week 1 - war of independence Flashcards
loyalists
john adams estimated that 1/3 of the population were active rebels, 1/3 were loyalists (or tories) and 1/3 were neutral.
historians today suspect that 2/5 of the population were active rebels, 1/5 active loyalists and 2/5 sought neutrality.
a majority of americans did not support the rebellion.
by 1783, 19,000 americans had enlisted in the british army. thousands more had joined loyalist militias.
loyalism drew adherents from all ranks of society. ownership of great estates or mercantile wealth provided no adequate guide to political allegiance.
many loyalists possessed strong links with britain, especially those who were recent immigrants. loyalists also tended to be drawn from
minority groups who had little in common with the majority patriot population - southern backcountry farmers who resented the
dominance of the tidewater elite, anglicans in new england, and germans and dutch people in new york.
geographical distribution of loyalism was uneven - more loyalists
in the southern and middle colonies than in new england. in only a few areas such as new york, loyalists comprised a majority.
many black americans supported britain, in return for promises of freedom.
britain might have made more military use of black people. however, british leaders were aware that large scale recruitment of enslaved people would jeopardise white support
asignificant number of pacifist pennsylvania quakers were forced into the loyalist camp bypPatriot demands for military service, even though their political views were often neutral or even sympathetic to the rebels’ cause.
some decisions were driven primarily by economic concerns. tenants in upstate new york, crushed by high wartime taxes and high rents imposed by patriot landlords, staged insurrections that coincided with the british invasion of the area.
60,000 and 80,000 americans left the country by 1783
1774 edward winslow met secretly with the royal governor of massachusetts, thomas hutchinson, who approved his raising a “tory volunteer company”, whose purpose was to protect loyalist families from roving mobs.
loyalist problems
the varied backgrounds and motivations of the loyalists meant that they did not constitute a coherent opposition to the patriots.
while the rebels had a clear dea that they were fighting for independence and republican self-government, the loyalists knew only that they stood against these things. often motivated by local concerns, they were unable to organise themselves on a national
level.
instead, they relied on the british to provide them with leadership and protection.
while britain placed great hopes on loyalist assistance, significant loyalist activity required the presence of british forces.
once those forces departed, loyalists were left exposed to the wrath of their patriot neighbours.
during the war, tens of thousands of loyalists, real and suspected, were imprisoned, driven from their homes, deprived of land and property, and sometimes killed by patriots
washington’s strengths
military experience was perhaps greater than that of any other american, and he came from the largest and arguably the most important of the southern colonies
experience gained as a political leader in his native virginia and in directing the business affairs of his large plantation at mount vernon also stood him in good stead
brought to command traits of character and abilities as a leader that in the end more than compensated for his lack of european military experience. among these qualities were a determination and a steadfastness of purpose rooted in an unshakable conviction of the righteousness of the american cause, a scrupulous sense of honour and duty, and a dignity that inspired respect and confidence in those around him.
conscious of his own defects, he was always willing to profit by experience
close coordination with governors and state militias, his cooperative relations with congress, and his professional attention to supplies, logistics, and training all contributed to the success of the continental army
organized this seemingly motley amalgamation into three divisions, six brigades, and thirty-eight regiments
washington’s weaknessess
lacked the requisite experience and knowledge in handling large groups of men
entire military experience had been in frontier warfare during the french and indian war
he would often put himself at risk on the front lines – he wasn’t good at directing troops and taking charge of battle planning as the fight unfolded
liked overly complicated plans that hinged on precision timing, and lost a lot of battles because of that
charles lee
outspoken radical
aligned himself with the emerging patriot cause and became an early advocate of a separate colonial army.
after hostilities commenced, lee’s pride was slighted when the less experienced washington was appointed commander of the american forces
some have speculated that lee wanted to see his superior defeated so that he could take command
december 1776 - left his army to spend the evening in white’s tavern in basking ridge, new jersey. the attractions were food, drink and the charms of one of the establishment’s resident women. accompanied by only a small guard, lee was surprised the next morning by the arrival of a british party under benastre tarleton, a former comrade who had sworn an oath in a london club to track down and decapitate lee
new york and manhattan
pre war
january 1776 - washington sent charles lee to new york to prepare its defences against britain. a city was surrounded by water - impossible to properly defend because of the power of the british navy
march 1776, howe knew of the american positions around boston and became aware of american plans to send two amphibious assaults against the city.
4th march - washington directed his men to build fortifications on dorchester heights, the highest point in boston harbour . established an impregnable foothold that would allow them to fire their cannons into boston or against the royal navy moored in the harbour
mid-april - washington marched his 19,000 soldiers to lower manhattan. strengthened the batteries that guarded the harbour and constructed forts in northern manhattan and on brooklyn heights
soldiers on manhattan dug fortifications at the island’s southern tip in expectation of a landing. brooklyn heights on long island was the key to new york’s defences, and the americans also constructed entrenchments.
many of the soldiers needed practice with their weapons, so early in july he ordered that each man was to fire two rounds- all that supplies permitted. ordered that officers and troops should practice moving from their camps into the trenches in order to become familiar with the ground they would have to travel when the attack came.
the soldiers were to fill their canteens every evening because the battle might begin early some morning before they had an opportunity to do so. washington ordered houses stripped of lead for bullets; powder and flints remained in short supply despite efforts to increase stores
to prevent british troops from landing on the east river, lee proposed a defensive post on brooklyn heights, which commanded the city. very important place because it rose to a height of 80ft and was thought to be impassable by troops in formation becuase of the rise and the dense wood. also meant no horse drawn artillery could be moved up the hill.
washington had an army of almost 20,000 men, although the vast majority of them were infantrymen - washington had few cannon, no cavalry, and not a single naval warship. troops were mostly militia
new york and manhattan
long island
howe landed on staten island unopposed on july 2, 1776, with more than 9,000 well-armed, highly trained, professional soldiers and 130 ships
british waited offshore to allow for reinforcements to arrive, giving washington precious time to build his fortifications. what washington had not counted on was the arrival of the bulk of the british forces sent to reinforce the 8,000 troops .british strength totaled 30,000 men and a fleet led by howe’s brother. as the fleet crept towards the narrows many americans commented that it looked like the entire city of london was afloat.
27th august - crossed the mouth of the hudson river and landed on the southwest corner of long island. howe and clinton, moved a large portion of their army around the left flank of the american positions. continental forces concentrated their efforts on the british columns in front of them, howe’s army moved undetected. americans did not see them until it was too late
victory was far from complete since howe did not pursue the shattered american force, which allowed washington to masterfully manage the evacuation of the troops to manhattan under the cover of darkness on the night of august 29th
peace conference on staten island on september 11 between franklin, john adams, and edward rutledge, and admiral howe, who had authority from lord north to negotiate with the colonials. howe did not have permission to broker any agreement that allowed for american independence, declared just a few months earlier, the conference was practically over before it began. mandated to seek dissolution of the continental congress
decided to defend the new york despite his problematic situation. after reorganizing his army into three “grand divisions,” he made a major tactical mistake by spreading out his troops over 16 miles from the city through harlem heights and kings bridge to the east river.
new york and manhattan
kip’s bay and harlem heights
admiral howe put five ships up the east river 200 yards offshore. at 11am, they opened up with broadsides in order to scour the grounds and cover the landing of their troops .battered down the thin line of earthworks-hardly more than a few ditches-and causing the militia, which had not come under heavy fire before, to take to its heels. barges carried troops from long island an hour later; they landed unopposed.
long before most of these troops stepped on land, the remnants of opposition had been broken, and washington who had ridden from harlem to kip’s when he heard the ships open up, had almost been captured. as washington approached the bay he ran into the flight of the militia, most of them appalled at what he saw, washington lost that firm control of himself that everyone admired, and took to flogging officers and men with his riding cane. in his rage he threw his hat to the ground and was heedless of the approaching british.
16th september - americans dug further into the ground, improved their lines, and tried to reorganize their forces. british did some of the same though not at the frantic pace of their enemy. Washington was active, trying in particular to hold his forces together intrusive virtual dissolution of his army pending when enlistments expired in december
four days later washington decided to move north to white Plains, and on october 18th began pulling his forces off the heights. because of the shortage of horses and wagons this movement occupied four days, with the troops themselves pulling the artillery. howe left americans unmolested.
new york and mahattan
fort washington
wrought havoc on british warships attempting to sail up the hudson. similarly successful in repulsing hessian attacks in early november. gave greene and magaw, a false sense of security.
seeing how precarious the american position was, howe launched a three-pronged assault on fort washington and its outer defensive works. combined british-hessian assault force of 8,000 men grossly outnumbered the fort’s 3,000 defenders. the americans enjoyed initial success, inflicting heavy casualties
tide turned when 3,000 british men under punched through the outer defensive lines to the fort’s south. mathew and cornwallis overwhelmed the fort’s eastern defenses, sending the continentals scrambling backwards.
trenton
cadwalader’s intelligence efforts bore fruit in the form of a detailed, handwritten map of the british positions around princeton. cadwalader had received this detailed information from “a very intelligent young gentleman” who had just returned from the area. map included detailed information on british works, cannon, and force dispositions.
led his men across the icy delaware river and on a ten-mile march into trenton, where they surprised a garrison of 1,500 hessians. americans dominated the fight
both sides had shortages of troops
washington attempted to deny the british the opportunity to live off jersey farmers, an opportunity the farmers did not welcome. howe’s army was in the anomalous position of simultaneously “protecting” the inhabitants and exploiting them. the inhabitants did not feel the gratitude of selfless patriots. recognized these feelings and gave instructions to donop to establish magazines but to give receipts for what he requisitioned from farmers, especially cattle and grain, which were carefully mentioned. orders were flexible enough to permit easy abuse: “any quantity of salt provision or flour, exceeding what may be thought necessary for the use of a private family is to be considered as Rebel store
icy weather prevented washington and his 2400 men from keeping to schedule
american artillery prevented hessians from forming effectively and infantry gradually rounded up americans
princeton
cornwallis sent troops to guard delaware River, expecting washington to reverse the route he took for the midnight crossing
instead, washington left his campfires burning, muffled the wheels of his army’s wagons and snuck around the side of the british camp. as the continentals headed north at dawn, they met the straggling british rear guard, which they outnumbered 5 to 1
as washington approached princeton from the southeast he did not realize that mawhood had been given orders to reinforce cornwallis going south from princeton to trenton
reversed his column, and engaged the center of the american army’s left flank
burgoyne’s campaign
called for an invasion from canada - king liked the idea
purpose was to separate new england from the rest of the colonies to isolate the centre of the rebellion
philadelphia
brandywine
washington strung his army out on the east side of the brandywine creek - cut through wooded slopes. stream itself was an obstacle and could only by crossed at fords
greene held the centre of the american position at chad’s ford with wayne. armstrong to the left, sullivan and stirling to the right. provided strength at the centre where the main road to philadelphia ran and allowed concentration of forces
america left trimbles ford and jefferies ford uncovered on the east - howe took this opportunity and marched concealed under fog
washington failed to heed this warning of osborne’s hill as the british troops were behind it
once britain were ready, they just stood with their bayonets catching the sunlight - unnerve americans
confusing and nasty fight - smoke from cannons caused disorientation
not a decisive british victory - failed to occupy battlefield or cut off washington’s army from philadelphia - could’ve marched to philadelphia to rally loyalists
philadelphia
germantown
the position of the british was scattered
washingotn decides to attack, claiming that there was professional pride amongst his troops
4 prongs of troops to converge on howe’s camp
