Battlegrounds Shift

Fighting in the West Mohawk war chief Joseph Brandt led attacks against Americans in southwestern New York and northern Pennsylvania.

British commander Henry Hamilton was known as the “hair buyer” because he paid Native Americans for the scalps of settlers.

Militia leader George Clark led the Patriots down the Ohio River and captured British post Kaskaskia and the town of Vincennes. Victory in Vincennes strengthened the American position.

Britain’s powerful navy had the advantage and formed an effective blockade keeping ships from entering or leaving American harbors. Blockade limited supplies and troops from reaching Patriot forces.

Based on the graph, what conclusions can you draw about the Continental Navy? Privately owned merchant ships, or privateers, captured many British merchant ships and cargo.

Patriot John Paul Jones’s ship, the Bonhomme Richard, met the British warship, Serapis, near the coast of Great Britain in 1779. They fought for hours and in the end, the Serapis surrendered. The naval victory was a huge boost to the Patriot forces.