Mr. Clifford US 1

 Thomas Paine captured the feeling and sentiments of the Continental Army when he wrote, “ These are the times that try men’s souls ”.

 Britain’s tactic for winning the war: isolate New England from the rest of the colonies.  General William Howe and his brother Admiral Richard Howe sailed into New York harbor in the summer of 1776 with 32,000 soldiers and thousands of German (Hessian) mercenaries.  British wanted to intimidate Washington & the Continental Army into surrender & put an end to the uprising.

 General Washington rallied 23,000 troops.  Most of Washington’s troops were untrained recruits with poor equipment.  The battle for New York ended in late August with heavy losses and an American retreat.  The British pushed Washington’s army into Pennsylvania.  Fewer than 8,000 men remained in Washington’s army.

 Enlistment terms for the Continental Army would end on December 31,  Washington led 2,400 men across the Delaware River on December 25, 1776 into New Jersey.  By 8 am on December 26th, Washington’s army had marched 9 miles to Trenton and attacked a garrison of Hessian mercenaries.  Continental Army had killed 30 and took 918 captives and 6 Hessian cannons.

 6 days later, Washington’s army would defeat 1,200 British soldiers at Princeton.  These two victories inspired almost all of Washington’s soldiers to re-enlist.  Washington’s men would set camp in Morristown, NJ for the winter of 1777.

 Spring 1777; General Howe planned to seize the American capital Philadelphia.  The 2 nd Continental Congress fled to Baltimore to escape capture.  General Howe invaded Philadelphia aided by colonial loyalists.

 General ‘Gentleman’ John Burgoyne persuaded Parliament to let him lead an army from Canada to New York.  Burgoyne’s regiment would move south down the Hudson River to meet with General Howe’s army traveling north.  Burgoyne had to lead 4,000 redcoats, 3,000 mercenaries, 1,000 Mohawks and 30 wagons filled with artillery through forested wilderness in upstate NY.

 Continental soldiers & militia soon surrounded Burgoyne’s army at Saratoga.  Burgoyne surrendered his battered army to General Horatio Gates on October 17,  British would change war strategy & focus on the southern colonies where they was apparently more Loyalist support.

 Americans now believed the British could be defeated  British realized they could lose  France saw opportunity to avenge their defeat from the French and Indian War. (France had been secretly sending weapons & ammo to US)  France now openly supported American independence & agreed to NOT make peace with Britain unless Britain recognized American independence.

 Valley Forge: 20 miles west of Philadelphia.  2 nd Continental Congress had little money for supplies which Washington had desperately pled for.  10,000 Continental soldiers braved wind, snow, and ice with tattered clothes, few blankets, and little food.

 Continental Soldiers:  made makeshift wood huts which housed 12 men.  slept on straw and lived on ‘fire cakes’ (flour & water cooked over open fire).  More than 2,000 soldiers died of disease, malnutrition, & cold.  During that winter, the British controlled New York, part of New England, and Philadelphia.

The Revolutionary War would affect the life of every American. The war upset the economy and forced people into new ways of living.

 2 nd Continental Congress began printing paper money called, ‘ Continentals ’ to pay soldiers & purchase supplies.  An increase in printed money eventually caused ‘ inflation ’.  Price of supplies would skyrocket.

 2 nd Continental Congress had difficulty supplying Continental Army with weapons/provision.  British naval blockade intercepted supplies sent by France.  Corrupt government officials engaged in ‘ profiteering ’. Goods like gunpowder would be ‘ hoard ’ and sold at increased prices in order to make huge profits.  Shopkeepers would sell ‘ shoddy ’ (spoiled/cheap) goods to make a quick profit.

 1781: the 2 nd Continental Congress appointed Robert Morris & Haym Salomon to fix their financial problems.  Morris & Saloman begged & borrowed money on their personal credit.  funds from Philadelphia’s wealthy Quakers and Jews were lent to Morris and Salomon to help finance the war effort.  Morris & Salomon were credited with saving the Continental Army and establishing American currency.

 Wives of American soldiers had to take care of the home, farm, and businesses.  Women like Abigail Adams made ammunition from household silver & founded organizations so other women could help troops.  Hundreds of women followed their husbands into battle. (washed, mended, & cooked for the troops)