The Revolution represented a conservative effort to preserve liberties that British policies seemed to threaten. But the Revolution was accompanied by social and intellectual transformations that fundamentally altered the nature of American politics and involved ordinary people in politics to an unprecedented degree. The Revolution was truly multifaceted. There was a rebellion of the colonial gentry against British aristocrats who refused to accept them as equals and who viewed them with condescension.
There was also a rebellion by merchants and shippers who chafed at British trade restrictions and royal monopolies. Trapped and overpowered, Cornwallis was forced to surrender his entire army on October Though the movement for American independence effectively triumphed at the Battle of Yorktown , contemporary observers did not see that as the decisive victory yet.
British forces remained stationed around Charleston, and the powerful main army still resided in New York. Though neither side would take decisive action over the better part of the next two years, the British removal of their troops from Charleston and Savannah in late finally pointed to the end of the conflict.
British and American negotiators in Paris signed preliminary peace terms in Paris late that November, and on September 3, , Great Britain formally recognized the independence of the United States in the Treaty of Paris.
At the same time, Britain signed separate peace treaties with France and Spain which had entered the conflict in , bringing the American Revolution to a close after eight long years. Start your free trial today. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. As a political activist and state legislator, he spoke out against British efforts to tax the colonists, and pressured merchants to boycott British products.
He also He was a gifted orator and major figure in the American Revolution. His rousing speeches—which included a speech to the Virginia legislature in which he famously declared, American Revolution leader John Hancock was a signer of the Declaration of Independence in and a governor of Massachusetts.
The colonial Massachusetts native was raised by his uncle, a wealthy Boston merchant. When his uncle died, Hancock inherited his lucrative Committees of correspondence were emergency provisional governments set up in the 13 American colonies in response to British policies leading up to the Revolutionary War also known as the American Revolution.
The exchange of ideas, information and debate between different He gave the local militia a key advantage during the Battles John Adams was a leader of the American Revolution and served as the second U. The Massachusetts-born, Harvard-educated Adams began his career as a lawyer. Intelligent, patriotic, opinionated and blunt, Adams became a critic of Great It began as a street brawl between American colonists and a lone British soldier, but quickly escalated to a chaotic, bloody slaughter.
Despite their agony, the men at Valley Forge were transformed from a rag-tag group of undisciplined and largely ineffective soldiers to a trained and orderly army, capable of winning victories over the British. The rapid improvement seen at Valley Forge can be largely credited to the Prussian officer turned American patriot, Baron von Steuben. By the spring, confidence and morale had improved dramatically and Washington led a superior army out of Valley Forge ready to face the British anew.
When the Revolution started, the Royal Navy had ships at its disposal. The Royal Navy gave the British the immense advantage of being able to move and supply troops at will almost anywhere in North America and the world. The Continental Navy started out small in with only a handful of ships patrolling the waters of the North American shoreline. However, thanks to ships on loan from France and new vessels constructed in the colonies, the Continental Navy peaked in numbers in with 31 vessels to its name.
Though the Continental Navy could hardly defeat the mighty British Navy outright, they interrupted British commerce on the high seas, won victories against superior ships, and even made successful raids around the British Isles. Privateers were the most successful American warships of the war, capturing more than British vessels. Common types of field artillery were 3, 6, and pounder guns, named for the weight of shot that the guns fired.
Larger cannons and mortars — which lobbed large-caliber projectiles in high arcs onto their targets — were often used in sieges given their destructive capabilities.
Howitzers, with shorter barrels and larger calibers compared to cannons, were also utilized by both sides. While both the British and the American forces fielded a plethora of cannons, howitzers, and mortars, they largely played a supporting role on the battlefield, and rarely carried the same amount of destructive power as artillery of the Civil War era. The use of cavalry varied by region, but, on the whole, cavalry forces were small and used for scouting, hit and run raids, or to support units in battle.
Cavalrymen carried an array of weapons, including several pistols, a saber, and a carbine musket. Unique to the cavalry, troopers often wore leather helmets and modified uniforms conducive to mounted warfare. Both sides also used Legions, which consisted of infantry and cavalry combined into a single unit.
Legions could move quickly and were quite versatile. Spies were used extensively by both sides throughout the course of the war. Men and women risked their lives to gather intelligence and pass information. Nathan Hale , captured and hanged by the British, is one of the most famous American spies. As a result, Armistead accomplished what few spies could: direct access to the center of the British War Department.
Many women worked as spies, using their freedom of movement to gather information and pass through the lines. While some of the larger battle sites and camp sites are preserved as either national or state parks, a surprising number are not, or are only partially preserved. There is still great potential to save key areas at many engagement sites.
Learn how to Take Action to save Revolutionary War battlefields and ways to get involved. Rev War Article. American Revolution Facts. What are patriots? What are loyalists? What were British soldiers called?
Where were the battles fought? Were there any sieges in the war? Were there any battles overseas? How many soldiers served in the war? How many were killed or wounded? Who were the Hessians? How were the armies organized? What did the armies wear?
Was Valley Forge a turning point? What role did navies play? What kind of artillery was used? What role did cavalry play? What role did spies play? Where can I learn more? Those who lived in the colonies and remained faithful to the Crown were known as loyalists, Royalists, King's Men, or Tories What were British soldiers called? August 27, — The Battle of Brooklyn , N. December 26, — The Battle of Trenton , N. January 3, — The Battle of Princeton , N.
September 11, — The Battle of Brandywine , Pa. October 4, — The Battle of Germantown , Pa. October 7, — The Battle of Saratoga , N. June 28, — The Battle of Monmouth , N. December 29, — The Capture of Savannah , Ga. March 29, — The Siege of Charleston , S. August 16, — The Battle of Camden , S. January 17, — The Battle of Cowpens , S. Images and biographies of surviving Revolutionary War veterans were compiled for an book by Rev.
Library of Congress How many soldiers served in the war? Types of old infantry uniforms of the British army, published
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