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DK Find Out! | Fun Facts for Kids on Animals, Earth, History and more!

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Visit DK Find Out! to learn about dinosaurs, space, animals, nature & more. Fun learning activities for kids with videos, quizzes & galleries at DKFindOut.com

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Learn about the battles at Fort Ticonderoga during the Revolutionary War including the Green Mountain Boys and General John Burgoyne.

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Ducksters: African Americans Revolutionary War

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Ducksters: African Americans Revolutionary War

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Learn about African Americans during the Civil War including soldiers and regiments. Famous patriots such as Crispus Attucks, James Armistead, William Lee, and Peter Salem.

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Learn about the women from the American Revolution including roles such as spies, nurses, camp followers, and soldiers. Also, famous women who played an important part in the war.

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Native Americans and the American Revolution

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Native Americans and the American Revolution

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Learn about Valley Forge. The place where George Washington and the Continental Army spent the winter during the Revolutionary War.

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This is an article all about the Continental Army.

Militias

For its first 160 years of existence, the colonies that made up England's North American empire acted more as individual nations than as united colonies. Hence, when tensions with England increased, and the onset of war seemed more and more likely, there was hardly a "national" army to fight the British. At the time, individual colonies relied on their local militias for defense. These militias consisted of citizens, farmers, and laborers who doubled as "soldiers" with weapons. Such militias had little formal military training.

Creation of a Permanent Army

Following the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, a colonial army consisting of 26 regiments was formed on orders from the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. Smaller forces were raised throughout New England and New York. The Continental Congress authorized the creation of the Continental Army with these regiments on June 14, 1775. The next day, Congress appointed George Washington as Commander-in-Chief of the army. Although many disliked the idea of a permanent national army, it was deemed necessary in the wake of the British threat.

Lacking Supplies and Shelter

Throughout the war the Continental Army experienced major problems. Not only were the soldiers in the army inexperienced, but they lacked adequate weaponry, clothes, shoes, and food. Not surprisingly, desertions were frequent and morale was extremely low. Disease, starvation, and hypothermia plagued the Continental Army at its winter quarters at Morristown in early 1777, and at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-1778. Nearly one in six soldiers wintering at Valley Forge died of typhoid, dysentery, and pneumonia because of the unsanitary conditions and contaminated food. Nutrition was non-existent and the only food that many soldiers ate for months at a time was known as firecake - a simple mixture of flour and water cooked over a fire until it became solid.

Misery at Valley Forge

Becoming a Military Force

Despite the dreadful conditions and desertions, the Continental Army remained relatively intact under the leadership of George Washington. With the arrival of Baron Steuben at Valley Forge in 1778, the army learned military tactics, formations, training, and discipline, and gradually became a military force that could effectively fight the British in combat. In its first action after Valley Forge, the vastly improved army fought the British to a draw at the Battle of Monmouth Courthouse. Combined with French forces, the Continental Army would stage a successful siege of the British at Yorktown in 1781, which would prove the last major battle of the war.

Continental Soldiers in 1781

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Following the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, a colonial army consisting of 26 regiments was formed on orders from the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. Smaller forces were raised throughout New England and New York.

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This is a description of what happened before, after, and during, the Storming of Fort Ticonderoga.

What was Fort Ticonderoga?

Fort Ticonderoga was a small, dilapidated British fort maintained by the British at the southern tip of Lake Champlain in upstate New York. It was a strategically important fort in the French and Indian War, and was known then as Fort Carillon.

Why was it important?

Although it was manned by only 48 British soldiers, American forces recognized its geographic importance and its cache of cannon, guns, and other weapons. Fort Ticonderoga was located in a strategically important route between the colonies and England's Northern provinces (today Canada). The Massachusetts Committee of Safety authorized a secret mission that would be led by Colonel Benedict Arnold to seize the fort. Arnold helped in the effort to recruit 400 soldiers.

A Bloodless Seizure

As Arnold's mission traveled north, he learned that Connecticut had also planned a mission to seize the fort that was led by Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys from Vermont. When Arnold finally reached Allen, the two worked out an agreement to share command of the mission. On May 10th, 1775, Allen, Arnold and 83 soldiers raided Fort Ticonderoga. The British soldiers, sleeping inside the fort, offered no resistance. No one was killed in the raid. After the surrender, as many as four hundred additional American soldiers arrived at the fort, promptly destroying it in search of liquor. Arnold was infuriated by the lack of discipline and regard by the Green Mountain Boys. Several of them became so sick of Arnold that they apparently drew their swords. Ethan Allen would take credit for the entire operation.

Arnold is Relieved of his Command

On May 11, Arnold led the seizure of nearby Fort Crown Point , which yielded more weapons and cannons. The first of Arnold's many perceived snubs occurred when he was relieved of command of the fort by Benjamin Hinman, who had come with 1,000 troops to help rebuild it.

Weapons Hauled 300 Miles to Boston

Despite Arnold's disappointment, the weapons obtained from the seizures of Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point would prove extremely useful to the American cause. Commander-in-Chief of Continental forces, George Washington, put Colonel Henry Knox in charge of transporting the weapons for the defense of Boston. Knox and his men dragged 59 cannons on ox-drawn sleds over 300 miles from Fort Ticonderoga, through Albany, N.Y. and the mountains of Massachusetts, to Boston. The trip took 56 days. The entire load weighed more than 60 tons. When the cannons arrived in Boston, Washington ordered them positioned atop Dorchester Heights, overlooking the British fleet in the harbor below. On the night of March 4, 1776, Dorchester Heights would be fortified by 1,200 soldiers and the cannons were moved into place - all of which went unnoticed by the British. The British, astonished by the enormity of the work completed by the Patriots, were eventually forced to leave Boston and sail back to British territory in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada).

Henry Knox Hauls the Artillery Taken from Fort Ticonderoga

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Fort Ticonderoga was a small, dilapidated British fort maintained by the British at the southern tip of Lake Champlain in upstate New York. It was a strategically important fort in the French and Indian War, and was known then as Fort Carillon.

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African-Americans in the Revolutionary War

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African-Americans in the Revolutionary War

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Kids learn about the biography of Abigail Adams, First Lady with John Adams and human rights activist. Mother of John Quincy.

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Choosing Sides: Native Americans in the Revolutionary War

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Choosing Sides: Native Americans in the Revolutionary War

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This is a full description of the fabled heroine of Connecticut, Sybil Ludington.

Introduction

Sybil Ludington was a prominent figure and heroine during the Revolutionary War, although many believe her story is more myth than fact. She was born on April 5, 1761, in Fredericksburg, New York. Today, the area where she grew up has been renamed Ludingtonville. Ludington was the daughter of Henry Ludington, an officer in the militia and a future aide to General George Washington. Ludington was supporting the Patriot cause, which fought for independence from England.

Attack on Danbury

On April 25, 1777, Governor William Tryon arrived near Connecticut with a 2,000-man British military force. His plan was to attack the city of Danbury, where the supplies for the Continental Army were being stored. That day, Tryon and his army moved south, searching for the army's weapons and foodstuffs; they left chalk marks on the houses of British supporters and informers, setting any house that was unmarked for destruction. Since the Continental Army had recently moved its supplies to Danbury, the area was not well-guarded; all of their food stores, including flour, beef, pork, and wheat, were left vulnerable.

Hero at Age Sixteen

On the night of April 26, 1777, a messenger arrived at the Ludington house who explained the imminent British attack. Henry Ludington tried to pull together his forces, but all of his men had traveled home for spring planting and were spread out across the area. The messenger didn't know the area well enough to find each of them and warn them - but Sybil Ludington did. At only sixteen years old, she embarked on a 40-mile journey atop her horse, Star, traveling south to Mahopac and north to Stormville to warn the men of the impending attack. She rode more than twice the distance of Paul Revere, another prominent Revolution hero, calling out: "The British are burning Danbury. Muster at Ludington's at daybreak!"

Her Story was Lost in History Until 1907

The next day, most of the 400 soldiers in the area were ready to fight, thanks to Sybil Ludington's brave and heroic efforts. Although Danbury was partially burned down, her famous ride helped protect a Continental Army storehouse. Her journey was not fully recognized until 1907, when her great nephew, Louis S. Patrick, revealed it to the world in an article. Today, statues of Sybil Ludington on her horse can be found on the shore of Lake Gleneida in New York, in Danbury, and in Washington D.C., at the headquarters of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

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Sybil Ludington was a prominent figure and heroine during the Revolutionary War, although many believe her story is more myth than fact. She was born on April 5, 1761, in Fredericksburg, New York.

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Learn about the Soldiers Uniforms and Gear during the Revolutionary War. The British wore red coats while many Americans wore their own clothes.

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This is a full biography on Paul Revere.

Paul Revere was born on January 1, 1735, in Boston, Massachusetts. Revere was a prosperous Boston silversmith, engraver and an American Patriot during the American Revolution. Paul Revere is best known for his "Midnight Ride," to warn the Colonial militia and Sons of Liberty of the arrival of the British soldiers before the battles of Lexington and Concord.

Iconic Propaganda engraved by Paul Revere following the 1770 Boston Massacre

Revere's Warning

On April 7, 1775, British soldiers began moving towards the city of Concord where a large supply of Patriot arms was being stored. Joseph Warren sent Paul Revere, a messenger, to warn the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts of the British troop movements towards Concord. Soon after Revere's warning was received, the citizens of Concord began quickly moving the Patriot militia supplies to a safer location.

Midnight Ride

On April 18, 1775, Joseph Warren once again sent Paul Revere to deliver a secret message to the Patriot militia. The British troops had plans to capture two of the two leaders of the Sons of Liberty, John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Revere set out on horseback that fateful night to deliver a warning message to all who he passed. In popular culture, his message has evolved into the timeless words, "The British are coming, The British are coming." In reality, however, Revere likely never actually shouted such words because his mission was a secret. He more likely shouted "The Regulars are Coming Out" according to his own recollection. Revere's "Midnight Ride" was successful because he was able alert Adams and Hancock of their potential capture. Revere's message also alerted the Patriot militia of the British troop's movements towards Lexington and Concord. Revere and other patriots were soon captured by the British. Revere told the British militia of the Patriot troops movements and plans. Once the British heard the bells ringing and the plans of the Patriot defense they set Revere and the other captured Patriots free and retreated to warn their commanders of the Patriot defenses.

Back to Silversmithing

Paul Revere remained an active American Patriot for most of his adult life and settled back into his life as a silversmith after the Revolution. He died on May 8, 1818.

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Paul Revere was born on January 1, 1735, in Boston, Massachusetts. Revere was a prosperous Boston silversmith, engraver and an American Patriot during the American Revolution.

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Ducksters: Washington Crossing the Delaware

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Ducksters: Washington Crossing the Delaware

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Learn about the Crossing the Delaware major event in the American Revolutionary War.

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Ducksters: Life as a Revolutionary War Soldier

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Ducksters: Life as a Revolutionary War Soldier

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Learn about the daily life of a Revolutionary War Soldier including the Continental army, the militia, how much they were paid, how old they were, and more.

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Women's roles during the Revolutionary War in America between 1776 and 1783. Americans declared independence from Britain in 1776, and the British sent troops to the colonies to quell the revolt. Patriots (Americans who supported the Revolution) fought against the British and colonial loyalists (Americas who did not want independence from Britain). During the war, some women helped the patriots, and others sided with the loyalists. Some women, although not loyalists themselves, were affected by their husbands' loyalty to Britain, which jeopardized their safety during the war. The same was true for women whose husbands were patriots.

Throughout the war, many women maintained the household economy (i.e., they tended to farm work and family businesses) and protected their property while husbands and male relatives were at war. The wartime role of these women was to maintain such activities until the men returned home. In addition, both the British and American armies had women camp followers, who lived in the camps, helping out with chores. Some women even enlisted in the American Continental Army disguised as men, although this was illegal. The army's medical units included women who served as nurses. Women further supported the effort by feeding and providing clothing for the soldiers. Some loyalist women passed information about American troops to the British, and women could be accused of being spies or sympathizers simply by giving sanctuary to British soldiers in their homes. Married women faced property confiscation if their husbands were loyalists. Rape was another reality women faced during wartime when either army occupied an area. In Connecticut and New Jersey, rape and gang rape occurred. It became a symbol of power for the victorious side, with women the victims of this practice.

On January 1, 1776, the Continental Army began recruiting to build up its infantry, rifle, and artillery regiments, which included more than 20,000 men. If a woman wanted to enlist, she did so illegally by disguising herself as a man. For example, Deborah Sampson used the name Robert Shurtleff to enlist. It was not until she was wounded in battle and consequently undressed by a doctor that her true identity was discovered. However, her brave and patriotic behavior received compliments rather than punishment. A few women went onto the battlefield with their husbands or took their husbands' places after they were killed on the battlefield. For instance, Mary Hays fired artillery cannons against the British and stayed with her husband, a gunner, during the war. Margaret Corbin took over her husband's cannon when her husband was killed by enemy fire. The army allowed women to stay with their husbands, fathers, or sons mainly because some men might not have joined the regiments if their women were not allowed to go with them. Some women brought their children with them as well.

Women intelligence riders from South Carolina during the Revolutionary War intercepting dispatches.

At first women camp followers were seen as a burden for the troops, but later even George Washington, commander in chief of the Continental Army, would see the value of women in the camps.They could also serve as nurses, although their status was low among the hospital staff, and their main duties were custodial. Nurses were also paid poorly because their work was not seen as skilled employment. Female nurses could, however, free up men from taking care of the wounded, allowing more men to fight for the army. In 1777, a Continental Army Medical Corp requirement indicated that every one hundred wounded needed one matron and ten female nurses. The nurses took nonmedical direction from the matron, who supervised the hospital and distributed medicine under the supervision of a surgeon. Women were involved in other activities at camps and battle sites as well; they molded bullets, carried water and gunpowder, and assisted at the cannons, for example.

Although women were seen as nonofficial auxiliaries, they did draw rations from the army; children who accompanied them received a half ration. When food supplies were tight, women and children used up part of the rations, which the soldiers desperately needed. Nonetheless, women did have their function in the army, and their tasks were valuable, especially because men were not adept at chores such as cleaning and mending and washing clothes.

At the start of the Revolution, the British army limited the number of women accompanying its troops to one woman for every ten men, but this ratio later increased. The Continental Army did not set a quota for the ratio of men to women in the regiments because this would force some refugee women to leave the camps when the army needed them to take care of various tasks.

In general, women's participation in combat depended on whether men were available to fight the enemy. As men left home to join the army, few, if any, were left to defend the towns and villages. Thus, many women defended their communities from the British by joining local militia groups or serving as guards. They dressed in men's clothing and armed themselves with muskets or pitchforks.

Other women were left behind after their husbands left for Britain or joined the British loyalists, and the wives of loyalists were regarded as enemies. Because married women were not considered independent from their husbands and did not have property rights, the leaders of the American Revolution seized the property and personal belongings of women married to loyalists; this included items such as carriages, jewels, clothes, and furniture. Loyalists' wives were eventually allowed to leave or were expelled by the patriots. When a woman's husband sided and served with the British, she automatically fell under suspicion of treason. If she wrote to her husband at all, she was considered a traitor. Mobs threatened women who were suspected of helping the British. Women who actually did so certainly risked their lives. In New Jersey, the penalty for treason was death. Nevertheless, the first time a woman was convicted, she only had to pay a fine of three hundred pounds and serve one year in prison. If convicted a second time, she would receive the death penalty, and no reprieve would be granted.

In Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia, some women helped to raise funds for the Continental Army. General Washington worried that giving money to soldiers directly was not a good idea and suggested that the women instead give the funds to the government. The women refused, and Washington then suggested they provide shirts to the soldiers instead of cash. The women agreed and used the money to buy linen to make clothing for the troops.

During the war, approximately 20,000 women served in various capacities with the Continental Army. A few hundred more were enlisted in various local and state units (Gunderson 1996, 164).

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American Revolution, Role of Women in the (Wars)

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Women's roles during the Revolutionary War in America between 1776 and 1783. Americans declared independence from Britain in 1776, and the British sent troops to the colonies to quell the revolt. Patriots (Americans who supported the Revolution) fought against the [...]

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African-Americans in the Revolutionary War

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African-Americans in the Revolutionary War

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Deborah Sampson Gannett (December 17, 1760-April 29, 1827) was one of the only women to serve in the army during the Revolutionary War. After disguising herself as a man and enlisting under the name Robert Shurtliff, she served for 18 months. Sampson was severely wounded in battle and received an honorable discharge after her gender was discovered. She later successfully fought for her rights to a military pension.

Fast Facts: Deborah Sampson

Deborah Sampson's parents were descended from Mayflower passengers and Puritan luminaries, but they did not prosper like many of their ancestors. When Deborah was about five years old, her father vanished. The family believed that he was lost at sea during a fishing trip, but it later emerged that he had abandoned his wife and six young children to build a new life and family in Maine.

Deborah's mother, unable to provide for her children, placed them with other relatives and families, as was common for destitute parents of the time. Deborah ended up with the widow of a former minister, Mary Prince Thatcher, who likely taught the child to read. From that point on, Deborah displayed a desire for education unusual in a girl of that era.

When Mrs. Thatcher died around 1770, 10-year-old Deborah became an indentured servant in the household of Jeremiah Thomas of Middleborough, Massachusetts. "Mr. Thomas, as an earnest patriot, did much towards shaping the political opinions of the young woman in his charge." At the same time, Thomas did not believe in women's education, so Deborah borrowed books from the Thomas sons.

After her indenture ended in 1778, Deborah supported herself by teaching school in the summers and working as a weaver in the winter. She also used her skills at light woodworking to peddle goods like spools, pie crimpers, milking stools, and other items door-to-door.

Enlisting in the Army

The Revolution was in its final months when Deborah decided to disguise herself and attempt to enlist sometime in late 1781. She purchased some cloth and made herself a suit of men's clothing. At 22, Deborah had reached a height of around five feet, eight inches, tall even for men of the period. With a wide waist and a small chest, it was easy enough for her to pass as a young man.

She first enlisted under the pseudonym "Timothy Thayer" in Middleborough in early 1782, but her identity was discovered before she made it into service. On Sept. 3, 1782, the First Baptist Church of Middleborough expelled her, writing that she: "Last spring was accused of dressing in men's clothes and enlisting as a Soldier in the Army [...] and for some time before had behaved very loose and unchristian like, and at last left our parts in a suden maner, and it is not known where she has gone."

She ended up walking from Middleborough to the port of New Bedford, where she considered signing on to an American cruiser, then passed through Boston and its suburbs, where she finally mustered in as "Robert Shurtliff" in Uxbridge in May 1782. Private Shurtliff was one of 50 new members of the Light Infantry Company of the 4th Massachusetts Infantry.

Identity Uncovered

Deborah soon saw combat. On July 3, 1782, just a few weeks into her service, she took part in a battle outside Tarrytown, New York. During the fight, she was struck by two musket balls in the leg and a gash to her forehead. Fearing exposure, "Shurtliff" begged comrades to leave her to die in the field, but they took her to the surgeon anyway. She quickly slipped out of the field hospital and removed the bullets with a penknife.

More or less permanently disabled, Private Shurtliff was reassigned as a waiter to General John Patterson. The war was essentially over, but American troops remained in the field. By June 1783, Deborah's unit was sent to Philadelphia to put down a brewing mutiny among American soldiers over delays in back pay and discharge.

Fevers and illness were common in Philadelphia, and not long after she arrived, Deborah fell seriously ill. She was put under the care of Dr. Barnabas Binney, who discovered her true gender as she lay delirious in his hospital. Rather than alert her commander, he took her to his home and put her under the care of his wife and daughters.

After months in Binney's care, it was time for her to rejoin General Patterson. As she prepared to leave, Binney gave her a note to give to the General, which she correctly assumed revealed her gender. Following her return, she was called to Patterson's quarters. "She says, 'A re-entrance was harder than facing a cannonade," in her biography. She nearly fainted from the tension.

To her surprise, Patterson decided not to punish her. He and his staff seemed almost impressed she had carried off her ruse for so long. With no sign she had ever acted inappropriately with her male comrades, Private Shurtliff was given an honorable discharge on Oct. 25, 1783.

Becoming Mrs. Gannett

Deborah returned to Massachusetts, where she married Benjamin Gannett and settled down on their small farm in Sharon. She was soon the mother of four: Earl, Mary, Patience, and an adopted daughter named Susanna. Like many families in the young Republic, the Gannetts struggled financially.

Starting in 1792, Deborah began what would become a decades-long battle to receive back pay and pension relief from her time in service. Unlike many of her male peers, Deborah didn't rely just on petitions and letters to Congress. To raise her profile and strengthen her case, she also allowed a local writer named Herman Mann to write a romanticized version of her life story, and in 1802 embarked on a lengthy lecture tour of Massachusetts and New York.

National Tour

Reluctantly leaving her children in Sharon, Gannett was on the road from June 1802 to April 1803. Her tour covered over 1,000 miles and stopped in every major town in Massachusetts and the Hudson River Valley, ending in New York City. In most towns, she lectured simply on her wartime experiences.

In bigger venues like Boston, the "American Heroine" was a spectacle. Gannett would give her lecture in female dress, then exit the stage as a chorus sang patriotic tunes. Finally, she would reappear in her military uniform and perform a complex, 27-step military drill with her musket.

Her tour was met with widespread acclaim until she got to New York City, where she lasted only a single performance. "Her talents do not appear calculated for theatrical exhibitions," one reviewer sniffed. She returned home to Sharon soon after. Because of the high cost of travel, she ended up making a profit of around $110.

Petition for Benefits

In her long fight for benefits, Gannett had the support of some powerful allies like Revolutionary War hero Paul Revere, Massachusetts Congressman William Eustis, and her old commander, General Patterson. All would press her claims with the Government, and Revere, in particular, would frequently lend her money. Revere wrote to Eustis after meeting Gannett in 1804, describing her as "much out of health," in part because of her military service, and despite the Gannett's obvious efforts, "they are really poor." He added:

We commonly form our Idea of the person whom we hear spoken off, whom we have never seen; according as their actions are described, when I heard her spoken off as a Soldier, I formed the Idea of a tall, Masculine female, who had a small share of understandg, without education, & one of the meanest of her Sex-When I saw and discoursed with I was agreeably surprised to find a small, effeminate, and converseable Woman, whose education entitled her to a better situation in life.

In 1792, Gannett successfully petitioned the Massachusetts Legislature for back pay of £34, plus interest. Following her lecture tour in 1803, she began to petition the Congress for disability pay. In 1805, she received a lump sum of $104 plus $48 a year thereafter. In 1818, she gave up disability pay for a general pension of $96 a year. The fight for retroactive payments went on until the end of her life.

Deborah died at the age of 68, after a long period of ill health. The family was too poor to pay for a headstone, so her gravesite in Sharon's Rock Ridge Cemetery was unmarked until the 1850s or 1860s. At first, she was noted only as "Deborah, Wife of Benjamin Gannett." It wasn't until years after that someone memorialized her service by carving into the headstone, "Deborah Sampson Gannett/Robert Shurtliff/The Female Soldier."

Resources and Further Reading

Abbatt, William. The Magazine of History with Notes and Queries: Extra Numbers. 45-48, XII, 1916.

"Letter from Paul Revere to William Eustis, 20 February 1804." Massachusetts Historical Society Collections Online, Mass Cultural Council, 2019.

Mann, Herman. Female Review: Life of Deborah Sampson, the Female Soldier in the War of the Revolution. Forgotten, 2016.

Rothman, Ellen K., et al. "Deborah Sampson Performs in Boston." Mass Moments, Mass Humanities.

Young, Alfred Fabian. Masquerade: The Life and Times of Deborah Sampson, Continental Soldier. Vintage, 2005.

Weston, Thomas. History of the Town of Middleboro, Massachusetts. Vol. 1, Houghton Mifflin, 1906.

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Deborah Sampson: Hidden Heroine of the American Revolution

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Deborah Sampson Gannett, one of the only women to serve in the Revolutionary War, disguised herself as a man in order to enlist in the army.

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children kids podcast ios apps education science discovery sharing

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Smalltalk.fm helps you discover, listen to, and share great podcasts for kids

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Learn about Patriots and Loyalists during the Revolutionary War. One side wanted independence while the other wanted to remain part of Britain.

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Women supported the American Revolution by making homespun cloth, working to produce goods and services to help the army, and even serving as spies.

Women performed crucial tasks in the American Revolution, organizing fundraising drives, supplying the troops, working in the military camps, and tending to the wounded soldiers.

One of the most common ways that women supported the war effort was by making homespun, home-made cloth that took on revolutionary symbolism after the colonies imposed boycotts on British goods, including textiles.

Some women even acted as spies, and there is at least one documented case of a woman disguising herself as a man to fight in the war.

The American Revolution

By the time the British imposed the Coercive Acts, or the Intolerable Acts, as they became known in the North American colonies, revolutionary sentiment and activism had been on the rise.

The Coercive Acts, passed in 1774 as punishment for the Boston Tea Party, during which Boston radicals dumped over 300 crates of British tea into the harbor, was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back of continued loyalty to the mother country. These acts convinced many colonists that they could no longer afford to live under the increasingly tyrannical rule of the British and contributed to uniting the colonies in opposition to continued colonial control.

The Daughters of Liberty and homespun

After the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act, the Daughters of Liberty was formed. Established in 1765, the organization was comprised solely of women who sought to demonstrate their loyalty to the revolutionary cause by boycotting British goods and making their own. Martha Washington, wife of George Washington, was one of the most prominent Daughters of Liberty.

Not only were women at the forefront of efforts to impose boycotts on British goods, they also spearheaded domestic production efforts. Because most textiles in the colonies were imported from Britain, weaving homespun cloth became an act of political rebellion. The Daughters of Liberty made public demonstrations of their spinning, such as the one at Newport, Rhode Island, where 92 women gathered in a meeting-house and produced 170 skeins of yarn.

What do you think?

What was so subversive about homespun?

In your opinion, what was the most important way that women contributed to the American Revolution?

How do you think women's wartime service might have affected their view of gender roles in the post-revolutionary period?

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Women in the American Revolution (article) | Khan Academy

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Learn for free about math, art, computer programming, economics, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, finance, history, and more. Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the mission of providing a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere.

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Paul Revere created his most famous engraving titled the "Bloody Massacre Perpetrated in Kings Street in Boston" just 3 weeks after the Boston Massacre occurred on March 5, 1770. It is regarded by historians as an important document of the pre-revolutionary period. At the same time it is known to contain number of inaccuracies because the author used it as a propaganda piece to advance the cause of Independence. Let's take closer look at the details.

The engraving shows the Boston Massacre event unfolding in front of the State House. The composition of the engraving is clearly divided into two sides as if telling "It's us against them!" On the right side there are the British soldiers dressed in uniform with their rifles with bayonets drawn, firing into the crowd. One of the British regulars is clearly the commander raising the sword and giving the order to fire. All solders and the officer have cold and determined looks on their faces.

On the left side, across the clouds of smoke there is a crowd of colonists. Their faces show horror and panic. The engraving accurately shows the five victims. Three men are laying on the ground with blood gushing from the wounds which are clearly shown. Two of them lay right in front and the third one is somewhat obscured by other men standing in the bottom left corner. The man with two chest wounds is believed to be Crispus Attucks, the fist victim to fall during the shooting as he was standing in the front row. Two addition bodies are being carried by the crowd in the attempt to help them. One of the men in the crowd is looking directly at the solders raising his hand towards them as if trying to make them stop firing.

A very interesting detail of the engraving is a small spotted dog pensively standing in the bottom center, between the shooting solders and the crowd. The dog is being spared from the firing guns. Perhaps P.R. meant it as a symbol of the British Soldiers treating colonists worse than dogs?

On the bottom of the engraving, there is a poem written by P.R. full of the outrage about the killing. One of of the lines reads "Like fierce barbarians grinning o'er their prey
Approve the carnage and enjoy the day."

P.R. also honored the names of the dead and wounded listing them just below the poem:
Mesr's Sam'l Gray, Sam'l Maverick, James Caldwell Crispus Attucks, & Patr. Carr Killed
Six wounded; two of them (Christ'r Monk & John Clark) mortally.

The tall building in the center is the Old State House which still stands in Boston today and is a popular tourist attraction. Of course back then it was the only State House. Another historic building depicted in the engraving is the First Church with the dome and the steeple towering on the left of the State House.

Inaccuracies in the Engraving

We are used to treating historic documents with a degree of trust, however the composition of this the engraving contains serveral inaccuracies that a serious researcher should be aware of.

There are seven soldiers and the captain shown in the picture. In reality there were only 6 British soldiers. Two captains, lieutenant, corporal and two private regulars.

British Grenadiers are depicted as if moving in the line of attack just like in a battlefield. However by all accounts the Boston Massacre was a scene of chaos and the soldiers were separated form each other by the crowd when they started using their weapons against the colonists.

A lonely gun is shown sticking out from a second story window of the Customs House firing into the crowd.

Customs House on the right side of the engraving is labeled 'Butcher's Hall'

The events of the Boston Massacre took place a night but the sky in the picture is rather light. On the other hand a crescent moon is visible above the roof lines, indicating that the author intended to show a night scene but was constrained by the engraving technology or simply chose not to make the picture too dark.

Crispus Attucks shown as the victim with two chest wouds laying on the ground does not seem to have African mulatto features, but some researchers who analysed the engraving found otherwise. You decide.

Captain Preston is shown as giving the order to fire by waving his sword. At his trial in court, this was proven not be had been the case.

Finally, it is a well known fact is that P.R. did not create the drawing himself. He was a skillful engraver but not an artist and therefore used the image created by a young artist Henry Pelham to make his engraving. Furthermore Pelham publicly accused P.R. in Boston Gazette of copying his drawing without permission. In Revere's defence we could note that copying somebody's work at that time was not considered a crime and the feud was probably more about the silversmith not sharing the proceeds from selling the print with Pelham.

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The Project was established to discover the heritage of Paul Revere and to illuminate the relevance of his contribution in our lives today.

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Learn about the biography of Molly Pitcher including her real name, folklore, where the name came from, Mary Ludwig Hays, Margaret Corbin, and interesting facts.

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Learn about Valley Forge. The place where George Washington and the Continental Army spent the winter during the Revolutionary War.

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Learn about the generals and military leaders of the American Revolution including George Washington, Nathanael Greene, Horatio Gates, John Paul Jones, William Howe, and Thomas Gage.

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Learn about the biography of Martha Washington including her early life, first marriage, children, George Washington, Valley Forge, fun facts, and as the first First Lady.

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Learn about the weapons and battle tactics from the American Revolution including muskets, cannons, Brown Bess, bayonets, lines of soldiers, and interesting facts.

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American Revolutionary War Facts

Battle of Cowpens Monument

Introduction
Why is Catherine Moore Barry, also known as Kate Barry, a true heroine of the American Revolutionary War? She is best known for her role in successfully warning the American militia when the British were about to invade, before the decisive Continental Army victory at the Battle of Cowpens. She was instrumental in helping General Daniel Morgan, commander of the American forces, not only fend off British forces but ultimately set the stage for the turning point in the war. To find out more about this brave and heroic woman, read the interesting information and facts on her life below. Although not much is known about her later years, it covers her early life, such as where she was born and how many kids were in her family as well as interesting facts about her life.

Click here for a great selection ofAmazon.com books about the American Revolution.

Catherine Moore Barry Early Years

Catherine Moore Barry was born to Charles and Mary Moore in 1752 near Spartanburg, South Carolina.

She was the eldest of ten children.

One of the first families to migrate to the Piedmont area of South Carolina was the Moore family.

In 1767, at the young age of 15, Catherine married Andrew Barry. They lived about two miles from her childhood home.

Catherine and Andrew Barry had three children together.

Catherine Moore Barry Interesting Information

When Catherine's husband, Andrew, became a captain and commanding officer in the war, she proudly helped him acting as a spy and messenger and even fought in some battles with him.

Although there is no historical proof, it is said that Catherine Barry Moore tied her newborn baby to her bedpost and, using her extensive knowledge of the woods, rode on her horse through Indian trails to warn her neighbors that the British were approaching.

Barry not only rounded up enough Patriots to fight the British at the Battle of Cowpens, but also aided General Morgan in setting a trap to ambush the British which forced British troops to retreat from South Carolina into Virginia.

Winning the Battle of Cowpens was a turning point in the American War for Independence. Shortly thereafter it led to the Battle of Yorktown where the British troops, led by General Cornwallis, surrendered to General Washington and the colonies won their independence.

Catherine Moore Barry received several medals for her brave work and her intelligence as both a messenger and a spy during the American Revolution.

She died in September of 1823 and was buried next to her husband Andrew in a family cemetery.

Walnut Grove Plantation, the house where Catherine Moore Barry was raised, has become a popular tourist attraction on the outskirts of Spartanburg, South Carolina in a town called Roebuck.

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Click here for a list of interesting facts about Catherine Moore Barry which includes all the important information you need to know about this important woman of the American Revolution.

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Liberty's Kids   Season 01 Episode 21   Sybil Ludington

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Military Tactics of the British and a Patriot Troops

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Military Tactics of the British and a Patriot Troops

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Revolutionary War in the North and South

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During the American Revolution, both the Continental army and British army used specific strategies and tactics against each other. These played a large role in the outcome of that war. Brilliant planning and strategical attacks on the British led to the victory of the U.S. Introduction to the Strategies and Tactics of the Revolutionary War strategies and tactics
Strategies and Tactics of the British
The British didn't use nearly as many techniques as the U.S army but they did have efficient ways of taking on the Continental army. They also had a key ally- the Native Americans. They helped them navigate the land efficiently. This was a large advantage for the British over the U.S. They also were able to use the Native's battle strategies against the Continental army. The British were also able to charge with bayonets against the defenseless U.S towards the beginning of the war. The British could have destroyed the U.S in the first year in the war but they got far too cocky and slacked off in their tactics and attacks.

Strategies and Tactics of the U.S Army
The U.S army were far more ambitious with their strategies. With the help of Baron Von Steuben the Continental army got back on its feet and were trained into a fighting machine equipped with bayonets, sharpshooters, and spies behind enemy lines. All of these play a large part in the victory over the British. The British may have had the numbers, but the U.S had the heart and the potential to defeat the most powerful army and navy of the time. After Von Stueben joined the U.S, Spain and France, longtime enemies of the British, joined up with the U.S and supplied them with much needed supplies, ammunition, weapons, and soldiers. The French also supplied them with a strong naval force to counter the British.

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Introduction to the Strategies and Tactics of the Revolutionary War During the American Revolution, both the Continental army and British army used specific strategies and tactics...

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American Revolutionary War Facts

Betsy Ross's House

Introduction
Of all of the famous American Revolutionary women in history, the woman who shall forever stand out as an icon to so many is Betsy Ross. Although there is no actual historical evidence she is widely regarded as the person who sewed the very first American Flag. A patriotic symbol, such as a flag, was just what the American colonist needed as a symbol to help unite them during the war for independence. As the eighth of seventeen kids, her love of sewing flourished during her childhood where, as a Quaker, she was taught many crafts. Not only is her life interesting because of the flag, but the facts and information below highlight her struggles as a widowed business owner, which are just as impressive.

Click here for a great selection ofAmazon.com books about Betsy Ross.

Betsy Ross Interesting Facts

Betsy Ross was born as Elizabeth Griscom on January 1, 1752.

Her first marriage was to John Ross in 1772, for whom she went outside of the Quaker religion to marry. This action caused her Quaker place of worship to expel her and her own family to disown her.

Together, she and John Ross began their own upholstery business with the knowledge and skills she had gained as an apprentice to John Webster.

Sadly, Betsy Ross's first husband, John Ross, was killed while on militia duty. She became a widow who worked night and day to keep her company going on her own.

Joseph Ashburn became her next husband and he too tragically died young. In 1780 his boat was captured by the British upon which he was charged with treason. He was sent to prison where he died the following year.

Betsy Ross was married for a third time in 1783 to a man named John Claypoole. They went on to have five children together and continued to run an upholstery shop together. In 1817, she was widowed for the last time when John passed away.

It is widely believed that in June of 1776, President George Washington, George Ross and Robert Morris paid a visit to Betsy Ross at which point they asked her to design and sew the very first flag.

The tourist attraction, the Betsy Ross House, is said to be the place where the first flag was created. There is no definitive proof, however, that she even lived there.

After the first flag was sewn, the Pennsylvania State Navy paid her to manufacture flags.

A truss bridge, which crosses the Delaware River, was named after Betsy Ross. It has the distinction of being the first automotive bridge to be named after a woman.

Betsy Ross Later Years Facts

Betsy had made a point of teaching her daughters to sew and before she died, she turned over her upholstery business to them.

Betsy Ross was 84 when she died in 1836 in Philadelphia.

Betsy Ross had an unusual amount of burials. First she was buried at the Free Quaker burial ground in Philadelphia. Twenty years later her remains were brought to Mt. Moriah Cemetery in Philadelphia. Her remains were moved again in 1975 when the city of Philadelphia had the remains moved to the courtyard by the Betsy Ross House.

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American Revolutionary War Facts

Statue of Sybil Ludington

Introduction
Sybil Ludington was an American Revolutionary War Woman who became famous for her horseback ride through upstate New York to warn militia that British troops were raiding and burning Danbury, Connecticut. What makes her ride even more impressive than that of Paul Revere's ride is that she was just a kid of sixteen when she heroically rode a treacherous forty miles during the middle of the night. To find out where her route took her, how she fended off outlaws during her ride and why there was such confusion over the spelling of her name, read the interesting facts and information on the life of Sybil Ludington below.

Click here for a great selection ofAmazon.com books about Sybil Ludington.

Sybil Ludington Early Years

Sybil Ludington was born on April 5, 1761 to Henry and Abigail Ludington.

Sybil was the eldest of twelve children.

Colonel Henry Ludington, Sybil's father, was a volunteer militia officer and community leader who went on to become an aide to General George Washington.

Sybil Ludington's Ride

When Sybil's father got word that the British were attacking Danbury, she volunteered to ride through the countryside and alert the militia, knowing they needed to muster as many troops as possible.

Sybil's ride on the night of April 26, 1777 took her through the towns of Kent, Mahopac and Stormville bringing her through both Putnam and Dutchess Counties in New York.

During her late-night ride through the rain, which began at 9 PM, she managed to fend off British soldiers and loyalists as well as outlaws that didn't side with either the British or the Americans. She traveled with a stick and used it as necessary to defend herself against attacks.

Some historians believe that along Ludington's journey, a man offered to ride with her but she instead sent him east to warn the town of Brewster.

When she arrived back home about 400 troops had gathered at the Ludington residence to fight the British.

Although the militia was not able to defend Danbury against attack, they were able to force the British to retreat in what became known as the Battle of Ridgefield.

Sybil Ludington Interesting Facts

Ludington's hometown, once named Fredericksburg, was renamed Ludingtonville to honor Sybil's heroic acts.

Interestingly, Sybil Ludington's name is not found on any official documents spelled as Sybil. The spelling on her tombstone says Sibbell, while her sister went by the spelling Sebil. To make things even more confusing, some documents suggests she spelled her own name as Sebal, yet she is also appears on historic records as Sibel and Cybil.

At the age of twenty-three, Ludington married Edmond Ogden, a famer and innkeeper. They had only one son named Henry.

Sybil Ludington died on February 26, 1839, at the age of 77. She was buried in Patterson, New York, at the same cemetery as her father.

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VIDEO | Join Park Ranger David Lawrence as he gives the ins and outs of what it was like to serve as a soldier in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. People from different races, ages, genders and social classes all fought and worked together under George Washington to form the country that we have today. Watch now to discover what life was like for the common soldier fighting against the British in the Revolutionary War.

View or download this video on Vimeo

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VIDEO | Watch now to discover what life was like for the common soldier fighting against the British in the Revolutionary War.

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Chris Kolakowski explains British strategy during the Revolutionary War, putting the American conflict in context along with the other major conflicts that were shaking the world in the late 1700s.

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British Strategy in the Revolutionary War

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VIDEO | Chris Kolakowski explains British strategy during the Revolutionary War, putting the American conflict in context along with the other major conflicts...

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VIDEO | Join David Lawrence of the Valley Forge National Historical Park for an overview of the fighting styles for both the Continental and British armies during the Revolutionary War.

View or download this video from Vimeo.

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Combat Strategy in the Revolutionary War

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VIDEO | David Lawrence describes the combat styles of the Continental and British Armies in the Revolutionary War.

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Revolutionary War in the North and South

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During the American Revolution, both the Continental army and British army used specific strategies and tactics against each other. These played a large role in the outcome of that war. Brilliant planning and strategical attacks on the British led to the victory of the U.S. Introduction to the Strategies and Tactics of the Revolutionary War strategies and tactics
Strategies and Tactics of the British
The British didn't use nearly as many techniques as the U.S army but they did have efficient ways of taking on the Continental army. They also had a key ally- the Native Americans. They helped them navigate the land efficiently. This was a large advantage for the British over the U.S. They also were able to use the Native's battle strategies against the Continental army. The British were also able to charge with bayonets against the defenseless U.S towards the beginning of the war. The British could have destroyed the U.S in the first year in the war but they got far too cocky and slacked off in their tactics and attacks.

Strategies and Tactics of the U.S Army
The U.S army were far more ambitious with their strategies. With the help of Baron Von Steuben the Continental army got back on its feet and were trained into a fighting machine equipped with bayonets, sharpshooters, and spies behind enemy lines. All of these play a large part in the victory over the British. The British may have had the numbers, but the U.S had the heart and the potential to defeat the most powerful army and navy of the time. After Von Stueben joined the U.S, Spain and France, longtime enemies of the British, joined up with the U.S and supplied them with much needed supplies, ammunition, weapons, and soldiers. The French also supplied them with a strong naval force to counter the British.

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Introduction to the Strategies and Tactics of the Revolutionary War During the American Revolution, both the Continental army and British army used specific strategies and tactics...

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To get a better understanding of the events of the Revolutionary War, it is helpful to evaluate the strategies of the Continental army and the British army in the war and how they both planned to win.

The battles and events that took place were often strategically planned with the hopes of gaining more control over a region, getting access to supplies and outmaneuvering the enemy all while trying to avoid as many casualties and military defeats as possible.

These strategies were also influenced by the geography of the region, which often affected the outcome of the battles.

Both sides had their own ideas on how to accomplish these goals and the strategies they used have been widely studied, scrutinized and even recreated.

In fact, numerous Revolutionary War strategy games are based on these very strategies and some types of battle reenactments, such as tactical battles or tactical events, use these strategies to try to defeat their opponents in recreations of the Revolutionary War battles.

The following is an overview of the strategies used in the Revolutionary War:

British Strategy:

British strategy changed throughout the course of the war as the British came up against more obstacles and challenges than they anticipated.

The British strategy at the beginning of the war was simply to contain the American Revolution in Massachusetts and prevent it from spreading.

This proved difficult though when the British suffered devastating casualties at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June of 1775 during the Siege of Boston.

After the Americans captured Fort Ticonderoga in New York, they brought the fort's cannons to Cambridge, where they arrived on January 24, 1776, and planned to fortify the hills overlooking Boston harbor in an attempt to break the siege.

When powder for the cannons finally arrived on March 2, the Americans began firing on Boston. On March 4, they mounted the largest cannons on Dorchester Heights. When the British saw the cannons on Dorchester Heights, they made an attempt to attack the heights but were thwarted by a storm. The British then decided to abandon Boston altogether and flee for Nova Scotia, Canada on March 17, 1776.

The new British strategy at this point was to capture New York City and use it as a base of operations. The British successfully captured New York on September 15, 1776 and launched the next phase of the plan in 1777.

This plan was to isolate New England, which was the heart of the rebellion, from the rest of the colonies by marching three British armies simultaneously from New York City, Montreal and Fort Oswego to meet in Albany and take control of the Hudson River, which formed a natural barrier along the western edge of New England.

After doing so, the British would then move South and defeat the Southern colonies, according to an article by Tal Tovy in the Michigan War Studies Review journal:

"In practical terms, the British planned to seize control of the Hudson River and cordon off the New England colonies, and only then to move south and, with the help of settlers loyal to the Crown (the 'Loyalists'), conquer the southern colonies. But the defeat at Saratoga and the entry of France into the war early in 1778 led to a changed strategy of increasing reliance on Crown supporters in the colonies."

General William Howe was to lead the troops from New York City while General John Burgoyne led the troops south from Canada and General Barry St. Leger led troops down from the Mohawk Valley to upstate New York.

This idea failed though because it wasn't executed according to plan. It all went awry when General Howe, for reasons unknown, decided to take a detour and led his troops to Philadelphia instead, where the seat of the Continental Congress was located, and captured the city.

Realizing that a battle was brewing, Washington sent troops north and called for the militia to join them, which resulted in a large contingent of American troops and militia in the Saratoga area.

This resulted in the Battle of Saratoga on September 19, 1777 which was a devastating loss for the British, who lost two soldiers for every one on the American side.

A second battle, the Battle of Bernis Heights, took place on October 7 when Burgoyne tried to break free from the colonial forces surrounding them but was defeated. The defeat forced Burgoyne to withdraw his troops and surrender on October 17, 1777.

Many historians consider these battles to be a major turning point in the Revolutionary War because these American military victories prompted France to join the war and support the patriot cause, which turned the conflict into a global war rather than a colonial rebellion.

Yet, an article by John Ferling, in Smithsonian Magazine, argues that Saratoga wasn't the only defining moment in the Revolutionary War, stating that protracted wars "are seldom defined by a single decisive event" but was instead one of five important moments, which include: the American victories at Concord and Bunker Hill in 1775 and at Trenton in 1776, the establishment of the Continental Army in June of 1775 and the British failure in their Southern Campaign in 1778-1783.

As a result of their military losses and the French joining the conflict, the British decided to revisit the plan they had proposed earlier in the war, which was to focus their efforts on the loyalists in the Southern colonies in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

After turning their attention to the South, the British soon had a number of military successes, such as their occupation of Savannah, Georgia in late 1778 and Charleston, South Carolina in May of 1779 and their victory at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina in 1780.

But despite their modest success there, the British greatly overestimated loyalist sentiment in the South and their military presence there prompted many southern colonists who had been on the fence about the war to side with the patriots.

The British also struggled with getting access to their supply ships when they were fighting further inland. The patriots had easy access to their supplies and could also blend in among the general population.

An article by Major John A. Tokar, on the Army Logistics University website, states the British army's lack of supplies and failure to gain and use support and aid from Loyalists ultimately doomed the British cause and forced the British to fight a type of war that the Americans excelled at:

"An analysis of how Britain supplied its army, both from home and in the colonies, demonstrates how the presence, or absence, of critical commodities affects military operations. Ultimately, the lack of sufficient reserve supplies, combined with cautious generalship, insufficient transportation, widespread corruption, and the lack of a coherent strategy to maximize the potential support of British loyalists in the colonies, ensured British failure. These factors forced the British Army to fight a guerilla war-the only kind of war that the upstart United States could hope to win."

After the British lost the Battle of Yorktown in Virginia and British General Charles Cornwallis was forced to surrender more than 8,000 troops on October 19, 1781, British Prime Minister Lord North reportedly reacted to the news by exclaiming "O God! It is all over!"

These military failures coupled with the high cost of the war, a mounting national debt and a possible global war, proved to be too much for the British and prompted Parliament to vote to end the war in 1782, according to Francis D. Cogliano in his book Revolutionary America, 1763-1815: A Political History:

"Yorktown need not have spelled the end of the British war effort in America. Britain still had considerable resource to bring to bear in America, and British forces still occupied Savannah, Charleston, and New York. Nonetheless, six years of war in America had yielded few benefits to the British. Although the British had won most of the major battles in the conflict, they had been unable to reassert parliamentary authority over the rebellious Americans...Faced with the war against the Americans, French, Spanish and Dutch, as well as mounting national debt to pay for the conflict, there was little enthusiasm for pursuing the American conflict in the wake of Cornwalli's surrender. On February 27, 1782, Parliament voted to discontinue offensive operations in America."

American Strategy:

The Americans didn't develop a real strategy in the Revolutionary War until George Washington took control of the Continental Army on July 3, 1775, although many historians are divided on exactly how strategic of a military leader Washington actually was.

Many 20th century historians praised Washington as a brilliant military leader who followed the Fabian strategy of avoiding decisive battles in order wear the enemy out, according to Dave Richard Palmer in the introduction of the 2012 edition of his book George Washington's Military Genius:

"John Alden, writing in the late 1960s: 'The Americans had only to keep the field until Britain should tire of the struggle.' Douglas Southall Freeman: 'Washington's strategy had to be patiently defensive.' From an edited volume published in 1965: 'The plan of the Americans was the simple defensive - to oppose the British as best they could at every point, and to hold fast the line of the Hudson.' North Carolina, in 1972: Americans 'did not really win the war but Britain lost it mainly to circumstances rather the American enemy.' James Thomas Flexner credited the patriots with creating an effective hit-and-run capability, but supported the typical view that their success sprang primarily from perseverance. Russell Weigley saw the American strategy as one of attrition of enemy forces, or, at best, erosion. Thomas Frothingham believed the necessary object of the Continental army was merely to conduct operations designed to bolster partisan fighters and to 'hold in check the superior main forces of the British. In short, the mainstream of historical writing in the latter half of the twentieth century reflected the view that American strategy in the Revolutionary War was essentially one-dimensional-defensive."

Yet, other historians, such as Marcus Cunliffe, Richard Ketchum, Russell Weigley, Douglas Southall Freeman and David McCullough, believed Washington was no great strategist and was instead merely lucky, persistent and opportunistic.

Another strategy the Americans used to their advantage was the use of guerrilla warfare, which many of them had learned as soldiers during the French and Indian War in the 1750s-60s, according to an NPR interview by Steve Inskeep with author Max Boot:

"INSKEEP: Now, the American revolutionaries eventually did form a regular army. But guerrilla tactics played a huge role in securing their independence. Max Boot sees modern lessons in that story, as told in 'Invisible Armies,' his new history of guerrilla warfare.
What were the strategies that the American rebels used when they were rebels?
BOOT: Well, it first of all, comes down to not coming out into the open where you could be annihilated by the superior firepower of the enemy. The British got a taste of how the Americans would fight on the very first day of the Revolution, with the shot heard around the world, the Battle of Lexington and Concord, where the British regulars marched through the Massachusetts countryside.
And the Americans did not mass in front of them but instead chose to slither on their bellies - these Yankees scoundrels, as the British called them - and fired from behind trees and stone walls. And not come out until the kind of open gentleman's fight that the British expected, and instead, took a devastating toll on the British regiment."

Boot also stated that the Americans used propaganda, such as Thomas Paine's Common Sense pamphlet, to pressure British citizens not to support a war against their American brothers, which was greatly effective in undermining support in Britain for the long and costly war.

These tactics were highly effective and eventually achieved exactly what they were intended to do when the British decided to discontinue military offenses in America in 1782, although fighting didn't formally end until 1783.

Sources:
Tovy, Tal. "George Washington's Military Genius by Dave R. Palmer." Michigan War Studies Review, 3 Dec. 2012, www.miwsr.com/2012-070.aspx
Cogliano, Francis D. Revolutionary America 1763-1815: A Political History. Routledge, 2017.
O'Shaughnessy, Andrew. The Men Who Lost America: British Command During the Revolutionary War and the Preservation of the Empire. One World Publications, 2013.
Palmer, Dave R. George Washington's Military Genius. Regnery Publishing, Inc, 2012.
"The Pamphlet War and the Boston Massacre." The British Library, www.bl.uk/the-american-revolution/articles/the-pamphlet-war-and-the-boston-massacre
"American Revolution Reinvents Guerrilla Warfare." National Public Radio, 15 January. 2013, www.npr.org/2013/01/15/169388719/guerrilla-warfare-turningpoint-america-revolution
Tokar, John A., Major, "Logistics and the British Defeat in the Revolutionary War." Army Logistics University, www.almc.army.mil/alog/issues/SepOct99/MS409.htm
"Teacher's Guide: Factors that Handicapped the British." PBS.org, Twin Cities Public Television, 2004, www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/tguide_4.html
"Southern Strategy." George Washington's Mount Vernon. Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, www.mountvernon.org/digital-encyclopedia/article/southern-strategy/
Ferling, John. "Myths of the American Revolution." Smithsonian Magazine. Smithsonian Institute, Jan. 2010, www.smithsonianmag.com/history/myths-of-the-american-revolution-10941835/
"The Battle of Saratoga - A Major Turning Point of the Revolutionary War." Saratoga, www.saratoga.com/aboutsaratoga/battle-of-saratoga/
Wagoner, Scott. "George Washington: Using Reasoning as a Winning Strategy." Connection Newspapers. Ellington, 30 Jan. 2013, connectionnewspapers.com/news/2013/jan/30/george-washington-using-reasoning-winning-strategy/
"Revolutionary War: Northern Front, 1775-1777." Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/amrev/north/
"Revolutionary War: The Turning Point, 1777-1778." Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/amrev/turning/
"Revolutionary War: Southern Phase, 1778-1781." Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/amrev/south/
"The American Revolution." National Parks Service, nps.gov/revwar/about_the_revolution/capsule_history.html
"British Strategy in the Revolutionary War." Civil War Trust, www.civilwar.org/learn/videos/british-strategy-revolutionary-war
Stockwell, Mary. "Grand Strategy." Mount Vernon Ladies' Association,, www.mountvernon.org/digital-encyclopedia/article/grand-strategy/

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British & American Strategies in the Revolutionary War - History of Massachusetts Blog

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To get a better understanding of the events of the Revolutionary War, it is helpful to evaluate the strategies of the Continental army and the British army in the war and how they both planned to win. The battles and events that took place were often strategically planned with the...

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Learn more about some of the spies that aided the Patriot cause during the American Revolution.

Nathan Hale

During the Battle of Long Island, Nathan Hale--a captain in the Continental Army--volunteered to go behind enemy lines in disguise to report back on British troop movements. Hale was captured by the British army and executed as a spy on September 22, 1776. Hale remains part of popular lore connected with the American Revolution for his purported last words, "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country."

Benjamin Tallmadge

In November 1778, George Washington charged Major Benjamin Tallmadge with creating a spy ring in New York City, the site of British headquarters. Tallmadge led the creation of the Culper Spy Ring, recruiting friends to work as his informants. Tallmadge served as the main handler for the Culper Spy Ring until the end of the war.

Learn More: The Culper Spy Ring

Austin Roe

A tavern owner, Austin Roe was closely tied to other members of the Culper Ring, even growing up near the home of fellow spy Caleb Brewster. Roe served as the group's courier, transporting materials from Robert Townsend's New York City coffee shop all the way back to Setauket, Long Island, a trip of more than fifty miles. Roe's position as courier was fraught with danger, traveling a long distance with the possibility of being caught with incriminating evidence of his activities.

Abraham Woodhull

A farmer and the son of a local Patriot judge, Abraham Woodhull joined the Culper ring in November of 1778. Woodhull was essentially the leader of the Culper Spy Ring, deciding what information was transmitted throughout the group, which would eventually make its way to George Washington. In order to evade British detection, Woodhull operated under the pseudonym, "Samuel Culper Sr."

Anna Strong

Well-connected within the New York, colonial, upper class, Anna Strong utilized her farmstead on Long Island to help transfer intelligence information to the other members of the Culper ring. Strong's husband, Selah Strong III, was a prominent Patriot judge who served as a captain during the war. Anna Strong arranged clothes on her clothesline as a means to signal fellow Culper spy Caleb Brewster regarding the location of hidden documents to be transported.

Robert Townsend

A tavern owner in New York City, Robert Townsend participated in a complex cover up to mask his true loyalties. Townsend was a Patriot who publicly presented himself as a Loyalist supporter of Britain, even writing for a Loyalist newspaper to build credibility. The guise worked as Townsend was trusted with sensitive information, even from British military officers. Townsend then relayed the information to Austin Roe.

James Armistead Lafayette

An enslaved African-American who volunteered to join the army under Lafayette in 1781, Armistead served as a double agent working for the Patriots. Armistead posed as a runaway slave who agreed to work with the British, though in actuality he was collecting intelligence from the British and reporting back to Patriot forces. Armistead spied on Brigadier General Benedict Arnold (who had already defected to lead British forces), and eventually visited the camp of Lord Cornwallis to gather information about the British plans for troop deployment and armaments. The intelligence reports from Armistead's efforts were instrumental in helping to defeat the British during the Battle of Yorktown.

Primary Source: Lafayette's Testimonial to James Armistead Lafayette (November 21, 1784 )

Ann Bates

A Philadelphia school teacher and the wife of a British soldier, Ann Bates claimed to be a Patriot in order to collect and identify important information to send to British forces. After walking into George Washington's White Plains headquarters, Bates explained that she "had the opportunity of going through their whole army remarking at the same time the strength and situation of each brigade, and the number of cannon, with their situation and weight of ball each cannon was charged with." Bates' information influenced General Henry Clinton's decision to send more forces to defend Rhode Island, leading to American and French armies to withdraw from Newport.

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Learn more about some of the spies that aided the Patriot cause during the American Revolution.