-
Battle of Long Island
This battle took place in Long Island New York. There were about 20,000 British fighting about 10,000 Americans. The Americans were led by General George Washington, but were quickly defeated by the British, led by William Howe, who were trying to capture New York and essentially isolate New England from the other colonies. This early loss caused the morale of Washington's men to drop greatly, but he did not give up and instead worked to regain morale. -
Battle of Trenton
This battle took place in Trenton, New Jersey. George Washington led around 2,400 American troops against about 1,400 Hessians (German troops paid to fight for British). Washington and his troops crossed the Delaware River in very cold conditions and took over Trenton with the help of the ignorance of the Hessian commander who ignored the message that Americans were coming. This American victory overturned a big part of the British confidence they had developed earlier in the year. -
Battle of Saratoga
This battle took place on the Hudson River near Saratoga, New York. Around 13,000 American troops were led by Horatio Gates and Benedict Arnold fighting 5,000 British. The British and American troops met in Saratoga and began fighting. The British were dominated by the Americans and 86% of their men were captured. America had suffered a pretty big loss at the Battle of the Brandywine just before this, so this gave them new confidence and energy and gave France the confidence to ally with them. -
Battle of Savannah
British troops wanted to regain control of the south, so they marched to Savannah, Georgia.They arrived just outside of Savannah and discovered that American defenses were quite weak. They decided to quickly attack and they successfully captured Savannah as well as many American soldiers. This was the start to the British plan to take over "rebellious South" and this win gave them the confidence that they would be able to do that. -
Battle of Cowpens
Took place on border of the Carolinas. American commander was Daniel Morgan and British commander was Banastre Tarleton. Both sides has around the same number of troops. American troops developed a new tactic that made the British think they had a chance to go hide, but instead the Americans were waiting and wiped out the British and over 800 troops were captured or killed. This boosted the morale of Americans greatly, allowing them to realize they had the upper hand toward the end of the war. -
Battle of Yorktown Begins
American and French troops of about 17,000 led by George Washington started the siege of around 9,000 British at Yorktown, Virginia. Washington had completely cornered the British led by General Cornwallis and spent about three weeks of constant attacks on them before the British surrendered on October 17, 1781. It was the deciding battle in the American Revolution and this ended the fighting in the colonies and peace negotiations began soon after to recognize America as a free nation.
