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Matthew Irvine English 1102 Anthony Borrero March 3, 2011

American Revolution: A Turning Point in History

During a time of one of historys severe power shift, there was the powerful, mighty British Empire and an emerging power in the form of the American colonialists. The colonialists were struggling to gain traction while building a resistance and the British Empire was trying to suffocate a lowly rebellion. There are engaging stories tied to both the British and the Patriots, a name given to the colonists after they engaged in open war with the British Empire. Young individuals were torn from their families, both involuntary and voluntary; this was the case with Benjamin Franklins son, Francis, who took sides with the Loyalists, which is another name for those who support the British Empire in its struggle to put down the patriots. The colonials military uniform and the British regulars military uniform differ in a couple ways. Firstly the British were known as the redcoats because of the fact that they did indeed wear red coats during battle. In 1645, when the British raised its first army, they permanently adopted the color red for their military uniform. This is because all European nations chose colors to represent themselves in battle. The Germans chose green and the French chose dark blue (Nabaht Shafiei). They also wore a headpiece made of bearskin in order to intimidate their opponents in battle; this was particularly common in the revolutionary war where any possible scare tactic was employed to minimize casualties for what was originally seen as more of an uprising than a war. The British also wore Tricorne hats and leather caps depending on the specific troop designation such as grenadiers, light battalion, or company men (Nabaht

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Shafiei). Officers in the British army wore a much more distinctive uniform. The British officer wore a red coat with dark blue velvet falling on his collar with distinctive hat and feather (Nabaht Shafiei). The colonial uniform varied much more in their rank than the British uniform did. For one thing, the colonialists were named militia until they joined the continental army. The militias clothing is probably the most varied of all due to no code in uniform, each man wore whatever they had to wear to battle, usually coming off in a rough, rugged look given that most militia men werent very wealthy. The continental army was the official name of the organized army that fought against the British in the revolutionary war. They also had a specific uniform type. On November fourth 1775, the continental congress officially adopted brown as the primary uniform color for the army which did not sit well with the soldiers or officers so by 1778 the preferred color was blue. On March 3, 1779, the continental congress allowed General George Washington to make the first American uniform and style. General Washington selected blue as the primary uniform color. Uniforms were to be lined with red or white fabric, depending on the uniform type. Infantry uniforms were lined with white fabric, while artillery uniforms were lined with red fabric (Nabaht Shafiei). Well of course the men in the uniforms did actually fight in battles. One of the most significant battles of the revolutionary war and the one on the topic of discussion is the battle of Saratoga. The first thing one should understand about the battle of Saratoga is that it was actually two battles or engagements; the first was on September 19, 1777 and the next and deciding engagement was on October 17, 1777. Saratoga itself is located on the Hudson River near the Adirondack Mountains in what is now upstate New York near Albany. There are several different significant players who come in at different times during the battle, generals and

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colonels alike. General John Burgoyne led the British army, a force of about 7,200 men which included General Simon Fraser who commanded the Germans who aided the British in pushing south in order to divide the New England colonies from the southern ones. At Freemans farm, south of Saratoga, the British met the Americans led by general Horatio gates, Benjamin Lincoln, Benedict Arnold, Enoch Poor, Ebenezer Learned, and Colonel Daniel Morgan. The American forces had about 9,000 troops at their commandi (Saratoga). After Colonel Morgan's men scouted ahead and engaged with the British center column, the two sides met at Freemans farm about a mile north of the American encampment. The landscape was mainly hilly farms with scattered trees, considerably a fairly open battle (Battle).ii A battle that would last three hours broke out and the Americans seemed to have the upper hand given their superior numbers, but they were flanked and driven back. The British suffered heavy casualties in a so called victory. The British faced the decision of waiting for General Clintons reinforcements or engaging the Americans. Three weeks passed and Clinton did not arrive forcing the starving army to meet the Americans in battle. On October 17th 1777, the British fought the Americans with a depleted force that been reduced due to casualties taken in the previous battle. The Americans forces had grown some 3,000 men and were now near 12,000. Due to superior numbers and the heroics of Benedict Arnold the Americans forced the British to retreat and the next day forced their final surrender. Benedict Arnold is known commonly as a traitor during the revolutionary war, failing to realize his actual importance to the American cause. Benedict Arnolds infamous betrayal was not as entirely villainous as one might believe. There are multiple events during his military career which led to his distaste for fellow officers and a sense of being undervalued by the continental congress. Benedict Arnold started out as a captain in the governors second company

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of guards (Benedict). After hearing of the battle of Lexington and concord, (the official start of the American Revolution) Benedict Arnold marched off to war. His first Endeavour in the war was to capture fort Ticonderoga. He requested permission from the Massachusetts committee of safety to capture the fort. Fort Ticonderoga is located in on the eastern boarder of the state of New York. Commander Ethan Allen and his green mountain boys also pursued to the capture of fort Ticonderoga. Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen met at Bennington and Arnold was taken aback that Allen ignored the fact that he had permission to capture the fort but Arnold reluctantly accompanied Allen to Ticonderoga. Arnold then had an argument with colonel Easton, challenging Easton to a duel for trying to diminish his role in the campaign to take Ticonderoga. Colonel Easton declined this offer. Therefore, Arnold resigned his commission and relieved his men who later were recruited by colonel Easton, which enraged Arnold. After these affairs all settled Arnold was commissioned into the continental congress, by George Washington, who favored Arnold, as a colonel in the army (Benedict). Arnold went on to fight in the battle of Saratoga, and even after he was relieved of his command charged into battle, riding through crossfire and leading the men fighting to victory although he suffered a leg injury limiting his actions of the battlefield. His role at Saratoga was very significant. Arnold married and moved to Philadelphia, being unable to fight after his leg was crippled during the battle of Saratoga. Arnold lived above what he was financially capable of and in order to retain this lifestyle made some shady dealings and used military shipments for his own use. His actions were discovered and court marshaled. Shortly thereafter he contacted the British and was offered 10,000 pounds and commission in the British military to defect (Treacherous). Arnold offered to give West Point to the British and started a correspondence

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with Major John Andre, intelligence chief for General Clinton of the British army.iii Andre was captured, and Arnold defected living the rest of his life out in England.

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Works cited "A Treacherous Plot." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 2 Mar 2012. <http://www.history.com/topics/benedict-arnold>. "Benedict Arnold." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association. Web. 07 Feb. 2012. <http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/served/arnold.html>. Nabaht Shafiei, . "Uniforms Worn in the Revolutionary War."lovetoknow.com. LoveToKnow Corp, n.d. Web. 3 Mar 2012. Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, Initials. "history."Battle of saratoga. N.p., 1999. Web. 3 Mar 2012. <http://battle1777.saratoga.org/history.html>. "The Battle of Saratoga 1777." britshbattles.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Mar 2012. <http://www.britishbattles.com/battle-saratoga.htm>.

The character in the game will be one of the thousands of troops fighting. The characters brother is fighting on the opposing side. ii Using this information I can generate a setting or a world in which my character in the game will travel and fight through. Its October in the state of New York so the characters breathe may be visible perhaps. iii One of the characters role in the games is to act as a courier alongside Major John Andre.