The American Revolution Military Campaigns,1776-1781

1. The American RevolutionMilitary Campaigns,1776-1781 Teaching American History Wenatchee, WA

2. British Strategy as of 1776 • The battles of Boston led the British to realize that they were up against something far more than mob violence. They thus decided to isolate the New England colonies (especially Massachusetts) and hoped to draw Washington into a decisive – war ending – battle. Boston, the British believed, was the center of the insurgency and need to be isolated and punished. But it was not the proper center for battle. Furthermore, the ports of New England, they believed, could be held with British ships and the Middle Colonies were said to have a greater number of Loyalists who would join in the fighting against the rebels. They therefore sailed into New York (where ostensibly the population was more sympathetic) with 30,000 troops (including both British regulars and Hessians) and the goal of pushing North until Boston was cut off and Washington was forced to engage the British.

3. The New York Campaign: Howe Lands • Howe arrives in New York in late June 1776 – days before Continental Congress passes Richard Henry Lee’s resolution declaring American independence and the Declaration of Independence is ratified. Howe brings a massive army and navy at New York Harbor. British forces include 30 ships, 1200 cannons, 30,000 soldiers, 10,000 sailors, and 300 supply ships. 8000 of the soldiers are Hessians. The Americans deeply resent the use of foreign troops who are known to be ruthless. This invasion is supported by a British fleet commanded by William Howe’s brother, Richard Howe (“Black Dick” Howe). One colonist remarks “It looks like all London has floated here.” This is the largest expeditionary force that the British army employed during the 18th century.

4. Eighteenth Century “Shock and Awe” • At one point, Howe engaged in a demonstration of British naval power by sailing two of his Frigates – the Phoenix and the Rose – down the Hudson furiously firing their cannons. He then asks for a meeting with Washington under flag of truce and sends his adjutant general to explain that he has the possibility of negotiating and offering pardons. Washington refuses.

5. Washington moves to met the British at New York • New York is not easily defended. It is an island and the Americans do not have a navy. Nevertheless, Congress believed that it could not be given up without a fight and Washington agreed. He thus quickly moved 23,000 troops into New York City to defend the city and divided them between Long Island and Manhattan. Washington is often criticized for dividing his troops in the face of an opponent with a greater number of troops.

6. Battle of Long Island (Sometimes Called the Battle of Brooklyn) • On August 27, 1776, the British and Americans engaged on the tip of Long Island at what is now Brooklyn. This becomes the battle of the American Revolution that has the largest number of troops involved. The Americans initially held the high ground, but the British circle behind them using the (unguarded) Jamaica Pass. Once encircled, the Americans fled and were slaughtered in large numbers. They retreated to Brooklyn Heights and were trapped against the East River. Washington and almost the entire Continental army faced capture and defeat. This was one of the most crucial moments in the war. The British expected Washington to surrender. This was what a European general would have been expected to do. But at night in the fog, Washington evacuated his troops to Manhattan by rowboat.

7. Battle of Harlem Heights • September, 16, 1776 – The British then pursued Washington and his troops into Manhattan. Washington withdrew to Harlem Heights and British and American troops fought a non-decisive battle there on September 16th.

8. Battle of White Plains and Capture of Fort Washington and Fort Lee • A month later, Howe then attempted to encircle Washington again. Washington retreated but encountered the British at White Plains on October 28th. Howe did not pursue Washington further, but rather returned to Manhattan and took Fort Washington and Fort Lee. Fort Washington had been built to prevent the British from simply sailing unimpeded up the Hudson. Americans also had a large cache of military stores at Fort Washington, including 100 cannons and 1000s of muskets. Since these are manufactured in Britain, they could be replaced. • Howe is often criticized for not pursuing Washington. Many military strategists believe that he could have brought the war to an end. But Howe did capture Long Island and Manhattan and killed or captured over 5000 Americans. He also captured many of their supplies. As Americans retreated, the city was burned (possibly by Americans trying to prevent the British from making use of the resources in the city).

9. New York City as a Prison • The British held New York City and the surrounding area for the entire war. New York City became a large prison for captured American troops many of whom were put onto prison ships. Over 12,000 Americans died in these prisons during the war, more than died on the battlefield.

10. Washington retreats (Winter, 1776) • Washington and his troops retreated across New Jersey, the Delaware River, and eventually into Pennsylvania. After Washington’s defeats in New York in 1776, there was open talk in the American army of replacing him. It is at this time (December, 1776) that Thomas Paine, who was with Washington’s army during the retreat from New York, wrote in The American Crisis: “THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.” This work was originally written on a drum head. Washington ordered that it be read to his troops.

11. British Give Chase into New Jersey (1776) • Howe deploys brigade garrisons into six New Jersey towns and these garrisons are joined by Loyalist militias who engage in a series of local battles with rebels. Cornwallis also pursues Washington until he moves into Pennsylvania. • Howe extends an offer of pardon to rebels that is acceptedby at least 3,000 Americans, including one signer of the Declaration of Independence.

12. Washington’s Brilliant (Desperate) Gamble: Victory at Trenton and Princeton • The enlistments of over half of the troops that Washington commanded were nearly up. His generals were bickering among themselves. Charles Lee wanted to fight a guerilla war, but Washington and his core of officers wanted to fight a European style conflict. In the face of these difficulties and as the British went into winter quarters, Washington engaged in a surprise counterattack on December 25-26, 1776 at Trenton. Famously crossing (re-crossing) the Delaware on December 25th, 1776, Washington captured over 1200 Hessians at the Battle of Trenton. A week later on January 3rd, 1777, Cornwallis and his troops moved to retake Trenton, but Washington successfully attacked the reguard of Cornwallis’ troops at Princeton, New Jersey. Washington’s victories at Trenton and Princeton were of limited strategic value, but they boosted the morale of the army. Washington and his soldiers then went into winter quarters at Morristown, New Jersey.

13. Washington Crossing the Delaware (Emanuel Leutze,1851)

14. British Strategy of 1777 (The Hudson River Corridor Strategy) • At some point in 1776, the British decide to combine victory in New York with capture of the Hudson River Corridor to trap Washington and his army in New York and force his surrender. To prevent the colonists from escaping to the North, the British employ a force of 8,000 under the leadership of General John Burgoyne southward from Canada to seize Lake Champlain and the Hudson river corridor. Burgoyne’s forces were then to meet up with Generals Howe and St. Leger who were advancing north from New York and East from the Mohawk Valley respectively. The goal was to isolate New England from the rest of the colonies.

15. 1777 (Burgoyne advances and the British recapture Fort Ticonderoga) • Burgoyne took off in June, 1777. He retook Fort Ticonderoga in July, 1777 by a remarkable feat of military engineering. He was able to fortify Mt. Defiance overlooking the fort. Americans abandoned the fort when they see these fortifications above them.

16. Burgoyne continues South • After capturing Fort Ticonderoga, Burgoyne then continued on his journey south to Albany, New York. Americans followed Burgoyne’s army of 8000 troops (including several thousand Native Americans), disrupting and severely slowing his movement. His supply lines were stretched and he was continuously harassed by militia from New England who blocked his path, destroyed bridges, and generally slowed his progress. Famously, his retinue included 30 carts of Burgoyne’s personal possessions with several cases of champagne that had to be dragged through the thick Northeastern forests. Burgoyne’s army built 40 bridges as they worked their way through the forest. The final twenty three miles of this journey could be achieved only at a pace of about a mile a day. At one point, Burgoyne sent 1000 troops on a mission to seize supplies but they were defeated and captured by American militia.

17. American Victory at Saratoga • Meanwhile, on September 13-14, Burgoyne crossed the Hudson, cutting off his supply lines and communications with his troops who followed. He then reached Saratoga in early October, 1777, only to be met at Freeman’s Farm by 10,000 to 11,000 Americans of the northern militia led by Horatio Gates who has been appointed by Congress and supported by Daniel Morgan and his riflemen. Morgan’s riflemen hide high in the trees and target British officers (in direct violation of 18th century military practice) Howe was not available to lend support. Historians still debate about what each expected from the other. • American and British troops engaged in two bloody battles at Saratoga. Eventually, Burgoyne surrendered over 7000 British troops to Horatio Gates and General Benedict Arnold. Arnold is the field general of American forces and the real hero of Saratoga. At the surrender, Burgoyne gave his sword to Gates and remarked: “The fortune of war, General Gates, has made me your prisoner.” Gates returned the sword and said, “I shall always be ready to bear testimony that it has not been through any fault of your Excellency.”

18. General John Burgoyne surrenders to Horatio Gates

19. Saratoga (The Turning Point) • Saratoga led the French, who had been looking for signs of American strength, to formally enter the war. France had been secretly aiding the American Revolutionaries with money and arms, but now in February, 1788, they signed a military alliance with the United States. For Britain, the entrance of the French leads to the expansion of the colonial conflict into a world war in which the American Revolution is but a sideshow. Eventually, the French engage the English in battle in English colonies in India, South America, off the coast of South Africa, and in the Caribbean and there was talk that they will even invade England. French forces in the colonies also made British victories there much more difficult. The British no longer had uncontested control of the waterways and ports. They also faced more hardened and trained French forces, including experienced Generals. • Saratoga represents the end of the threat posed to New England by the Hudson River Corridor strategy. The British hold New York and recapture Canada, but do not control New England. • Saratoga also represents a tremendous psychic victory for the Americans and conversely a shattering blow to British prestige. Seven thousand British troops surrender to the Americans. That would have been unimagined to most of the world in 1775.

20. Victory at Saratoga (The Turning Point) • Led to a change in command: Sir Henry Clinton replaced General Howe. • Led to a change in theater and tactics: the British switched to the South and used new tactics, including buying off American leaders, the use of more ruthless tactics including bombardment of American ports, and a policy of pacification. The British now abandoned Philadelphia and relocated their troops to the West Indies. They then aimed to secure Southern ports and with the use of Loyalists and many slaves worked their way North restoring British rule.

21. Howe captures Philadelphia • As Burgoyne pressed south, Howe – who was supposed to join him at Albany – decided instead to attack Philadelphia. In August 1777, he captured the city, but he did not have time to get back to help Burgoyne. Howe’s decision, in effect, created a two front war and led to British defeat in one front.

22. On the Philadelphia Front • Washington responded to Howe’s attack of Philadelphia by engaging the British. • September 11th – Washington is defeated at Brandywine as both sides incur heavy casualties. • September 26th - The British Capture Philadelphia, but capturing the capital in America does not mean defeat of the American army.

23. Valley Forge • In December, after his defeats at both Brandywine and Germantown, Washington and his troops went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. They stayed there for six months and 2,500 out of 10,000 died from disease and exposure to the cold. In the beginning of the spring, the remaining troops began a training program under Baron Van Steuben.

24. Battle of Monmouth, New Jersey, June 28, 1778 • Under their new commander, General Clinton, the British decided to evacuate Philadelphia and reinforce New York City which was now vulnerable to French naval power. As Clinton withdrew his troops from Philadelphia in June, 1778, Washington ordered an attack. American troops under the command of Baron von Steuben fight British forces to a draw.

25. The Southern Theater

26. Southern Theater, 1778-1783 • The entry of the French into the American Revolution led the British to chart a new strategy and move the theater of the war to the South. New York and the New England ports were harder and costlier to hold. Furthermore, the British need to keep the Royal Navy closer to the Caribbean to defend their colonies there from French attack. This was easier with their fleet in the Southern colonies. The British also believed that more loyalist support could be found in the South and began the tactic of pacification. Pacification meant using military victories to bring out loyalist support, put Loyalists in charge of the government and militia of the area, and then turn the region back to support of the Crown. The British armed Loyalists who, in turn, sought revenge against the Patriots. Much of the Southern conflict pits Loyalists against Patriots in acts of bitter reprisal.

27. Blacks in the Revolution

28. Slaves and the American Revolution (Dunmore’s Proclamation) • In addition to pacification, the British also hoped to employee former slaves in support of their cause. Many slaves viewed the American Revolution as an opportunity for freedom and escaped to fight for or follow the British. Far more slaves sided with the British than with the Americans with approximately 10,000 slaves fighting for the British and 5,000 for the Americans. The British actively recruited slaves as soldiers at the beginning of the Revolution. In November, 1775, Lord Dunmore – royal governor of Virginia – issued a proclamation promising freedom to the slaves of Patriot masters if they fought for the British. This led to the formation of the famous Royal Ethiopian Regiment of approximately 800 men. They wore shirts proclaiming “Liberty to Slaves.” When the Hessians joined British troops and supplied adequate numbers, William Howe decided to bar the recruitment of blacks and discharged black troops from the British army. This again changed in 1779 when General Clinton took command of the British army. Clinton issued the “Phillipsburg Proclamation” providing shelter and freedom for slaves, whether they were fit for battle or not.

29. Americans’ Reaction to Dunmore’s Proclamation • American Revolutionaries viewed Dunmore’s Proclamation as an assault on their property in slaves. The prospect of armed insurrection by slaves wielding British weapons against their owners also excited great fear among slave-owners. Washington’s correspondence during 1775-1776 suggested that he believed that Dunmore’s proclamation had the possibility of leading 1000s of slaves to join the British. Washington concluded that this has to be contained. For many Americans, it also provided evidence that the British would do anything to defeat the Americans. And it led them to be even more committed to the cause. In the South, the American Revolution thus becomes a paradoxical effort to insure “liberty” against British tyranny while preserving slavery.

30. Virginia’s Counter Proclamation • In 1775, Virginia issued a response to Lord Dunmore’s Proclamation that reminded slaves that Dunmore’s offer extended only to the males slaves owned by revolutionaries, not women or the slaves of loyalists. It also observed that slaves would have to make a decision between staying with their families and joining the British. It also reminded them of the penalty for insurrection - death.

31. Blacks Who Joined the British Cause • “Colonel” Tye – Titus, a slave who had a cruel Quaker master before the Revolution, became a hero of the Revolutionary War and is perhaps the best remembered black soldier. • Colonel Tye escaped his owner the day after Dunmore’s proclamation and fought vehemently and passionately for the British for the next five years. After an initial service in the Ethiopian regiment, he returned to his native area of New Jersey and became the leader of approximately 800 men who conducted guerrilla raids against American Patriots. He killed many Patriots, burned and looted the homes of slaveholders, and freed many slaves. He died in 1780 when a gunshot wound that he received to his wrist in a raid became infected. • Blacks who joined the British present an interesting tension for American students. It forces them to have divided loyalties between slaves fighting for his freedom against Revolutionaries fighting against the British for their liberty. • Mention “Colonel Tye” in Battlestar Galactica.

32. Blacks Who Sided with the Americans (The Rhode Island Regiment) • Unlike the British, the Americans did not – initially at least – allow blacks to serve in the army. When he took command of the Continental Army in 1775, Washington barred the further recruitment of black soldiers, even though blacks had fought with the Patriots at the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill. Washington lifted the ban that he had placed on black soldiers in 1776 out of sheer necessity for the recruitment of more troops. By the winter of 1777-1778, the Continental army was down to 18,000 troops. This led Washington to accept free blacks into the military. Eventually, the Continental army was, according to Henry Wiencek, “more integrated than any American military force until the Vietnam War.” (Wiencek, An Imperfect God: George Washington, His Slaves, and the Creation of America [New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giiroux, 2003], 190.) • Washington also recommended that Congress approve a proposal of the Rhode Island legislature to raise a regiment of troops composed of slaves and free blacks. In the Rhode Island proposal, slave owners were offered a moderate compensation for their slaves who fought. The slaves were then purchased by the state and then allowed to join the army. The Rhode Island regiment served with distinction in the American Revolution, fighting in battles in Rhode Island and most importantly at Yorktown. Although Washington rejected the most ambitious plan for emancipation of slaves to bolster troop numbers (one formulated by Henry Laurens for South Carolina), the service of blacks in the Continental army had a profound effect on his moral evolution on slavery. During the Revolutionary War, Washington witnessed many acts of uncommon bravery by African Americans who composed from six to eighteen percent of his troops by the middle of the Revolution and perhaps even more at the end. These acts led Washington to eventually come to see the humanity, intelligence, and courage of blacks.

33. Motivations of Slaves Who Fought with the Americans • Some were offered their freedom if they fought. Furthermore, it was by no means certain that former slaves would have been given their freedom if the British would have won. They might simply have had to remain in the British army the rest of their lives. The status of these slaves was uncertain and they had to calculate about who was likely to win the Revolution and what that event would mean for their lives.

34. Motivations of Slaves Who Fought with the Americans (continued) • Many other slaves who fought in the American Revolution were runaways. (Over 100,000 slaves or about 20% of those enslaved in the colonies escaped during the American Revolution). After 1777 and the change in policy toward blacks fighting, few questions were asked of blacks who wanted to fight. They were needed. Some states – including Virginia - used drafts to meet quotas of troops set by the Continental Congress. Free blacks in these states were often the first to be drafted; at other times, slaves were set forth as a substitute for individuals who were drafted. Only North and South Carolina and Georgia did not allow blacks into military service.

35. Southern Theater, 1778-1783 (continued) • Americans lost a series of engagements in the South as the British attempted to regain control of the nation by building up from the South. The British captured Georgia in 1778-1779. They abolished the existing republican state constitution, reimposed monarchical rule on the state, and arrested those who supported Independence. They then launched a series of assaults on the Carolinas from their base in Georgia.

36. British Capture Charlestown • May 12, 1780 British captured Charlestown, South Carolina. Henry Clinton defeated General Benjamin Lincoln and an American army of 5,500. Resistance collapsed in Georgia.

37. British Victory at Camden, April, 1780 • The defeat of Lincoln in Charlestown led Washington to dispatch the hero of Saratoga, General Horatio Gates to South Carolina. Gates rushed to confront Cornwallis and suffered a major defeat on August, 16, 1780 at Camden, South Carolina. This was one of the most devastating defeats for the Americans in the war as Gates and his troops fled after bayonet charges by the British. Americans resort to guerilla tactics to fight the British in the Carolinas.

38. Battle of King’s Mountain • Badly needing a victory, the Americans got one in late 1780 when backcountry militiamen defeated Loyalists at the Battle of King’s Mountain

39. Nathaniel Greene takes command of the Southern theater, 1780 • Greene quickly rebuilt his troops and then divided them. He trained one group, but allowed a second under the command of Daniel Morgan to engage the British. The British under Cornwallis chased Greene’s army across the South and exhausted his troops. Cornwallis had an army of British regulars, Hessians, Loyalists, and was followed by several thousand blacks who foraged and labored for his troops. Greene won no battles, but he kept moving. Also, unlike the British, he understood that he had to “win the hearts and minds” of the people in the South if the Revolutionaries were to be victorious. The British engaged in slash and burn tactics and alienated many who might have been sympathetic to them.

40. Battle of Cowpens • Morgan defeated Banastre “Bloody” Tarleton at Cowpens, in southern South Carolina on January 17, 1780. This was an important victory for the Americans as it gave them back a hold on some of the South.

41. Greene engages Cornwallis at Guilford Court House in March, 1781 • This is a British victory, but they incur substantial loses in this battle.

42. Battle of Yorktown – 1781 • Cornwallis eventually retreated to the Virginia coastline with the goal of setting up a camp on the sea where he could be easily reenforced. His troops dug in and awaited reenforcements by sea from Clinton’s army.

43. Capture of Cornwallis at Yorktown was planned as a joint operation. • In the fall of 1781, Washington learned from the French General Rochambeau that the French Admiral Count de Grasse had a large fleet in the Caribbean that would be available for operations for a two week period. A joint operation was planned in which 11000 or so American troops (including some of the best of Washington’s army and Greene’s southern troops) were to join forces with 6000 French troops under the direction of Rochambeau to capture Cornwallis at Yorktown.

44. DeGrasse engages the British Navy • As Admiral de Grasse neared the Chesapeake he engaged in battle with a British fleet. Outnumbered, the British ships retreated to New York for reinforcements. De Grasse then sealed off the Chesapeake, insuring that Cornwallis could not be reinforced, but that the Americans and French could secure supplies.

45. The Battle of Yorktown • The American and French armies had a combined force of 17,000. Cornwallis’ had only 8,000 to 9,000 troops. Fighting lasted for several weeks, but the Americans and French weakened the British with shelling, then attacked them. British supplies ran short, creating additional problems for the outnumbered British army.

46. Cornwallis Surrenders to Washington • Realizing that defeat was inevitable, Cornwallis surrendered to the Americans and French. Washington arrived theatrically and disciplined his troops, telling them not to taunt the British. “Posterity will huzzah for us,” he declared. Clinton arrived with British reenforcements a week after surrender at Yorktown.

47. “The World Turned Upside Down.” • Tradition has it that the British army band played the British folksong “The World Turned Upside Down” at Yorktown. Unfortunately, this is probably not true, but it ought to be. The lyrics include: “If ponies road men and grass ate cows, if summer were spring, and the other way round, then all the world would be upside down.” • Other songs of the American Revolution: “Yankee Doodle” and “Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier.”

48. “Johnny Has Gone For a Soldier” • Here I sit on Buttermilk HillWho can blame me, cryin' my fillAnd ev'ry tear would turn a mill,Johnny has gone for a soldier.Me, oh my, I loved him so,Broke my heart to see him go,And only time will heal my woe,Johnny has gone for a soldier.I'll sell my rod, I'll sell my reel,Likewise I'll sell my spinning wheel,And buy my love a sword of steel,Johnny has gone for a soldier.I'll dye my dress, I'll dye it red,And through the streets I'll beg for bread,For the lad that I love from me has fled,Johnny has gone for a soldier.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKkRjSCnY6I.

49. “Yankee Doodle” • Yankee Doodle went to townA-riding on a ponyStuck a feather in his hatAnd called it macaroni.Yankee Doodle, keep it upYankee Doodle dandyMind the music and the stepAnd with the girls be handy.Father and I went down to campAlong with Captain GoodingAnd there we saw the men and boysAs thick as hasty pudding.Yankee Doodle, keep it upYankee Doodle dandyMind the music and the stepAnd with the girls be handyThere was Captain WashingtonUpon a slapping stallionA-giving orders to his menI guess there was a million.Yankee Doodle, keep it upYankee Doodle dandyMind the music and the stepAnd with the girls be handy.

50. American Troops stayed in the Field • Even after Yorktown, American troops stayed in the field for two additional years until the British evacuated. Washington feared that the British would start the war again if the troops do not stay organized. Remember, the British continued to occupy New York, Charlestown, and many areas of the United States.