“The world turned upside down!” (Hamilton) Many felt that they were in another universe, when hearing the news that the Americans miraculously triumphed over the British. On April 19, 1775, the Americans embarked on a journey to gain their independence from the British. Despite their incompetent preparations they were restless for the day they could part with King George and his country. However, the British had a naval far superior than any kind the Americans had. Their army dwarfed the Americans’ army. Why would the Americans risk their country against another that was far beyond their league? And most of all, how could the Americans possibly conquer the British? How did the Americans beat the odds? Perhaps the British really were not that …show more content…
Not only was the army fighting the Americans, they were battling the environment. Burgoyne underestimated the terrain during the Battle of Saratoga, which created many obstacles. The soldiers in Burgoyne’s army, specifically the German mercenaries, were not apt to thick woods and swamps. The harsh environment led them to wear long heavy coats, as well as swords that were dragging on their feet (Mugtis “Burgoyne’s Failure at Saratoga”). Burgoyne miscalculated the weather which took a toll on the army and created hardships as they were trying to battle the Americans. This already put the British at a low because the troops were not adapted to the wilderness of the colonies. The soldiers were uncomfortable in the environment which caused them to not be at their best for fighting. Burgoyne came into the battle overconfident and illogically failed to think about the other aspects of the battle, like the …show more content…
William Howe was a British Army officer who became Commander-in-Chief of the British forces during the American War. His most significant loss occurred at the Battle of Saratoga. Instead of lending support to Burgoyne he decided to take Philadelphia by moving south from the city of New York (Mugits “Burgoyne’s Failure at Saratoga”). Howe should have departed his army north, along the Hudson and been present to aid Burgoyne. This would have helped make the American army much stronger and been more presumptive to winning the battle against the Americans. Even though the American soldiers were outnumbered by the British, the lack of communication between Burgoyne and Howe led them to be easily defeated. It would have been more strategic if the two supported each other with their armies. They would have efficiently conquered the Americans and the French would not have become an
General Burgoyne had been abandoned by General Howe at the beginning of the Saratoga Campaign, which resulted in an immediate disadvantage for the British when fighting the American forces. The Battle of Freeman's Farm showed promise for Burgoyne’s forces at the outset of the Hudson Valley campaign on September 19th, 1777, but he could not sustain food supplies and soldier reinforcements for latter battles. During the Battle of Bemis Heights on October 7th, Burgoyne was outnumbered by the American forces, and he struggled with malnourishment of his soldiers. This led to the capture of many British soldiers by the Americans, which resulted in his retreat and surrender in Saratoga on October 17th. The large-scale strategy to divide the Northern states from southern states had failed due to a lack of merger of Howe and Burgoyne’s armies to destroy the American forces under General Gates.
Both sides had the same strategy called the Military Strategy. The strategy was to defeat the other side in one huge battle. Bob just escaped New York barely he thought about his strategy. Now he wants to avoid large battles that put his army at risk. Bob’s army is now defensive which he will try to tire them out and then go in and defeat and defeat the British.
There is a fascinating book called 1776 by David McCullough; which is his tenth Book he has written on the subject. In this endearing novel he describes several significant issues that George Washington had to overcome to secure his ultimate victory in 1783. The book also describes the first year of the American Revolution, especially the triumph of Boston and the failure at New York, and then discusses the lack of courage the men had while the war wore on, the morale of the troops and the successful attack on Trenton and how that saved the revolution. The author details the challenges of creating and maintaining an army and then developing and drilling the militia that will be disciplined in the field of battle. There were three major issues
The British highly ranked, educated militia outnumbered the colonial army. At this point of the war, the patriots were lacking physical supplies and mental dignity from their previous losses. Despite their defeats, the patriots won the battle in Saratoga and this battle became the “turning point” of the Revolutionary War. What made this victory such a critical point of the war was behind the work of Kościuszko. His strategic planning in the fortification for Burgoyne’s army delayed the British and effectively allowed the army to win the victory.
After all, they had more troops and they were better trained. There were many factors, though, that led to their defeat. Just like in the Revolutionary War, the British underestimated the Americans, and that was their main issue. Arrogance was a factor in this. Admiral Cochrane, for example, would not accept his men’s plan of how to move the barges from the bayou and instead wasted days executing his plan of how to do it (128).
Then I wondered if the British even tried to fight back, and yes they attempted but they didn’t succeed because they range was to far. General Howe wanted to have an attack on Dorchester but that didn’t happen because of a storm so instead he evacuated boston which leaded the Americans to
Once there, they constructed what they thought to be a strong defense/fortifications throughout the colony, in places like Long Island and Brooklyn. The British arrived in August, and they quickly proved that the American’s defenses were no match for the power of British weaponry or the skill of their army. The Americans had no choice but to retreat under the cover of darkness out of Long Island and Brooklyn. The Americans faced a great deal of casualties. These losses were a crushing blow to the army’s overall morale, and had many questioning the ability of their leader, George Washington.
The American colonist got word of their plan and went to defend the hills from the British. British forces charged up the hill twice ending in retreat. On the third charge the American Colonist, who were almost out of ammunition, was forced to retreat. Taking nearly 1,200 casualties, compared to the Americans 400, the British gained the tactical advantage for the Boston Harbor and the Charleston Peninsula. Define the Battle
Britain, at the time, had the strongest army in the world. There was no way the untrained colonists could beat such a big
General William Howe played a key role for the British during that Battle of Bunker Hill. He drove the Americans away when they were suffering heavy losses. But after the battle was over the confidence that Howe had in his soldiers was very low. He knew that his soldiers just couldn’t handle the power of the
Although, the British had some success in the beginning of the strategy to take hold of Charleston and Savannah, they had met their match when it came to the Continental Army. Their guerrilla and hit-and-run tactics, forced the British to chase them around, depleting their supplies and their manpower. Moreover, the British overestimated the amount of Loyalists that occupied the south, and ended up creating more enemies by freeing Black slaves who escaped to British-controlled territory, and by taking food from farmers. Also, the British underestimated the operational problems they would engage in, especially when their men were away from their supplies in the interior. On the other hand, the Continental Army were well supplied, and had the advantage of being able to hide among the local people.
Despite their loss, the inexperienced colonial forces inflicted considerable casualties against the invading British, and the battle provided them with an important confidence boost. Colonel Prescott’s leadership throughout the battle is an excellent example of good mission command. Upon receipt of mission from higher and given limited resources, Colonel Prescott effectively issued orders to his soldiers, which ultimately led to
“We have it in our power to begin the world over again” -Thomas Paine, Common Sense. Consider the country we live in today. Now consider how we got here. How did an army of considerably less soldiers defeat the biggest powerhouse in the world at that time, Great Britain?
This army had well-trained officers who knew how to make their soldiers obey their orders. The soldiers were disciplined and the British army was extremely organized, yet the American’s strengths in the Battle of Yorktown over-powered the British and helped the Colonists win the Revolutionary War. The total number of soldiers fighting for the Americans were two and a half times the number of people fighting for the British. The American troops had other advantages, one being that General George Washington, who led the American troops, was an experienced leader. The American soldiers were very motivated fighters, as they tried to regain their rights they had lost as Englishmen when they left England to come to the colonies- they had a better reason to win and a worse reason to lose.
Soldiers that would endure the hardships and fight for the independence of themselves and their families were vital to America prevailing over the British. Washington had fought with the British in the French and Indian War. He knew the landscape and the tactics of the British Army. This proved important to the success of the