Chapter4,Sec.3
The Revolutionary War is on!
The Declaration of Independence
¨ Signed at the war’s start, not at the end¨ The main idea is to justify a revolution that
has already begun¨ The people that will gain the most from this
will be upper class white businessmen and land owners
Key points of the Declaration
¨ The King is called a tyrant-pretty much describes all monarchies
¨ Our personal rights/freedoms have been denied
¨ Taxation with out representation¨ You restrict our ability to meet¨ Military presence in the colonies
Key points-cont.
¨ England cut off their trade(Intolerable Acts)¨ We were at peace-King’s fault!¨ It appeals to the “ common people” in
England-We are reluctant to break our bonds with you
¨ Jefferson “regrets” taking out slavery part of Declaration-but it had to be removed to get a unanimous vote
Abigail Adams¨ All men would be tyrants
if allowed¨ Do not be like your
ancestors¨ You dominate your
wives,own slaves¨ You better watch out!¨ All men are created equal-
as long as you are not black,an Indian,or a woman
Let’s Get Ready to Rumble!!!!
The heavyweight world power vs. the undermanned,ill-equipped challenger
The World Power-England
¨ Pop. 10,000,000¨ World Empire¨ Organized,well
equipped army¨ Control ports¨ Huge navy¨ Weak,pompous
leaders¨ Far from home
The Challenger-America
¨ Pop.2,500,000¨ Militia-type army¨ Determined,but badly
disorganized¨ Not a lot of resources¨ Great,inspired leaders¨ Possible allies in
France/Spain-why?
The War in the Middle States
¨ Summer-1776-Britain decides to seize N.Y.C.
¨ Cut N.E. off from rest of the colonies Gen. Wm. Howe, Adm.R. Howe,32,000 troops sail into N.Y. harbor
¨ Army will include mercenaries(paid to fight)
¨ Hessians(from Hesse,Germany)
Middle states,cont.
Washington and his 23,000 untrained,ill-equipped troops are soundly defeated
Washington’s army(what’s left of it) are pushed across the Delaware River
Only 8,000 men are left
Battle of Trenton
¨ Dec.25,1776¨ Washington leads 2,400 men across nearly frozen
Delaware R. in small boats¨ They march 9 miles to Trenton,N.J.,surprise the
hung-over Hessians,capture 900men,6 cannons¨ 8 days later subdue 1200 British in Princeton,N.J.¨ Make camp in no. N.J. encouraged,confident
Fight for Philadelphia 1777
¨ Gen. Howe(ENG)¨ Wants Phil.,American
capital¨ He succeeds,settles
in,Loyalists welcome him
Saratoga
¨ Gen. Burgoyne(ENG) wants to attack from the north,from Quebec
¨ Plans to meet up with Gen. Howe in Albany,N.Y.-goal is to isolate N.E.
¨ His 4,000 men,3,000 mercenaries,1,000 Mohawks,will get bogged down in swamps, underbrush
Saratoga,cont.¨ He will be attacked by Gen.Gates(AMR) and the
continental army¨ They keep attacking, British are losing hundreds
in every battle¨ AND….His pal, Gen. Howe is in Phil. And not
coming to help him¨ 1777-Amer. Army surrounds Burgoyne at
Saratoga and he will surrender¨ From this point on,British will keep troops close
to the coast,near supplies,guns
Remember that French/Indian War?¨ Nov.1778¨ French secretly supplying the patriots¨ The victory at Saratoga makes France
believers!¨ They support the revolution,sign a treaty of
co-op¨ They will not be at peace w/France until
Britain recognize Am. independence
Valley Forge, Pa.
¨ This is the low point for continental army¨ French aid slow to arrive-why?¨ Cont. army-cold,hungry,frostbite,much
suffering¨ British troops,in Phil., warm,well fed¨ 10,000 amer. Troops,2,000 will die
George Washington¨ 6’2”¨ Great horseman¨ Would face fire alongside
his men¨ Endure cold,hardship-just
like his men did¨ Great tactician-sm.army
could defeat larger force¨ He will be idolized at
war’s end
Financing the War
¨ Like all wars,citizens will suffer also¨ Gov’t. runs out of gold,silver¨ Print paper money,more and more¨ Value of paper $ goes down, prices go up-
this is what we call inflation¨ Britain blockades the coast
Finances,cont.
¨ Americans have few factories that can make guns,ammo
¨ Need to smuggle arms from Europe¨ PROFITEERING-The act of selling scarce
goods for profit¨ Merchants will hoard goods,sell bad
products
1781
¨ Robert Morris¨ Appointed
Superintendent of finance
¨ Haym Salomon-his friend
¨ Both rich,they raise $ to pay soldiers in gold
Women Fighters
¨ Everyday life left to women(who of course are not “equal”) they manage farms. business, etc.
¨ Follow their men to battles-cook.sew,etc.¨ Make ammo from metal in their houses¨ Some risk their lives on battlefield
Africans,slaves,natives
¨ Some slaves will escape,pass as free in cities
¨ Some will fight for patriots¨ Some will join natives¨ Most natives will stay out of the way