Revolution, Rebellion and the Colonies War of Independence

Start of the War First shots of the War Concord- Lexington- ‘The shot heard round the world’ 700 British regulars advance on Lexington 80 militia met them No one knows which British soldier fired the first shot Outnumbered, the militia fell back to Concord Seven killed ‘Lexington Massacre’ Concord- Militia marched to meet the British Ran back to Concord after seeing how outnumbered they were Tried to find more supplies, failed ‘Don’t fire till you see the whites of their eyes’ British lost 273, Colonists 94

War Within a War Loyalists Patriots Loyal the British king Tories ‘A Tory is a thing whose head is in England, and its body is in America, and its neck should be stretched’ 16 percent of the population Older generation Educated, wealthy Patriots Rebels Whigs Protestant Young generation New England Colonies

Britain against the World Great Britain Loyalists Indians 30,000 Hessian’s- German Colonies- 1775-1783 France-1778-1783 Spain- 1779-1783 Holland- 1779-1783 Armed Neutrality- Hated Britain but didn’t declare war on them Russia Denmark Sweden Holy Roman Empire Prussia Portugal Two Sicilies

The Odds 8 million on Britain's side 3:1 against the Colonists 39.5 million total population 7.5 million Briton’s: 2.4 million colonists Colonists and their allies British

The Combatants American Militia Minutemen

British Soldiers

French Soldiers

Major Battles of the War Battle of Lexington and Concord April 19 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill June 17 1775 Battle of Long Island august 27-29 1776 Washington crossing the Delaware River Dec 26 1776 Battle of Princeton January 3 1777 Capture of Fort Ticonderoga July 1777 Battle of Saratoga Oct 7 1777 Battle of Savannah Dec 29 1778 Winter at Valley Forge Battle of Yorktown Sept 28 1781- Oct 17 1781 Lexington- British Win Concord- Colonial win British Win Colonial Win British win Colonial Devastation

Major Battles and their Meaning Bunker Hill Colonists occupied Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill, British attack-fought back on first attack British attack again-capture both hills Heavy losses- 800 wounded, 226 killed Fort Ticonderoga Colonists seized the fort 1775 British gained it back in 1777 Crossing the Delaware 1776 surprise attack on a German encampment in Trenton New Jersey Yorktown Last land battle of the war Valley Forge Long winter, very little supplies Several colonial soldiers starved to death

British Strength and Weakness Army population 50,000 Profession trained military Monetary wealth Navel power Support of Colony loyalists Hired gun- Germans Ireland was ready to bowl over- troops sent to watch it France ready to stab Britain in back Brutal conditions Conquer the colonists Geography- vast expanse of space Strength Weakness

Colonial Strength and Weakness Good leadership- George Washington On the defense Agriculturally self-sustaining They had a just cause to fight for Poorly organized Metal money depleted Printed paper money, that lost value because their was so much Population Military structure weak Military supplies scarce Strength Weakness

Revolution Debate Was Revolution the only option? If you were living the British colonies, which group of colonists would you join, the Loyalists, or the Rebels? Why?