Chapter 4 Section 2

  Do Now: Trivia: What was the first capital of the US.  Obj:  Trace Progress of war through the turning point at Saratoga  Examine the colonial economy and civilian life during the Revolution  HW:  Active Read 4.4 and Critical Thinking #3

  Valley Forge  Trenton  Saratoga  Inflation  Profiteering VOCAB

  March 1776 – British move troops out of Boston  Want to move war to Middle States  Attempt to end “rebellion” by isolating New England  British move to attack NYC… British War Strategy

 Defeat in New York British  British Gen. William and Admiral Richard Howe send 32,000 men into New York Harbor  Combine British soldiers and Hessian (German mercenaries)  Largest British force EVER assembled! American  Washington has 23,000 men to defend NYC  Vastly outnumbered  Men untrained with poor equipment  Americans retreat in August of 1776  Washington left with 8,000 who’s enlistment was soon up….he needed a victory!!!

  Washington had been pushed back into PA  Washington takes calculated risk and attacks Trenton on Christmas day  2,400 of his men in small row boats cross the Delaware River into NJ  Surprise Hessian troops; who were still drunk from the night before and capture 918 men and 6 cannons  8 days later Americans defeat 1,200 Princeton  Moral victories that helped keep the “cause” going… The Battle of Trenton

 Isolate New England  Burgoyne’s Plan Against the Americans:  Was to lead an army down a route of lakes from Canada to Albany, where he would meet Howe’s troops as they arrived from NYC  Joint forces would isolate New England from the rest of the colonies  However; Howe would never meet Burgoyne in NYC….

 Victory at Saratoga  Under Burgoyne’s Command:  4,000 redcoats, 3,000 mercenaries, 1,000 Mohawk  Bad Luck:  Food supplies ran low  Clashing with Americans caused Burgoyne to lose many men  Howe was preoccupied with conquering and occupying Philadelphia that he wasn’t coming to meet him  Surrender at Saratoga:  Massed American troops surrounded Burgoyne  Burgoyne surrendered his army to General Gates  Surrender dramatically changed Britain’s war strategy:  British kept their troops along the coast  Close to the big guns, and supply bases of their fleet

  The French were still bitter about the British defeating them in the French and Indian War  Secretly sending weapons to the Patriots since the previous year  Saratoga victory supported their trust in the American Army  French recognized the American independence and signed an alliance, or treaty of cooperation, in February 1778 Turning Point

 Winter at Valley Forge  Washington’s struggles :  Awaiting the French aid Washington and his men were struggling to stay alive during the cold winter with primitive conditions  Soldiers suffered from frostbite  Surgeons worked constantly to try to save arms and limbs from amputation  2,000 men died

  What country were the Hessian mercenaries from?  Germany  What was the “turning point” in the American Revolution?  Battle of Saratoga  What river did Washington cross to attack the British at Trenton?  Delaware River POP QUIZ