European/Continental Warfare

The Age of Limited Warfare- 1700s Definite rules of conduct Battles took place on open fields in good weather Officers came from the aristocracy (ruling class)

Best trained and most reliable soldiers were hired mercenaries Weapons included single-shot muskets, cannons, bayonets, and swords

They knew the rules of engagement (gentlemans style of warfare)

American Army- 1700s

Heavily influenced by the guerrilla tactics of the Native Americans (Indians) Creation of militias No uniform Not much discipline A home guard (defense) not an Imperial Army Continental Army was made up of men who had enlisted (volunteered) and they were paid by Congress

Small, voluntary armies ranging in age from 16 to 60

Two Phases of the Revolution

Critical Period- 1776 to 1778
Fighting took place in the North Greatest tasks were to organize an army and then keep it in the field and prevent it from being destroyed

Two Phases of the Revolution

Second Phase- 1779 to 1781
Fighting moved to the South
British believed that the greater amounts of Loyalists (Tories) would aid them

Battle of New York July & August 1776

Washington moved his army (23,000 men) from Boston to New York in anticipation of the next British attack General and Admiral Howe raised an armada of 200 ships and 30,000 men and sailed to New York Washingtons troops were defeated at Staten Island (Brooklyn Heights)
Troops had to retreat by ferry across the East River in a thick fog (aided in their escape)

Battle of Trenton December & January 1776-77

British Army had chased Washington into New Jersey/Pennsylvania along the Delaware River Encamped across from the Continental Army were several thousand Hessians Washington had fewer than 8,000 men

First year soldiers were about to have their tours of duty end on December 31 Washington needed something miraculous to keep his army together

Battle of Trenton December & January 1776-77

Christmas night 1776Washington and his troops cross the icy Delaware and catch the German soldiers off guard early in the morning of the 26th and defeat them

Battle of Princeton January 1777

Washingtons army caught the British at Princeton unaware and defeated them The British pulled out of New Jersey and returned to New York Both armies retired for the winter Washington had saved the Continental Army for at least another year

Battle of Saratoga Summer 1777 (October)

British plan was to capture New York and split the colonies to defeat them General Burgoyne was to march down from Canada and meet up with Generals Clinton and Howe to carry out this plan Burgoyne encountered great difficulties coming south through the New York wilderness
Thick vegetation, hostile Indians, American resistance

Philadelphia Falls to the English

General William Howe became bored with waiting for General Burgoyne and decided to make a name for himself by capturing Philadelphia George Washington and the Continental Army attempted to stop Howe from capturing Philadelphia at Brandywine and Germantown Howe was able to capture Philadelphia in the fall of 1777 and caused the Congress to evacuate the town

Battle of Saratoga Summer 1777 (October)

Burgoyne arrived in Saratoga, New York tired, hungry, and with less troops than he started out with (less than 5,000) Continental Army under Horatio Gates defeats Burgoyne Considered to be the turning point of the Revolution
Boosted American morale Caused the French to decide to enter the war on the side of America

Winter of 1777-78 Valley Forge

After his losses at Brandywine and Germantown, Washington settled his army at Valley Forge for the winter Very difficult conditions due to weather, sickness, starvation, and death Many troops went AWOL, but upon hearing news that the French had signed an alliance to join the Americans (February 1778) they were reinvigorated and ready for the battles to come
Twenty miles outside of Philadelphia

Euro Officers Arrive

Baron von Steuben (German) came to train the troops at Valley Forge Marquis de Lafayette (French), Baron de Kalb (German), Count Casimir Pulaski (Polish), Rochambeau (French), and Thaddeus Kosciusko (Polish) came to lead American troops

War in the West

Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River George Rogers Clark- Kentucky frontiersman who captured many British forts throughout the Ohio River Valley Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vincennes British remained a threat, but Clark had the situation under control

War in the South

British decided to take the war to the South where they believed that the Loyalists (Tories) would aid them to victory

British, under General Clinton (now the commanding officer of the British troops) abandoned Philadelphia and retreated to New York where he would run the rest of the war British wanted to be closer to their colonies in the West Indies to protect them from the French

War in the South

British saw early victories under General Cornwallis Savannah, Charleston, and Camden American General Horatio Gates was replaced by General Nathanael Greene Greene attacked and retreated towards Virginia with the British chasing him through the southern wilderness

War in the South

Greene was aided by militia leaders like Francis Marion (the Swamp Fox) and Thomas Sumter (the Fighting Game Cock) who were successful at cutting supply lines and intercepting communications of the British army

Battle of Yorktown October 1781

Cornwallis had moved his troops to the edge of the Chesapeake Bay at Yorktown, Virginia Washington and Rochambeau had them pinned down with the sea to their back French Admiral de Grasse blockaded the entrance to the bay and cut off Cornwalliss escape to the sea Cornwallis surrendered and the war was essentially over

Cornwallis hoped that the English navy would come and rescue him and his troops

The Treaty of Paris, 1783

March 1782- a new government came to power in England
King George III wanted to continue the war even after Cornwalliss surrender, but the new government guaranteed Americas independence

The Treaty of Paris, 1783

Peace negotiations were held in Paris in April 1782
Ben Franklin, John Adams and John Jay were the American ambassadors

Treaty was finalized when France made peace with England on September 3, 1783

The Treaty of Paris, 1783

1) England acknowledged the independence of America 2)New boundaries expanded America to Canada in the North, the Mississippi River in the West, and Florida in the South

Treaty of Paris, 1783

3) Mississippi River would be open to American and British shipping

4) America gained fishing rights off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada

5) Congress would recommend that the states return confiscated Loyalist (Tory) property
Many of them ended up with money and land in Canada- given to them by England

How the British Lost

Separated from their headquarters by a vast ocean Lines of communication were long British government was badly informed of what was happening Thought America was weaker than it was Expected help from the Loyalists (Tories) which never materialized British had set themselves an impossible task British knew very little about the American people and their determination and character
Did not possess an army big enough to subjugate an entire continent

How America Won

Perseverance
Keeping an army in the field throughout the length of the war

Washingtons leadership and good judgment New fighting techniques Aid from France and Spain