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For your convenience maps of certain important areas during the Revolutionary War will be included on a separate page.
First Continental Congress
After England closed down the Port of Boston every colony, except Georgia, sent delegates to Carpenters' hall in Philadelphia in 1774 to hold what is now known as the First Continental Congress. The purpose of this meeting was to decide whether or not to go to war with Britain. Some Radical Delegates like Patrick Henry thought war & violence were inevitable where as Pennsylvania and New York wanted peace. The compromise they came up with was to halt all trade with Britain and went to war. They also wrote a document called the Declaration of Rights. Sadly King George did not even look at the Document.
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Lexington and Concord
On the night of April 18, 1700 British soldiers headed for Concord to destroy a weapons cache that could seriously aid the Colonies in the war. A group of 70 armed minutemen lied in wait of the British army. Then a shot rang out and to this day no one knows who fired. By the end of the battle 8 minutemen were dead and 10 were wounded, the British marched on. They made it to Concord and destroyed the entire weapons cache. While the British were marching back to Boston they were ambushed by soldiers firing at them from behind trees, bushes, fences, etc. At the end of the day 250 British men were killed and the minutemen counted fewer than 100 casualties.
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Second Continental Congress
Delegates from 12 Colonies met on May 1775 in Philadelphia to discuss again whether or not to go to war with Britain. The Compromise they devised this time was to not break away from Britain while turning the Massachusetts militia into the Continental army and to appoint George Washington as their general.While General Washington prepared himself and his troops for war Congress tried to reach peace with the olive branch petition which king George once again refused to read.
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Battle of Bunker Hill
On May 10, 1775 A group of 400 men led by Benedict Arnold Captured fort Ticonderoga along with it's large supply of weapons. During this time the minute men were keeping the British held down in Boston. On June 17 the British awoke to the sight of the colonial forces waiting atop Breeds Hill. To get to the colonists the British would have to cross the Boston Harbor and fight their way up the hill. As the British force of 2,400 marched forward, The Colonists commander told his troops not to fire "until you see the whites of their eyes" because they were low on gunpowder. Because the British were climbing the hill with their heavy backpacks on the colonists were able to easily cut them down. Eventually the Colonists did run out of ammo and they started to throw rocks and swing their guns like clubs but they retreat. Though the British had technically won the battle they suffered over 1,000 casualties which was about double what the Americans lost.
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Common Sense
Common Sense was a 47 page pamphlet written anonymously by Thomas Paine. This pamphlet urged colonists to join the fight against the British by bringing up points such as how the American continent should not be ruled by an island such as Britain. The work reached a very wide audience and sold something around 5,000 copies and changed the way a lot of colonists viewed the king. The words of Thomas Paine have echoed throughout American history and seriously helped the war effort.
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Advantages & Disadvantages of Both Armies
The strengths of the Continental army were that they fought for what they believed in and they got help, a lot of help. Sadly they were also untrained and were poorly equipped and they had a very small navy. The British's strengths were that they were well trained and well equipped and they had a large navy but they had to cross the Atlantic to get to america and a lot of their soldiers were mercenaries.
Early Defeats
The first big defeat was when General Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold tried to take Quebec in British controlled Canada. They did not have the cannons needed to take the high walls of Quebec so they waited for a snowstorm hoping it would provide good cover for an attack. Sadly though, the plan failed and Montgomery was killed. The next Big defeat was in New York when General Washington went to New York expecting a British arrival. The British had more men and were better trained than Washingtons' army. British General Howes' army destroyed Washingtons' army.
Battle of Trenton
On Christmas night, 1776 George Washington sailed 2,400 soldiers across the Delaware River toward an enemy camp. The enemy, having celebrated Christmas were fast asleep so the American army was able to take over 900 prisoners. This caused new soldiers to join the cause and existing soldiers to re-enlist.
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Battle of Saratoga/French Involvement
The British general John Burgoyne decided to push through New York, capture the Hudson River Valley, and cut off New England from other colonies. The only problem is this plan would require perfect timing and there was no room for errors. However while Burgoyne was executing his plan General Howe decided to do his own thing. This messed up his entire plan and when he finally got near Saratoga, New York he was alone and outnumbered. This was oneof the biggest wins for he Americans yet. But the biggest thing that this victory did for the Americans was
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Battle of Yorktown
In 1781 the patriots were in dire need of money to pay soldiers and buy supplies. If that wasn't bad enough an American General named Benedict Arnold switched sides to join the British. Because the American army was quite simply harassing the British army to the point of no return so the British were forced to move to York Town to communicate with the navy. The American Army, led by George Washington, surrounded General Cornwallis' army. The British army was forced to surrender and this marked the end of the Revolutionary War.
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