The American Revolution

1. The American Revolution

2. Battle of Lexington & Concord • April 1775 (before 2nd Continental Congress) • British planned to take away minutemen’s weapons and ammunition, stored in Concord (20 miles west of Boston) • Paul Revere and William Dawes were informed of the plan and raced to warn Concord

3. “The Shot Heard round the World” • 70 minutemen gathered at Lexington, near Concord, where they met a much larger British force • Colonists lost and British marched onto Concord but the colonists had already removed most of their weapons • In anger, British set fire to a few building and retreated back to Boston • Colonists picked them off as they retreated – 250 British casualties

4. Redcoats

5. Fort Ticonderoga • May 1775 – Colonists surprised the British by attacking the fort during an early morning storm Battle of Bunker Hill • June 1775 – Colonists outnumbered on Bunker & Breed’s Hill – ran out of ammunition and had to retreat • 1,000 British casualties; 400 colonist casulaties

7. Washington’s Army • 230,000 soldiers • 145,000 minutemen (members of militias) • Most were young (teenagers) and very few had combat experience • African-Americans were banned from serving

8. Native Americans • Fought on both sides Women • Ran farms & businesses while men served in the army • Raised money for supplies • Joined sewing groups to make uniforms • Some served as messengers, nurses, or spies • A few disguised themselves as men to fight

9. Battle of Trenton • Washington attacked Hessians at Trenton, NJ • Took them by surprise on Christmas night • 2,400 soldiers silently crossed the Delaware • Battle lasted less than one hour • Captured 900 Hessians with just 5 American casualties

11. Turning Point • British were embarrassed by defeats • General Burgoyne recaptured Fort Ticonderoga • On the way to join up with Burgoyne, General How won at Battle of Brandywine Creek in September 1777 but were slowed by colonists • British could have crushed Continental Army but they let many escape

12. Victory at Saratoga • October 1777 – Burgoyne did not know Howe was slowed down so he met the Patriots and he was badly outnumbered • Benedict Arnold led a brave attack that forced Burgoyne to surrender all of his troops • This victory was the greatest win yet and boosted American morale – and confidence from countries abroad

14. Foreign Allies • France and Spain had been secretly aiding Patriots • May 1778 – official alliance with France arranged by Benjamin Franklin

16. Valley Forge • Continental Army running very low on supplies • December 1777 – Washington settled his troops at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania • Suffered shortages of food and clothing • More than 1/5 of soldiers died of disease and malnutrition

18. The War at Sea • Continental Navy and the Marines created in 1775 • By 1776, only had 8 fighting ships – no match for the large British navy • Instead of fighting large battles, Patriots attacked individual ships and British supply ports and merchant ships (“raids”) • Continental Navy used less than 100 ships but British navy lost almost 200 ships to the small but effective American naval forces

19. John Paul Jones – most successful American captain