The War for Independence - Cabarrus County Schools

1 Main Idea After a war lasting several years, thecolonists finally won their independencefrom Great Britain. Key Terms and NamesWilliam Howe, guerrilla warfare, NathanHale, Valley Forge, Marquis de Lafayette,Saratoga, letters of marque, John PaulJones, Charles Cornwallis, Battle of KingsMountainReading StrategySequencingAs you read about the warfor Independence , complete a time linesimilar to the one below to record themajor battles and their Objectives Describe the strategies behind theNorthern Campaign. Summarize the scope of the war at ThemeGlobal ConnectionsHostility betweenthe French and British caused France tosupport the Treaty of Parissigned1776 Battle ofTrenton 138 CHAPTER 4 The American Revolution 1784 Colonel Henry Beckman Livingston could only watch helplessly the suffering around him.

2 A veteranof several military campaigns, Livingston huddled with the rest of George Washington s army at itswinter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The winter of 1777 to 1778 was brutally cold, and thearmy lacked food, clothing, and other supplies. Huddled in small huts, soldiers wrapped themselves inblankets and survived on the smallest of rations. Livingston described the army s plight in a letter tohis brother, Robert: Our troops are in general almost naked and very often in a starveing condition. All my men except18 are unfit for duty for want of shoes, stockings, and shirts.. Poor Jack has been necessitated tomake up his blanket into a vest and breeches. If I did not fear starveing with cold I should be temptedto do the same. adapted from A Salute to CourageThe War forIndependence1777 1778 Washington camps atValley Forge for the winter1777 The British surrenderat Saratoga1781 Cornwallis surrendersat Yorktown 1775 1778 178117761781 The Opposing SidesThe struggle at Valley Forge was a dark hour for the patriots.

3 No one knew if they werestrong enough to defeat the powerful British Empire. On the same day that the ContinentalCongress voted for Independence , the British began landing troops in New York. By mid-August, they had assembled an estimated 32,000 men under the command of GeneralWilliam officials did not expect the rebellion to last long. The British troops,called redcoats because of their uniforms, were disciplined, well trained, and well Idea After a war lasting several years, thecolonists finally won their independencefrom Great Britain. Key Terms and NamesWilliam Howe, guerrilla warfare, NathanHale, Valley Forge, Marquis de Lafayette,Saratoga, letters of marque, John PaulJones, Charles Cornwallis, Battle of KingsMountainReading StrategySequencingAs you read about the warfor Independence , complete a time linesimilar to the one below to record themajor battles and their Objectives Describe the strategies behind theNorthern Campaign.

4 Summarize the scope of the war at ThemeGlobal ConnectionsHostility betweenthe French and British caused France tosupport the Treaty of Parissigned1776 Battle ofTrenton 138 CHAPTER 4 The American Revolution 1784 Colonel Henry Beckman Livingston could only watch helplessly the suffering around him. A veteranof several military campaigns, Livingston huddled with the rest of George Washington s army at itswinter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The winter of 1777 to 1778 was brutally cold, and thearmy lacked food, clothing, and other supplies. Huddled in small huts, soldiers wrapped themselves inblankets and survived on the smallest of rations. Livingston described the army s plight in a letter tohis brother, Robert: Our troops are in general almost naked and very often in a starveing condition.

5 All my men except18 are unfit for duty for want of shoes, stockings, and shirts.. Poor Jack has been necessitated tomake up his blanket into a vest and breeches. If I did not fear starveing with cold I should be temptedto do the same. adapted from A Salute to CourageThe War forIndependence1777 1778 Washington camps atValley Forge for the winter1777 The British surrenderat Saratoga1781 Cornwallis surrendersat Yorktown 1775 1778 178117761781 The Opposing SidesThe struggle at Valley Forge was a dark hour for the patriots. No one knew if they werestrong enough to defeat the powerful British Empire. On the same day that the ContinentalCongress voted for Independence , the British began landing troops in New York. By mid-August, they had assembled an estimated 32,000 men under the command of GeneralWilliam officials did not expect the rebellion to last long.

6 The British troops,called redcoats because of their uniforms, were disciplined, well trained, and well to the British troops, the ContinentalArmy was inexperienced and poorly the war , it struggled to keep its recruitsand pay their wages. Although over 230,000 menserved in the Continental Army, they rarely num-bered more than 20,000 at any one time. Many sol-diers deserted or refused to reenlist when their termwas up. Others left their posts and returned to theirfarms at planting or harvest for the war was equally difficult. Lackingthe power to tax, the Continental Congress issuedpaper money. These Continentals were not backedby gold or silver and became almost worthless veryquickly. Fortunately Robert Morris,a wealthyPennsylvania merchant and banker, personallypledged large amounts of money for the war also set up an efficient method of buyingrations and uniforms, arranged for foreign loans, andconvinced the Congress to create the Bank of NorthAmerica to finance the Continental Army was not the only force theBritish had to worry about.

7 They also had to fight thelocal militias. The militias were poorly trained, butthey fought differently. They did not always line upfor battle. They hid among trees and behind wallsand ambushed British troops and supply wagons,then disappeared. This kind of fighting is calledguerrilla warfare,and it is very difficult to problem for the British was that they werenot united at home. Many merchants and members ofParliament opposed the war . The British had to winquickly and cheaply; otherwise, opinions in Parliamentwould shift against the war . The United States did nothave to defeat Britain it simply had to survive untilthe British became tired of paying for the European balance of power also hampered theBritish. The French, Dutch, and Spanish were alleager to exploit Britain s problems.

8 As a result,Britain had to station much of its military elsewherein the world to defend its empire. The European bal-ance of power also meant that the Patriots might beable to find allies against the three major dis-advantages did the British face in the American Revolution?The Northern CampaignThe British knew that to end the war quickly, theynot only had to win several battles but also had to con-vince the American people that their cause was hope-less. At the same time, the British had to make it safe tosurrender. If the Patriots thought they would behanged for treason, they would never Howe s strategy had two parts. The firstpart was military. He began a massive buildup inNew York, hoping to intimidate the Americans andcapture New York City.

9 This would separate NewReading CheckThe Opposing SidesColonial AdvantagesFighting on home groundGood decisions by generalsFighting for their rights and freedomsFrench alliance: loans, navy, troopsColonial DisadvantagesUntrained soldiers; small armyFood and ammunition shortagesWeak and divided central governmentBritish AdvantagesWell-trained, well-supplied army and navyWealth of resourcesStrong central governmentBritish DisadvantagesFighting in unfamiliar, hostile territoryFighting far away from Britain and resourcesTroops indifferent; halfhearted support at home1. Interpreting ChartsWhy was fighting for theirrights and freedoms an advantage for the colonists?2. AnalyzingIn what ways would a weak govern-ment be a disadvantage in war time?Colonial hatColonial rifleEngland from the Southern states and demonstrateto Americans that they could not second part of Howe s strategy was diplo-matic.

10 He invited delegates from the ContinentalCongress to a peace conference. The Congress sentBenjamin Franklin, John Adams, and EdwardRutledge. Howe told them that anyone who putdown their arms and swore loyalty to the king wouldbe pardoned. The Americans quickly realized thatHowe had no authority to negotiate a compromiseand was only interested in talking them into surren-dering. They refused to talk further, and the stagewas set for the first major MovesDespite the size of the Britishforces preparing to seize New York City, theContinental Congress asked Washington to defendthe city. Congressional leaders feared that if NewYork fell without a fight, it would hurt Americanmorale. Washington agreed with this assessment,and he moved much of his army to Long Island andManhattan inexperience of Washington s troops becameobvious when British troops landed on Long Island inthe summer of 1776.