Title: The American Revolution
1The American Revolution 1775-1783
2Performance Objectives
- PO 2. Describe the significance of key events of
the Revolutionary War - major battles (e.g., Lexington, Saratoga,
Trenton) - aid from France
- surrender at Yorktown
3More Performance Objectives
- PO 3. Describe the impact of the following key
individuals on the Revolutionary War - Benjamin Franklin
- Thomas Jefferson
- George Washington
- Patrick Henry
- Thomas Paine
- King George III
4Causes of the War
- British defeat French in French/Indian War
- Defeat of Indians removes colonists perceived
need for British protection - War costly for Brits and need addl income
- Stamp, Navigation, and Revenue Act force
colonists to pay for protection - 1770 Boston Massacre 5 dead after protesting
taxation without representation
5Causes of the War (cont.)
- Quartering Act
- Colonists forced to house British troops
- 3rd Amendment of the Constitution
- Real Causes
- Colonists had intellectual differences with
British government - Spirit of independence brought about by frontier
life - Belief in democracy over oligarchy
6On the Eve of the Revolution ?
Britain Americans
Advantages ? ?
Disadvantages ? ?
7Military Strategies
The Americans
The British
- Break the colonies in half by getting between the
North the South. - Blockade the ports to prevent the flow of goods
and supplies from an ally. - Divide and Conquer ? use the Loyalists.
- Attrition the British had a long supply line.
- Guerilla tactics fight an insurgent war ? you
dont have to win a battle, just wear the British
down - Make an alliance with one of Britains enemies.
- Rely on love of home to keep men fighting
8Loyalist Strongholds
9Washingtons Headaches
- Only 1/3 of the colonists were in favor of a war
for independence the other third were Loyalists,
and the final third were neutral. - State/colony loyalties.
- Congress couldnt tax to raise money for the
Continental Army. - Poor training until the arrival of Baron von
Steuben.
10Phase I The Northern Campaign1775-1776
11Fort Ticonderoga
- Ethan Allen, a blacksmith, leads the Green
Mountain boys of Vermont against the fort which
had many cannon. - There was one guard and the officers were
sleeping. - The commander had to turn over 100 cannon and
gunpowder.
12Second Continental Congress
- 13 colonies send delegates to Philadelphia.
- Many do not want a war.
- The Olive Branch Petition is sent to King George
asking him to repeal the Intolerable Acts. - The Continental Army is created with George
Washington as Commander-in-Chief.
13Bunker (Breeds) HillJun 1775
- New Continental Army takes position on Breeds
Hill - They are told, Dont shoot until you see the
whites of their eyes! because they have only a
small amount of gunpowder - British conduct frontal assault
- Poor judgement flanks/rear exposed
- 40 casualties for Brits (1,100 dead)
- Colonials repel two assaults but run out of
ammunition.
14Bunker Hill (June, 1775)
The British suffered over 40 casualties.
15Results of Bunker Hill
- Colonists convinced standing army was unnecessary
- Showed colonial determination
- Gen Howe forever failed to press victories
- New colonial tactics
- Simple defensive
- Hold at the Hudson
16Brits Leave Boston
- By January 1776, the Continental Army surrounded
Boston. - The cannon captured at Ticonderoga were placed on
Dorchester Heights, a hill overlooking Boston and
its harbor. - Seeing that they were trapped, General Howe
ordered his troops to go to Halifax, Canada.
17Common Sense
- Many colonists remained loyal to Britain, even
while patriots were fighting for freedom. - Thomas Paine wrote a pamphlet called Common
Sense. - This pamphlet asked anyone to show single
advantage this continent can reap by being
connected with Britain. - Hundreds of thousands of copies were sold.
- Many loyalists changed their thinking because of
Paines arguments.
18Declaring Independence
- Delegates to the Continental Congress came to
believe that declaring independence was
necessary. - Richard Henry Lee of Virginia offers a resolution
that these United Colonies are, and of right
ought to be, free and independent States. - From that moment, delegates were considered
traitors to their country. A traitor is one who
betrays his or her own country.
19- A committee is formed to write the declaration.
- John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston,
Roger Sherman and Thomas Jefferson undertake this
task. - Jefferson is asked to write the document
explaining to the world why the colonies were
taking such a drastic step. - On July 4th, 1776, the Congress voted that the 13
colonies were free and independent States. - Fireworks were invented later ?
20The Declaration
- The first part explains the basic rights on which
the nation is founded. Finish this phrase, We
hold these truths to be self-evident - The second part list the wrongs committed by
Britain - The last section declares that the colonies had
become the United States of America.
21Phase II NY PA1777-1778
22New York
- Gen. Howe (Brit) heads to New York City.
- Washington takes the Continental Army to defend
the city. - Howe has 34,000 troops, 10,000 sailors, 30
warships and 400 smaller boats. - Washington has 20,000 men and no navy.
- Losing the battles for New York, the Continentals
retreat to New Jersey. - Nathan Hale, a young Connecticut spy is captured
behind British lines. - I only regret that I have but one life to lose
for my country were his last words
23New York City in Flames(1776)
24Trenton and the Crossing
- Discouraged with losing, the Continentals are
cold, hungry, deserting and many are due for
re-enlistment - A victory is badly needed.
- Washington plans a surprise attack on Hessian
troops (German mercenaries) in Trenton , New
Jersey. - He gets his troops across the frozen Delaware
River in the dead of night on Christmas. - On Dec. 26, the Continental Army takes over 1400
Hessians prisoner without losing a single soldier!
25Washington Crossing the Delaware
Painted by Emanuel Leutze, 1851
26Princeton
- After the Battle of Trenton, the British send
General Charles Cornwallis to retake the city. - Outside of Princeton, he sees the lights of
Washingtons campfires. - At last we have run down the old fox and we will
bag him in the morning. - Washington had fooled Cornwallis by leaving the
fires burning as he marched his troops behind
British lines, winning another surprise victory. - The army has new hope and confidence.
27Valley Forge
- 20 miles NW of Philadelphia
- Camp where the Continental Army spent the winter
of 1777-1778. - Starvation, disease, malnutrition, and exposure
killed over 2,500 American soldiers by the end of
February 1778.
28Baron von Steuben
- Credited with training the soldiers of the
Continental Army - Steuben picked 120 men from various regiments, to
form an honor guard for General Washington, and
used them to demonstrate military training to the
rest of the troops. - Our military still uses many of his methods.
29Marquis de Lafayette
- French aristocrat and military officer who fought
for the United States in the American
Revolutionary War. - Close friend of George Washington
- Later, he would play an important role in the
French Revolution.
30British Plan in Pennsylvania
- General Burgoyne (British) convinces King George
that if New England is cut off from the other
colonies the war will end. - 3 British armies march on Albany, N.Y. from
different directions. - General Howe must take Philadelphia before going
to Albany. He takes too much time - General St. Leger (British) moves slowly due to
baggage carts. - Burgoyne is surrounded in the village of
Saratoga. - The 3 armies never reached Albany
31Saratoga
- The American troops cut or burned down all of the
bridges in the path of the British - Burgoyne sets off with an overbundance of
supplies/equipment - Movement extremely slow (1 mile/day)
- Guerillas could easily stay ahead and slow
further - This made the British an easy target for the
American soldiers.
32Significance of Saratoga
- Turning point of Revolution
- French enter war, aligning with colonists
- British now move their focus to the South
- Spain and Holland soon join war
- Bernardo de Galvez in Spanish Florida defeated
British forces in Natchez and Baton Rouge,
Louisiana.
33 Saratoga Turning Point of the War
A modern-day re-enactment
34A personal view of the American Revolution
- The ball first cut off the head of Smith, a
stout heavy man, and dashed it open, then took
Taylor across the bowels it then struck Sergeant
Garret of our company on the hip, took off the
point of the hip bone . Oh, What a sight it was
to see within a distance of six rods those men
with their legs and arms and guns and packs all
in a heap! - Connecticut Soldier, 1777
35Southern CampaignLate 1778
- More Loyalists live in the South
- Southern resources more valuable
- British win small victories but unable to pacify
countryside - Nathanial Greene vs. Cornwallis
- Greene sacrificed mass for manuever
- Smaller forces more easily could live off land
- Provided rally points for local militia
- Tempted Cornwallis to split his forces
- Militia kept Cornwallis in the South
36Phase III The Southern Strategy 1780-1781
37The Swamp Fox
- In the southern battles, Americans began to
employ hit and run, or guerrilla, tactics. - Francis Marion of South Carolina led a small band
of men who slept by day and traveled by night. - He was known as the Swamp Fox because he appeared
suddenly out of the swamps, attacked the British,
and then retreated back to the swamps. - His actions kept the British off balance ?
38Banastre Tarleton
- Known as The Butcher
- He refused quarter (mercy) to surrendering men.
- Leader of the Green Dragoons
- Given the job of stopping the militia led by
Francis Marion and failed
39John Paul Jones
- Although the American navy remained small,
Americans attacked and captured British ships at
sea. - John Paul Jones, in command of the Bonhomme
Richard, finds a British warship, the Serapis,
guarding 39 merchant ships in the North Sea off
the coast of Britain. - He attacks, even though the Serapis is larger.
- When told to surrender, Jones states, I have not
yet begun to fight! - His men board the warship and defeat the men in
hand-to-hand fighting.
40Tale of a Traitor
- By 1780, one of Washingtons most talented and
successful generals, Benedict Arnold, was in
command of the American fort at West Point. - He was angry at what he felt was a lack of credit
given to him for his victories. - He offered to turn the fort over to the British!
- His plot almost succeeded but soldiers caught the
messenger taking the offer to the British. - Arnold escaped and joined the British and, to
this day, a synonym for traitor is a Benedict
Arnold.
41The Battle of Yorktown, October 1781
- The French are helping the Continental Army with
men, weapons and warships - The Americans and the French will corner the
British on a small peninsula and bombard them
with cannon fire. - The British will surrender and end the American
Revolution. - The colonists will win the American Revolution
with this victory.
42The Battle of Yorktown (1781)
Count de Rochambeau
AdmiralDe Grasse
43Impact of French
- Anxious to regain international position
- French repeatedly help American cause
- Loans of money
- Use of French ports by American privateers
- Protected American vessels near French waters
- Made English uneasy at home
- French Navy critical at Yorktown
44Cornwallis Surrender at Yorktown
The World Turned Upside Down!
Painted by John Trumbull, 1797
45The Treaty of Paris, 1783911 1845
- THE WAR ENDS WITH THESE CONDITIONS
- free, sovereign and independent states
- British must remove all troops from forts
- Boundary for United States is the Mississippi
- Loyalists would have rights and property
protected - captured slaves must be returned to owners
46North America After theTreaty of Paris, 1783