Patriot

What was a patriot?

Patriots were people who wanted the American colonies to

gain their independence from Britain. They wanted their own

country called the United States.

Why did people become patriots?

People in the Americas felt they weren't being treated fairly by

the British. They were being taxed without any say or

representation in the British government. Soon cries for

"liberty" were being heard throughout the colonies. The

patriots wanted freedom from British rule.

http://www.ducksters.com/history/american_revolution/patriots_and_loyalists.php

Loyalist

What was a loyalist?

Not everyone who lived in the American colonies wanted to

break away from the British. There were many people who

wanted to stay part of Britain and remain British citizens.

These people were called loyalists.

Why did some people remain loyal?

Many people felt that their lives would be better off if the

colonies remained under British rule. Some of these people

were simply afraid to go up against the might of the British

army. Others had business interests in England and knew that

English trade was important to the economy. Still others

thought that British rule would be better than patriot rule.

What happened to loyalists during the war?

Life for the loyalists became increasingly difficult during the

war. Loyalists who lived in areas controlled by the patriots

were in constant danger from radical patriots. Many of them

lost their homes and businesses. Many loyalists left the

country and went back to Britain. Others decided to help the

British fight the patriots.

http://www.ducksters.com/history/american_revolution/patriots_and_loyalists.php

Lexington & Concord

First shots fired between American and British troops, on April

19, 1775, that started the Revolution. The British marched to

Concord to arrest the leaders of the Sons of Liberty, Sam

Adams & John Hancock. The Sons of Liberty were stockpiling

weapons and the British were out to seize the weapons as

well. British troops had occupied Boston and were marching

on Concord as they passed through Lexington. No one is still

sure who fired first, but it was the "Shot Heard 'Round the

World." Both sides opened fire, and the Americans were

forced to withdraw. But they had slowed the British advance.

By the time the Redcoats got to Concord, the Americans were

waiting for them in force. The weapons depot was saved, and

the British were forced to retreat, harassed by militiamen along

the way.

http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/wwww/us/lexingtonconcorddef.htm

Battle of Bunker Hill

June 17, 1775, Major General William Howe, leading the

British forces, could have easily surrounded the Americans

with his ships at sea, but instead chose to march his troops

uphill. Howe might have believed that the Americans would

retreat in the face of a smashing, head-on attack. He was

wrong. His Majesty's ships opened fire on the Americans.

Early in the afternoon, 28 barges of British soldiers crossed

the Charles River and stormed the hills. The Americans waited

until the British were within 15 paces, being commanded

“Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" and then

unleashed a bloody fusillade. Scores of British troops were

killed or wounded; the rest retreated down the hill.

Again, the British rushed the hill in a second wave. And again

they retreated, suffering a great number of casualties. By the

time the third wave of British charged the hill, the Americans

were running low on ammunition. Hand-to-hand fighting

ensued. The British eventually took the hill, but at a great cost.

Of the 2,300 British soldiers who had gone through the ordeal,

1,054 were either killed or wounded.

http://www.ushistory.org/us/11d.asp

Nathan Hale

The best known spy of the Revolution. Disguised as a Dutch

schoolmaster, Hale slipped behind British lines on Long Island

and then successfully gathered information about British troop

movements for several weeks. While Hale was behind enemy

lines, the British invaded the island of Manhattan; they took

control of the city on September 15, 1776. When the city was

set on fire on September 20, 1776, British soldiers were put on

high alert for sympathizers to the Patriot cause. The following

evening, on September 21, 1776, Hale was captured while

sailing Long Island Sound, trying to cross back into American-

controlled territory.

Hale was interrogated by British General William Howe and,

when it was discovered that he was carrying incriminating

documents, General Howe ordered his execution for spying,

which was set for the following morning. After being led to the

gallows, legend holds that Hale was asked if he had any last

words and that he replied with these now-famous words, “I

only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.”

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/nathan-hale-volunteers-to-spy-behind-british-lines

Molly Pitcher

Molly Pitcher was born Mary Ludwig circa October 13, 1754,

near Trenton, New Jersey. During the American Revolutionary

War's Battle of Monmouth, she carried pitchers of water to

soldiers, thereby earning her nickname. After her husband

collapsed during the battle, she took over the operation of his

cannon. Honored in 1822 for her bravery, she died in Carlisle,

Pennsylvania, on January 22, 1832.

She is one of many women who served on the battlefield

during the Revolution. Many acted as spies, while other

disguised themselves as men in order to join the Continental

Army.

http://www.biography.com/people/molly-pitcher-9390922

Battle of Trenton & Princeton

General George Washington’s army crossed the icy Delaware

on Christmas Day 1776 and, over the course of the next 10

days, won two crucial battles of the American Revolution. In

the Battle of Trenton (December 26), Washington surprised

and defeated a formidable garrison of Hessian mercenaries

who didn’t expect an attack on Christmas. A week later he

returned to Trenton to lure British forces south, then executed

a daring night march to capture Princeton on January 3. The

victories reasserted American control of much of New Jersey

and greatly improved the morale and unity of the colonial army

and militias.

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/battles-of-trenton-and-princeton

General John Burgoyne

“Gentleman Johnny”

In 1777, Major General Burgoyne took command Britain’s efforts to invade their rebelling former colonies from Canada. The expedition began with Burgoyne leading 3,300 Redcoats, 3,900 Hessian mercenaries and 650 Canadians, Loyalists and Indians to victory at Ticonderoga, New York, on July 5, 1777, which earned him a promotion to lieutenant general. However, as he extended his supply lines ever further south, he found himself trapped at Saratoga after General William Howe decided to take Philadelphia instead of meeting Burgoyne at Albany as planned. Following Patriot victories on September 19 at Freeman’s Farm and October 7 at Bemis Heights, Burgoyne’s troops were surrounded at Saratoga by Patriots under General Horatio Gates and forced to surrender on October 17. Burgoyne successfully negotiated that his surviving men would be returned to Britain with a pledge that they would never again serve in North America. The nearly 6,000-man army was kept in captivity at great expense to the Continental Congress until the end of the war.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/british-general-john-burgoyne-dies

Battle of Germantown

At the Battle of Germantown on October 4, 1777, during the

American Revolution, British forces in Pennsylvania defeated

the American Continental Army under General George

Washington (1732-99). After capturing Philadelphia in

September 1777, British General William Howe (1729-1814)

camped a large contingent of his troops at nearby

Germantown. Washington launched a surprise attack on the

poorly defended British camp, but his army failed to pull off his

complex battle plan. The British drove away the Americans,

inflicting twice as many casualties as they suffered. The

defeat at Germantown, which came soon after a similar loss at

Brandywine, led some prominent Americans to question

Washington’s leadership.

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/battle-of-germantown

Battle of Brandywine

On September 11th, 1777, British Generals Howe and

Cornwallis launch a full-scale attack on General Washington

and the Patriot outpost at Brandywine Creek, Pennsylvania, on

the road linking Baltimore and Philadelphia.

Howe and Cornwallis spilt their 18,000 British troops into two

separate divisions, with Howe leading an attack from the front

and Cornwallis circling around and attacking from the right

flank. Surprised and outnumbered by the 18,000 British troops

to his 11,000 Continentals, Washington ordered his men to

abandon their posts and retreat. Defeated, the Continental

Army marched north and camped at Germantown,

Pennsylvania. The British abandoned their pursuit of the

Continentals and instead began the British occupation of

Philadelphia.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-battle-of-brandywine-begins

Battle of Saratoga

The two Battles of Saratoga were a turning point in the

American Revolution. On September 19th, 1777, British

General John Burgoyne achieved a small, but costly victory

over American forces led by Horatio Gates and Benedict

Arnold. Though his troop strength had been weakened,

Burgoyne again attacked the Americans at Bemis Heights on

October 7th, but this time was defeated and forced to retreat.

He surrendered ten days later, and the American victory

convinced the French government to formally recognize

the colonist’s cause and enter the war as their ally.

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/battle-of-saratoga

Valley Forge

Things could hardly have looked bleaker for Washington and

the Continental Army as 1777 came to a close. The British had

successfully occupied Philadelphia, leading some members of

Congress to question Washington’s leadership abilities. No

one knew better than Washington that the army was on the

brink of collapse–in fact, he had defied Congress’ demand that

he launch a mid-winter attack against the British at

Philadelphia and instead fell back to Valley Forge to rest and

refit his troops. Though he had hoped to provide his weary

men with more nutritious food and badly needed winter

clothing, Congress had been unable to provide money for

fresh supplies. That Christmas Eve, the troops dined on a

meal of rice and vinegar, and were forced to bind their

bleeding frost-bitten feet with rags. “We have experienced little

less than a famine in camp,” Washington wrote to Patrick

Henry the following February.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/washington-leads-troops-into-winter-

quarters-at-valley-forge

Marquis de Lafayette

Inspired by stories of the colonists' struggles against British

oppression, Lafayette sailed to the newly declared United

States in 1777 to join the uprising. He was initially rebuffed by

colonial leaders, but he impressed them with his passion and

willingness to serve for free, and was named a major-general

in the Continental Army. His first major combat duty came

during the Battle of Brandywine, when he was shot in the leg

while helping to organize a retreat. General George

Washington requested doctors to take special care of

Lafayette, igniting a strong bond between the two that lasted

until Washington's death.

Following a winter in Valley Forge with Washington, Lafayette

helped train American troops while using his connections back

home to draw more French resources to the colonial side.

http://www.biography.com/people/marquis-de-lafayette-21271783#synopsis

Hessians

The term "Hessians" refers to the approximately 30,000

German troops hired by the British to help fight during the

American Revolution. They were principally drawn from the

German state of Hesse-Cassel, although soldiers from other

German states also saw action in America. (At the time,

Germany was not a unified country but a collection of

individual states that shared a language and culture.)

Hiring a foreign army was not unusual in the eighteenth

century. For Hesse-Cassel, soldiers were a major export. By

renting its army to the British, Hesse-Cassel took in an amount

equal to about thirteen years' worth of tax revenue. For the

British it was easier to rent troops than recruit their own.

http://www.mountvernon.org/research-collections/digital-encyclopedia/article/hessians/

Ethan Allen & the Green Mountain

Boys

The Green Mountain Boys were a group of a few hundred

American patriots in the early American Revolutionary years

that would later be considered the founding fathers of the state

of Vermont. They were led by Ethan Allen.

In 1775 the Green Mountain Boys marched north to attack and

later capture the British held fort, Fort Ticonderoga. Ethan

Allen led the attack with approximately 83 colonist-militia men,

and help from Colonel Benedict Arnold. This proved to be very

important in the war effort, because it protected northern

America and kept the soil safe from invasion from the British

through Canada.

http://www.uvm.edu/~cemorse/Introducing%20VT%20Website/WHO%20ARE%20TH

E%20GREEN%20MOUNTAIN%20BOYS-web.html

John Paul Jones

John Paul Jones is seen as one of the fathers of the American

Navy. He joined the Continental navy during the American

Revolution, enjoying his greatest successes in international

waters, often as a privateer. As commander of the heavily

armed vessel Bonhomme Richard, Jones famously announced

that he had “not yet begun to fight” during a clash with the

British warship Serapis.

http://www.biography.com/people/john-paul-jones-9357409

Francis Marion “The Swamp Fox”

Francis Marion was commander of a militia in South Carolina.

His sneaky, guerrilla style of warfare was so effective, his

troops The Marion Militia were soon hated and feared by the

British. Marion himself earned the nickname "Swamp Fox" due

to his stealth and cunning. Finally, the British troops in the

area could take no more and sent Lieutenant Colonel Banastre

Tarleton to track down Francis and his men. However, he

despaired after chasing the militia 26 miles through swampy

paths to no avail. He exclaimed in exasperation, "As for this

damned old fox, the Devil himself could not catch him."

The Marion Militia would rarely engage with enemies in head-

on warfare. They were stealthy and defeated many larger

enemy groups. Because of this, Marion is known as one of the

fathers of modern guerrilla warfare.

http://www.revolutionary-war.net/francis-marion.html

General Cornwallis

British General during the Revolutionary war responsible for

numerous victories, yet he was also the British general that

surrendered at the Battle of Yorktown. The Battle of

Yorktown was the last great battle of the American

Revolutionary War. On 10/19/1781 the British Army

surrendered and the British government began to consider a

peace treaty.

Cornwallis and his men were surrounded by Washington &

Layfette. The French fleet blockaded a water retreat giving the

British no choice but to surrender.

General Howe

General William Howe is named the interim commander in

chief of the British army in America on this day in 1775,

replacing Lieutenant General Thomas Gage. He was

permanently appointed to the post in April 1776.

General Howe’s first major battles against his American

counterpart, General George Washington, including the Battle

of Bunker Hill, came during the Patriot siege of Boston. They

proved to be disappointing failures that resulted in a British

retreat from Boston in March 1776. Howe and the British army

redeemed themselves, however, with a victory over

Washington and the Continental Army at the Battle of Long

Island in August. Just one month later, Howe led a British

invasion of New York City. While successful during the fall of

1776, many believe General Howe missed an opportunity to

crush General Washington and the Continental Army by not

pursuing the Patriots as they retreated from New York

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/howe-named-commander-in-chief-of-british-army

Ben Franklin

When Franklin went to France in the early part of the

Revolution as the official diplomat and ambassador of the

thirteen colonies.

The colonies indeed needed help of every description--men,

money, equipment, ships, and all things to fight a successful

war. The long years of enmity between France and Britain

opened the way for the leadership of Franklin. And he was not

only the man to exploit it, but also the reason for the

acceptance of thirteen states as a recognized nation in the

world of nations.

http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/history/franklin.html

Culper Ring

The Culper Ring was a spy ring organized by American Major

(later Colonel) Benjamin Tallmadge under orders from General

George Washington in the summer of 1778 during British

occupation of New York City at the height of the American

Revolutionary War. The group of spies tracked British troop

movements and smuggled information in and out of New York.

Many members of the ring were women.

Benedict Arnold

A member of the Sons of Liberty, Arnold rose to the rank of

general in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War.

He subsequently became a spy for the British, plotting to

arrange a siege of West Point, handing the important fort over

to the British. When the plans came to light, Arnold defected to

the British side.

http://www.biography.com/people/benedict-arnold-9189320