were

away for at

least one year

At home, women:

• planted crops

• tended livestock

• ran businesses

Women During the Revolution

Women also helped to support the patriots by knitting and sewing

clothing, nursing the wounded and sick, and serving as spies.

In 1778, Deborah Samson felt the need to do her part for the war

and wanted to enlist in the Continental Army. Women were not

allowed to enlist, so she disguised herself as a man and enlisted

under the name Robert Shurtliff – her deceased brother.

Deborah fought in several skirmishes. During her first battle, on

July 3, 1782, outside Tarrytown, New York, she received 2 musket

balls in her thigh and an enormous cut on her forehead. The

doctors treated her head wound, but she left the hospital before

they could attend to the musket balls. Fearful that her true identity

would be discovered, she removed one of the balls herself with a

penknife and sewing needle, but her leg never fully healed because

the other ball was too deep for her to reach. On April 1, 1783 she

was promoted and spent seven months serving as a waiter to

General John Patterson.

During the summer of 1783, Deborah came down with a fever and

was cared for by a doctor, Barnabas Binney. He removed her

clothes to treat her and discovered her secret. He did not betray

her secret; he took her to his house, where his wife and daughters

further treated her. She received an honorable discharge from the

army and a sum of money sufficient to bear her expenses home.

Deborah Samson Gannett STRANGE

but True

Soldiers and civilians alike were affected by

the financial burdens of paying for the war.

• Congress printed paper

money called

continentals to pay

expenses, but the money

soon lost its value.

• Congress had no power

to tax, and the states had

little money.

Am

ou

nt

pri

nte

d

Continental

Continental

Continental

Continental

Va

lue

Some soldiers received little or no pay for their service.

Many men were given certificates for land in the west.

Cost$ of the War

The War in the West The War on the Frontier was mostly

fought west of the Appalachian

Mountains. This region became the

Northwest Territory of the United

States as well as the states of

Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri.

The western war was fought primarily

between American Indians with their

British allies, and American settlers

south and east of the Ohio River.

George Rogers Clark and a group of

200 frontiersmen defeated the British

in a series battles in the Ohio River

Valley. Clark’s victories gave the

United States a claim to the region

between the Great Lakes and Ohio

River, an area more than half the size

of the original 13 colonies.

Most Native Americans sided with the British, fearing an American victory would bring more settlers onto their lands.

British Native

Americans

Many Indian groups, however, were bitterly divided about which side to support. Some split into warring factions.

Native Americans Take Sides

The Sullivan Expedition

In 1779, George Washington ordered General John

Sullivan to attack the Iroquois in Western New York.

Washington told Sullivan and his men to “lay waste

all the settlements around, so that the country may not

be merely overrun, but destroyed.”

destroyed more than fifty

villages and burned down

1,200 houses. They also

destroyed their cornfields.

Bernardo de Gálvez, the governor of Louisiana,

played a key role in Spanish attacks that captured British forts along the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico.

British

Spanish

Gálvez also gave refuge to American ships in New

Orleans harbor.

Help from the Spanish

The War at Sea

In 1779, John Paul Jones and the Bonhomme

Richard defeated the HMS Serapis. When

asked to surrender by the British captain, Jones

said “I have not yet begun to fight.”

Terms and People

• Charles Cornwallis – British commander who

surrendered to Washington at Yorktown

• guerrilla – fighter who works in a small band to

make hit-and-run attacks

• Francis Marion – American leader who used

guerrilla tactics against the British

• Nathanael Greene – American general who

commanded the Continental army in the South

• traitor – person who turns against one side in a

conflict to help the other side

After losing New England, the British tried to win the war by capturing the South, then marching north.

Charles Cornwallis, the British commander, seemed unstoppable as he swept through Georgia and into the Carolinas.

North Carolina

Charles Towne, South Carolina

Savannah, Georgia

Fighting Moves South

PHYSICAL FACTORS,

SUCH AS LOCATION

HUMAN FACTORS,

SUCH AS WHO LIVED THERE

• Nearness to the West Indies

• Valuable Sea Ports

• Loyalist Southerners

• Enslaved African Americans

Factors that Made the British

Move their War Effort to the South

The War in the South After French entry into the war, the

British turned their attention to the

southern colonies, where they hoped to

regain control by recruiting Loyalists.

This southern strategy also kept the

Royal Navy closer to the Caribbean,

where the British needed to defend

economically important possessions

against the French and Spanish.

The was a vicious

conflict that involved Patriot and

Loyalist militias and .

Guerrillas are small bands of fighters

who weaken the enemy with surprise

raids and hit-and-run attacks. Francis

Marion led a small band of Patriots that

attacked the British and escaped into

South Carolina’s coastal swamplands.

In 1780, Benedict

Arnold, one of

Washington’s most

trusted Generals and a

hero of many early

battles, sold the plans

to the West Point

defenses to the British.

He finished the war

with the British Army.

The Battle of Kings Mountain The Death of Col. Patrick Ferguson

The Battle of Cowpens

Daniel Morgan decisively defeated the

British at the Battle of Cowpens. Morgan's

cunning plan is widely considered to be the

tactical masterpiece of the war and one of the

most successfully executed double

envelopments in military history.

The Battle of Cowpens

The Battle of Guilford Courthouse

General Nathaniel Greene summed up his approach in a motto that

would become famous: "We fight, get beat, rise, and fight again."

Victory at

Yorktown

In 1781,

Washington had

General Cornwallis

and the British army

trapped on the Yorktown

peninsula. When the

French fleet arrived,

Cornwallis could not

escape. The Americans

and French bombarded

Yorktown turning the

British defenses into

rubble. Cornwallis had

no way out and

surrendered his army.

The war was over.

A World Turned Upside Down

The officially

ended the Revolutionary War. The

treaty included the following conditions:

1. The U.S. was independent.

2. Its boundaries would be the

Mississippi River on the West,

Canada on the North, and Spanish

Florida on the South.

3. The U.S. had the right to fish off

Canada’s Atlantic Coast.

4. Each side would repay its debts.

5. Britain would return captured slaves.

6. The U.S. would return seized

Loyalist property.

Costs of the War

An estimated 25,700 Americans died in the

Revolutionary War, and 1,400 remained

missing. About 8,200 Americans were

wounded – some left with permanent

disabilities or amputated limbs. The British

suffered about 10,000 military deaths.

Many soldiers who survived the war left the

army with no money. They received little or

no pay for their service. The new

government gave some soldiers certificates

for land in the West. Thousands of Loyalists

lost their property and nearly 100,000 left the

United States.

Congress and the states borrowed about $27

million to finance the conflict and now they

had to pay it back.

Why We Won

The British army was one of the best trained and

supplied in the world and yet they failed to defeat

an American army that lacked training, experience,

weapons, and supplies. Geographically, the

colonies were just too large an area for the

British to control.

Other American advantages included:

1) Washington’s leadership and his strategy of

dragging out the war and wearing down the

British.

2) The military and financial aid from France.

3) The Patriotic Spirit of the Americans who

were fighting for their lives, property, and

liberty.