Is it fair to say that the American Revolutionary War was "started in the North, fought in the South and won by the French"?
Yes, if you're focusing solely on the conflict in what would become the United States. Most of the protests over the Stamp Act and other unpopular policies handed down by King George took place in the North (specifically Boston). When the war began, the armies fought primarily in the North but the British shifted their focus to the South after preserving their control of Canada and losing the Battle of Saratoga. They assumed (incorrectly, as it turned out) that the South would welcome the British due to their loyalty to the crown and closer ties to the landed gentry lifestyle. When Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, it was due to the French navy under de Grasse blocking his escape to the sea and the large amount of French troops embedded with Washington’s Continental Army.But there were other factors which helped defeat the British. First, the French, Spanish, and Dutch were all fighting the British throughout the Caribbean, the Gulf coast, and Europe. The defeat of British forces in Mobile and Pensacola by the Spanish kept the British from asserting a greater presence in the South. The Dutch harassed the British in both the West Indies and in Europe. Secondly, the British were worried that spreading their troops too thin would keep them from preserving their control in Jamaica, which was by far the most prosperous colony in the British empire. There were ultimately many reasons the British had to cut their losses and sign the treaty with the newly independent United States of America.
American Revolution and Revolutionary War: Did General Washington want to burn down New York when he had to retreat from it in 1776?
Yes. Several prominent Patriots including Greene and John Jay advocated burning New York City in 1776 in order to prevent it from falling into the hands of the British intact. It was justified by the fact that most of the American Patriots had already left or were leaving the city and the majority of the population was Loyalist. Washington agreed and laid the question before the Second Continental Congress , which soundly rejected the idea. A major fire did break out in the City in September of 1776 and the British accused the Americans of setting it deliberately. Nevertheless, most historians believe that the fire was accidental and definitive proof of arson has never been found. Washington wrote to his cousin on September 22, specifically denying knowledge of the fire's cause and stating " Providence—or some good honest Fellow, has done more for us than we were disposed to do for ourselves".
Was the American Revolutionary War a particularly bloody war? It doesn’t seem to be described as such very often.
It was a very bloody war.The United States lost about 6,800 men in battle alone, not counting wounded soldiers, those who dies of disease or those who died in the British POW fleet. The total American losses in the war were closer to 38,000 soldiers.That might not seem like many losses today, considering that there have been battles in history where more men than that were killed.However, you have to remember that the population of the US was not dense at all.The commonly accepted population of the total United States in 1775 was 2.5 million. Therefore, 1% of the population is 25,000 people. That means that 1% of the population of the US died in the war; it sits at around 1.5% total.To put that into perspective, the current population of the US is 331 million people. 1.5% of that figure is 4,965,000 people. Imagine if in the modern day, the US got involved in a war that cost almost 5 million lives! How long would the public support such a war?Not long at all, right? But why?Because 5 million people dying in one war is incredibly bloody, don’t you think?That is why the Revolutionary War was so bloody. Not just how many died, but rather how much of the total population died.
What three sites were important to the revolutionary war?
New York - The Battle of Long Island was arguably the most important tactical retreat in the history of American warfare. After a limited skirmish with British and Hessian troops that had made landfall on the west end of Long Island (modern-day Brooklyn), George Washington led his men across the East River to Manhattan Island and from there, marched north past Fort Tryon and escaped the British blockade of New York Harbor. Had Washington been killed or captured, the Revolution surely would have gone very differently. The Battle of Long Island was easily the most important early battle of the war. The Battle of the Cowpens - This was an important battle in the southern theater of the war. It was a decisive American victory that resulted in almost a thousand British troops killed, wounded, captured or missing while the Americans suffered barely 100 casualties. The battle did much for American morale and even more to hurt the morale of the British. The battle proved that the American Army was a force to be reckoned with as some of the best troops the British had in North America had been killed or taken prisoner. The Battle of Yorktown - After a decisive American victory, Cornwallis surrendered his troops. The battle marked the last major campaign of the Revolutionary War.
Battle of Yorktown Questions?
The Battle of Yorktown took place in 1791 on the Yorktown peninsula in Virginia. It was the last major battle of the Revolutionary War. The American colonists helped by the French delivered a crushing defeat on the British. About 5,500 French soldiers had reached North America in 1780 to help the Americans. They were led by General Rochambeau. The Americans were led by General Washington. The Americans and French had trapped the British, led by General Cornwallis, on the Yorktown peninsula. A large French naval fleet under Admiral De Grasse blocked the Chesapeake Bay to prevent the British from escaping. By September a combined American and French force of about 18,000 men had the British surrounded at Yorktown. The surrender of Yorktown by the British took place on Oct 19, 1781. More than 8,000 British laid down their arms. Although it didn't officially end the war it was the last real battle. A new group of ministers came to power in Great Britain. The Treaty of Paris in 1783 ended the war. The United States won and became an independent nation. I hope that this has been a help to you.