7.3 The American Revolution (2)

• History
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 2

7. The Time of Wigs and Revolutions

7.2. The American Revolution

What you will learn in 

this lesson

• What were the advantages of the British?
• What were the disadvantages of the British?
• What were the advantages of the Colonists?
• What were the disadvantages of the Colonists?
• How the war ended with the independence of the United States of America

The people behind the American Declaration of Independence

Benjamin Franklin

John Adams

Thomas Jefferson

George Washington

George Washington was a general who fought for the patriots. 

He became the first president of the United States of America. The US capital is named after him.

The War Begins

At first, not all Patriots wanted independence; they wanted the British to make reforms. This didnt happen. In February 1776, Thomas Paine published "Common Sense" in which he argued that the unreasonable behaviour of the British government meant independence was the only option. 

On 4 July 1776, the colonies published a joint Declaration of Independence. 

Britain had the largest empire in the world. It had a huge army. Its navy controlled the American coast. Everyone expected Britain to win, quickly. But the war did not end until September 1783 and Britain lost. 

Why did the Patriots win?

Read about the advantages and disadvantages of both sides in the next slides.

This painting depicts the moment on June 28, 1776, when the first draft of the Declaration of Independence was presented to the Second Continental Congress. The document stated the principles for which the Revolutionary War was being fought and which remain fundamental to the nation. Less than a week later, on July 4, 1776, the Declaration was officially adopted, it was later signed on August 2, 1776. 

In the central group in the painting, Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration, is shown placing the document before John Hancock, president of the Congress. 

British advantages

Those who expected the war to end soon saw only Britain's advantages. Britain had a huge army of trained soldiers and the support of American Loyalist militia. It had a large navy to control the American coast. Both the army and the navy had experienced officers to lead them. Britain also had large supplies of weaponry. 

The Patriots, on the other hand, had the newly formed, almost untrained, Continental Army. Only its leader, General Washington, had any significant experience. It had almost no navy at the start of the war, and very little weaponry. 

But Britain's advantages were not as great as they seemed, and the Patriots had advantages, too.

British disadvantages

Britain's empire meant it was often at war in other places in the world. In 1780, for example, it was fighting in the Mediterranean, Africa, India and the West Indies, and against France, Spain and Portugal at sea. Even though it had a big army, it often had to pay mercenaries to fight. Many of the soldiers fighting in America were Hessians (German mercenaries). War was expensive. The money was raised by taxes. Often the British parliament objected to increasing taxes for war spending.

Patriot advantages

The Patriots were fighting on home ground. They often had the support of local people. They did not have to wait for orders or supplies to be brought from Britain. They were more committed to the war than the mercenaries. So, at the start of the war, the Patriots captured Fort Ticonderoga, on Lake Champlain. Its weaponry was badly needed - in Boston, about 480 km away. Washington sent Henry Knox to get the weaponry. He arrived at Fort Ticonderoga on 5 December 1775. He hauled the heavy weaponry over icy lakes and mountains, in deep snow, with only horses and oxen and sledges in freezing cold weather. Despite many problems (everything sank in a lake at the start) he reached the main army in Boston 56 days later. The Patriots also had, from 1778, French help.

Shifting fortunes

The war lasted until 1783 because, at times, both sides 

lost their advantages. Sometimes the Patriot army were close to mutiny. Sometimes the better supplies of the British were useless. For example, at several battles the ammunition was the wrong size for the cannon. 

Both sides won victories and made mistakes. The two most significant Patriot victories were:

- the Battle of Saratoga in 1777 (after which the French agreed to join the war) 

- the British surrender at Yorktown in 1781 (after which the British parliament refused to go on paying for the war). 

Peace negotiations began in November. The war officially ended on 3 September 1783, when the Treaty of Paris was signed and the British accepted the independence of the United States of America.

1. Explain the importance of the Battle of Saratoga.
Use the term "turning point" in your answer.

2. Go to the website and use the information to write down arguments in favor and arguments against the historical correctness of the painting.

www.aoc.gov

Summary 7.3

Eventually, fortune shifted in favor of the _________________.

The _____________ joined the Patriots and at Yorktown the British were defeated. Britain did not want to pay for the war anymore and accepted peace in 1783.

Word Duty

WORD DUTY

Sorry, no difficult terms in this lesson 

Important dates in this lesson:

1776: Declaration of Independence is signed

1777: Battle of Saratoga (after which the French join the Patriots)

1781: British surrender at Yorktown (after which the British parliament refuses to spend more money on the war)

1783: Peace Treaty of Paris (the British accept the United States of America as a sovereign nation)

Write down a question about something from this lesson that you don't understand.

congratulations

congratulations

Explain the importance of the Battle of Saratoga. 

Use the term "turning point" in your answer.

The Battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the war because it turned the tide for the Patriots. They got help from the French and would soon win the war.

In the next slide, go to the website and use the information to write down arguments in favour and arguments against the historical correctness of the painting.

in favour: 

• He sketched a landscape study for the surrender site at Saratoga
  
• He based most of the figures on portraits he painted from life in the early 1790s
  

against:

He made the painting 44 years after the event took place

we don't know if he had all the correct information

we don't know if he even wanted to paint the historical truth