The British Invade the South

    As the war continues the British wanted the support of loyalist in the south. Specially the farmers of Georgia, North and South Carolina. The British wanted the support but they wasted the support because they kept the way they fight, they still don’t learn the lesson, they thought they were fighting a conventional battle. Instead of give the loyalist militia the support they continue fighting with the same strategies. In the south they get their victories and they captured the main sea ports as they did in north. in late 1778 they captured Savannah, Georgia. During spring in 1780 they captured Charleston, South Carolina and at the same time they captured 5000 Patriot soldiers. That summer the British crushed another Patriot army in 1780, they captured Camden. As the British started fighting in the South at the gulf, and Fernando de Galvez simultaneously made an attack at British forts in coast regions. In 1780 he attacked Mobil, Alabama, a British fort. in 1781 they took Pensacola in Florida thi8s was the capital of British west Florida. The Spanish are trying to strengthen their position in the gulf but at the same time the British send their troops from the east weakening the British army in North Carolina.

The Frontier War

  

  The Proclamation of 1763 didn’t allowed settle beyond the Appalachian Mountains because it was Indian Territory. They had to remain in the east. After the war, there was something called the Pontiac’s Rebellion, a rebellion against the colonials from this came the proclamation. Defying the proclamation the colonies started to settled in the Appalachian Mountains at the west in the early 1770s. This was the out break of the war; they started to take more land. Most Indians sided the British, the frontier was destroyed. The promise to keep in the east was broken. Many Americans increased the attacks. Meanwhile the colonial settles were killing and attacking the neutral Americans because of their land. They would disregarded the trust and start the fight again over and over again. They keep doing this for years. In the North West a colonel called George Rogers Clark lead the Patriots militia in a fight against the British. He took the settles of Kaskaskia and Cahokia in spring of 1778 by the colonel Clark. By the late summers Clark and his soldiers with the he3lp of certain settlers captured all the British posts and Vincennes. The British and the American allies recapture Vincennes. All were captured again. Clark’s men all were unpaid volunteer, they quickly rallied and march. in 1779 they reach Vincennes’s and convinced many Americans to abandon the allies and this allowed Patriots to recapture the forts. By the end the Patriots were allowed to claim the Ohio River Valley. The Patriot troops attacked and burned 40 Iroquois towns; this destroyed the power of the Iroquois federation. the Indians continue attacking and the settlers return to the east.

European Allies Enter The War

The victory of Saratoga took greater recognize of the American independence. This make France recognize and enter the war. France welcome the opportunity to weaken the enemy; Britain. During early years of the war the French doubted that Patriots could win. They were not willing to risk and open alliance with them because they don’t know if they would win. They were sending secret shievments and ammunitions to the Patriots. These things help the army keep going. Some French volunteers like Marquis de la Fayette provided military expertise. 

After Saratoga the French risk an open alliance. This negotiation was in February 1778 and this reflected the genius man of Benjamin Franklin; the negotiator in Paris a leading diplomatic man. He negotiated the alliance with the French.

As the alliance was made and the French army and navy are attacking the British now the war is more even. As the first tried to work together was miserable, the alliance would produce the biggest victory of the war in 1781. 

The British suffered another blow in 1779 when Spain enters the war as a French ally. They wanted to defeat Britain but they had caution because they thought what this ally revolts would inspired their own and colonized people. Spanish was not an official American but a Spanish governor, Bernardo de Galvez, provided money and supplies for the patriots since the ports were closed they had to go the other way to Mississippi. He prevented the British ships to get in the Mississippi.

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was born into a big family. He was the 15th child of seventeen children in the family. His father, Josiah, was a candle maker. Benjamin helped him make candles and soap. His father wanted him to take over the family business when he grew up, but he wasn't interested. When Benjamin was twelve years old his father apprenticed him to his older brother James, who was a printer.

Benjamin ran away and went to Philadelphia. He started his own successful printing business and published a newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, for many years. He started the first library in America, the first volunteer fire department in Philadelphia, and the first hospital in Pennsylvania. They appointed him postmaster and he created a working postal system. He even created the "Dead Letter Office".

During the American Revolution, he convinced the French to help the Americans. He told the French that if the Redcoats won the war the British would be too powerful. The French and British were enemies, so they didn’t want them to be that powerful. The French sent supplies to the colonists through Benjamin and his spies. He became popular in France once the colonists won the war. Also he helped write the Constitution of the United States, which were the laws for the new country, and he signed four of the most important documents in the country's history. These were the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Treaty of Alliance with France, and the Treaty of Paris. Benjamin Franklin did amazing things to help the new country going.

Violence in Boston

  The biggest riots were in Boston because the officials abused their power. The Massachusetts legislature issued a circular letter denouncing the Townshend Act. Very few colonist pay attention to this, until the governor dissolve the Massachusetts legislator and passed the Massachusetts Government Act; it put the colony over the control of an appointed governor. The elective assembly was closed down. Towns meetings were gone too; the colonist lost the right to govern themselves.

   In already a tense situation, the costumes officers seize a merchant ship called ¨Liberty¨ and this was seized for smuggling. It belongs to a wealthy man called John Hancock. This created riots, the crown sent 4000 troops to Boston. The presence of the troops inflamed overall anger. Troops started to take away the colonist jobs. One night of March 5 of 1770 a group of colonists hurled snowballs and rocks to the troops. The British soldiers were gardening the costume house. The soldiers killed the 5 colonist. Samuel Adams called this ¨The Boston Massacre¨ like the one in the picture.

     Later Adam organized the ¨committees of correspondence¨. It was organized through Massachusetts. This provides leadership and promoted cooperation. By 1773 other colonies were creating this which built colonial unity. Parliament back down once again. The British withdrew the troops from Boston.

The War Shifts to the Middle States

  

 After the British left Boston in early 1776 they decided to attack New York City. By taking New York they would cut the England colonies. After series of battles they were able to capture the city in September 15 by William Howe. About 30,000 British and German troops crushed the Patriots. The continental army was forced to retreat across to New Jersey. Washington barely saved the army and the revolution by counterattacking in December 26 by crossing the Delaware River, in the middle of a Christmas night surprising the Garrisons (a body of troops stationated in a fortified place) of more than a thousand Germans. This was called The Battle of Trenton. This victory raised the spirit of the Patriots.
    Washington began with another victory in 1777. Again moving his troops on the middle of the night. General Charles Cornwallis was in charge of this Battle of Princeton. During the remainder of 1777 George Washington suffered more defeats. In the fall of 1777 he lost Philadelphia for the house of the army. Let by General John Burgoyne, another British army marched from Canada to invade the New York Hudson River and this was the greatest victory. Saratoga suggested that US might win the war.

The British Make Mistakes

  In 1775 the British didn´t take the colonist serious. Two months after they defeat Concord, minutemen ambushed the Red Coats. The mistake by marching in at Concord passed again and its main purpose was to push them out of the sea port, to retake the hills.
  
    The British had a new commander ´´Lord William Howe´´. With order at frontal assault to the Patriots at the middle of the day going upward the hill and run away the Patriots that were hidden in frenches and they attacked the Red Coats. The first charge the colonist won. The second colonist won again but in the third charge the Red Coats won because the Patriots run out of ammunitions. The British suffered blood but unless the British took the hills, for the Patriots was a psychological boost.
    In January 1776 a coronel called Henry Krox brought cannons to strengthen the Patriots outside Boston. These cannons were brought all the way from New York. A man called Ethan Allen and their man had captured the cannons in Fort Ticonderoga. The British were surrounded by cannons and abandoned the City on March.

The Colonist Declared Independence

 By spring of 1776 Paine´s ideas had build momentum for American independence. Noting the shift on public opinion congress created a committee to draft the document declaring the American independence.
   In July the second congress voted that America was free. Two days later in July 4 they approved the Declaration of Independence. This was drafted by men called Thomas Jefferson. This drew up thanks to Paine´s ideas who declared the king was a tyrant.
 It made American independence necessary although the declaration primarily a long list of colonial grievances. The declaration also advanced the idea that all men are created equal. Congress embraced the enlightenment idea that all men are born with natural rights, which are life, liberty and property could not be taken away by a government. Thomas Jefferson called this rights the unalienable rights.

  Women did not have equal rights. They were ahead the social and economic reality. Many of the declaration signers own slaves. The sweeping statement was of the social and economic reality, but this created a sense of future hope for the slaves and the people. The colonists face many challenges before getting a nation. No colony in America had ever achieved winning independence from the British Empire. Fitting the British for independence would pit the poorly organize colonies. People do fight for liberty.

 

Opinion Swings Toward Independence

   In January 1776 a short but powerful book swung popular opinion in favor of Independence it was called ´´The Common Sense´´ written by a man called Thomas Paine, an artesian, immigrant and tax collector.
   In forceful and direct language Paine propose a radical course for colonist. The first thing he proposes was the independence for Britain. The second thing was the union of the new states and the third thing was to have a republican state government.
  
    Paine denounced the king and the aristocrats as frogs and parasites. He also wanted common people to be elected. He saw the king as the enemy of the American liberties. He hated for smothering the hopes of people that didn´t have money. He said that in a republic would provide opportunities. If they were independent they would have liberty to have a good economy and they also could trade with anyone.
        By uniting to create a republic, Americans would create a model for making people to reject the king and the monarchs. This people are learning with Paine´s book. He said the cause of America is the cause of human kind to be free. In 1776 this view was powerful when the revolution was a desperate gamble.

Patriots and Loyalist Disagree

Most colonies supported the Continental Congress and English boycotts, but the minority preferred the English rules. The ones who preferred them were called Loyalists. The Loyalists favored law and order, but were afraid of the Patriots. They viewed the Patriots as illegal and brutal.

Although many Loyalist opposed taxes, they still believed they had to follow the king and Parliament orders. They feared that the resistance would lead to a deadly and destructive war in which Britain would win. During the summer of 1774, two old friends which were lawyers got together to discuss the crisis. One was John Adams and the other Jonathan Sewell. Sewell, who was a loyalist, warned Adams that England wasn’t going to change and Adams replied that whatever happened he was going to die or survive with his country.

Loyalism also appealed to Native Americans and enslaved people. The Indians wanted British help to keep out the settlers from moving west. They hoped English would keep that. Enslaved people owned by the Patriots leaders supported loyalism because; they saw British as true champion of liberty. Loyalist opposed the Patriots causes because; they feared British would win the war, also because the Patriots didn’t allow free speech, Patriots banned their newspaper, they dislike Militia Draft and Oath of Allegiance and of course didn’t like tarring and feathering the Patriots did.