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French Aid
The French was still upset about their defeat by the British in the French and Indian War so the French had been sending weapons to the Patriots since early 1776. -
British Change Direction of War
The British retreated from Boston and decided to change war tactics. They decided to move the war to the middle states. The British also decide to take control of New York so they could isolate New England and stop the rebellion. -
Summer of 1776
General William Howe and Admiral Richard Howe come together on Staten Island and sailed to the New York harbor, they were attempting to take over New York. -
Loss for the Americans
The battle for New York has ended, the Americans lost and retreated. -
Facing Hardships
It's late fall and the British has pushed Washingtons army across the Deleware River and into Pennsylvania. Washingtons army isn't doing so well either. Many men are being killed, captured, and some even abandoning the army. Washington needed to win something so the men would want to stay and fight. -
Battle of Trenton
Washington decided to risk everything in one move. He led 2,400 men over the icy Delaware River. The next morning the men marched through the snow to get to their destination, Trenton. Trenton was held by Hessians, Washington and his army did a surprise attack on them. In the attack the Americans killed 30, took 918 captive, and six Hessian canons. -
Contracts
On December 31st Washingtons soldiers contracts were set to end and the men were most likely to leave since they weren't winning any battles. -
Battle of Princeton
Eight days after the Battle of Trenton the Americans fought against 1,200 British soldiers that were in Princeton and the Americans won. Their victories in the Battle of Trenton and Battle of Princeton caused Washington to match his army near Morristown, New Jersey. -
Spring of 1777
General Howe began his plan to take over Philadelphia. His troops sailed from New York to the Chesapeake Bay and landed near Philadelphia. The Continental Congress left Philadelphia while the American troops tried to block the redcoats. The Americans were unsuccessful and the British captured Philadelphia. -
Saratoga
General John Burgoyne had a plan to go down to Albany from the lakes of Canada. At Albany he would meet Howe and together they would isolate New England. Howe never met up with Burgoyne and Burgoynes army was beaten down. At Saratoga American troops surrounded Burgoyne and he surrendered his army to General Gates. This loss changed Britians war strategy. -
Winter of 1777-1778
The Continental Army camped out at Valley Forge during the winter. During the winter the army lacked a lot of supplies like clothes and food. Many men were ill or dying, but even with this going on the army's chance of winning the war was increasing. -
Transformation
During the horrible winter at Valley Forge the American troops began to change with the help of Friedrich von Steuben. He volunteered to help and he taught the soldiers new skills such as how to fire and reload quickly. This helped the army become a better fighting force. -
Treaty with France
The French recognized American independence and signed an alliance with the Americans. In this alliance France agreed not to make peace with Britian unless Britian recognized American independence. -
More Help
Around the same time Friedrich von Steuben offered his help Marquis de Lafayette also offered his help to Washington. In 1779 he tried to get French reinforcements and led a command in Virginia. -
Summer of 1778
The British changed their tactics by going to the South. They hoped to get loyalist support in the South and then slowly go back up north. -
British in the South
Near the end of 1778 the British took Savannah, Georgia. -
Spring of 1779
Georgia is once again ruled by a royal governor. -
Going South
General Henry Clinton, who had replaced Howe, and Charles Cornwallis sailed south with 8,500 men. -
Charles Town Captured
In May 1780 the British captured Charles Town, South Carolina and took 5,500 American soldiers as prisoners of war. -
Camden
Cornwallis's army clashed with American troops at Camden, South Carolina. But over the span of three months the British were able to build forts across the state. But when the British tried to go to North Carolina Patriots attacked and harassed them. The British had to retreat to South Carolina. -
French Forces
The French army of 6,000 landed in Newport, Rhode Island. -
Cowpens
The British and American forces met at Cowpens, South Carolina in January 1781. The Americans were outnumbered but the Continental Army fought hard and forced the British to surrender. -
Revenge for Cowpen
After the defeat at Cowpens Cornwallis was still upset so he attacked Green two months after at Guilford Court House, North Carolina. Although Cornwallis won the battle he lost a lot of men. -
Cry for Help
Greene weakened the British forces but was still worried about how the fight for the south would turn out. On April 3, 1781 he wrote a letter to French allie Lafayette asking for help. -
Financing the War
The Congress appointed Robert Morris as superintendent of finance. Robert Morris had an associate named Haym Salomon and together they used their personal credit to try to raise money to provide salaries for the Continental Army. -
Salaries
All of Morris and Salomon's efforts paid off because on September 8, 1781 the troops were finally paid. -
Victory at Yorktown
The Americans and French joined forces to fight off the British. As a team they cornered the British by surrounding them on land and by sea. At Yorktown Cornwallis soon realized that he couldn't escape. Cornwallis was exhausted and his troops were outnumbered so Cornwallis finally surrendered. -
British Surrender
On October 19, 1781, Colonel William Fontanie of the Virginia Militia stood with the American and French armies on a road near Yorktown and watched the British surrender. This means the American Revolution has ended and that the Americans had won. -
Seeking Peace
The war is over and peace talks are now happening. A representative of each country: the United States, Great Britain, France, and Spain all met to negotiate. Each country was interested in something. The US wanted full independence. Britain didn't want the US to have full independence. France supported American independence but feared the US becoming a powerful nation. Spain wanted the land between the Appalachian mountains and the Mississippi River. -
Treaty of Paris
In September 1783 the delegates signed the Treaty of Paris which confirmed American independence and outlined the boundaries of the US. The US was now from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River and from Canada to the Florida border.
