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The Americans Win Independence. Notes: Chapters 4.3 – 4.4. The War Moves to the Middle States. Summer 1776 – Battle of NY Fewer than 8,000 remained in Washington’s Army December 25, 1776 – Battle of Trenton 8 days later, Washington defeated 1,200 British at Princeton
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The Americans Win Independence Notes: Chapters 4.3 – 4.4
The War Moves to the Middle States • Summer 1776 – Battle of NY • Fewer than 8,000 remained in Washington’s Army • December 25, 1776 – Battle of Trenton • 8 days later, Washington defeated 1,200 British at Princeton • August 1777, General Howe captures Philadelphia
Victory at Saratoga • Burgoyne planned a complex scheme to isolate New England with General Howe • Burgoyne’s army was tired, hungry and worn-down from their trek • General Howe was too preoccupied with life in Philadelphia • October 17, 1777 – American troops surround Burgoyne at Saratoga • France now agreed to openly support the Revolution • Of the 10,000 soldiers who camped at Valley Forge, over 2,000 died
Colonial Life During the Revolution • Congress caused massive inflation by printing more and more paper money • Had to deal with profiteering • September 8, 1778 – Continental Army finally paid in gold coin • 5,000 African American slaves served in the Continental Army
European Allies Shift the Balance • February 1778, Frederich Von Steuben volunteered his services to General Washington • Taught Colonial Soldiers to stand at attention, execute field maneuvers, fire and reload quickly, and wield bayonets • Marquis de Lafayette also offered his assistance to Washington • Stayed with Washington at Valley Forge, asked for French reinforcements in 1779, led a command in Virginia
The British Move South • May 1780, Generals Clinton and Cornwallis capture Charles Town, South Carolina • Many escaped slaves joined the British • January 1781, Continental Army forced British to surrender in Cowpens, SC • Cornwallis lost ¼ of his troops in victory at Guilford House, NC • April 3, 1781 – General Greene wrote a letter to Lafayette • Cornwallis moved his 7,500 troops into peninsula between James and York rivers
British Surrender at Yorktown • Lafayette suggested the American and French armies join forces with the 2 French fleets • French forces blocked the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay • 17,000 French and American troops surrounded the British on the Yorktown peninsula • October 17, 1781 – Cornwallis finally surrendered • Continental Congress sent excellent team of negotiators to bargain the treaty • September 1783 – Treaty of Paris is signed
The War Becomes a Symbol of Liberty • Rise of egalitarianism began during the war • Women still struggled to gain any political rights whatsoever • Most African Americans were still enslaved • Settlers from the U.S. moved west and began taking tribal lands left unprotected by the Treaty of Paris