The American Revolution
Independence declared on paper, then won on the ground from Boston to Yorktown with France tipping the balance.
5 topics · 16 questions
Each topic is a path, not a menu: work down it in order and every question builds on the one above. Click any of them to watch the answer draw itself.
Declaring Independence
- How it worksWalk me through how Jefferson builds the Declaration of Independence's case: natural rights, grievances, then the break.
- Common mistakeWhy isn't the Declaration of Independence the document that actually created the United States government?
- How it worksHow did Common Sense turn Thomas Paine's plain language into an argument thousands of colonists could repeat?
Your turn1 of 2
The Declaration of Independence opens by asserting that people have natural rights and that governments exist to protect them, then spends most of its length listing specific grievances against King George III, and only then announces the break from Britain. Why does Jefferson build the argument in this order?The War in the North and the Turning Point at Saratoga
- How it worksShow me the British strategy to cut New England off by controlling the Hudson River, and how it fell apart at Saratoga.
- Going furtherWhat changes the moment France decides Saratoga proves the Americans can actually win?
- Worked exampleTrace Washington's retreat across New Jersey in late 1776 to his surprise crossing of the Delaware on Christmas night.
Your turn1 of 2
Britain captured New York City in 1776, one of the largest cities in the colonies, but Washington's army escaped through New Jersey rather than being destroyed there. Why didn't losing New York knock Washington's army out of the war?The French Alliance and the War Moves South
- How it worksWalk me through what France's alliance actually supplied: ships, money, soldiers, and a navy that could challenge Britain's.
- Going furtherWhat happens to British control of the South once partisan fighters like Francis Marion start striking supply lines?
- How it worksHow did the British strategy shift south to the Carolinas once the northern war became a stalemate?
Your turn1 of 2
By 1778, the war in the North had settled into a stalemate, with neither Washington's army nor British forces able to force a decisive battle. British commanders then shifted their main campaign to the Carolinas. What best explains this southern shift?Loyalists, Patriots, and a Divided Home Front
- How it worksShow me where Loyalist strength concentrated on the map compared to where Patriot support ran strongest.
- Common mistakeWhy isn't it true that nearly every colonist wanted independence once the fighting started?
- Going furtherWhat happens to a Loyalist family's property and safety once independence is actually won?
Your turn1 of 2
Historians estimate that a substantial share of colonists remained loyal to Britain or tried to stay neutral during the Revolution, with Loyalist strength running much higher in some regions than others. Why isn't it true that nearly every colonist wanted independence once fighting started?Yorktown and the Peace of Paris
- Going furtherWhat happens to Native nations whose land Britain hands to the United States in the Treaty of Paris without asking them?
- How it worksShow me how the French navy and Washington's army sealed Cornwallis into Yorktown from sea and land at once.
- How it worksWalk me through what the 1783 Treaty of Paris actually gave the new United States on the map.
- Ties togetherHow does winning independence at Yorktown create the very question the Constitutional Convention has to answer next?
Your turn1 of 2
At Yorktown in October 1781, the French navy blocked the sea while Washington's army closed in by land, trapping and forcing the surrender of a British army of about 7496 soldiers. Britain had roughly 31894 troops total across all of North America at the time. About what percentage of Britain's North American army was captured in this one surrender?