Different Perspectives Loyalists They call me a brainless Tory but tell me which is better to be ruled by one tyrant three thousand miles away or by three thousand tyrants not one mile away ID: 716272
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Slide1
The American Revolution
1775 - 1783Slide2
Different Perspectives
Loyalists
“They call me a brainless Tory; but tell me, which is better: to be ruled by one tyrant three thousand miles away, or by three thousand tyrants not one mile away?”“Whenever a people prevent the execution of laws or destroy the property of individuals there is an end of all order and government.”
Patriots
“Shall a body of men in great Britain who know nothing of us invest themselves with a power to command our lives and properties
?”
“If our trade be taxed, why not our lands, or produce. In short, everything we possess? They tax us without having legal representation.”Slide3
The Continental Army
Commander:
George WashingtonInitially formed from state militiasUntrained, part-time emergency fighters
Called for volunteers (1-year service)
As a result, his army never exceeded 17,000
men
Unprepared
Lacked blankets, shoes, food, and even guns and
ammo
Wives accompanied soldiers
Cooked, did laundry, and acted as nursesSlide4
The British Army
Well-trained and experienced
Soldiers enlisted for lifeMany were unenthusiastic about fighting colonistsBritain hired German mercenaries (professional soldiers who fight for a foreign country)Slide5
The British Strategy
Control coastal cities
Their navy could land troops and suppliesSeize the Hudson river valley and capture New YorkCut New England off from the other states
Would
serve as a sort of “home base” for operations
They successfully forced the Patriots to retreat
from New York in
1776
Washington: “I think the game is pretty nearly up.”Slide6
The British StrategySlide7Slide8
Patriot Victory at Trenton
Trenton
(1776): Patriots surprise attacked the Hessians (German mercenaries who were still resting from Christmas)Patriot victoryCaptured supplies and took over 900 prisoners
Improved the army’s morale and encouraged people to enlistSlide9
The Hudson River Valley
The British would send three armies
General John BurgoyneLt. Colonel Barry St. LegerGeneral Howe
Patriot sympathizers (regular citizens!) slowed the British at every turn
Cut down trees
Burned crops
Drove off cattle
Arrived late due to Patriot sympathizers
Heard rumor that
Benedict Arnold
’s army was HUGE, so he retreated
Decided to capture Philadelphia instead… at least he was successful… Slide10
Leaders of the Revolution
John Burgoyne (British)
Benedict Arnold (American)
In the last year of the war, Arnold
defected
(switched sides)
Nicknamed “Gentleman Johnny” for his
love of throwing huge partiesSlide11Slide12
Saratoga
(1777): The Turning Point
Burgoyne, left to attack by himself, was running out of suppliesHe reached Saratoga to find heavy
fortifications
(military structure designed for defense)
Benedict Arnold’s army repeatedly charged the British
Burgoyne was eventually surrounded
He surrendered
Saratoga was the first sign that the Patriots might win the warSlide13
Surrender at SaratogaSlide14
Others Join the Patriot effort
After Saratoga, others decided to ally with the Patriots
France Spain African Americans
Other
foreigners (i.e. the Dutch)
As a result, the British had to spread out their army throughout the world to protect themselves
They were still bitter over losing their colonies to the British
They were persuaded by their close ally FranceSlide15
Defending the EmpireSlide16
Marquis de Lafayette
19-year-old
aristocrat (a nobleman)Made a commander by WashingtonConvinced the French king to send a 6,000-man army to America
Popular amongst his soldiers
Used his own money to buy clothing for his troops
Nicknamed “the soldier’s friend”Slide17
Valley Forge
(1777)
Washington’s army ran low on supplies3,700 lacked shoes or warm clothing5,000 were too sick to fightAbout 25%
of the army died
from smallpox and
typhoid
Shipments meant for soldiers were often stolen by government employees
Local farmers aligned with loyalists and wouldn’t sell food to the army
More than 2,000 deserted
Frostbite and gangrene led to many amputationsSlide18Slide19Slide20
Valley Forge
“Unless some great and capital change suddenly takes place… this Army must inevitably… starve, dissolve, or disperse, in order to obtain subsistence in the best manner they can.”
“To see men without clothes… without blankets to lie on, without shoes… without a house or hut to cover them, till they could be built, and submitting to it without a murmur is a proof patience and obedience which, in my opinion, can scarce be paralleled.” – General George WashingtonSlide21
Fighting on the Frontier
The
frontier (a region that forms the border of settled territory)The British held fortsA group of frontiersmen began capturing these fortsAs a result, the British (again) had to divide their forces to protect yet another areaSlide22Slide23
Fighting on Water
The British (world’s largest navy) controlled the Atlantic Ocean
American privateers (a privately owned ship given permission to attack an enemy’s merchant ships) began raiding and robbing British shipsDisrupted trade
Rallied Americans
Gave Americans much needed suppliesSlide24
The Final Years
“The dead lay in heaps on all sides, while the groans of the wounded were heard in every direction. I could not help turning away from the scene before me with horror and, though exulting in victory, could not refrain from shedding tears.”Slide25
The British Change their Strategy
General Cornwallis
Focus on the SouthMore loyalistsSlaves were offered freedom
Success… at first
Captured Savannah, Georgia
Trapped Americans in
Charles Town
(Charleston)
Forced the newly created southern army to retreat
Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia
3
,000 Patriots were capturedSlide26
Guerrilla Warfare
Guerrilla warfare:
a form of warfare in which a small group of men (usually civilians) uses strategies such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, and hit-and-run tactics against a much larger, less mobile armyThe Patriots wanted to do as little fighting as possible and force the British to wear themselves outSlide27
The End of the War
Cornwallis set up his base at
Yorktown, located on a peninsula in Chesapeake BayThe French navy blocked the Chesapeake BayThe British couldn’t receive supplies or escapeThe Patriots and French armies arrived
Cornwallis was trapped
He surrendered on October 19, 1781
“It is all over!” – the British Prime Minister
Why is this a bad idea?Slide28
The End of the War
“There was as much sorrow as joy… We had lived together as a family of brothers for several years… had shared with each other the hardships, dangers, and sufferings incident to a soldier’s life; had sympathized with each other in trouble and sickness; and now we were to be parted forever.”
“Through almost every possible suffering and discouragement for the space of eight long years was little short of a miracle.” – George WashingtonSlide29
Activity: How the Americans Won…
Use the chart on page 218 to complete the handout.Slide30
Activity: Battles of the Revolution
Lexington & Concord
Bunker HillTrentonSaratogaValley ForgeCharles TownYorktown