Bellwork

• Why do you think the Americans ultimately won the American Revolution? Name at least two advantages the colonists had over the British.

American History

Section 6, Unit 6American Victory

Objectives• Identify the major battles and outcome of

those battles during the Revolution• Map where the battles occurred• Describe the consequences/effects of the

Treaty of Paris of 1783• Identify the consequences of the Revolution

on minority groups in America at the time.

Quick Review

• What effect did declaring independence have on the nation?

• How prepared was the Continental Army for war?

Where we left off

• We had last talked about how William Howe evacuated Boston after Washington’s strike from Dorchester Heights.

• However, Washington knew the British would be elsewhere. He suspected New York City, as it was a loyalist stronghold.

• He brought his forces to New York to defend the city.

Before we continue

• Before we continue, you will need a handout map showing the battles of the Revolution.

• We’ll be going through each one at a time in brief.

Battle of Long Island

• On July 2, 1776, Howe sailed into New York Harbor, and landed on Staten Island.

• The British won an easy victory at Brooklyn Heights in late August and continued to hit the Patriots hard.

• When the city fell to the British, Washington tried to regroup.

Consequences

• Between the British victory of New York City and nearing winter, many Patriots departed the ranks and, even worse, the enlistments were due to expire.

• Washington feared the worst.

Battle of Trenton

• Thinking the war was almost won, General Howe prepared to celebrate Christmas in New York.

• As a precaution, he stationed about 1,400 Hessians (German mercenaries) at Trenton, New Jersey, to keep a close eye on the Patriots. – However, the Hessians did not fortify Trenton against

Patriots, believing that the Hessian forces would easily outmatch the Patriots.

Question: How do you think this overconfidence will affect the outcome of the battle?

Crossing the Delaware

Ignoring the customary winter halt in fighting, Washington and his troops boldly crossed the ice-choked Delaware River on Christmas night. Washington knew that to win, he would have to surprise the enemy forces with a unforeseen strategy.

Battle of Trenton

• Many of Washington’s men had been on duty for days with little sleep.

• However, Washington had his men surprise the Hessians at day-break. In the fright and confusion, the Hessians surrendered to Washington’s forces.

• Of the 1,400 Hessian soldiers, 106 either died or were wounded and 918 were taken prisoner. – Washington’s brilliant strategy lead to the Patriots to

suffer no casualties of the battle.

Failed Counter Attack• General Charles Cornwallis–

the British field commander– prepared to counterattack.

• However, the American troops had slipped away by night and left their campfires burning to fool the British. – To counter the British again,

Washington struck inland, ambushing the British regiments in Princeton, NJ.

– The British soon began to realize that a quick end to the war would be difficult.

Battle of Saratoga

• The setbacks at Trenton and Princeton roused the British to greater effort.

• Because they controlled Canada to the north and New York City to the south, the British set out to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies.

• The British General, Johnny Burgoyne (ber-goin) planned to have his troops break into three separate forces and converge at Albany, New York.

• What he didn’t realize is that the trek would involve them going through lakes, swamps, hills, and forests filled with Patriot forces.

Burgoyne’s Plan • Burgoyne planned to meet at Albany. However, his plan would soon hit a snag.

• Two of the British forces lead by Colonel Barry St. Leger and General Howe never arrived (Howe took no action because of a miscommunication- never left New York City).

Battle of Saratoga

• General Burgoyne almost single handedly lead the entire campaign to Albany. He left from Canada in June with a large caravan of supplies and artillery. However, the caravan was slow, being hampered by blocked trails and destroyed bridges by the American forces.

• In September, Burgoyne and his men crossed the Hudson river and clashed with the Americans at the Battle of Saratoga. Outfoxed and outmanned, Burgoyne surrendered in 1777.

European Support

• Saratoga was a turning point for Americans. Encouraged by the victory, the French (who had been secretly aiding the Patriots) signed a formal alliance in 1778. French aid provided Americans with gold, supplies, a fleet, and troops.

• As well, France also formally declared war on Britain.

• A year later, Spain– an ally of France– joined the war. In the following year, the Netherlands joined as well.

Consequences

• New volunteers from Europe brought useful military skills to the Patriots:– Organization skills– Engineering skills– Naval experience

• For the Americans, new alliances with Europe gave the Americans new hope of victory.

Battle of Vincennes

• For the Patriots in the West (present-day Illinois and Indiana), things were going much better.

• Lt. Colonel George Rogers Clark of Virginia– with a small group of frontier fighters and Native Americans- overran British posts Kaskakia, Cahokia, and Vincennes (vin-sens) in 1778.

• The British recaptured Vincennes, only to lose it again to Clark in the Battle of Vincennes in February 1779.

British refocusing

• In 1778, the British focused their attacks on the southern colonies, where they expected strong Loyalist support.

• Backed by their navy, the British occupied seaport towns such as Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina.

• From Charleston, General Cornwallis attacked inland at the Battle of Camden (S.C.) in 1780. From there, the British forces marched to North Carolina.

Lack of Support• Cornwallis did not find the Loyalist support he

expected. Although some Loyalists terrorized the area, Patriots retaliated just as harshly. Deaths between the two groups did occur. – In 1780, in Kings Mountain, S.C., the Patriot militia

attacked and killed or captured the Loyalist militias in the area.

Guerrilla Warfare

• The new Patriot commander, Nathanael Greene of Rhode Island stopped British advances.

• Greene was a master of guerrilla warfare– wearing down the enemy in hit-and-run skirmishes while avoiding direct battles.

• Greene utilized the forests and the element of surprise to make use of their limited numbers in the South and push back the British.

Guerrilla Warfare

Because they knew the land better than the British forces, American troops were very successful in the south as routing the British and holding them off from advancing.

Yorktown, Virginia

• In 1781, Cornwallis moved his army into Yorktown, located on the peninsula between the York and James’ rivers (we’ll see a map in a moment).

• There he had access to the British fleet and supplies.

• A small Patriot army lead by generals Lafayette, von Steuben, and Anthony Wayne kept a close watch on the British, but did not attack.

Trapping the British

• On August 14, a dispatch reached General Washington’s New York headquarters that Admiral Francois de Grasse (france-swah duh-grass), a French naval commander in the West Indies, was moving his fleet north to block the Chesapeake Bay.

• Meanwhile, Washington’s army, along with a French force under Comte de Rochambeau (raw-shawn-boh), rushed south to Yorktown, to trap the British.

• Boxed in by the French fleet, the British faced a vastly greater number of American and French troops.

Battle of Yorktown

• After numerous attempts on land and sea to break the blockade, Cornwallis admitted defeat.

• In 1781, the British surrendered their weapons and the American and French forces gained Yorktown

Battle of Yorktown

Where the trap was set

Consequences

• Although some fighting continued in the South and West, Cornwallis’ surrender, combined with the victory at Yorktown, severely reduced hostilities in the colonies.

• The end of Yorktown lead to peace talks between the British and Americans- with negotiators Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay winning generous terms.

Treaty of Paris of 1783• The Treaty of Paris of 1783 granted the United

States three primary things (among other things):1. Independence2. Land from the Atlantic Coast westward to the

Mississippi River and from the Great Lakes South to Florida

3. Fishing rights in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and off the coast of Newfoundland.

• The treaty also required Americans to pay back debts owed to the British and that all property taken from the Loyalists be returned to them (however, the states ignored this request).

Question: Look carefully. What did we gain? What did we lose?

Deals with Spain and France

• Luckily, Americans did not have to negotiate with Spain or France. Had this occurred, Americans would have gained much less.

• Spain wanted to confine the U.S. to the land east of the Mississippi River. Despite that, they did regain Florida. – However, due to George Roger Clarks campaigns

in the west against the British, the area became disputed territory.

Short Review– School House Rock

• We are going to watch a short video about the American Revolution by School House Rock (Shot Heard ‘Round the World)

• While watching video, write down three (3) concepts in yours notes that you remember talking about in class that the video covers.

Consequences of the Revolution

• Other than the obvious gain of independence, there were some changes (or lack thereof) in the states after the Revolution:– Although the country

gained independence, women and slaves still did not gain full freedom or equality.

Consequences of the Revolution

• Native Americans also lost the Iroquois League and Native Americans gained almost nothing from the victory, as neither side recognized them for their efforts. – The Iroquois League would

later be reestablished, but would lose the level of political power it once had.

Consequences of the Revolution

• The Revolution caused a national sense of unity among the people. It also changed how people viewed who had the right to rule. They no longer believed that the wealthy should rule and the belief would slowly lead to the belief in democratic ideals.

Questions

• If you have any questions, please ask now.

Review1. Who came to the Patriots aid after their early victories?

Without this aid, do you think the Patriots would have won the war? Why or why not?

2. What did the United States gain from the Treaty of Paris? How might they have not gained as much if they would have had to negotiate with the French and Spanish?

3. If the Hessians had prepared fortifications at Trenton, do you think that would have changed the outcome of the battle?

4. What tactics did the Patriots use against the British in the South? Describe this tactic. Why were these tactics successful?

5. Britain was stronger, bigger, and had more experienced soldiers than the colonies. Write down at least 2 disadvantages they would have had in the war.

6. What groups in America did not gain from the Revolutionary war? Why do you think they did not gain much from the war?

Next Lesson

• In the next lesson, we are going to begin discussing the formation of a union