The American Revolutionary War

There’s unrest on the east coast of America. It is almost two hundred years since the first British colonists moved here, to create a new life on this side of the Atlantic. It has not been easy. America does not look like home. Crops that they know how to grow at home do not grow well at all, in this new environment.

The colonists have had to adapt and find new crops. They have often been hungry. They have been fighting with the natives, the Indians. They have been fighting against the French colonists, and finally won. Despite all the problems they have encountered, they have made America their new home.

Now there are thirteen British colonies in America. They are in conflict with their homeland Britain, and they are tired of everything being decided in London. To protest against taxes and customs, they recently threw a cargo of tea worth a fortune into Boston's harbour. One of the rioters who was there is Samuel Adams, and now he is on the run from the British soldiers. He is hiding in Lexington.

The British come there, but the rioters have weapons, and they open fire. The British army is both larger and better armed. But they are caught off guard, and this time they are beaten. These first shots in Lexington, are the start of the American Revolutionary War. The war is between Britain and the colonists, but not all the colonists are on the side of the revolution.

Some are loyal to their homeland and are fighting on the British side. The colonial army is lead by commander George Washington. He is an old war hero from the war against the French colonists. After that war, he became one of Virginia's richest plantation owners, and a politician. Washington's troops consist of poorly paid soldiers.

Many are veterans from the war against France, others have never been to war before. The army is helped by farmers who have formed their own armed groups, militias. France secretly supplies the colonists with weapons and ammunition. They want revenge on Britain which took away all their colonies in the seven-year war. At first, the British troops are superior.

Many of Washington’s soldiers are killed. But over time the colonial army becomes more efficient. In July 1776, representatives from all 13 colonies meet in Philadelphia. There they form the United Colonies, which will later be renamed the United States of America - USA. On the fourth of July, they sign a document calling for independence: the United States Declaration of Independence.

They now consider the United Colonies to be a sovereign country. The fighting continues in the colonies. The British bring reinforcements from home, and soon they have a force of 40,000 men. The British are superior at sea, and occupy all the American coastal cities; while the colonists are in control inland. There they can hide, and get food from the locals.

Using sudden, unexpected attacks and rapid withdrawals, the colonists win many battles. They are conducting a guerrilla war. In 1780 France, Spain, and the Netherlands officially join the war on the colonists’ side. Now Britain, is not only at war against the rebels in America, but against almost all of Europe. This is too difficult for Britain.

In 1783, they are forced to sign a peace treaty in Paris. The colonies, or The United States of America as it is now called, has won. It is now an independent nation.