The American Revolution

Unit 2, Lesson 3

Essential Idea

• Though victory was unlikely, America won the Revolutionary War with key victories at the Battles of Saratoga, Kings Mountain, and Yorktown.

British Advantages

• British Advantages:• Much larger population• Stronger government to conduct war• Stronger economy and more money• Strongest and most disciplined military in the world

British Disadvantages• British Disadvantages:• Overextended, trying to control too much of the world at once• English support for war was weak

British Disadvantages

• Fighting offensive war, no “home field” advantage

• America was a large area, hard to control

Colonial Advantages

• Colonial Advantages:• Superior military leadership • Fighting defensive war, had “home field” • Patriots’ support was high, felt they were fighting for their rights

Colonial Advantages• Guerrilla warfare-

sometimes fought with hidden ambushes, not lining up like the British

• France eventually helped America

• Did not have to win, just outlast Britain until they were tired of the war

Colonial Disadvantages• Much weaker, less organized military• Weak government and economy that struggled to support military• On paper, Britain should have won

Fighting in the North• Battle of Long Island:• Washington’s army was defeated and forced to retreat• British General William Howe captured New York City• The Continental Army’s morale was low and Washington needed a way to boost it

Washington Crosses the Delaware• On Christmas of 1776, Washington led troops

secretly across the Delaware River into New Jersey

Boosted Morale • Washington won

two victories in the Battles of Trenton and Princeton

• Washington Crosses the Delaware

• Washington’s leadership kept morale up (for now) and kept soldiers from quitting

Britain’s Strategy to Win the War• Initial British strategy:• Cut New England off from the rest of the

colonies• Troops under John Burgoyne in British-owned

Canada would move south • Troops under Howe in New York City would

move north to meet Burgoyne • They would meet in Albany and then invade

New England• Why New England?• Most colonists and Patriots that wanted

independence lived here and would be isolated• The Northern Strategy• Why it failed:• Howe decided to capture Philadelphia instead• Burgoyne was stopped at the Battle of Saratoga

Britain Takes Philadelphia• Howe in Philadelphia:• Howe’s troops moved to

Philadelphia to capture the Congress

• Howe thought the revolution would fall apart without its government

• Washington failed to stop Howe, but the Congress escaped and survived

• Howe occupied Philadelphia and took the winter off to enjoy the city

Winter Sets In

• Washington in Valley Forge:

• Endured the harsh winter outside Philadelphia in Valley Forge

Valley Forge • Washington and other officers drilled and disciplined the soldiers to boost morale • After the winter, Washington’s men were stronger and able to win the Battle of

Yorktown • Valley Forge

Battle of Saratoga

• Battle of Saratoga:• This battle was the turning

point in the North• American forces stopped

Burgoyne, ending Britain’s campaign to cut off New England

• This helped convince France to join America against Britain, providing vital help

• Battle of Saratoga

Fighting in the South

• Britain’s New Strategy:

• Focus on controlling the South, where most loyalists were

• Britain wanted to at least keep the South and maybe use it to invade the North

Charles Town (Charleston)

• Fighting in the Carolinas:• Britain captured Charleston and brutally invaded South Carolina • British General George Cornwallis was put in charge of conquering the

Carolinas’ countryside• British troops freed many slaves, making the South unstable• Britain Invades the South

Battle of Kings Mountain• Battle of Kings Mountain• This battle was the turning point in the South• Patriots (the “overmountain men”) marched out of the Appalachian Mountains to

stop the British at Kings Mountain• This stopped the British invasion of North Carolina and boosted southern Patriots

The “Fighting Quaker”• Nathanael Greene:• American General

Nathanael Greene wanted to turn southern support against Britain

• Greene baited Cornwallis’ troops to chase his men across the countryside using “hit and run” attacks

• Low on supplies, Cornwallis’ troops plundered southern homes

Britain Loses the Southern Population

• Greene lost every battle, but won because he turned the South against Britain and wore out Cornwallis’ troops

• Britain only controlled a few major cities in the South but could not control the vast countryside in between

• America’s Southern Strategy: Lose Battles but Win the War

Battle of Yorktown• Cornwallis marched to Yorktown, on the coast of Virginia, to wait for resupply from the British navy• Cornwallis assumed Britain’s strong navy still controlled the ocean• Washington rushed his army south to capture the land around Yorktown• The French navy captured the coast at Yorktown, preventing Cornwallis’ resupply and escape

Cornwallis Surrenders• Surrounded, Cornwallis and his 8,000 troops

surrendered • The Battle of Yorktown caused Britain to declare the war

over

Treaty of Paris (1783)• The War Ends• Treaty:• Treaty of Paris of 1783• Terms:• Ended the American

Revolution• Britain recognized the

United States as a new nation

• Battle of Yorktown and Independence

• The United States owned land all the way west to the Mississippi River