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{{Redirect|Revolutionary War}}
{{About|military actions only|political and social developments, including the origins and aftermath of the war|American Revolution}}
{{pp-pc1}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2013}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict=American Revolutionary War
|image=[[File:AmericanRevolutionaryWarMon.jpg|300px]]
|caption='''Clockwise from top left''': [[Surrender of Lord Cornwallis]] after the [[Siege of Yorktown]], [[Battle of Trenton]], [[The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775|The Death of General Warren]] at the [[Battle of Bunker Hill]], [[Battle of Long Island]], [[Battle of Guilford Court House]]
|date=April 19, 1775&nbsp;– January 14, 1784<ref>A cease-fire in America [http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/proc1783.asp was proclaimed by Congress] on April 11, 1783 pursuant to a cease-fire agreement between Great Britain and France on January 20, 1783. The final peace treaty was not signed until September 3, 1783 and ratified on January 14, 1784. Hostilities in India continued until July 1783.</ref> <br />({{Age in years, months and days|1775|04|19|1784|01|14}})
|place=Eastern North America, [[Gibraltar]], [[Balearic Islands]], the [[Indian subcontinent]],parts of Africa and elsewhere;<br />
European coastal waters, [[Caribbean Sea]], [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] and Indian Oceans
|result= American victory
* [[Peace of Paris (1783)|Peace of Paris]]
* [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] recognition of the independence of the <br />[[United States|United States of America]]
* End of the [[First British Empire]]
* Shattering of the [[Iroquois|Iroquois Confederacy]]
|territory=Great Britain loses area east of Mississippi River and south of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River to independent United States and to Spain;<br />Spain gains [[East Florida]], [[West Florida]] and [[Minorca]];<br />Great Britain cedes [[Tobago]] and [[Senegal]] to France.<br />Dutch Republic cedes [[Nagapattinam|Negapatnam]] to Great Britain.
|combatant1={{flagdeco|United States|1777|size=23px}} [[Patriot (American Revolution)|United States]]<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of France}} [[Kingdom of France|France]]{{refn|(1778–83)}}<br />
{{flagicon|Spain|1748}} [[Kingdom of Spain|Spain]]{{refn|(1779–83)}}<br />
[[Native Americans in the United States|American Indians]]{{refn|[[Oneida tribe|Oneida]], [[Tuscarora (tribe)|Tuscarora]], [[Watauga Association]], [[Catawba (tribe)|Catawba]], [[Lenape]], [[Chickasaw]], [[Choctaw]], [[Mahican]], [[Mi'kmaq]] (until 1779), [[Abenaki]], [[Cheraw (tribe)|Cheraw]], [[Seminole]], [[Pee Dee people|Pee Dee]], [[Lumbee]]}}
----
'''Co-belligerents:'''<br />
{{flag|Dutch Republic|name=Netherlands}}{{refn|(1780–83)}}<br />
{{Flagicon image|Flag_of_Mysore.svg|size=23px}} [[Sultanate of Mysore|Mysore]]{{refn|(1780–84)}}{{Citation needed|date=December 2015}}
|combatant2={{flagcountry|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
*[[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Loyalists]]
*[[Germans in the American Revolution|German auxiliaries]]
[[Native Americans in the United States|American Indians]]{{refn|[[Onondaga people|Onondaga]], [[Mohawk nation|Mohawk]], [[Cayuga people|Cayuga]], [[Seneca people|Seneca]], [[Mi'kmaq]] <small>(from 1779)</small>, [[Cherokee]], [[Odawa]], [[Muscogee]], [[Susquehannock]], [[Shawnee]]}}

|commander1={{flagicon|United States|1777}} [[George Washington]]<br />
{{flagicon|United States|1777}} [[Nathanael Greene]]<br />
{{flagicon|United States|1777}} [[Horatio Gates]]<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of France}} [[Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau|Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau]]<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of France}} [[François Joseph Paul de Grasse|François de Grasse]]{{POW}}<br />
{{flagicon|Spain|1748}} [[Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez|Bernardo de Gálvez]]<br />
<small>[[Military leadership in the American Revolutionary War|'''''...full list''''']]</small>

|commander2={{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe|Sir William Howe]]<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Thomas Gage]]<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)|Sir Henry Clinton]]<br/>
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lord Cornwallis]]{{POW}}<br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[John Burgoyne]]{{POW}} <br />
{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe|Richard Howe]]<br />
<small>[[Military leadership in the American Revolutionary War|'''''...full list''''']]</small>

|strength1=
'''United States:'''<br />
40,000 (Average)<ref name=medical>Duncan, Louis C. [http://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/rev/MedMen/default.html MEDICAL MEN IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION] (1931).</ref><br />
5,000 [[Continental Navy]] sailors (at height in 1779)<ref name="Greene"/><br />
no ships of the line<br />
53 other ships (active at some point during the war)<ref name="Greene">Jack P. Greene and J. R. Pole. ''A Companion to the American Revolution'' (Wiley-Blackwell, 2003), p. 328.</ref>

'''Allies:'''<br />
12,000 French (in America)<br />
63,000 French and Spanish (at Gibraltar)<br />
146 ships of the line (active 1782)<ref name="Jonathan Dull 1985 p. 110">Jonathan Dull, ''A Diplomatic History of the American Revolution'' (Yale University Press, 1985), p. 110.</ref>

'''Native Allies:''' Unknown

|strength2=
'''Great Britain:'''<br />
39,000 (Average)<ref name=medical/><br />
7,500 (at Gibraltar)<br />
94 ships of the line (active 1782)<ref name="Jonathan Dull 1985 p. 110"/><br />
171,000 Sailors<ref name="Mackesy 1964 pp. 6, 176">Mackesy (1964), pp. 6, 176 (British seamen).</ref>

'''Loyalist forces:'''<br />
19,000 (total number that served)<ref>Jasanoff, Maya, Liberty's Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World (2011).</ref>

'''German auxiliaries:'''<br /> 30,000 (total number that served)<ref>A. J. Berry, ''A Time of Terror'' (2006) p. 252</ref>

'''Native Allies:''' 13,000<ref>Greene and Pole (1999), p. 393; Boatner (1974), p. 545.</ref>

|casualties1= '''United States:'''<br /> 6,824 killed in battle <br /> 25,000–70,000 dead from all causes<ref name=medical/><ref name="Howard H. Peckham 1974">Howard H. Peckham, ed., The Toll of Independence: Engagements and Battle Casualties of the American Revolution (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1974).</ref><br /> Overall casualties up to 50,000<ref>American dead and wounded: Shy, pp. 249–50. The lower figure for number of wounded comes from Chambers, p. 849.</ref><br />
'''France:''' 10,000 overall deaths (75% at sea)
'''Spain:''' 5,000<ref>{{cite web|url=http://necrometrics.com/wars18c.htm#AmRev |title=Spanish casualties in The American Revolutionary war. |publisher=Necrometrics}}</ref>
|casualties2='''Great Britain:'''<br />4,000 army killed in battle<ref name=medical/><br />1,243 navy killed in battle, 42,000 deserted, 18,500 died from disease (1776–1780)<ref name="Parliamentary Register">[https://books.google.com/books?id=zc5ZwyqzpQQC&pg=PA298&dq=parliamentary+register+1780&hl=en&sa=X&ei=M-rPVO-pMrT7sASv6oCgCw&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=killed&f=false Parliamentary Register] (1781), p. 269.</ref><br /> At least 24,000 dead from all causes
'''Germans:''' 1,800 killed in battle<br>7,774 dead from all causes<ref name=medical/>
}}
{{Campaignbox American Revolutionary War}}

The '''American Revolutionary War''' (1775–1783), also known as the '''American War of Independence'''{{refn|British writers generally favor "American War of Independence", "American Rebellion", or "War of American Independence". See Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture, ''Bibliography'' at the [http://revolution.h-net.msu.edu/bib.html Michigan State University] for usage in titles.|group=N}} and the '''Revolutionary War''' in the United States, was the armed conflict between [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] and [[Thirteen Colonies|thirteen of its North American colonies]], which had declared themselves the independent [[United States of America]].{{refn|In this article, the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies who supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans", with occasional references to "Patriots", "Whigs", "Rebels" or "Revolutionaries". Colonists who supported the British and opposed the Revolution are referred to as "Loyalists" or "Tories". The geographical area of the thirteen colonies is often referred to simply as "America".|group=N}}<ref>Merrill Jensen, ''The Founding of a Nation: A History of the American Revolution, 1763–1776'' (2004).</ref> Early fighting took place primarily on the North American continent. In 1778, France, eager for revenge after its defeat in the [[Seven Years' War]], signed an [[Franco-American alliance|alliance]] with the new nation. The conflict then expanded into a [[world war]] with Britain combating [[Early Modern France|France]], [[Enlightenment Spain|Spain]], and [[Dutch Republic|the Netherlands]]. [[Second Anglo-Mysore War|Fighting]] also broke out in India between the British [[East India Company]] and the French allied [[Kingdom of Mysore]].

The war had its origins in the resistance of many Americans to taxes imposed by the British parliament, [[No taxation without representation|which they claimed were unconstitutional]]. Patriot protests escalated into boycotts and the destruction of a shipment of tea at the [[Boston Tea Party]]. The British government punished Massachusetts by closing the port of Boston and taking away self-government. The Patriots responded by [[Suffolk Resolves|setting up a shadow government]] that took control of the province outside of Boston. Twelve other colonies supported Massachusetts, formed a [[Continental Congress]] to coordinate their resistance, and set up committees and conventions that effectively seized power from the royal governments. In April 1775 fighting broke out between Massachusetts militia units and British regulars [[Battles of Lexington and Concord|at Lexington and Concord]]. The Continental Congress appointed General [[George Washington]] to take charge of militia units besieging British forces in Boston, forcing them to evacuate the city in March 1776. Congress supervised the war, giving Washington command of the new Continental Army; he also coordinated state militia units.

On July 2, 1776, the [[Continental Congress]] [[United States Declaration of Independence|formally voted for independence, and issued its Declaration on July 4]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/king-george-refuses-olive-branch-petition|title= King George refuses Olive Branch Petition|last1= |first1= |date= 2014 |website= The History Channel Website|publisher= |accessdate= November 29, 2014}}</ref> The British were meanwhile mustering forces to suppress the revolt. [[William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe|Sir William Howe]] outmaneuvered and defeated Washington, capturing New York City and New Jersey. Washington was able to [[Battle of Trenton|capture a Hessian detachment at Trenton]] and drive the British out of most of New Jersey. In 1777 Howe's army launched a campaign against the national capital at Philadelphia, failing to aid [[Saratoga Campaign|Burgoyne's separate invasion force from Canada]]. Burgoyne's army was trapped, and surrendered after the [[Battles of Saratoga]] in October 1777. This American victory encouraged France [[France in the American Revolutionary War|to enter the war in 1778]], followed by its ally Spain in 1779.

In 1778, having failed in the northern states, the British shifted strategy toward the southern colonies, where they planned to enlist many Loyalist regiments. British forces had initial success in bringing Georgia and South Carolina under control in 1779 and 1780, but the Loyalist surge was far weaker than expected. In 1781 British forces moved through Virginia, but their escape was blocked by a French [[Battle of the Chesapeake|naval victory]]. Washington took control of a [[Siege of Yorktown|Franco-American siege at Yorktown]] and captured the entire British force of over 7,000 men. The defeat at Yorktown finally turned the British Parliament against the war, and in early 1782 they voted to end offensive operations in North America. The war against France and Spain continued however, with the British defending Gibraltar against a long running Franco-Spanish siege, while the [[Royal Navy|British navy]] scored key victories, especially the [[Battle of the Saintes]] in 1782. In 1783, the [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]] ended the war and recognized the sovereignty of the United States over the territory bounded roughly by what is now Canada to the north, [[Florida]] to the south, and the [[Mississippi River]] to the west. France gained its revenge and little else except a heavy national debt, while Spain acquired Great Britain's Florida colonies.<ref>Dull, ''A Diplomatic History of the American Revolution'', ch. 18.</ref><ref name="historiographical431">Lawrence S. Kaplan, "The Treaty of Paris, 1783: A Historiographical Challenge", ''International History Review,'' September 1983, Vol. 5, Issue 3, pp 431–42.</ref>

==Causes==
{{main|American Revolution}}

===Taxes===

[[File:Parliament Stamp Act1765.jpg|thumb|upright|Notice of Stamp Act of 1765 in newspaper]]

The close of the [[Seven Years' War]] in 1763 (called the [[French and Indian War]] in America) saw Great Britain triumphant in driving the French from North America. London decided to pension many officers on half pay and require the American colonies to pay for them. Parliament passed the [[Stamp Act]] in March 1765, which imposed direct taxes on the colonies for the first time starting November 1. This was met with strong condemnation among American spokesmen, who argued that their "Rights as Englishmen" meant that taxes [[no taxation without representation|could not be imposed on them]] because they lacked representation in Parliament.<ref>{{cite book|author= Gladney, Henry M. |title=No Taxation without Representation: 1768 Petition, Memorial, and Remonstrance|year=2014|url=http://www.hgladney.com/PMR/No_Taxation_without_Representation_(book_description).pdf}}</ref> At the same time the colonists rejected the solution of being provided with the representation, claiming that "their local circumstances" made it impossible.<ref>"the people of these colonies are not, and from their local circumstances cannot be, represented in the House of Commons in Great-Britain." quoted from the [http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/resolu65.asp Resolutions of the "Stamp Act Congress"] October 19, 1765</ref><ref>"...&nbsp;as the English colonists are not represented, and from their local and other circumstances, cannot properly be represented in the British parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of legislation in their several provincial legislatures, where their right of representation can alone be preserved&nbsp;..." quoted from the [http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/resolves.asp Declarations and Resolves of the First Continental Congress] October 14, 1774.</ref>

Civil resistance prevented the Act from being enforced, and organized boycotts of British goods were instituted. This resistance was by and large unexpected and "produced a violent and very natural irritation."<ref>{{cite book|author=W.E.H. Lecky|title=The American Revolution, 1763–1783|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=faZCVmrtqJoC&pg=PA95|year=1898|page=95}}</ref>

A change of government in Britain led to the repeal of the Stamp Act as inexpedient, but also the passage of the [[Declaratory Act]], which stated, "the said colonies and plantations in America have been, are, and of right ought to be, subordinate unto, and dependent upon the imperial crown and parliament of Great Britain."<ref>{{cite book|author=Charles Howard McIlwain|title=The American Revolution: A Constitutional Interpretation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uPCOs3MBUUEC&pg=PA51|year=1938|page=51}}</ref>

In their declarations Americans had deemed internal taxes like the Stamp Act as unlawful, but not external taxes like custom duties. In 1767 Parliament passed the [[Townshend Act]] in order to demonstrate its supremacy. It imposed duties on various British goods exported to the colonies. The Americans quickly denounced this as illegal as well, since the intent of the act was to raise revenue and not regulate trade.<ref>{{cite book|author=Paul Boyer et al.|title=The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kDAaCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA142|year=2014|publisher=Cengage Learning|page=142}}</ref>

In 1768 violence broke out in Boston over attempts to suppress smuggling and 4000 British troops were sent to occupy the city. Parliament threatened to try Massachusetts residents for [[treason]] in England. Far from being intimidated, the colonists formed new associations to boycott British goods, albeit with less effectiveness than previously since the Townshend imports were so widely used. In March 1770 five colonists in Boston were killed in the "[[Boston Massacre]]", sparking outrage.<ref>{{cite web|title=What was the Boston Massacre?|website=Boston Massacre Society|url=http://www.bostonmassacre.net/}}</ref>

In 1773, in an effort to rescue the [[East India Company]] from financial difficulties, the government attempted to increase the company's tea sales by exempting it from the tea tax (reducing the price of its tea) and appointing certain merchants in America to receive and sell it. The landing of this tea was resisted in all the colonies and, when the royal governor of Massachusetts refused to send back the tea ships in Boston, Patriots [[Boston Tea Party|destroyed the tea]] chests.<ref>{{cite web|title=Boston Tea Party|website=History.com.|accessdate=|url=http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/boston-tea-party}}</ref>

===Crisis===
[[File:Boston Tea Party Currier colored.jpg|thumb|alt=Two ships in a harbor, one in the distance. On board, men stripped to the waist and wearing feathers in their hair throw crates of tea overboard. A large crowd, mostly men, stands on the dock, waving hats and cheering. A few people wave their hats from windows in a nearby building.|This iconic 1846 lithograph by [[Nathaniel Currier]] was entitled "The Destruction of Tea at Boston Harbor"; the phrase "Boston Tea Party" had not yet become standard. Contrary to Currier's depiction, few of the men dumping the tea were actually disguised as Indians.<ref>Young, ''Shoemaker'', 183–85.</ref>]]

Nobody was punished for the "[[Boston Tea Party]]" and in 1774 Parliament ordered Boston harbor closed until the destroyed tea was paid for. It then passed the [[Massachusetts Government Act]] to punish the rebellious colony. The upper house of the Massachusetts legislature would be appointed by the Crown, as was already the case in other colonies such as [[New York]] and [[Virginia]]. The royal governor was able to appoint and remove at will all judges, sheriffs, and other executive officials, and restrict town meetings. Jurors would be selected by the sheriffs and British soldiers would be tried outside the colony for alleged offenses. These were collectively dubbed the "[[Intolerable Acts]]" by the Patriots.

Although these actions were not unprecedented (the Massachusetts charter had already been replaced once before in 1691), the people of the colony were outraged. Town meetings resulted in the [[Suffolk Resolves]], a declaration not to cooperate with the royal authorities. In October 1774 an illegal "[[Massachusetts Provincial Congress|provincial congress]]" was established which took over the governance of Massachusetts outside of British-occupied Boston and began training militia for hostilities.

Meanwhile, in September 1774 representatives of the other colonies convened the [[First Continental Congress]] in order to respond to the crisis. The Congress rejected a "[[Galloway's Plan of Union|Plan of Union]]" to establish an American parliament that could approve or disapprove of the acts of the British parliament. Instead, they endorsed the Suffolk Resolves and demanded the repeal of all Parliamentary acts passed since 1763, not merely the tax on tea and the "Intolerable Acts". They stated that Parliament had no authority over internal matters in America, but that they would "cheerfully consent" to trade regulations, including customs duties for the benefit of the empire.<ref>"Resolved, 4. That the foundation of English liberty, and of all free government, is a right in the people to participate in their legislative council: and as the English colonists are not represented, and from their local and other circumstances, cannot properly be represented in the British parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of legislation in their several provincial legislatures, where their right of representation can alone be preserved, in all cases of taxation and internal polity, subject only to the negative of their sovereign, in such manner as has been heretofore used and accustomed: But, from the necessity of the case, and a regard to the mutual interest of both countries, we cheerfully consent to the operation of such acts of the British parliament, as are bonfide, restrained to the regulation of our external commerce, for the purpose of securing the commercial advantages of the whole empire to the mother country, and the commercial benefits of its respective members; excluding every idea of taxation internal or external, for raising a revenue on the subjects, in America, without their consent." quoted from the [http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/resolves.asp Declarations and Resolves of the First Continental Congress] October 14, 1774.</ref> They also required Britain to acknowledge that unilaterally stationing troops in the colonies in a time of peace was "against the law". Although the Congress lacked any legal authority, it ordered the creation of Patriot committees who would enforce a boycott of British goods starting on December 1, 1774.

This time, however, the British would not yield. [[Edmund Burke]] introduced a motion to repeal all the Acts of Parliament the Americans objected to and waive any rights of Britain to tax for revenue, but it was defeated 210–105. Parliament voted to restrict all colonial trade to Britain, prevent them from using the [[Cod fishing in Newfoundland|Newfoundland fisheries]], and to increase the size of the army and navy by 6,000. In February 1775 Prime Minister [[Lord North]] proposed not to impose taxes if the colonies themselves made "fixed contributions". This would safeguard the taxing rights of the colonies from future infringement while enabling them to contribute to maintenance of the empire. This proposal was nevertheless rejected by the Congress in July as an "insidious maneuver", by which time hostilities had broken out.

===Internal British politics===

During this time the British did not present a united front toward the American Patriots. The Parliament of Great Britain at this time was informally divided between conservative ([[Tory]]) and liberal ([[Patriot Whigs|Whig]]) factions. The Whigs generally favored lenient treatment of the colonists short of independence while the Tories staunchly upheld the rights of Parliament. The Whigs felt that the Tory policies were pushing Americans to rebel, while the Tories thought Whig leniency (such as repealing the Stamp Act) was doing the same. Many Whigs freely associated themselves with the American Patriot cause, which Tories thought were encouraging the Americans in their resistance. The result was that, although [[Lord North]]'s Tory government usually had a Parliamentary majority, a large Whig minority opposed it and constantly criticized its policies.<ref>Lecky, William Edward Hartpole, [https://archive.org/stream/historyofengland03leck#page/545/mode/1up A History of England in the Eighteenth Century] (1882), p. 545.</ref> Meanwhile, Whig commanders in America such as [[Sir William Howe]] and his brother Admiral Howe came under the suspicion of Tories and Loyalists for not vigorously prosecuting the war effort.<ref>Sabine, Lorenzo, [https://books.google.com/books?id=QjUNAAAAIAAJ Biographical Sketches of Loyalists of the American Revolution], Vol. I (1864), p. 74.</ref>

==First phase, 1775–1778==

===Outbreak of the War 1775–1776===

====Massachusetts====

<!-- and this section is a brief summary of the "Boston campaign" article, so add additional details there rather than here.-->
{{Main|Boston campaign}}

In February 1775 Parliament declared Massachusetts to be in a state of rebellion. Lieutenant General [[Thomas Gage]], the British [[Commander-in-Chief, North America|North American commander-in chief]], commanded four regiments of British regulars (about 4,000 men) from his headquarters in Boston, but the countryside was in the hands of the Revolutionaries. On April 14, he received orders to disarm the rebels and arrest their leaders.

[[File:British Army in Concord Detail.jpg|thumb|left|The British marching to [[Concord, Massachusetts|Concord]] in April 1775]]

On the night of April 18, 1775, General Gage sent 700 men to seize munitions stored by the colonial militia at [[Concord, Massachusetts]]. Riders including [[Paul Revere]] alerted the countryside, and when British troops entered [[Lexington, Massachusetts|Lexington]] on the morning of April 19, they found 77 [[Minutemen (militia)|Minutemen]] formed up on the village green. Shots were exchanged, killing several Minutemen. The British moved on to Concord, where a detachment of three companies was engaged and routed at the North Bridge by a force of 500 minutemen. As the British retreated back to Boston, thousands of militiamen attacked them along the roads, inflicting many casualties before timely British reinforcements prevented a total disaster. With the [[Battles of Lexington and Concord]], the war had begun.<ref>David Hackett Fischer, ''Paul Revere's Ride'' (1994), Pulitzer Prize-winning history of the campaign.</ref>

The militia converged on Boston, [[siege of Boston|bottling up the British]] in the city. About 4,500 more British soldiers arrived by sea, and on June 17, 1775, British forces under General [[William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe|William Howe]] seized the Charlestown peninsula at the [[Battle of Bunker Hill]]. The British mounted a costly frontal attack.<ref>Adams, Charles Francis, [https://archive.org/stream/americanhistoric18951896jame#page/401/mode/1up "The Battle of Bunker Hill"], in ''American Historical Review'' (1895–1896), pp. 401–13.</ref> The Americans fell back, but British losses totaled over 1,000 men. The siege was not broken, and Gage was soon replaced by Howe as the British commander-in-chief.<ref>Higginbotham (1983), pp.&nbsp;75–77.</ref> General Gage wrote to the Secretary at War in London:
:These people show a spirit and conduct against us they never showed against the French….They are now spirited up by a rage and enthusiasm as great as ever people were possessed of and you must proceed in earnest or give the business up. A small body acting in one spot will not avail, you must have large armies making diversions on different sides, to divide their force. The loss we have sustained is greater than we can bear. Small armies cannot afford such losses, especially when the advantage gained tends to do little more than the gaining of a post.<ref>{{cite book|author=Hugh F. Rankin, ed.|title=Rebels and Redcoats: The American Revolution Through the Eyes of Those who Fought and Lived it|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_BiqdpZ9hlcC&pg=PA63|year=1987|publisher=Da Capo Press|page=63}}</ref>

In July 1775, newly appointed General Washington arrived outside Boston to take charge of the colonial forces and to organize the Continental Army. Realizing his army's desperate shortage of gunpowder, Washington asked for new sources. Arsenals were raided and some manufacturing was attempted; 90% of the supply (2 million pounds) was imported by the end of 1776, mostly from France.<ref>Stephenson (1925), pp.&nbsp;271–81.</ref> Patriots in New Hampshire had seized powder, muskets and cannons from [[Fort William and Mary]] in Portsmouth Harbor in late 1774.<ref>* Elwin L. Page. "The King's Powder, 1774", ''New England Quarterly'' Vol. 18, No. 1 (Mar., 1945), pp. 83–92 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/361393 in JSTOR]</ref> Some of the munitions were used in the Boston campaign.

The standoff continued throughout the fall and winter. During this time Washington was astounded by the failure of Howe to attack his shrinking, poorly armed force.<ref>Lecky, William Edward Hartpole, [https://archive.org/stream/historyofengland03leck#page/449/mode/1up A History of England in the Eighteenth Century] (1882), pp. 449–50.</ref> In early March 1776, heavy cannons that the patriots had [[Capture of Fort Ticonderoga|captured at Fort Ticonderoga]] were brought to Boston by Colonel [[Henry Knox]], and [[fortification of Dorchester Heights|placed on Dorchester Heights]]. Since the artillery now overlooked the British positions, Howe's situation was untenable, and the British fled on March 17, 1776, sailing to their naval base at [[City of Halifax|Halifax, Nova Scotia]], an event now celebrated in Massachusetts as [[Evacuation Day (Massachusetts)|Evacuation Day]]. Washington then moved most of the Continental Army to fortify New York City.<ref>{{cite book|author=John R. Alden|title=A History of the American Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-o03VtlglokC&pg=PA189|year=1989|publisher=Da Capo Press|pages=188–90}}</ref>

====Quebec====
{{Main|Invasion of Canada (1775)}}<!-- This is a brief summary of the main article "Invasion of Canada (1775)". Add details to that article rather than here. -->
[[File:Canadian militiamen and British soldiers repulse the American assault at Sault-au-Matelot.jpg|thumb|British soldiers and Provincial militiamen repulse the American assault at [[Battle of Quebec (1775)|Sault-au-Matelot]], [[Canada]], December 1775]]
Three weeks after the siege of Boston began, the Green Mountain Boys, a group of militia volunteers led by [[Ethan Allen]] and [[Benedict Arnold]] [[Capture of Fort Ticonderoga|captured Fort Ticonderoga]], a strategically important point on [[Lake Champlain]] between New York and the [[Province of Quebec (1763–1791)|Province of Quebec]]. After that action they also raided [[Fort Saint-Jean (Quebec)|Fort St. John's]], not far from Montreal, which alarmed the population and the authorities there. In response, Quebec's governor [[Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester|Guy Carleton]] began fortifying St. John's, and opened negotiations with the [[Iroquois]] and other Native American tribes for their support. These actions, combined with lobbying by both Allen and Arnold and the fear of a British attack from the north, eventually persuaded the Congress to authorize an invasion of Quebec, with the goal of driving the British military from that province. (Quebec was then frequently referred to as ''Canada'', as most of its territory included the former French Province of [[Canada, New France|Canada]].)<ref>Mark R. Anderson, ''The Battle for the Fourteenth Colony: America's War of Liberation in Canada, 1774–1776'' (University Press of New England; 2013).</ref>

Two Quebec-bound expeditions were undertaken. On September 28, 1775, Brigadier General [[Richard Montgomery]] marched north from [[Fort Ticonderoga]] with about 1,700 militiamen, [[Siege of Fort St. Jean|besieging and capturing Fort St. Jean]] on November 2 and then Montreal on November 13. General Carleton escaped to [[Quebec City]] and began preparing that city for an attack. The [[Arnold's expedition to Quebec|second expedition]], led by Colonel Arnold, went through the wilderness of what is now northern Maine. Logistics were difficult, with 300 men turning back, and another 200 perishing due to the harsh conditions. By the time Arnold reached Quebec City in early November, he had but 600 of his original 1,100 men. Montgomery's force joined Arnold's, and they [[Battle of Quebec (1775)|attacked Quebec City]] on December 31, but were defeated by Carleton in a battle that ended with Montgomery dead, Arnold wounded, and over 400 Americans taken prisoner.<ref>[[Willard Sterne Randall]], "Benedict Arnold at Quebec", ''MHQ: Quarterly Journal of Military History,'' Summer 1990, Vol. 2, Issue 4, pp 38–49.</ref> The remaining Americans held on outside Quebec City until the spring of 1776, suffering from poor camp conditions and smallpox, and then withdrew when a squadron of British ships under [[Sir Charles Douglas, 1st Baronet|Captain Charles Douglas]] arrived to relieve the siege.<ref>Thomas A. Desjardin, ''Through a Howling Wilderness: Benedict Arnold's March to Quebec, 1775'' (2006).</ref>

Another attempt was made by the Americans to push back towards Quebec, but they failed at [[Battle of Trois-Rivières|Trois-Rivières]] on June 8, 1776. Carleton then launched his own invasion and defeated Arnold at the [[Battle of Valcour Island]] in October. Arnold fell back to Fort Ticonderoga, where the invasion had begun. While the invasion ended as a disaster for the Americans, Arnold's efforts in 1776 delayed any full-scale British counteroffensive until the [[Saratoga campaign]] of 1777.

The invasion cost the Americans their base of support in British public opinion, "So that the violent measures towards America are freely adopted and countenanced by a majority of individuals of all ranks, professions, or occupations, in this country."<ref>Watson (1960), p.&nbsp;203.</ref> It gained them at best limited support in the population of Quebec, which, while somewhat supportive early in the invasion, became less so later during the occupation, when American policies against suspected Loyalists became harsher, and the army's hard currency ran out. Two small regiments of [[Canadien]]s were recruited during the operation, and they were with the army on its retreat back to Ticonderoga.<ref>Arthur S. Lefkowitz, ''Benedict Arnold's Army: The 1775 American Invasion of Canada during the Revolutionary War'' (2007).</ref> Even after their retreat, the Patriots continued to view Quebec as a part of their cause and made specific provisions for it to join the U.S. under the 1777 [[Articles of Confederation]].

====Expelling the royal officials====
At the onset of war, the British had a significant force only in Boston, though this force would evacuate by the signing of the [[Declaration of Independence]] in 1776. Patriots in all 13 colonies were quick to establish new revolutionary governments based around various committees and conventions that they had created in 1774 and early 1775. Royal governors and officials found themselves powerless to stop the rebellion and in many places were forced to flee. In many places the Patriots were energetic and were backed by angry mobs while the Loyalists were too intimidated or poorly organized to be effective without the British army. The term "[[lynching]]" originated when Virginia Patriots held informal courts and arrested Loyalists (the term did not suggest execution).

====Loyalist Writings====
Loyalist writings throughout the conflict persistently claimed that they were the majority, and influenced London officials to believe that it would be possible to raise many Loyalist regiments.<ref>Lorenzo Sabine, [https://books.google.com/books?vid=OCLC00425953&id=QjUNAAAAIAAJ&printsec=titlepage#v=onepage&q=%22In%20nearly%20every%20loyalist%20letter%22&f=false ''Biographical Sketches of Loyalists of the American Revolution''], Vol. I (1864) p. 48; Sabine adds they were certainly wrong.</ref> As late as 1780 the Loyalists were deceiving themselves and top London officials about their supposedly strong base of support.<ref name="Lecky1891">{{cite book|author=William Edward Hartpole Lecky|title=A History of England: In the Eighteenth Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA139|year=1891|page=139}}</ref>

Patriots overwhelmed Loyalists in the [[Snow Campaign]] in South Carolina in late 1775. Virginia's governor [[John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore|Lord Dunmore]] attempted to rally a loyalist force but was decisively beaten in December 1775 at the [[Battle of Great Bridge]]. In February 1776 British General Clinton took 2,000 men and a naval squadron to assist Loyalists mustering in [[Province of North Carolina|North Carolina]], only to call it off when he learned they had been crushed at the [[Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge]]. In June he tried to seize [[Charleston, South Carolina]], the leading port in the South, but [[Battle of Sullivan's Island|the attack failed]] as the naval force was repulsed by the Patriot forts.

Apart from [[Thirteen Colonies|thirteen]], no other British North American colony joined the rebellion.

====British reaction====

King [[George III of Great Britain|George III]] issued a [[Proclamation of Rebellion]] in August 1775, and addressed Parliament on October 26, 1775. He denounced "the authors and promoters of this desperate conspiracy" who had "labored to inflame my people in America&nbsp;... and to infuse into their minds a system of opinions repugnant to the true constitution of the Colonies, and to their subordinate relation to Great Britain&nbsp;..." He detailed measures taken to suppress the revolt, including "[[Hessian (soldiers)|friendly offers of foreign assistance]]". The King's speech was endorsed by both Houses of Parliament, a motion in the [[House of Commons of Great Britain|House of Commons]] to oppose coercive measures was defeated 278–108. The British received an [[Olive Branch Petition]] written by the [[Second Continental Congress]] dated July 8, 1775, imploring the King to reverse the policies of his ministers. The Parliament debated on whether to accept the petition, but after a lengthy debate rejected it by 53 votes, viewing it as insincere. Parliament then voted to impose a blockade against the Thirteen Colonies. The popularity of war in Britain reached a peak in 1777.<ref>{{cite book|author=Lecky|title=A History of England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA70|pages=70–72}}</ref> The king himself took full control as he micromanaged the war effort, despite the opposition of top officials including the prime minister North and the civilian heads of the army and the navy. The king vehemently rejected independence and demanded the use of Indians to distress the Americans.<ref>{{cite book|author=Lecky|title=A History of England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA76|pages=76–78}}</ref>

Separately, the Irish Parliament pledged its loyalty and agreed to the withdrawal of troops from Ireland to suppress the rebellion in America.<ref>{{cite book|author=Frank A. Biletz|title=Historical Dictionary of Ireland|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rb8eAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA8|year=2013|publisher=Scarecrow Press|page=8}}</ref> Most Irish Protestants were against the war and favored the Americans, but the Catholic establishment supported the king.<ref>{{cite book|author=Vincent Morley|title=Irish Opinion and the American Revolution, 1760–1783|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iBrJz9XYzNgC&pg=PA154|year=2002|publisher=Cambridge UP|pages=154–57}}</ref> The American Revolution was the first war in which Irish Catholics were allowed to enlist in the army.<ref>{{cite book|author=Lecky|title=A History of England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA162|pages=162–65}}</ref>

Militarily, the weak British response to the rebellion in 1775 and early 1776 around Boston was a losing cause; the British lost control of every colony.<ref>{{cite book|author=John C. Miller|title=Origins of the American Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DlmrAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA410|year=1959|publisher=Stanford UP|pages=410–12}}</ref> The peacetime British army had been deliberately kept small since the [[Glorious Revolution]] to prevent an abuse of power by the King. To muster a force the British had to launch recruiting campaigns in Britain and Ireland and hire mercenaries from the small German states, both immensely time-consuming. The king wanted to save money, and the administration of the army was inefficient. Russia refused to rent out soldiers. After a year the British were able to ship [[Sir William Howe]] an army of 32,000 officers and men to open a campaign in summer 1776. It was the largest force the British had ever sent outside of Europe at that time.<ref>{{cite book|author=David Smith|title=New York 1776: The Continentals' First Battle|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IlMa-Krnxl8C&pg=PA21|year=2012|publisher=Osprey Publishing|pages=21–23}}</ref>

===Campaign of 1776–1777===

====New York====

{{Main|New York and New Jersey campaign}} <!-- This is a brief summary of the "New York and New Jersey campaigns" article. Add more details there rather than here. -->
[[File:BattleofLongisland.jpg|thumb|left|American soldiers in the [[Battle of Long Island]], 1776]]

Having withdrawn his army from Boston, General Howe now focused on capturing New York City, which then was limited to the southern tip of Manhattan Island. Howe's force arrived off of [[Staten Island]] across the harbor from Manhattan on June 30, 1776, and his army captured it without resistance. To defend the city, General Washington spread his forces along the shores of New York's harbor, concentrated on [[Long Island]] and [[Manhattan]].<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;51–52, 83.</ref> While British and recently hired [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessian]] troops were assembling, Washington had the newly issued [[United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of American Independence]] read to his men and the citizens of the city.<ref>Fischer (2004), p.&nbsp;29.</ref>

Washington's position was extremely dangerous because he had divided his forces between Manhattan and Long Island, neither of which could match the full strength of the opposing force. Military critics note that Howe could have trapped and destroyed Washington's entire army if he had landed on Manhattan, but instead Howe decided to mount a frontal assault against Long Island.<ref>Adams, Charles Francis, [https://archive.org/stream/americanhistoric18951896jame#page/668/mode/1up "Battle of Long Island"], in ''American Historical Review'' (1895–1896), pp. 668–669.</ref> The British landed 22,000 men on Long Island in late August and [[Battle of Long Island|badly defeated the Continental army]] in the war's largest battle, taking over 1,000 prisoners and driving them back to [[Brooklyn Heights]]. Instead of continuing his pursuit Howe decided to lay siege to the heights, claiming he wanted to spare his men's lives from an assault on the Patriot fortifications. He actively restrained his subordinates from landing what could have been the finishing blow against Washington's forces.<ref>Adams, Charles Francis, [https://archive.org/stream/americanhistoric18951896jame#page/657/mode/1up "Battle of Long Island"], in ''American Historical Review'' (1895–1896), p. 657.</ref> Washington initially reinforced his exposed position, but then personally directed the [[withdrawal (military)|withdrawal]] of his entire remaining army and all their supplies across the [[East River]] on the night of August 29–30 without loss of men or [[materiel]].<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;91–101.</ref> The unfavorable direction of the wind had prevented British warships from blocking Washington's escape.

[[Staten Island Peace Conference|A peace conference took place]] on September 11 to explore the possibility of a negotiated solution. The British advanced Lord North's "fixed contribution" formula of the preceding year and indicated that other laws could be revised or repealed so long as the authority of Britain was acknowledged. The American negotiators insisted they would not give up the Declaration of Independence.<ref>{{cite book|author=Thomas J. McGuire|title=Stop the Revolution: America in the Summer of Independence and the Conference for Peace|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OsNi7Byog6kC&pg=PA166|year=2011|publisher=Stackpole Books|pages=165–66}}</ref>

Howe then resumed the attack. On September 15, Howe [[Landing at Kip's Bay|landed about 12,000 men]] on lower Manhattan, quickly taking control of New York City. The Americans withdrew north up the island to Harlem Heights, where they [[Battle of Harlem Heights|battled the next day]] repulsing a British advance. On September 21 a [[Great Fire of New York (1776)|devastating fire]] broke out in the city which the Patriots were widely blamed for, although no proof ever existed. On October 12 the British made an attempt to encircle the Americans, which failed because of Howe's decision to land on an island that was easily cut off from the mainland.<ref>John Richard Alden, ''The American Revolution, 1775–1783'' (1954), ch. 7.</ref> The Americans evacuated Manhattan, and on October 28 fought the [[Battle of White Plains]] against the pursuing British. During the battle Howe declined to attack Washington's highly vulnerable main force, instead attacking a hill that was of no strategic significance.<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;102–11.</ref><ref>Barnet Schecter, ''The battle for New York: The city at the heart of the American Revolution'' (2002).</ref>

Washington retreated, and Howe returned to Manhattan and captured [[Fort Washington (New York)|Fort Washington]] in mid November, taking about 3,000 prisoners. Thus began [[Prisoners in the American Revolutionary War|the infamous "prison ships" system]] the British maintained in New York for the rest of the war, in which more American soldiers and sailors [[Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument|died of neglect and disease]] than died in every battle of the entire war, combined.<ref>Larry Lowenthal, ''Hell on the East River: British Prison Ships in the American Revolution'' (2009).</ref>

Howe then detached Sir Henry Clinton with 6,000 men to seize [[Newport, Rhode Island]] for the British fleet, which was accomplished without encountering any major resistance.<ref>{{cite book|author=David McCullough|title=1776|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5LBVT46o5yQC&pg=PT122|year=2006|page=122}}</ref> Clinton objected to this move, believing the force would have been better employed up the Delaware River, where they might have inflicted irreparable damage on the retreating Americans.<ref>Stedman, Charles, [https://books.google.com/books?id=bmQFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q=%22Henry%20Clinton%20strongly%20urged%20that%20he%20might%22&f=false ''The History of the Origin, Progress and Termination of the American War'' Volume I] (1794), p. 221.</ref>

====New Jersey====

[[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|General Lord Cornwallis]] continued to chase Washington's army through [[New Jersey]], but Howe ordered him to halt<ref>Stedman, Charles, [https://books.google.com/books?id=bmQFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=snippet&q=%22ordering%20lord%20Cornwallis%20to%20proceed%22&f=false ''The History of the Origin, Progress and Termination of the American War'' Volume I] (1794), p. 223.</ref> and Washington escaped across the [[Delaware River]] into Pennsylvania on December 7.<ref>{{cite book|author=Mary Tucker|title=Washington Crossing the Delaware|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IZUx6QnUxxQC&pg=PA22|date=1 March 2002|publisher=Lorenz Educational Press|pages=22–23}}</ref> Howe refused to order a pursuit across the river, even though the outlook of the Continental Army was bleak. "These are the times that try men's souls," wrote [[Thomas Paine]], who was with the army on the retreat.<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;138–40.</ref> The army had dwindled to fewer than 5,000 men fit for duty, and would be reduced to 1,400 after enlistments expired at the end of the year. Congress moved inland and abandoned Philadelphia in despair, although popular resistance to British occupation was growing in the countryside.<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;143–205.</ref>

[[File:Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Leutze, MMA-NYC, 1851.jpg|thumb|[[Emanuel Leutze]]'s stylized depiction of ''[[Washington Crossing the Delaware]]'']]

Howe proceeded to divide his forces in New Jersey into small detachments that were vulnerable to defeat in detail, with the weakest forces stationed the closest to Washington's army.<ref>Stedman, Charles, [https://books.google.com/books?id=bmQFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q=dividing%20his%20army%20into%20small%20detachments&f=false ''The History of the Origin, Progress and Termination of the American War'' Volume I] (1794), pp. 224–25.</ref> Washington decided to take the offensive, [[Washington's crossing of the Delaware River|stealthily crossing the Delaware]] on the night of December&nbsp;25–26, and capturing nearly 1,000 surprised and unfortified Hessians at the [[Battle of Trenton]].<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;206–59.</ref> Cornwallis marched to retake Trenton but was first [[Battle of the Assunpink Creek|repulsed]] and then outmaneuvered by Washington, who successfully attacked the British rearguard at [[Battle of Princeton|Princeton]] on January 3, 1777, taking around 200 prisoners.<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;277–343.</ref> Howe then conceded most of New Jersey to Washington, in spite of Howe's massive numerical superiority over him. Washington entered winter quarters at [[Morristown, New Jersey]], having given a morale boost to the American cause. Throughout the winter New Jersey militia [[Forage War|continued to harass]] British and Hessian forces near their three remaining posts along the [[Raritan River]].<ref>Fischer (2004), pp.&nbsp;345–58.</ref> In April 1777 Washington was amazed that Howe made no effort to attack his weak army.<ref>Lecky, William, [https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA287&dq=%22honourable+and+generous+steps%22+inauthor:lecky&lr=&num=100&as_brr=0#v=snippet&q=%22Ten%20days%20later%2C%20in%20a%20confidential%20letter%22&f=false ''A History of England in the Eighteenth Century''], Vol. IV (1891), p. 57.</ref>

===Campaigns of 1777–1778===
[[File:Joseph Brant painting by George Romney 1776 (2).jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Mohawk nation|Mohawk]] leader [[Joseph Brant]] led both Native Americans and [[white people|white]] [[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Loyalists]] in battle.]]
[[File:Surrender of General Burgoyne.jpg|thumb|"[[Battles of Saratoga|The surrender at Saratoga]]" shows General [[Daniel Morgan]] in front of a French [[Canon de 24 de Vallière|de Vallière]] 4-pounder.]]
[[File:Washington and Lafayette at Valley Forge.jpg|thumb|[[George Washington|Washington]] and [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette|Lafayette]] look over the troops at [[Valley Forge]].]]

When the British began to plan operations for 1777, they had two main armies in North America: an army in Quebec (later under the command of [[John Burgoyne]]), and Howe's army in New York. In London, [[George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville|Lord George Germain]] approved a campaign for these armies to converge on Albany, New York and divide the American colonies in two, but did not give any express orders to Howe, who was developing his own plans. In November 1776 Howe requested large reinforcements so he could launch attacks against Philadelphia, New England, and Albany. These reinforcements were not granted so Howe modified his plan to launch an attack against Philadelphia only. Germain gave his approval to this, believing that Philadelphia could be taken in time for Howe to coordinate with the northern army. Howe, on the other hand, opted to send his army to Philadelphia by sea via the Chesapeake Bay instead of taking shorter routes either overland through New Jersey or through the Delaware Bay. This left him completely incapable of assisting Burgoyne.<ref>Adams, Charles Francis, [https://books.google.com/books?id=CgALAAAAIAAJ&lpg=PA94&ots=oyVHlRQHei&dq=%22Contemporary%20Opinion%20on%20the%20Howes%22&pg=PA94#v=onepage&q&f=false "Campaign of 1777"], ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Volume 44'' (1910–11), pp. 25–26.</ref>

====Upstate New York====
{{Main|Saratoga campaign}}

<!-- This is a brief summary of the "Saratoga campaign" article. Add details there rather than here. -->
The first of the 1777 campaigns was an expedition from Quebec led by General [[John Burgoyne]]. The goal was to seize the [[Lake Champlain]] and [[Hudson River]] corridor, effectively isolating [[New England]] from the rest of the American colonies. Burgoyne's invasion had two components: he would lead about 8,000 men along Lake Champlain towards [[Albany, New York]], while a second column of about 2,000 men, led by [[Barry St. Leger]], would move down the [[Mohawk River]] Valley and link up with Burgoyne in Albany.<ref>Ketchum (1997), p.&nbsp;84.</ref>

Burgoyne set off in June, and [[Siege of Fort Ticonderoga (1777)|recaptured Fort Ticonderoga]] in early July. Thereafter, his march was slowed by the Americans who knocked down trees in his path, and by his army's extensive baggage train. A detachment sent out to seize supplies was decisively defeated in the [[Battle of Bennington]] by American militia in August, depriving Burgoyne of nearly 1,000 men.

Meanwhile, St. Leger—more than half of his force Native Americans led by [[Sayenqueraghta]]—had [[Siege of Fort Stanwix|laid siege to Fort Stanwix]]. American militiamen and their Native American allies marched to relieve the siege but were ambushed and scattered at the [[Battle of Oriskany]]. When a second relief expedition approached, this time led by Benedict Arnold, St. Leger's Indian support abandoned him, forcing him to break off the siege and return to Quebec.

Burgoyne's army had been reduced to about 6,000 men by the loss at Bennington and the need to garrison Ticonderoga, and he was running short on supplies.<ref>Ketchum (1997), pp.&nbsp;285–323.</ref> Despite these setbacks, he determined to push on towards Albany. An American army of 8,000 men, officially commanded by General [[Horatio Gates]] (but effectively being led by his subordinate [[Benedict Arnold]]), had entrenched about 10 miles (16&nbsp;km) south of [[Saratoga, New York]]. Burgoyne tried to outflank the Americans but was checked at the [[Battle of Freeman's Farm|first battle of Saratoga]] in September. Burgoyne's situation was desperate, but he now hoped that help from Howe's army in New York City might be on the way. It was not: Howe had instead sailed away on his expedition to capture Philadelphia. American militiamen flocked to Gates' army, swelling his force to 11,000 by the beginning of October. After being badly beaten at the [[Battle of Bemis Heights|second battle of Saratoga]], Burgoyne surrendered on October 17.

British General Clinton in New York City attempted a diversion in favor of Burgoyne in early October, [[Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery|capturing two key forts]] but withdrawing after hearing of the surrender.

Saratoga was the turning point of the war. Revolutionary confidence and determination, suffering from Howe's successful occupation of Philadelphia, was renewed. What is more important, the victory encouraged [[France in the American Revolutionary War|France]] to make an open alliance with the Americans, after two years of semi-secret support. For the British, the war had now become much more complicated.<ref>Higginbotham (1983), pp.&nbsp;188–98</ref>

The Americans [[Convention Army|held the British prisoners]] taken at Saratoga until the end of the war, in direct violation of the agreed surrender terms, which specified they would be repatriated immediately.

====Pennsylvania====
{{Main|Philadelphia campaign}}

<!-- This is a brief summary of the "Philadelphia campaign" article. Add details there rather than here. -->
[[File:Military Costume of the Revolution (1855 Chromolithograph).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Military uniforms of the American Revolution]]

Howe began his campaign in June by making a series of maneuvers in New Jersey, which failed to engage Washington's greatly inferior force.<ref>Stedman, Charles, [https://books.google.com/books?id=bmQFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q&f=false ''The History of the Origin, Progress and Termination of the American War'' Volume I] (1794), pp. 287–89.</ref> He then loaded his troops onto transports and slowly sailed to the northern end of the [[Chesapeake Bay]], landing 15,000 troops on August 25 at the head of the [[Elk River (Maryland)|Elk River]]. Washington positioned his 11,000 men in a strong position along the [[Brandywine River]], between the British and Philadelphia, but Howe [[Battle of Brandywine|outflanked and defeated him]] on September 11, 1777. French observers noted that Howe failed to follow up on his victory, which could have destroyed Washington's army.<ref>Adams, Charles Francis. [https://books.google.com/books?id=CgALAAAAIAAJ&lpg=PA94&ots=oyVHlRQHei&dq=%22Contemporary%20Opinion%20on%20the%20Howes%22&pg=PA94#v=onepage&q&f=false "Campaign of 1777"], ''Massachusetts Historical Society'', Vol. 44 (1910–11), p. 43.</ref>

The Continental Congress again abandoned Philadelphia, and on September 26, Howe finally outmaneuvered Washington and marched into the city unopposed. A part of Howe's army was then split off to [[Siege of Fort Mifflin|reduce rebel forts]] blocking his communications up the [[Delaware River]]. Hoping to bring about another Trenton-like victory while the British were divided, on October 4 Washington [[Battle of Germantown|mounted a surprise assault]] against the British at Germantown. Howe had failed to alert his troops there, despite being aware of the impending attack the previous day. The British were in danger of a rout, but faulty American decisions resulted in Washington being repulsed with heavy losses.<ref>Stephen R. Taaffe, ''The Philadelphia Campaign, 1777–1778'' (2003), pp. 95–100 [http://www.amazon.com/Philadelphia-Campaign-1777-1778-Modern-Studies/dp/070061267X/ except and text search.]</ref>

The armies met at [[Battle of White Marsh|White Marsh]] in December, where after some skirmishing Howe decided to retire, ignoring the vulnerability of Washington's rear, where an attack could have cut off Washington from his baggage and provisions.<ref>{{cite book|last=Cadwalader|first=Richard McCall|title=Observance of the One Hundred and Twenty-third Anniversary of the Evacuation of Philadelphia by the British Army. Fort Washington and the Encampment of White Marsh, November 2, 1777:|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kWhar7AYIwAC&pg=PA20|year=1901|pages=20–28}}</ref> Washington and his army encamped at [[Valley Forge]] in December 1777, about 20 miles (32&nbsp;km) from Philadelphia, where they stayed for the next six months. Over the winter, 2,500 men (out of 10,000) died from disease and exposure and the army was reduced to 4,000 effectives. During this time Howe's army, comfortable in Philadelphia, made no effort to exploit the weakness of the American army.<ref>Noel Fairchild Busch, ''Winter Quarters: George Washington and the Continental Army at Valley Forge'' (Liveright, 1974).</ref> The next spring the army emerged from Valley Forge in good order, thanks in part to a training program supervised by [[Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben|Baron von Steuben]], who introduced the most modern Prussian methods of organization and tactics.<ref>Paul Douglas Lockhart, ''The Drillmaster of Valley Forge: The Baron de Steuben and the Making of the American Army'' (2008).</ref>

Historians speculate that the British "forfeited several chances for military victory in 1776–1777&nbsp;..."<ref>[http://history.army.mil/books/AMH-V1/ch04.htm "The Winning of Independence, 1777–1783"] ''American Military History'' Volume I (2005).</ref> and "if General Howe had violated military tradition by advancing in December on the Continental troops quartered [at Valley Forge], he might have readily overwhelmed them and possibly ended the war."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120619002020/http://www.history.army.mil/books/RevWar/risch/chpt-14.htm "A Concluding Commentary"] ''Supplying Washington's Army'' (1981).</ref>

Howe submitted his resignation in October 1777; until it was accepted he spent his time in Philadelphia preparing his arguments for an expected parliamentary inquiry. Although he had twice as many men as Washington, the bitter memory of [[Battle of Bunker Hill|Bunker Hill]] made him highly reluctant to attack entrenched American forces. General Clinton replaced Howe as British commander-in-chief on May 24, 1778.<ref>{{cite book|author=Frances H. Kennedy|title=The American Revolution: A Historical Guidebook|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rTSTAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA163|year=2014|publisher=Oxford UP|page=163}}</ref>

==Foreign intervention==
{{Main|France in the American Revolutionary War|Spain in the American Revolutionary War}}

From the spring of 1776, France and Spain had informally been involved in the American Revolutionary War, with French admiral [[Louis-René Levassor de Latouche Tréville|Latouche Tréville]] having provided [[France in the American Revolutionary War#French involvement|supplies, ammunition and guns]] from France to the United States after [[Thomas Jefferson]] encouraged a French alliance. Guns such as [[Florent-Jean de Vallière|de Valliere]] type were used, playing an important role in such battles as the [[Battles of Saratoga|Battle of Saratoga]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/spar/historyculture/french-field_4pdr.htm |title=Springfield Armory |publisher=Nps.gov |date=2013-04-25 |accessdate=2013-05-08}}</ref> After learning of the American victory at Saratoga, the French became concerned that the British would reconcile their differences with the colonists and turn on France.<ref name="France In The Revolution">Perkins, James Breck, [http://www.americanrevolution.org/frconfiles/fr12.html France In The Revolution] (1911).</ref> In particular, King [[Louis XVI]] was influenced by alarmist reports suggesting that Britain was preparing to make huge concessions to the colonies and then, allied with them, strike at French and Spanish possessions in the West Indies.<ref name="archive.org">Corwin, Edward Samuel, [https://archive.org/stream/frenchpolicyamer00corwuoft#page/121/mode/1up French Policy and the American Alliance] (1916), pp. 121–48.</ref> To thwart this, they concluded a [[Treaty of Alliance (1778)|Treaty of Alliance]] with the United States on February 6, 1778, committing the Americans to seek nothing less than absolute independence. Previously France had only been willing to act in conjunction with Spain but now they were willing to go to war alone if necessary. Britain responded by recalling its ambassador, although Franco-British hostilities did not actually break out until June 17, 1778.
[[File:Redoubt-9.jpg|thumb|left|upright|French troops storming Redoubt #9 during the [[Siege of Yorktown]]]]
In 1776, the [[Pedro Pablo Abarca de Bolea, 10th Count of Aranda|Count of Aranda]] met in representation of Spain with the first U.S. Commission composed by Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane and Arthur Lee.<ref>{{cite book | title=Spain's Support Vital to United States Independence, 1777–1783 | publisher=United States. Dept. of Defense | author=E. Chavez, Thomas | year=1997 | pages=United States}}</ref> The Continental Congress had charged the commissioners to travel to Europe and forge alliances with other European powers that could help break the British naval blockade along the North American coast. Aranda invited the commission to his house in Paris, where he was acting as Spanish ambassador and he became an active supporter of the struggle of the fledgling Colonies, recommending an early and open Spanish commitment to the Colonies. However, he was overruled by [[José Moñino y Redondo, conde de Floridablanca|José Moñino, 1st Count of Floridablanca]] who opted for a more discreet approach. The Spanish position was later summarized by the Spanish Ambassador to the French Court, [[Jerónimo Grimaldi, 1st Duke of Grimaldi|Jerónimo Grimaldi]], in a letter to Arthur Lee who was in Madrid trying to persuade the Spanish government to declare an open alliance. Grimaldi told Lee that "You have considered your own situation, and not ours. The moment is not yet come for us. The war with Portugal&nbsp;— France being unprepared, and our treasure ships from South America not being arrived&nbsp;— makes it improper for us to declare immediately."<ref>Sparks, 1:408.</ref> Meanwhile, Grimaldi reassured Lee, stores of clothing and powder were deposited at New Orleans and Havana for the Americans, and further shipments of blankets were being collected at Bilbao.

Spain finally entered officially the war against Britain in June 1779, thus implementing the [[Treaty of Aranjuez (1779)|Treaty of Aranjuez]]. The Spanish government had been providing assistance to the revolutionaries since the very beginning of the war, but it did not recognize the United States officially. The [[Dutch Republic]], which also had assisted the colonists since 1776, declared war on Britain at the end of 1780, and did recognize the United States diplomatically.<ref>Jonathan R. Dull, ''A Diplomatic History of the American Revolution'' (1987), ch. 7–9.</ref>

==Second phase, 1778–1781==

===British policies===

Following news of the surrender at Saratoga and concern over French intervention, the British decided to completely accept the original demands made by the American Patriots. Parliament [[Taxation of Colonies Act 1778|repealed the remaining tax on tea]] and declared that no taxes would ever be imposed on colonies without their consent (except for custom duties, the revenues of which would be returned to the colonies). A [[Carlisle Commission|Commission was formed]] to negotiate directly with the [[Continental Congress]] for the first time. The Commission was empowered to suspend all the other objectionable acts by Parliament passed since 1763, issue general pardons, and declare a cessation of hostilities. The Commissioners arrived in America in June 1778 and offered to place the colonies in the condition of 1763 if they would return to the allegiance of the King. Moreover, they agreed that no troops would be placed in the colonies without their consent. The Congress refused to negotiate with the commission unless they first acknowledged American independence or withdrew all troops. On October 3, 1778, the British published a proclamation offering amnesty to any colonies or individuals who accepted their proposals within forty days, implying serious consequences if they still refused. There was no positive reply.<ref>{{cite book|author=Terry M. Mays|title=Historical Dictionary of the American Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q3CvVcvmxUQC&pg=PR7|year=2009|publisher=Scarecrow Press|page=7}}</ref>

[[File:ChappelWyomingMassacre.jpg|thumb|Oil on canvas painting depicting the [[Wyoming Massacre]] by loyalists and Indians against frontier settlers, July 3, 1778]]
[[George III of the United Kingdom|King George III]] gave up all hope of subduing America by more armies, while Britain had a European war to fight. "It was a joke," he said, "to think of keeping Pennsylvania."<ref>{{cite book|author=John Ferling|title=Almost a Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lyjjEsqlqo0C&pg=PA294|year=2007|publisher=Oxford UP|page=294}}</ref> There was no hope of recovering New England. But the King was still determined "never to acknowledge the independence of the Americans, and to punish their contumacy by the indefinite prolongation of a war which promised to be eternal".<ref>Trevelyan (1912), vol.&nbsp;1, p.&nbsp;4.</ref> His plan was to keep the 30,000 men garrisoned in New York, Rhode Island, Quebec, and Florida; other forces would attack the French and Spanish in the West Indies. To punish the Americans the King planned to destroy their coasting-trade, bombard their ports; sack and burn towns along the coast and turn loose the Native Americans to attack civilians in frontier settlements. These operations, the King felt, would inspire the Loyalists; would splinter the Congress; and "would keep the rebels harassed, anxious, and poor, until the day when, by a natural and inevitable process, discontent and disappointment were converted into penitence and remorse" and they would beg to return to his authority.<ref>Trevelyan (1912), vol.&nbsp;1, p.&nbsp;5.</ref> The plan meant destruction for the Loyalists and loyal Native Americans, an indefinite prolongation of a costly war, and the risk of disaster as the French and Spanish assembled an armada to invade the British Isles. The King hoped to re-subjugate the rebellious colonies after dealing with the Americans' European allies.

===Northern theater after Saratoga, 1778–1781===
{{See also|Northern theater of the American Revolutionary War after Saratoga}}

[[Image:SirHenryClinton.jpg|thumb|right|Portrait of [[Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)|Sir Henry Clinton]], British Commander-in Chief in North America 1778–1782]]

French entry into the war had changed British strategy, and Clinton abandoned Philadelphia to reinforce New York City, now vulnerable to French naval power. Washington shadowed Clinton on his withdrawal through New Jersey and [[Battle of Monmouth|attacked him at Monmouth]] on June 28, 1778. The battle was tactically inconclusive but Clinton successfully disengaged and continued his retreat to New York.<ref name="John Ferling 2007 294–95">{{cite book|author=John Ferling|title=Almost a Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lyjjEsqlqo0C&pg=PA294|year=2007|publisher=Oxford UP|pages=294–95}}</ref> It was the last major battle in the north. Clinton's army went to New York City in July, arriving just before a French fleet under [[Charles Hector, comte d'Estaing|Admiral d'Estaing]] arrived off the American coast. Washington's army returned to [[White Plains, New York]], north of New York City. Although both armies were back where they had been two years earlier, the nature of the war had now changed as the British had to withdraw troops from North America to counter the French threats elsewhere.<ref>Higginbotham (1983), pp.&nbsp;175–88.</ref>

In August 1778 the Americans attempted to capture British-held [[Newport, Rhode Island]] with the assistance of France, but [[Battle of Rhode Island|the effort failed]] when the French withdrew their support. The war in the north then bogged down into a stalemate, with neither side capable of attacking the other in any decisive manner. The British instead attempted to wear out American resolve by launching various raiding expeditions such as [[Tryon's raid|Tryon's raid against Connecticut]] in July 1779. In that year the Americans won two morale-enhancing victories by capturing posts at [[Battle of Stony Point|Stony Point]] and [[Battle of Paulus Hook|Paulus Hook]], although the British quickly retook them. In October 1779 the British voluntarily abandoned Newport and Stony Point in order to consolidate their forces.

During the winter of 1779–80 the American army suffered worse hardships than they had at [[Valley Forge]] previously.<ref>[http://history.army.mil/books/AMH-V1/ch04.htm#f "The Winning of Independence 1777–1783"], ''American Military History'', Volume 1 (2005).</ref> The Congress was ineffective, the Continental currency worthless, and the supply system was fundamentally broken. Washington was finding it extremely difficult to keep his army together, even without any major fighting against the British. In 1780 actual mutinies broke out in the American camp. The Continental Army's strength dwindled to such an extent that the British decided to mount [[Battle of Connecticut Farms|two probing attacks]] against New Jersey in June 1780. The New Jersey militia strongly rallied, however, and the British quickly returned to their bases.

[[File:Plan de stationnement des troupes francaise et de la marine a Newport en 1780.jpg|thumb|left|Map of Newport with the camp of the troops of [[Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau|Rochambeau]] and the position of the squadron of Knight Ternay in 1780.]]

In July 1780 the American cause received a boost when a 5,500 strong French expeditionary force arrived at Newport, Rhode Island. Washington hoped to use this assistance to attack the British at New York and end the war. Events elsewhere, however, would frustrate this. Additional French reinforcements were prevented from arriving by a British blockade of French ports, and the French troops at Newport quickly found themselves blockaded as well. Moreover, the French fleet refused to visit the American coast in 1780, having suffered significant damage in actions in the West Indies.

[[Benedict Arnold]], the American victor of Saratoga, grew increasingly disenchanted with struggle and decided to defect. In September 1780 he attempted to surrender the key American fort at [[West Point]] along the [[Hudson River]] to the British, but his plot was exposed. He escaped and continued to fight under the British army. He [[To the Inhabitants of America|wrote an open letter]] justifying his actions by claiming he had only fought for a redress of grievances and since Britain had withdrawn those grievances (see above) there was no reason to continue shedding blood, particularly in an alliance with an ancient and tyrannical enemy like France. He led the last British attack in the north, [[Battle of Groton Heights|a devastating raid against New London]] in September 1781.

The British held [[Staten Island]], [[Manhattan]], and [[Long Island]] until peace was made in 1783. These areas contained about 2% of the population of the [[Thirteen Colonies]].

===Northern and Western frontier===
{{Further2|[[Western theater of the American Revolutionary War]]}}
[[File:Fall of Fort Sackville.jpg|thumb|left|[[George Rogers Clark]]'s 180 mile (290 km) winter march led to the capture of General [[Henry Hamilton (governor)|Henry Hamilton]], Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec]]

West of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] and along the border with [[Quebec]], the American Revolutionary War was an "[[American Indian Wars|Indian War]]". Most [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] supported the British. Like the [[Iroquois]] Confederacy, tribes such as the [[Shawnee]] split into factions, and the [[Chickamauga Indian|Chickamauga]] split off from the rest of the [[Cherokee]] over differences regarding peace with the [[Americans]]. The British supplied their [[nativ]]e allies with [[muskets]], [[gunpowder]] and advice, while Loyalists led raids against [[civilian]] settlements, especially in New York, [[Kentucky]], and [[Pennsylvania]]. Joint Iroquois-Loyalist attacks in the [[Wyoming Valley massacre|Wyoming Valley]] in Pennsylvania and at [[Cherry Valley massacre|Cherry Valley]] in New York in 1778 provoked [[George Washington|Washington]] to send the [[Sullivan Expedition]] into western New York during the summer of 1779. There was little fighting as [[John Sullivan (general)|Sullivan]] systematically destroyed the Indians' winter food supplies, forcing them to flee permanently to British bases in [[Quebec]] and the [[Niagara Falls]] area.<ref>Colin Gordon Calloway, ''The American Revolution in Indian Country'' (1995).</ref>

In the [[Ohio Country]] and the [[Illinois Country]], the Virginia frontiersman [[George Rogers Clark]] attempted to neutralize British influence among the Ohio tribes by capturing the outposts of [[Kaskaskia, Illinois|Kaskaskia]] and Cahokia and [[Battle of Vincennes|Vincennes]] in the summer of 1778, at which he succeeded. When General [[Henry Hamilton (governor)|Henry Hamilton]], the British commander at [[Detroit]], retook Vincennes, Clark returned in a surprise march in February 1779 and captured Hamilton.<ref>Lowell Hayes Harrison, ''George Rogers Clark and the War in the West'' (2001).</ref>

In March 1782, Pennsylvania militiamen killed about a hundred neutral Native Americans in the [[Gnadenhütten massacre]]. In the last major encounters of the war, a force of 200 Kentucky militia was defeated at the [[Battle of Blue Licks]] in August 1782.

===Georgia and the Carolinas, 1778–1781===
{{Main|Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War}}

During the first three years of the American Revolutionary War, the primary military encounters were in the north, although some attempts to organize Loyalists were defeated, a British [[Battle of Sullivan's Island|attempt at Charleston, South Carolina]] failed, and a variety of efforts to attack British forces in [[East Florida]] failed. After French entry into the war, the British turned their attention to the southern colonies, where they hoped to regain control by recruiting large numbers of Loyalists. This southern strategy also had the advantage of keeping the Royal Navy closer to the Caribbean, where the British needed to defend economically important possessions against the French and Spanish.<ref>Henry Lumpkin, ''From Savannah to Yorktown: The American Revolution in the South'' (2000).</ref>
[[File:Banastre-Tarleton-by-Joshua-Reynolds.jpg|thumb|upright|The British Lt. Col. [[Banastre Tarleton]]. Painting by Sir [[Joshua Reynolds]], 1782.]]

On December 29, 1778, an expeditionary corps from Clinton's army in New York captured [[Savannah, Georgia]]. An attempt by French and American forces to [[Siege of Savannah|retake Savannah]] failed on October 9, 1779. Clinton then [[siege of Charleston|besieged Charleston]], capturing it and most of the southern Continental Army on May 12, 1780. With relatively few casualties, Clinton had seized the South's biggest city and seaport, providing a base for further conquest.<ref>John W. Gordon and John Keegan, ''South Carolina and the American Revolution: A Battlefield History'' (2007).</ref>

The remnants of the southern Continental Army began to withdraw to [[North Carolina]] but were pursued by Lt. Colonel [[Banastre Tarleton]], who defeated them at the [[Waxhaw Massacre|Waxhaws]] on May 29, 1780. With these events, organized American military activity in the region collapsed, though the war was carried on by partisans such as [[Francis Marion]]. Cornwallis took over British operations, while [[Horatio Gates]] arrived to command the American effort. On August 16, 1780, Gates was defeated at the [[Battle of Camden]] in South Carolina, setting the stage for Cornwallis to invade North Carolina.<ref>Hugh F. Rankin, ''North Carolina in the American Revolution'' (1996).</ref> Georgia and South Carolina were thus both restored to Britain for the time being.

Cornwallis' efforts to advance into [[North Carolina]] were frustrated. A Loyalist wing of his army was utterly defeated at the [[Battle of Kings Mountain]] on October 7, 1780, which temporarily aborted his planned advance. He received reinforcements, but his light infantry under Tarleton was decisively defeated by [[Daniel Morgan]] at the [[Battle of Cowpens]] on January 17, 1781. In spite of this, Cornwallis decided to proceed, gambling that he would receive substantial Loyalist support. General [[Nathanael Greene]], who replaced General Gates, evaded contact with Cornwallis while seeking reinforcements. By March, Greene's army had grown to the point where he felt that he could face Cornwallis directly. In the key [[Battle of Guilford Court House]], Cornwallis drove Greene's much larger army off the battlefield, but in doing so suffered casualties amounting to one-fourth of his army. Compounding this, far fewer Loyalists were joining up than expected because the Patriots put heavy pressure on them and their families, who would become hostages.<ref>Lumpkin, ''From Savannah to Yorktown: The American Revolution in the South'' (2000).</ref> Cornwallis decided to retreat to coastal [[Wilmington, North Carolina]] for resupply and reinforcement, leaving the interior of the Carolinas and Georgia open to Greene. He then proceeded north into Virginia (see below).

American troops in conjunction with Patriot partisans then began the process of reclaiming territory in South Carolina and Georgia. Despite British victories at [[Battle of Hobkirk's Hill|Hobkirk's Hill]] and at the [[Siege of Ninety-Six]], by the middle of the year they had been forced to withdraw to the coastal lowlands region of both colonies. The final battle ([[Battle of Eutaw Springs]]) in September 1781 was indecisive but by the end of the year the British held only Savannah and Charleston.

===Virginia, 1781===
{{Main|Yorktown campaign}}
[[File:Surrender of Lord Cornwallis.jpg|thumb|''Surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown'' by ([[John Trumbull]], 1797)]]

Cornwallis proceeded from Wilmington north into [[Virginia]], on the grounds that Virginia needed to be subdued in order to hold the southern colonies. Earlier, in January 1781, a small British raiding force under [[Benedict Arnold]] had landed there, and began moving through the countryside, destroying supply depots, mills, and other economic targets. In February, General Washington dispatched [[Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette|General Lafayette]] to counter Arnold, later also sending General [[Anthony Wayne]]. Arnold was reinforced with additional troops from New York in March, and his army was joined with that of Cornwallis in May. Lafayette skirmished with Cornwallis, avoiding a large-scale battle while gathering reinforcements.

Cornwallis' Virginia campaign was strongly opposed by his superior, General Clinton, who did not believe such a large and disease-ridden area, with a hostile population, could be pacified with the limited forces available. Clinton instead favored conducting operations further north in the Chesapeake region ([[Maryland]], [[Delaware]], and southern [[Pennsylvania]]) where he believed there was a strong Loyalist presence. Upon his arrival at [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]] in June, Cornwallis received orders from Clinton to establish a fortified naval base and a request to send several thousand troops to New York to counter a possible Franco-American attack. Following these orders, he fortified [[Yorktown, Virginia|Yorktown]], and, shadowed by Lafayette, awaited the arrival of the Royal Navy.<ref>Michael Cecere, ''Great Things are Expected from the Virginians: Virginia in the American Revolution'' (2009).</ref>

The northern, southern, and naval theaters of the war converged in 1781 at [[Yorktown, Virginia]]. The French fleet became available for operations, which could either move against Yorktown or New York. Washington still favored attacking New York, but the French decided to send the fleet to their preferred target at Yorktown. Learning of the planned movement of the French fleet in August, Washington began moving his army south to cooperate. The British fleet, not realizing that the French had sent their entire fleet to America, dispatched an inadequate force under Admiral Graves.
[[File:BattleOfVirginiaCapes.jpg|thumb|The French (left) and British (right) lines at the [[Battle of the Chesapeake]]]]
In early September, French naval forces defeated the British fleet at the [[Battle of the Chesapeake]], cutting off Cornwallis' escape. Cornwallis, still expecting to receive support, failed to break out while he had the chance. When Washington's army arrived outside Yorktown, Cornwallis prematurely abandoned his outer position, hastening his subsequent defeat. The combined Franco-American force of 18,900 men began [[Siege of Yorktown|besieging Cornwallis]] in early October. For several days, the French and Americans bombarded the British defenses, and then began taking the outer redoubts. The British attempted to cobble together a relief expedition, but encountered numerous delays. Cornwallis decided his position was becoming untenable and he surrendered his entire army of over 7,000 men on October 19, 1781, the same day that the British fleet at New York sailed for his relief.<ref>Richard Ferrie, ''The World Turned Upside Down: George Washington and the Battle of Yorktown'' (1999).</ref>

===Downfall of the North Ministry===

News of the surrender at Yorktown arrived in Britain in November 1781. King [[George III]] took the news calmly and delivered a defiant address pledging to continue the war, a majority of the House of Commons endorsed it. In the succeeding months news arrived of other reverses, however. The French and Spanish successfully took several West Indian islands and appeared to be on the verge of completely expelling the British there. [[Minorca]] also surrendered to a Franco-Spanish force on February 5, 1782 and [[Gibraltar]] seemed to be in danger of falling as well. In light of this, Parliament on February 27, 1782 voted to cease all offensive operations in America and seek peace. Threatened with votes of no confidence, on March 20 Lord North resigned and his Tory government was replaced by the Whigs. Ironically, shortly after North resigned the British won the [[Battle of the Saintes]], putting an end to the French threat in the West Indies, and they successfully relieved Gibraltar. Had the North government held out for a few more months they would have been considerably strengthened and could have continued the war in spite of Yorktown.

The new Whig administration accepted American independence as a basis for peace. There were no further major military activities in North America, although the British still had 30,000 garrison troops occupying New York City, Charleston, and Savannah.<ref>Mackesy, p.&nbsp;435.</ref> The war continued elsewhere, including the siege of Gibraltar and naval operations in the East and West Indies, until peace was agreed in 1783.

==Naval war==
{{main|Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War}}

[[File:Combat de la Dominique 17 Avril 1780 Rossel de Cercy 1736 1804.jpg|thumb|''[[Combat de la Dominique]]'', April 17, 1780, by [[Auguste Louis de Rossel de Cercy]] (1736–1804)]]

When the war began, the British had overwhelming naval superiority over the American colonists although their fleet was old and in poor condition, a situation that would be blamed on [[John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich|Lord Sandwich]], the [[First Lord of the Admiralty]]. During the first three years of the war, the Royal Navy was primarily used to transport troops for land operations and to protect commercial shipping. The American colonists had no [[ships of the line]], and relied extensively on [[privateer]]ing to harass British shipping. The privateers caused worry disproportionate to their material success, although those operating out of French [[English Channel|channel]] ports before and after France joined the war caused significant embarrassment to the Royal Navy and inflamed Anglo-French relations. About 55,000 American sailors served aboard the privateers during the war.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usmm.org/revolution.html |title=Privateers or Merchant Mariners help win the Revolutionary War |publisher=Usmm.org |date= |accessdate=2013-05-08}}</ref> The American privateers had almost 1,700 ships, and they captured 2,283 enemy ships.<ref>{{cite web|author=John Pike |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/privateer.htm |title=Privateers |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |date=1907-10-18 |accessdate=2013-05-08}}</ref> The [[Continental Congress]] authorized the creation of a small [[Continental Navy]] in October 1775, which was primarily used for [[commerce raiding]]. [[John Paul Jones]] became the first great American naval hero, capturing [[HMS Drake (1777)|HMS ''Drake'']] on April 24, 1778, the first victory for any American military vessel in British waters.<ref>Higginbotham (1983), pp.&nbsp;331–46.</ref>
[[File:The Siege and Relief of Gibraltar (2).jpg|thumb|left|''[[The Defeat of the Floating Batteries at Gibraltar, September 1782|The Defeat of the Floating Batteries at Gibraltar]]'', September 13, 1782, by [[John Singleton Copley]]]]
During the second period, the successive interventions of [[France]], [[Spain]], and the [[Netherlands]] extended the naval war until it ranged from the [[West Indies]] to the [[Bay of Bengal]]. This second period lasted from the summer of 1778 to the middle of 1783, and it included operations already been in progress in America or for the protection of commerce, and naval campaigns on a great scale carried out by the fleets of the maritime powers.

==Britain vs. France, Spain, Mysore, and Holland 1778–1783==

===Europe===

{{Campaignbox American War of Independence: European Waters}}

Spain entered the war as a French ally with the goal of recapturing [[Gibraltar]] and [[Minorca]], which had been captured by an Anglo-Dutch force in 1704. [[Great Siege of Gibraltar|Gibraltar was besieged]] for more than three years, but the British garrison stubbornly resisted and was resupplied twice: once after Admiral [[George Rodney|Rodney]]'s victory over [[Juan de Lángara]] in the 1780 [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1780)|"Moonlight Battle"]], and again by Admiral [[Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe|Richard Howe]] in 1782. Further Franco-Spanish efforts to capture Gibraltar were unsuccessful. One notable success took place on February 5, 1782, when Spanish and French forces [[Invasion of Minorca, 1781|captured Minorca]], which Spain retained after the war. Ambitious plans for an invasion of Great Britain in 1779 [[Armada of 1779|had to be abandoned]].

===West Indies and Gulf Coast===
{{Main|Caribbean theater of the American Revolutionary War|Gulf Coast campaign}}
{{Campaignbox American War of Independence: West Indies}}

<gallery>
File:Combat naval 12 avril 1782-Dumoulin-IMG 5484.JPG|The [[Battle of the Saintes]] fought on 12 April 1782 near Guadeloupe.
File:Bernardo de Galvez.jpg|[[Bernardo de Gálvez]].
File:Jaillot-Elwe, Norteamerica, 1792.jpg|Norteamerica, 1792, Jaillot-Elwe, Florida's borders after Bernardo Gálvez's military actions.
File:Spanish troops at Pensacola.jpg|Spanish forces overran the British lines during the climactic [[Battle of Pensacola (1781)]].
</gallery>

There was much action in the West Indies, especially in the [[Lesser Antilles]]. Although France lost [[Battle of St. Lucia|St. Lucia]] early in the war, its navy dominated the West Indies, capturing [[Invasion of Dominica|Dominica]], [[Capture of Grenada (1779)|Grenada]], [[Capture of Saint Vincent|Saint Vincent]], [[Capture of Montserrat|Montserrat]], [[Invasion of Tobago|Tobago]], [[Battle of St. Kitts|St. Kitts]] and the [[Battle of Grand Turk|Turks and Caicos]] between 1778 and 1782. [[Dutch Antilles|Dutch possessions]] in the West Indies and South America [[Dutch West Indies campaign|were captured]] by Britain [[Recapture of Demerara and Essequibo|but later recaptured]] by France and restored to the [[Dutch Republic]]. At the [[Battle of the Saintes]] in April 1782, a victory by Rodney's fleet over the French [[François Joseph Paul de Grasse|Admiral de Grasse]] frustrated the hopes of France and Spain to take [[Jamaica]] and other colonies from the British.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}}

In the '''[[Gulf Coast campaign]]''', [[Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez|Count Bernardo de Gálvez]], the Spanish [[governor of Louisiana]], quickly removed the British from their outposts on the lower [[Mississippi River]] in 1779 in actions at [[Battle of Fort Bute|Manchac]] and [[Battle of Baton Rouge (1779)|Baton Rouge]] in British [[West Florida]]. Gálvez then captured [[Battle of Fort Charlotte|Mobile]] in 1780 and [[Siege of Pensacola|stormed and captured]] the British citadel and capital of [[Pensacola, Florida|Pensacola]] in 1781. On May 8, 1782, Gálvez [[Capture of the Bahamas (1782)|captured]] the British naval base at [[New Providence]] in [[the Bahamas]]; it was ceded by Spain after the Treaty of Paris and simultaneously [[Capture of the Bahamas (1783)|recovered]] by British Loyalists in 1783. Gálvez' actions led to the Spanish acquisition of [[East Florida|East]] and West Florida in the peace settlement, denied the British the opportunity of encircling the American forces from the south, and kept open a vital conduit for supplies to the American frontier. The Continental Congress cited Gálvez in 1785 for his aid during the revolution and George Washington took him to his right during the first [[Independence Day (United States)|parade of July 4]].<ref>Heintze, "A Chronology of Notable Fourth of July Celebration Occurrences".</ref>

Central America was also subject to conflict between Britain and Spain, as Britain sought to expand its informal trading influence beyond coastal logging and fishing communities in present-day [[Belize]], [[Honduras]], and [[Nicaragua]]. Expeditions against [[Battle of San Fernando de Omoa|San Fernando de Omoa]] in 1779 and [[San Juan Expedition (1780)|San Juan]] in 1780 (the latter famously led by a young [[Horatio Nelson]]) met with only temporary success before being abandoned due to disease. The Spanish colonial leaders, in turn, could not completely eliminate British influences along the [[Mosquito Coast]]. Except for the French acquisition of [[Tobago]], sovereignty in the West Indies was returned to the ''[[status quo ante bellum]]'' in the peace of 1783.

===India===
{{Campaignbox American War of Independence: East Indies}}
{{main|Second Anglo-Mysore War}}
[[File:Suffren meeting with Haider Ali J B Morret engraving 1789.jpg|thumb|left|[[Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez|Suffren]] meeting with ally [[Hyder Ali]] in 1783. J.B. Morret engraving, 1789.]]

When word reached India in 1778 that France had entered the war, the [[British East India Company]] moved quickly to capture French colonial outposts there, [[Siege of Pondicherry (1778)|capturing Pondicherry]] after two months of siege.<ref name="Riddick23_5">Riddick (2006), pp.&nbsp;23–25.</ref> The capture of the French-controlled port of [[Mahé, India|Mahé]] on India's west coast motivated [[Kingdom of Mysore|Mysore]]'s ruler, [[Hyder Ali]] (who was already upset at other British actions, and benefited from trade through the port), to open the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]] in 1780. Ali, and later his son [[Tipu Sultan]], almost drove the British from southern India but was frustrated by weak French support, and the war ended ''status quo ante bellum'' with the 1784 [[Treaty of Mangalore]]. French opposition was led in 1782 and 1783 by Admiral the [[Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez|Baillie de Suffren]], who [[Capture of Trincomalee|recaptured Trincomalee]] from the British and fought five celebrated, but largely inconclusive, naval engagements against British Admiral [[Edward Hughes (Royal Navy officer)|Sir Edward Hughes]].<ref name="Fletcher155_8">Fletcher (1909), pp.&nbsp;155–58.</ref> France's Indian colonies were returned after the war.

===Fourth Anglo-Dutch War===

{{main|Fourth Anglo-Dutch War}}

The Dutch Republic, nominally neutral, had been trading with the Americans, exchanging Dutch arms and munitions for American colonial wares (in contravention of the British ''[[Navigation Acts]]''), primarily through activity based in [[St. Eustatius]], before the French formally entered the war.<ref>Edler (1911), pp.&nbsp;37–38, 42–62; The American trade via St. Eustatius was very substantial. In 1779 more than 12,000 hogsheads of tobacco and 1.5 million ounces of indigo were shipped from the Colonies to the island in exchange for naval supplies and other goods; Edler, p. 62</ref> The British considered this trade to include contraband military supplies and had attempted to stop it, at first diplomatically by appealing to previous treaty obligations, interpretation of whose terms the two nations disagreed on, and then by searching and seizing Dutch merchant ships. The situation escalated when the British [[Affair of Fielding and Bylandt|seized a Dutch merchant convoy sailing under Dutch naval escort]] in December 1779, prompting the Dutch to join the [[First League of Armed Neutrality|League of Armed Neutrality]]. Britain responded to this decision by declaring war on the Dutch in December 1780, sparking the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]].<ref>Edler (1911), pp.&nbsp;95–173.</ref> The war was a military and economic disaster for the Dutch Republic. Paralyzed by internal political divisions, it could not respond effectively to British blockades of its coast and the capture of many of its colonies. In the 1784 peace treaty between the two nations, the Dutch lost the Indian port of [[Negapatam]] and were forced to make trade concessions.<ref>Edler (1911), pp.&nbsp;233–46.</ref> The Dutch Republic signed a friendship and trade agreement with the United States in 1782, becoming the third country (after Morocco and later France) to formally recognize the United States.<ref>{{Cite news|url = http://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2013/11/21/why-morocco-matters-to-the-u-s/|title = Why Morocco Matters To The U.S.|last = Hafid Elalamy|first = Moulay|date = November 21, 2013|work = [[Forbes Magazine]]|access-date = April 12, 2015}}</ref>

==Treaty of Paris==
{{Main|Treaty of Paris (1783)}}
[[Image:Treaty of Paris by Benjamin West 1783.jpg|thumb|Painting of the American delegations at the Treaty of Paris. The British delegation refused to pose, and the painting was never completed.]]

In London, as political support for the war plummeted after Yorktown, British Prime Minister [[Lord North]] resigned in March 1782. In April 1782, the Commons voted to end the war in America. Preliminary peace articles were signed in Paris at the end of November 1782; the formal end of the war did not occur until the [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]] (for the U.S.) and the [[Peace of Paris (1783)|Treaties of Versailles]] (for the other Allies) were signed on September 3, 1783. The last British troops [[Evacuation Day (New York)|left New York City]] on November 25, 1783, and the United States [[Congress of the Confederation]] ratified the Paris treaty on [[Ratification Day (United States)|January 14, 1784]].<ref>Richard Morris, ''The Peacemakers: The Great Powers and American Independence'' (1983).</ref>

Britain negotiated the Paris peace treaty without consulting her Native American allies and ceded all Native American territory between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River to the United States. Native Americans reluctantly confirmed these land cessions with the United States in a series of treaties, but the fighting would be renewed in conflicts along the frontier in the coming years, the largest being the [[Northwest Indian War]].<ref>Benn (1993), p.&nbsp;17.</ref> The British sought to establish a buffer Indian state in the American Midwest, and continued to pursue that goal as late as 1814 in the [[War of 1812]].<ref>Dwight L. Smith, "A North American Neutral Indian Zone: Persistence of a British Idea" ''Northwest Ohio Quarterly'' 1989 61(2–4): 46–63.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Francis M. Carroll|title=A Good and Wise Measure: The Search for the Canadian-American Boundary, 1783–1842|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1AjlS20Q5J8C&pg=PA24|year=2001|publisher=U of Toronto Press|page=24}}</ref>

The United States gained more than it expected, thanks to the award of western territory. The other Allies had mixed-to-poor results. France made some gains over its nemesis, Great Britain, but its material gains were minimal and its financial losses huge. It was already in financial trouble and its borrowing to pay for the war used up all its credit and created the financial disasters that marked the 1780s. Historians link those disasters to the coming of the [[French Revolution]]. The Dutch clearly lost on all points. The Spanish had a mixed result; they did not achieve their primary war goal (recovery of Gibraltar), but they did gain territory. However, in the long run, as the case of Florida shows, the new territory was of little or no value.<ref name="historiographical431"/>

==Analysis of combatants==

The population of Great Britain and Ireland in 1780 was approximately 12.6 million<ref>Mulhall, Michael G., [https://archive.org/stream/mulhallsdiction00unkngoog#page/n390/mode/1up Mulhall's Dictionary of Statistics] (1884), p. 357.</ref> while the population of the thirteen colonies for the same year has been estimated at 2.8 million including over 500,000 slaves.<ref>[http://www2.census.gov/prod2/statcomp/documents/CT1970p2-13.pdf Colonial and Pre-Federal Statistics] U.S. Census Bureau.</ref> Theoretically this gave Britain a 4.5:1 manpower advantage, by comparison the Union's manpower advantage over the Confederacy in the [[American Civil War]] was only 2.5:1. In practice, the British army never had more than a slight numerical advantage over the Continental Army due to a number of factors, including the need to maintain significant numbers of troops outside of North America. Conscription outside of naval [[impressment]] did not exist in Britain back then, and the proportion of Americans willing to serve in their own country's defense was believed to be considerably larger than the proportion of Britons willing to serve overseas. One pre-war estimate claimed that the Patriots could mobilize 100,000 men in a matter of months,<ref>Tyler, Moses. [https://archive.org/stream/literaryhistory00tylegoog#page/n437/mode/1up The Literary History of the American Revolution] Vol. I (1897), p. 399.</ref> but substantial loyalist or neutralist sentiment would keep Patriot forces much smaller than their potential.<ref>Lecky, William. [https://books.google.com/books?id=m3cUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA287&dq=%22honourable+and+generous+steps%22+inauthor:lecky&lr=&num=100&as_brr=0#v=onepage&q=%22If%2C%20indeed%2C%20as%20most%20historians%22&f=false A History of England in the Eighteenth Century] Vol. IV (1891), p. 287.</ref><ref>Perkins, James Breck [http://www.americanrevolution.org/frconfiles/fr25.php France in the Revolution] (1911).</ref>

Historians continue to debate whether the odds for American victory were long or short. [[John E. Ferling]] says the odds were so long that the American victory was "Almost A Miracle."<ref>John E. Ferling, ''Almost A Miracle: The American Victory in the War of Independence'' (2009), pp. 562–77.</ref> On the other hand, [[Joseph Ellis]] says the odds favored the Americans, and asks whether there ever was any realistic chance for the British to win. He argues that this opportunity came only once, in the summer of 1776 and the British failed that test. Admiral Howe and his brother General Howe, "missed several opportunities to destroy the Continental Army....Chance, luck, and even the vagaries of the weather played crucial roles." Ellis's point is that the strategic and tactical decisions of the Howes were fatally flawed because they underestimated the challenges posed by the Patriots. Ellis concludes that once the Howe brothers failed, the opportunity for a British victory "would never come again."<ref name="Ellis 2013">{{cite book|author=Joseph J. Ellis|title=Revolutionary Summer: The Birth of American Independence|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z4RqZJzho1QC&pg=PR11|year=2013|publisher=Random House}}</ref>{{rp|11}} The U.S. Army's official textbook argues that while the British difficulties were great, they were hardly insurmountable. "The British forfeited several chances for military victory in 1776–1777, and again in 1780 they might have won had they been able to throw 10,000 fresh troops into the American war."<ref>[http://history.army.mil/books/AMH-V1/ch04.htm Richard W. Stewart, ed., ''American Military History Volume 1 The United States Army And The Forging Of A Nation, 1775–1917" (2005)] ch 4 "The Winning of Independence, 1777–1783" (2005), p. 103.</ref>

===Patriots===
{{Main|Continental Army|Minutemen}}
[[File:Battle of Guiliford Courthouse 15 March 1781.jpg|thumb|1st Maryland Regiment holding the line at the [[Battle of Guilford]]]]
The Americans began the war with significant disadvantages compared to the British. They had no national government, no national army or navy, no financial system, no banks, no established credit, and no functioning government departments, such as a treasury. The Congress tried to handle administrative affairs through legislative committees, which proved inefficient. The state governments were themselves brand new and officials had no administrative experience. In peacetime the colonies relied heavily on ocean travel and shipping, but that was now shut down by the British blockade and the Americans had to rely on slow overland travel.

However, the Americans had multiple advantages that in the long run outweighed the initial disadvantages they faced. The Americans had a large prosperous population that depended not on imports but on local production for food and most supplies, while the British were mostly shipped in from across the ocean. The British faced a vast territory far larger than Britain or France, located at a far distance from home ports. Most of the Americans lived on farms distant from the seaports—the British could capture any port but that did not give them control over the hinterland. They were on their home ground, had a smoothly functioning, well organized system of local and state governments, newspapers and printers, and internal lines of communications. They had a long-established system of local militia, previously used to combat the French and Native Americans, with companies and an officer corps that could form the basis of local militias, and provide a training ground for the national army created by Congress.<ref name="autogenerated1">Pole and Greene, eds. '' Companion to the American Revolution'', ch. 36–39.</ref>

Motivation was a major asset. The Patriots wanted to win; over 200,000 fought in the war; 25,000 died. The British expected the Loyalists to do much of the fighting; they did much less than expected. The British hired German mercenaries to do much of their fighting.<ref>{{cite book|author=Michael Lanning|title=American Revolution 100: The Battles, People, and Events of the American War for Independence, Ranked by Their Significance|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1GEs53wMr7EC&pg=PA193|year=2009|publisher=Sourcebooks|pages=195–96}}</ref>

At the onset of the war, the Americans had no major international allies. Battles such as the [[Battle of Bennington]], the [[Battles of Saratoga]] and even defeats such as the [[Battle of Germantown]]<ref name="Trevelyan, p. 249">Trevelyan, p. 249.</ref> proved decisive in gaining the attention and support of powerful European nations such as France and Spain, who moved from covertly supplying the Americans with weapons and supplies, to overtly supporting them militarily, moving the war to a global stage.<ref name="K405_48">[[#Ketchum|Ketchum (1997)]], pp. 405–48.</ref>

The new Continental Army suffered significantly from a lack of an effective training regime, and largely inexperienced officers and sergeants. The inexperience of its officers was compensated for in part by its senior officers; officers such as [[George Washington]], [[Horatio Gates]], [[Charles Lee (general)|Charles Lee]], [[Richard Montgomery]] and [[Francis Marion]] all had military experience with the British Army during the [[French and Indian War]]. The Americans solved their training dilemma during their stint in Winter Quarters at Valley Forge, where they were relentlessly drilled and trained by General [[Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben]], a veteran of the famed Prussian General Staff. He taught the Continental Army the essentials of military discipline, drills, tactics and strategy, and wrote the [[Revolutionary War Drill Manual]].<ref>Philander D. Chase. "Steuben, Friedrich Wilhelm von";
[http://www.anb.org/articles/01/01-00855.html ''American National Biography Online'' (2000)].
Accessed January 29, 2015.</ref> When the Army emerged from Valley Forge, it proved its ability to equally match the British troops in battle when they fought a successful strategic action at the [[Battle of Monmouth]].<ref name="John Ferling 2007 294–95"/>

[[File:Population Density in the American Colonies 1775.gif|thumb|right|Population density in the [[American Colonies]] in 1775]]
When the war began, the 13 colonies lacked a professional army or navy. Each colony sponsored local [[militia]]. Militiamen were lightly armed, had little training, and usually did not have uniforms. Their units served for only a few weeks or months at a time, were reluctant to travel far from home and thus were unavailable for extended operations, and lacked the training and discipline of soldiers with more experience. If properly used, however, their numbers could help the Continental armies overwhelm smaller British forces, as at the [[Battles of the American Revolutionary War|battles]] of [[Battles of Lexington and Concord|Concord]], [[Battle of Bennington|Bennington]] and [[Saratoga campaign|Saratoga]], and the [[siege of Boston]]. Both sides used partisan warfare but the Americans effectively suppressed Loyalist activity when [[British Regulars|British regulars]] were not in the area.<ref>Black (2001), p.&nbsp;59. On militia see Boatner (1974), p.&nbsp;707, and Weigley (1973), ch.&nbsp;2.</ref>

Seeking to coordinate military efforts, the [[First Continental Congress|Continental Congress]] established a regular army on June 14, 1775, and appointed [[George Washington]] as commander-in-chief. The development of the Continental Army was always a work in progress, and Washington used both his regulars and state militia throughout the war.

The [[United States Marine Corps]] traces its institutional roots to the [[Continental Marines]] of the war, formed by a resolution of the Continental Congress on November 10, 1775, a date regarded and celebrated as the birthday of the Marine Corps. At the beginning of 1776, Washington's army had 20,000 men, with two-thirds enlisted in the Continental Army and the other third in the various state militias.<ref name="Tread">Crocker (2006), p.&nbsp;51.</ref> At the end of the American Revolution in 1783, both the [[Continental Navy]] and Continental Marines were disbanded. About 250,000 men served as regulars or as militiamen for the Revolutionary cause in the eight years of the war, but there were never more than 90,000 men under arms at one time.

Armies were small by European standards of the era, largely attributable to limitations such as lack of powder and other logistical capabilities on the American side.<ref>Boatner (1974), p.&nbsp;264 says the largest force Washington commanded was "under 17,000"; Duffy (1987), p.&nbsp;17, estimates Washington's maximum was "only 13,000 troops".</ref> It was also difficult for Great Britain to transport troops across the Atlantic and they depended on local supplies that the Patriots tried to cut off. By comparison, Duffy notes that [[Frederick the Great]] usually commanded from 23,000 to 50,000 in battle.{{citation needed|date=November 2012}} Both figures pale in comparison to the armies that were fielded in the early 19th century, where troop formations approached or exceeded 100,000 men.

===Loyalists===
{{Main|Loyalist (American Revolution)}}

Historians<ref>Greene and Pole (1999), p.&nbsp;235.</ref> have estimated that approximately 40 to 45 percent of the colonists supported the rebellion, while 15 to 20 percent remained loyal to the Crown. The rest attempted to remain neutral and kept a low profile.

At least 25,000 Loyalists fought on the side of the British. Thousands served in the Royal Navy. On land, Loyalist forces fought alongside the British in most battles in North America. Many Loyalists fought in partisan units, especially in the Southern theater.<ref>Savas and Dameron (2006), p.&nbsp;xli.</ref>

The British military met with many difficulties in maximizing the use of Loyalist factions. British historian [[Jeremy Black (historian)|Jeremy Black]] wrote, "In the American war it was clear to both royal generals and revolutionaries that organized and significant Loyalist activity would require the presence of British forces."<ref>Black (2001), p.&nbsp;12.</ref> In the South, the use of Loyalists presented the British with "major problems of strategic choice" since while it was necessary to widely disperse troops in order to defend Loyalist areas, it was also recognized that there was a need for "the maintenance of large concentrated forces able" to counter major attacks from the American forces.<ref>Black (2001), p.&nbsp;13–14.</ref> In addition, the British were forced to ensure that their military actions would not "offend Loyalist opinion", eliminating such options as attempting to "live off the country", destroying property for intimidation purposes, or coercing payments from colonists ("laying them under contribution").<ref>Black (2001), p.&nbsp;14.</ref>

===British===
{{main|British Army during the American War of Independence}}
[[Image:John Singleton Copley 001.jpg|thumb|''[[The Death of Major Peirson]]'', in the 1781 [[Battle of Jersey]]]]
Britain entered the war with confidence; it had the world's most powerful navy, a well-trained professional army, a sound financial system that could pay the costs, a stable government, and experienced leadership.<ref>On the top leaders see Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy, ''The Men Who Lost America: British Leadership, the American Revolution, and the Fate of the Empire'' (Yale University Press, 2013).</ref> However they were beset with major challenges. Compared to the Americans, the British had no major allies, and only had troops provided by small German states to bolster the small British Army. At the onset of the war, the British Army was less than 48,000 strong worldwide, and suffered from a lack of effective recruiting. By 1778, the army was pardoning criminals for military service and had extended the age range for service to be from 16 to 50. Although its officer and non-commissioned officer corps were relatively professional and experienced, this professionalism was diluted because wealthy individuals lacking military experience could purchase commissions and promotions. As a consequence, inexperienced officers sometimes found their way into positions of high responsibility.<ref>{{cite book|author=Michael Lanning|title=American Revolution 100: The Battles, People, and Events of the American War for Independence, Ranked by Their Significance|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1GEs53wMr7EC&pg=PA193|year=2009|publisher=Sourcebooks|pages=193–96}}</ref>

Distance was also a major problem for the British. Although the Royal Navy was the largest and most experienced in the world at the time, it sometimes took months for troops to reach North America, and orders were often out of date because the military situation on the ground had changed by the time they arrived.<ref>Black (2001), p.&nbsp;39; Greene and Pole (1999), pp.&nbsp;298, 306.</ref> Additionally, the British had logistical problems whenever they operated away from the coast; they were vulnerable to [[Guerilla warfare|guerilla attacks]] on their supply chains whenever they went far inland. On a logistical note, the flints used in British weapons also put them at a disadvantage on the battlefield. British flints could only fire for 6 rounds before requiring re-sharpening, while American flints could fire 60 rounds before resharpening. A common expression ran among the redcoats; which was that "Yankee flint was as good as a glass of grog."<ref name="Curtis">Edward E. Curtis, ''The Organization of the British Army in the American Revolution'' (Yale U.P. 1926) [http://www.americanrevolution.org/britisharmy1.html ch 1 online.]</ref> Although discipline was harsh in the army, the redcoats had little self-discipline; gambling, looting, promiscuity and heavy drinking were common problems, among all ranks alike. The army suffered from mediocre organisation in terms of logistics, food supplies were often bad and the sparse land of America offered little in the way of finding reliable substitutes.<ref>Curtis, ''The Organization of the British Army in the American Revolution'', ch. 4.</ref>

[[File:American Revolution Campaigns 1775 to 1781.jpg|thumb|Map of campaigns in the Revolutionary War]]

Suppressing a rebellion in America also posed other problems. At the onset of the war, the British had around 8,000 men stationed in North America, however these were required to cover an area that stretched from northern Canada to Florida, a distance of almost 2,000 miles (3,200&nbsp;km). As the colonies had not been united before the war, there was no central area of strategic importance. In European conflicts, the capture of a capital city often meant the end of the war; however in America, when the British seized key cities such as New York, Philadelphia or Boston—or [[Washington D.C.]] in the [[War of 1812]] thirty years later—the war continued unabated. Furthermore, despite the fact that at its height, the British fielded some 56,000 men in the colonies exclusive of mercenaries and militia,<ref>Curtis, ''The Organization of the British Army in the American Revolution'', ch. 3.</ref> they lacked the sufficient numbers to both defeat the Americans on the battlefield and simultaneously occupy the captured areas. It was not unusual for the Americans to suffer a string of defeats, only to have the British retreat because they could not occupy the captured land. Despite strong Loyalist support, these troops were often displaced by Patriot militia when British regulars were not in the area, demonstrated at battles such as [[Battle of Kings Mountain|Kings Mountain]]. The manpower shortage became critical when France, Spain and the Netherlands entered the war, as the British were spread across several theatres worldwide, when before they were concentrated only in America.<ref>Higginbotham (1983), pp.&nbsp;298, 306; Black (2001), pp.&nbsp;29, 42.</ref>

The British also had to contend with several psychological factors during the conflict. The need to maintain Loyalist allegiance provided setbacks, as the British could not use the harsh methods of suppressing rebellion they had used in Ireland and Scotland. Loyalists often came from the same communities as Patriots and as a result, such methods could not be employed for fear of alienating them. Even despite these limitations, neutral colonists were often driven into the ranks of the Revolutionaries due to the conflict, such as the war in the Carolinas, marked by heavy brutality on both sides.<ref>Black (2001), pp.&nbsp;14–16 (Harsh methods), pp.&nbsp;35, 38 (slaves and Indians), p.&nbsp;16 (neutrals into revolutionaries).</ref> As a result of the manpower shortage and Patriot control of the countryside, where the majority of the American population lived, the British often could not simultaneously defeat the Americans on the field and occupy the captured areas, evidenced by withdrawals from [[Philadelphia campaign|Philadelphia]] and the [[Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War|Carolinas]] after great initial success. A single American victory could often reverse the impact of a string of British successes, as shown by engagements at [[Battle of Trenton|Trenton]], [[Battle of Bennington|Bennington]], [[Battle of Kings Mountain|King's Mountain]] and even defeats such as [[Battle of Germantown|Germantown]],<ref name="Trevelyan, p. 249"/> all of which went a long way to galvanizing Patriot support for the war, and of persuading European powers such as France and Spain to support the rebellion.

Early in 1775, the [[British Army]] consisted of about 36,000 men worldwide, but wartime recruitment steadily increased this number. Great Britain had a difficult time appointing general officers, however. General [[Thomas Gage]], in command of British forces in North America when the rebellion started, was criticized for being too lenient (perhaps influenced by his [[Margaret Kemble Gage|American wife]]). General [[Jeffrey Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst]] turned down an appointment as commander in chief due to an unwillingness to take sides in the conflict.<ref>Ketchum (1997), p.&nbsp;76.</ref> Similarly, Admiral [[Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel|Augustus Keppel]] turned down a command, saying "I cannot draw the sword in such a cause." The [[Thomas Howard, 3rd Earl of Effingham|Earl of Effingham]] publicly resigned his commission when his [[Cheshire Regiment|22nd Regiment of foot]] was posted to America, and [[William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe|William Howe]] and [[John Burgoyne]] were members of parliament who opposed military solutions to the American rebellion. Howe and [[Henry Clinton (1730–1795)|Henry Clinton]] stated that they were unwilling participants in the war and were only following orders.<ref>Ketchum (1997), p.&nbsp;77.</ref> The British Parliament was also far from united in supporting military opposition to the American Patriots. [[Frederick North, Lord North|Lord North]] held the post of Prime Minister with a Tory majority backing him, advocating military suppression of the American rebellion. However, they were constantly and vehemently opposed by a large Whig minority, with politicians such as [[Charles James Fox]] and [[Edmund Burke]] of the [[Rockingham Whigs]] fiercely voicing their derision of pursuing military solutions to the rebellion. The Whigs gained prominence in Parliament as the British suffered strategic defeats at [[Battles of Saratoga|Saratoga]] and later at [[Siege of Yorktown|Yorktown]], resulting in the collapse of Lord North's ministry.

Over the course of the war, Great Britain signed treaties with various [[Germans in the American Revolution|German]] states, which supplied about 30,000 soldiers.<ref>Ingrao, Charles. "" Barbarous Strangers": Hessian State and Society during the American Revolution." ''American Historical Review'' (1982): 954–976. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1857901 in JSTOR.]</ref> Germans made up about one-third of the British troop strength in North America. The [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel]] contributed more soldiers than any other state, and German soldiers became known as "[[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessians]]" to the Americans. Revolutionary speakers called German soldiers "foreign mercenaries", and they are scorned as such in the [[United States Declaration of Independence|Declaration of Independence]]. By 1779, the number of British and German troops stationed in North America was over 60,000, although these were spread from Canada to Florida.<ref>Black (2001), pp.&nbsp;27–29; Boatner (1974), pp.&nbsp;424–26.</ref> Initially, several German principalities offered military support to Great Britain but these offers were rejected. However, as the war dragged on it became clear that Great Britain would need the extra manpower of the German states and led to Great Britain seeking support from German principalities such as Hesse-Kassel and Ansbach-Bayreuth.<ref>Morrissey (2004), pp. 20, 21.</ref>

The Secretary of State at War [[Lord Barrington]] and the Adjutant-General [[Edward Harvey]] were both strongly opposed to outright war on land. In 1766 Barrington had recommended withdrawing the army from the Thirteen Colonies to Canada, Nova Scotia and Florida. At the beginning of the war he urged a naval blockade, which would quickly damage the colonists' trading activities.<ref>''The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Army'' (1994), p. 122–23.</ref>

===African Americans===
[[File:Soldiers at the siege of Yorktown (1781), by Jean-Baptiste-Antoine DeVerger.png|thumb|1780 drawing of American soldiers from the [[Yorktown campaign]] shows a black infantryman from the [[1st Rhode Island Regiment]].]]
[[African Americans in the Revolutionary War|African Americans]]—slave and free—served on both sides during the war. The British recruited slaves belonging to [[Patriot (American Revolution)|Patriot]] masters and promised freedom to those who served by act of Lord [[Dunmore's Proclamation]]. Because of manpower shortages, George Washington lifted the ban on black enlistment in the Continental Army in January 1776. Small all-black units were formed in [[Rhode Island]] and [[Massachusetts]]; many slaves were promised freedom for serving. Some of the men promised freedom were sent back to their masters, after the war was over, out of political convenience. George Washington received and ignored letters from the re-enslaved soldiers{{citation needed|date=November 2015}}. Another all-black unit came from [[Saint-Domingue]] with French colonial forces. At least 5,000 black soldiers fought for the Revolutionary cause.<ref>Kaplan and Kaplan (1989), pp.&nbsp;64–69.</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Leslie Alexander|title=Encyclopedia of African American History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uivtCqOlpTsC&pg=PA356|year=2010|publisher=ABC-CLIO|page=356}}</ref>

Tens of thousands of slaves escaped during the war and joined British lines; others simply moved off in the chaos. For instance, in South Carolina, nearly 25,000 slaves (30% of the enslaved population) fled, migrated or died during the disruption of the war.<ref>Peter Kolchin, ''American Slavery: 1619–1877'', New York: Hill and Wang, 1994, p. 73</ref> This greatly disrupted plantation production during and after the war. When they withdrew their forces from Savannah and Charleston, the British also evacuated 10,000 slaves belonging to Loyalists.<ref>Kolchin, p.73</ref> Altogether, the British evacuated nearly 20,000 blacks at the end of the war. More than 3,000 of them were freedmen and most of these were resettled in Nova Scotia; other blacks were sold in the West Indies.<ref>{{cite book|author=William Weir|title=The Encyclopedia of African American Military History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WEXj4gHHARgC&pg=PA32|year=2004|publisher=Prometheus Books|pages=31–32}}</ref><ref>Cassadra Pybus, "Jefferson's Faulty Math: the Question of Slave Defections in the American Revolution", ''William and Mary Quarterly'' (2005) 62#2 pp: 243–264. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3491601 in JSTOR]</ref>

===Native Americans===
Most [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] east of the [[Mississippi River]] were affected by the war, and many communities were divided over the question of how to respond to the conflict. Though a few tribes were on friendly terms with the Americans, most Native Americans opposed the United States as a potential threat to their territory. Approximately 13,000 Native Americans fought on the British side, with the largest group coming from the [[Iroquois]] tribes, who fielded around 1,500 men.<ref>Greene and Pole (1999), p.&nbsp;393; Boatner (1974), p.&nbsp;545.</ref> The powerful [[Iroquois Confederacy]] was shattered as a result of the conflict; although the Confederacy did not take sides, the [[Seneca nation|Seneca]], [[Onondaga (tribe)|Onondaga]], and [[Cayuga nation|Cayuga]] nations sided with the British. Members of the [[Mohawk nation|Mohawk]] fought on both sides. Many [[Tuscarora (tribe)|Tuscarora]] and [[Oneida tribe|Oneida]] sided with the colonists. The Continental Army sent the [[Sullivan Expedition]] on raids throughout New York to cripple the Iroquois tribes that had sided with the British. Both during and after the war friction between the Mohawk leaders [[Joseph Louis Cook]] and [[Joseph Brant]], who had sided with the Americans and the British respectively, further exacerbated the split.
[[File:ContinentalArmy LeffertsWatercolor.jpg|thumb|A watercolor painting depicting a variety of Continental Army soldiers.]]
[[Muscogee people|Creek]] and [[Seminole]] allies of Britain fought against Americans in Georgia and South Carolina. In 1778, a force of 800 Creeks destroyed American settlements along the [[Broad River (Georgia)|Broad River]] in Georgia. Creek warriors also joined [[Thomas Brown (loyalist)|Thomas Brown's]] raids into South Carolina and assisted Britain during the [[Siege of Savannah]].<ref name="Ward1999">{{cite book|last=Ward|first=Harry M.|title=The war for independence and the transformation of American society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kgqa4_OBcIkC&pg=PA198|accessdate=March 25, 2011|year=1999|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-1-85728-656-4|page=198}}</ref> Many Native Americans were involved in the fighting between Britain and Spain on the [[Gulf Coast of the United States|Gulf Coast]] and up the Mississippi River—mostly on the British side. Thousands of Creeks, [[Chickasaw]]s, and [[Choctaw]]s fought in or near major battles such as the [[Battle of Fort Charlotte]], the [[Battle of Mobile (1781)|Battle of Mobile]], and the [[Siege of Pensacola]].<ref name="O'Brien2008">{{cite book|last=O'Brien|first=Greg|title=Pre-removal Choctaw history: exploring new paths|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jGFmNPevedUC&pg=PA123|accessdate=March 25, 2011|date=April 30, 2008|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|isbn=978-0-8061-3916-6|pages=123–126}}</ref>

===Race and class===
Pybus (2005) estimates that about 20,000 slaves defected to or were captured by the British, of whom about 8,000 died from disease or wounds or were recaptured by the Patriots, and 12,000 left the country at the end of the war, for freedom in Canada, the Caribbean or London, or some enslaved and transported to the West Indies.<ref>[http://www.jstor.org/stable/3491601?seq=21#page_scan_tab_contents Cassadra Pybus, "Jefferson's Faulty Math: the Question of Slave Defections in the American Revolution"], ''William and Mary Quarterly'' 2005 62(2): 243–264. Issn: 0043-5597 {{subscription required|via JSTOR}}, also Fulltext: in History Cooperative.</ref>

Baller (2006) examines family dynamics and mobilization for the Revolution in central Massachusetts. He reports that warfare and the farming culture were sometimes incompatible. Militiamen found that living and working on the family farm had not prepared them for wartime marches and the rigors of camp life. Rugged individualism conflicted with military discipline and regimentation. A man's birth order often influenced his military recruitment, as younger sons went to war and older sons took charge of the farm. A person's family responsibilities and the prevalent patriarchy could impede mobilization. Harvesting duties and family emergencies pulled men home regardless of the sergeant's orders. Some relatives might be Loyalists, creating internal strains. On the whole, historians conclude the Revolution's effect on patriarchy and inheritance patterns favored [[egalitarianism]].<ref>William Baller, "Farm Families and the American Revolution," ''Journal of Family History'' (2006) 31(1): 28–44. Issn: 0363-1990. Fulltext: online in [[EBSCO]].</ref>

McDonnell (2006) shows a grave complication in Virginia's mobilization of troops was the conflicting interests of distinct social classes, which tended to undercut a unified commitment to the Patriot cause. The Assembly balanced the competing demands of elite slave-owning planters, [[Plain Folk of the Old South|the middling yeomen]] (some owning a few slaves), and landless indentured servants, among other groups. The Assembly used deferments, taxes, military service substitute, and conscription to resolve the tensions. Unresolved class conflict, however, made these laws less effective. There were violent protests, many cases of evasion, and large-scale desertion, so that Virginia's contributions came at embarrassingly low levels. With the British invasion of the state in 1781, Virginia was mired in class division as its native son, George Washington, made desperate appeals for troops.<ref>Michael A. McDonnell, "Class War: Class Struggles During the American Revolution in Virginia", ''William and Mary Quarterly'' 2006 63(2): 305–344. Issn: 0043-5597 Fulltext: online at [[History Cooperative]].</ref>

[[File:Couder Yorktown Versailles.JPG|thumb|Washington and the [[Comte de Rochambeau]] at Yorktown, 1781]]

==Costs of the War==

===Casualties===

====Americans and allies====
The total loss of life throughout the war is largely unknown. As was typical in the wars of the era, disease claimed far more lives than battle. Between 1775 and 1782 a [[North American smallpox epidemic|smallpox epidemic]] swept across North America, killing 40 people in Boston alone. Historian [[Joseph Ellis]] suggests that Washington's decision to have his troops [[inoculation|inoculated]] against the [[smallpox]] epidemic, including the use of [[biological warfare]] by the British, was one of his most important decisions.<ref>Ellis (2004), p.&nbsp;87.</ref>

At least 25,000 American Patriots died during active military service.<ref name="Howard H. Peckham 1974"/> About 6,800 of these deaths were in battle; the other 17,000 recorded deaths were from disease, including about 8,000–12,000 who died of starvation or disease brought on by deplorable conditions while [[POW|prisoners of war]],<ref name="Burrows">{{cite journal |last=Burrows |first=Edwin G. |author-link=Edwin G. Burrows |title=Patriots or Terrorists |url=http://www.americanheritage.com/content/patriots-or-terrorists |work=American Heritage |accessdate=November 29, 2014 |archiveurl=//web.archive.org/web/20130323233806/http://www.americanheritage.com/content/patriots-or-terrorists |archivedate=March 23, 2013 |date=Fall 2008 |series=58 |issue=5}}</ref> most in rotting British [[Prisoners in the American Revolutionary War|prison ships]] in New York. Another estimate, however, puts the total death toll at around 70,000, which if true would make the conflict proportionately deadlier than the [[American Civil War]].<ref name=medical/> The uncertainty arises from the number of disease deaths, which were believed to be quite numerous, amounting to an estimated 10,000 in 1776 alone.<ref name=medical/> The number of Patriots seriously wounded or disabled by the war has been estimated from 8,500 to 25,000.<ref>American dead and wounded: Shy, pp.&nbsp;249–50. The lower figure for number of wounded comes from Chambers, p.&nbsp;849.</ref> Proportionate to the population of the colonies, the Revolutionary War [[United States military casualties of war|was at least the second-deadliest conflict in American history]], ranking ahead of World War II and behind only the Civil War.

====British and allies====

In 1784 a British lieutenant compiled a detailed list of 205 British officers killed in action during the war, including deaths in Europe, the Caribbean, and the East Indies.<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/pennsylvaniamaga27hist#page/176/mode/1up ''The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography''], Volume 27 (1903), p. 176.</ref> An extrapolation based on this list puts British Army losses at some 4,000 killed and died of wounds.<ref name=medical/> A table from 1781 puts total British Army deaths at 6,046 in North America (from 1775–1779) and 3,326 in the West Indies (from 1778–1780).<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=zc5ZwyqzpQQC&pg=PA298&dq=parliamentary+register+1780&hl=en&sa=X&ei=M-rPVO-pMrT7sASv6oCgCw&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false Parliamentary Register] (1781), pp. 263–65.</ref> Approximately 1,800 Germans were killed in combat out of a total of 7,774 deaths.<ref name=medical/> British returns in 1783 listed 43,633 rank and file deaths "in the British service".<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=p7T9O3aNmVoC&pg=PA199&dq=Annual+register+43,633&hl=en&sa=X&ei=HmfKVOSMGKrIsATz14K4DQ&ved=0CB8Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Annual%20register%2043%2C633&f=false Annual Register, 1783] (1785), pp. 199–200.</ref>

About 171,000 sailors served in the Royal Navy during the war; about a quarter had been [[impressment|pressed]] into service. About 1,240 were killed in battle, while 18,500 died from disease (figures from 1776–1780 only).<ref name="Parliamentary Register"/> The greatest killer was [[scurvy]], a disease that had been shown to be preventable by issuing lemon or lime juice to sailors but was not taken seriously. Scurvy would be eradicated in the Royal Navy in 1790s by the chairman of the Navy's Sick and Hurt Board, [[Gilbert Blane]]. About 42,000 British sailors [[desertion|deserted]] during the war.<ref>Mackesy (1964), pp.&nbsp;6, 176 (British seamen).</ref>

===Costs===
{{main|Financial costs of the American Revolutionary War}}

The British spent about £80 million and ended with a [[national debt]] of £250 million, which it easily financed at about £9.5 million a year in interest.<ref>{{cite book|author=Robert Tombs and Isabelle Tombs|title=That Sweet Enemy: The French and the British from the Sun King to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TxUqAAAAYAAJ&q=american+revolution+British+%C2%A380+million++of+%C2%A3250+million,++%C2%A39.5+interest+inauthor:Tombs&dq=american+revolution+British+%C2%A380+million++of+%C2%A3250+million,++%C2%A39.5+interest+inauthor:Tombs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=d6KXVaThE8zeUaTMg7gN&redir_esc=y |year=2006|page=179|publisher=Knopf Doubleday }}</ref> The French spent 1.3 billion livres (about £56 million). Their total national debt was £187 million, which they could not easily finance; over half the French national revenue went to debt service in the 1780s. The debt crisis became a major enabling factor of the [[French Revolution]] as the government could not raise taxes without public approval.<ref>Tombs (2007), p.&nbsp;179.</ref> The United States spent $37 million at the national level plus $114 million by the states. This was mostly covered by loans from France and the Netherlands, loans from Americans, and issuance of an increasing amount of paper money (which became "not worth a continental"). The U.S. finally solved its debt and currency problems in the 1790s when Secretary of the Treasury [[Alexander Hamilton]] secured legislation by which the national government assumed all of the state debts, and in addition created a [[First Bank of the United States|national bank]] and a funding system based on tariffs and bond issues that paid off the foreign debts.<ref>{{cite book|author=David Kennedy|title=The Brief American Pageant: A History of the Republic, Volume I: To 1877|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dfWPpr84E7QC&pg=PA136|year=2011|publisher=Cengage Learning|page=136|display-authors=etal}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Battles of the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[British Army during the American War of Independence]]
* [[Bibliography of the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[Diplomacy in the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[First Treaty of San Ildefonso]]
* [[First League of Armed Neutrality]]
* [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]
* [[George Washington in the American Revolution]]
* [[Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[Intelligence in the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[List of British Forces in the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[List of Continental Forces in the American Revolutionary War]]
* [[List of plays and films about the American Revolution]]
* [[List of revolutions and rebellions]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=N}}

==References==
To avoid duplication, notes for sections with a link to a "Main article" will be found in the linked article.
<!-- To add a reference simply enclose the text you want to appear here inside a pair in the correct place in the body of the article.-->
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
<!-- works cited in the notes -->
{{Refbegin|3}}
* [[Jeremy Black (historian)|Black, Jeremy]]. ''War for America: The Fight for Independence, 1775–1783''. 2001. Analysis from a noted British military historian.
* Benn, Carl. ''Historic Fort York, 1793–1993''. Toronto: Dundurn Press Ltd., 1993. ISBN 0-920474-79-9.
* Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''Encyclopedia of the American Revolution.'' 1966; revised 1974. ISBN 0-8117-0578-1. Military topics, references many [[secondary source]]s.
* Chambers, John Whiteclay II, ed. in chief. ''The Oxford Companion to American Military History''. [[Oxford University Press]], 1999. ISBN 0-19-507198-0.
* {{Cite book|last=Crocker III|first=H. W.|title=Don't Tread on Me|publisher=Crown Forum|year=2006|location=New York|isbn=978-1-4000-5363-6}}
* Curtis, Edward E. ''The Organization of the British Army in the American Revolution'' (Yale U.P. 1926) [http://www.americanrevolution.org/britisharmy.html online]
* Duffy, Christopher. ''The Military Experience in the Age of Reason, 1715–1789'' Routledge, 1987. ISBN 978-0-7102-1024-1.
* Edler, Friedrich. [https://books.google.com/books?id=MhoMAAAAYAAJ ''The Dutch Republic and The American Revolution'']. University Press of the Pacific, 1911, reprinted 2001. ISBN 0-89875-269-8.
* Ellis, Joseph J. ''His Excellency: George Washington''. (2004). ISBN 1-4000-4031-0.
* Fenn, Elizabeth Anne. ''Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775–82''. New York: Hill and Wang, 2001. ISBN 0-8090-7820-1.
* [[David Hackett Fischer]]. ''[[Washington's Crossing (book)|Washington's Crossing]]''. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-19-517034-2.
* Fletcher, Charles Robert Leslie. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dvM1AAAAMAAJ ''An Introductory History of England: The Great European War'', Volume 4]. E.P. Dutton, 1909. OCLC 12063427.
* Greene, Jack P. and Pole, J.R., eds. ''The Blackwell Encyclopedia of the American Revolution''. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell, 1991; reprint 1999. ISBN 1-55786-547-7. Collection of essays focused on political and social history.
* Gilbert, Alan. ''Black Patriots and Loyalists: Fighting for Emancipation in the War for Independence''. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2012. ISBN 978-0-226-29307-3.
* [[Don Higginbotham|Higginbotham, Don]]. ''The War of American Independence: Military Attitudes, Policies, and Practice, 1763–1789''. Northeastern University Press, 1983. ISBN 0-930350-44-8. Overview of military topics; online in ACLS History E-book Project.
* Morrissey, Brendan. ''Monmouth Courthouse 1778: The Last Great Battle in the North''. Osprey Publishing, 2004. ISBN 1-84176-772-7.
* Jensen, Merrill. ''The Founding of a Nation: A History of the American Revolution 1763–1776.'' (2004)
* Kaplan, Sidney and Emma Nogrady Kaplan. ''The Black Presence in the Era of the American Revolution''. Amherst, Massachusetts: The [[University of Massachusetts Press]], 1989. ISBN 0-87023-663-6.
* Ketchum, Richard M. ''Saratoga: Turning Point of America's Revolutionary War''. Henry Holt, 1997. ISBN 0-8050-4681-X.
* [[Piers Mackesy|Mackesy, Piers]]. [http://www.questia.com/library/book/the-war-for-america-1775-1783-by-piers-mackesy.jsp ''The War for America: 1775–1783'']. London, 1964. Reprinted [[University of Nebraska Press]], 1993. ISBN 0-8032-8192-7. Highly regarded examination of British strategy and leadership.
* [[David McCullough|McCullough, David]]. ''[[1776 (book)|1776]]''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005.
* {{cite book | last=Reynolds, Jr. | first=William R. | title=Andrew Pickens: South Carolina Patriot in the Revolutionary War | publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc. | location=Jefferson NC | year=2012 | isbn=978-0-7864-6694-8}}
* Riddick, John F. ''The History of British India: a Chronology''. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006. ISBN 978-0-313-32280-8.
* Savas, Theodore P. and Dameron, J. David. ''A Guide to the Battles of the American Revolution.'' New York: Savas Beatie LLC, 2006. ISBN 1-932714-12-X.
* [[Schama, Simon]]. ''[[Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves, and the American Revolution]]'', New York, NY: Ecco/HarperCollins, 2006
* Shy, John. ''A People Numerous and Armed: Reflections on the Military Struggle for American Independence''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976 (ISBN 0-19-502013-8); revised University of Michigan Press, 1990 (ISBN 0-472-06431-2). Collection of essays.
* Stephenson, Orlando W. "The Supply of Gunpowder in 1776", ''American Historical Review'', Vol.&nbsp;30, No.&nbsp;2 (Jan.&nbsp;1925), pp.&nbsp;271–281 in [[JSTOR]].
* Tombs, Robert and Isabelle. ''That Sweet Enemy: The French and the British from the Sun King to the Present'' Random House, 2007. ISBN 978-1-4000-4024-7.
* Trevelyan, George Otto. ''George the Third and Charles Fox: the concluding part of The American revolution'' Longmans, Green, 1912.
* Watson, J. Steven. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=22810670 ''The Reign of George III, 1760–1815'']. 1960. Standard history of British politics.
* Weigley, Russell F. ''The American Way of War''. Indiana University Press, 1977. ISBN 978-0-253-28029-9.
* Weintraub, Stanley. ''Iron Tears: America's Battle for Freedom, Britain's Quagmire: 1775–1783''. New York: Free Press, 2005 (a division of Simon and Schuster). ISBN 0-7432-2687-9. An account of the British politics on the conduct of the war.
{{Refend}}

==Reference literature==
<!-- books about the war in general that are not cited above -->
{{Refbegin|30em}}
These are some of the standard works about the war in general that are not listed above; books about specific campaigns, battles, units, and individuals can be found in those articles.
* Billias, George Athan. ''George Washington's Generals and Opponents: Their Exploits and Leadership'' (1994) scholarly studies of key generals on each side
* Conway, Stephen. ''The War of American Independence 1775–1783''. Publisher: E. Arnold, 1995. ISBN 0-340-62520-1. 280 pages.
*Lowell, Edward J. [http://www.americanwars.org/american-revolution-hessians.htm ''The Hessians in the Revolution ''] Williamstown, Massachusetts, Corner House Publishers, 1970, Reprint
* [[George Bancroft|Bancroft, George]]. ''History of the United States of America, from the discovery of the American continent.'' (1854–78), vol. 7–10.
* Bobrick, Benson. ''Angel in the Whirlwind: The Triumph of the American Revolution''. Penguin, 1998 (paperback reprint).
* Fremont-Barnes, Gregory, and Ryerson, Richard A., eds. ''The Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War: A Political, Social, and Military History'' (ABC-CLIO, 2006) 5 volume paper and online editions; 1000 entries by 150 experts, covering all topics
* Frey, Sylvia R. ''The British Soldier in America: A Social History of Military Life in the Revolutionary Period'' (University of Texas Press, 1981).
* Hibbert, Christopher. ''[[Redcoats and Rebels: The American Revolution through British Eyes]].'' New York: Norton, 1990. ISBN 0-393-02895-X.
* Kwasny, Mark V. ''Washington's Partisan War, 1775–1783''. Kent, Ohio: 1996. ISBN 0-87338-546-2. Militia warfare.
* [[Robert Middlekauff|Middlekauff, Robert]]. ''The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763–1789''. Oxford University Press, 1984; revised 2005. ISBN 0-19-516247-1. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=84633736 online edition]
* {{cite book|author1=Savas, Theodore|author2=J. David Dameron|title=Guide to the Battles of the American Revolution|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KRRSfy7eVoIC&pg=PR37|year=2006|publisher=Savas Beatie}} Contains a detailed listing of American, French, British, German, and Loyalist regiments; indicates when they were raised, the main battles, and what happened to them. Also includes the main warships on both sides, And all the important battles.
* Simms, Brendan. ''Three Victories and a Defeat: The Rise and Fall of the First British Empire, 1714–1783'' (2008) 802 pp., detailed coverage of diplomacy from London viewpoint
* Symonds, Craig L. ''A Battlefield Atlas of the American Revolution'' (1989), newly drawn maps emphasizing the movement of military units
* Ward, Christopher. ''The War of the Revolution''. (2 volumes. New York: Macmillan, 1952.) History of land battles in North America.
* Wood, W. J. ''Battles of the Revolutionary War, 1775–1781''. ISBN 0-306-81329-7 (2003 paperback reprint). Analysis of tactics of a dozen battles, with emphasis on American military leadership.
* Men-at-Arms series: short (48pp), very well illustrated descriptions:
** Zlatich, Marko; Copeland, Peter. ''General Washington's Army (1): 1775–78'' (1994)
** Zlatich, Marko. ''General Washington's Army (2): 1779–83'' (1994)
** Chartrand, Rene. ''The French Army in the American War of Independence'' (1994)
** May, Robin. ''The British Army in North America 1775–1783'' (1993)
* ''[[The Partisan in War]]'', a treatise on light infantry tactics written by Colonel Andreas Emmerich in 1789.
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons|American Revolutionary War}}
* [http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/ Liberty&nbsp;– The American Revolution] from PBS
* [http://revolutionarywar.cloudworth.com/ American Revolutionary War 1775–1783 in the News]
* [http://theamericanrevolution.org/battles.aspx Important battles of the American Revolutionary War]

===Bibliographies===
* [http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/revolution/home.html Library of Congress Guide to the American Revolution]
* [http://www.history.army.mil/reference/revbib/revwar.htm Bibliographies of the War of American Independence] compiled by the [[United States Army Center of Military History]]
* [http://revolution.h-net.msu.edu/bib.html Political bibliography from] Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture

{{American Revolutionary War}}
{{Continental Army}}
{{American conflicts}}
{{British colonial campaigns}}
{{US history}}
{{United States topics}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:American Revolutionary War| ]]
[[Category:Global conflicts]]
[[Category:Resistance to the British Empire]]
[[Category:Wars of independence]]

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