While Washington and his troops endured the harsh conditions of Valley Forge, General Howe enjoyed the comforts of Philadelphia. However, capturing the city did not provide any military advantage for the British, resulting in General Howe being replaced by Sir Henry Clinton in 1778. Clinton, who had always disapproved of the Philadelphia venture, decided to evacuate the city and return the army to New York. Washington pursued the scattered British forces and engaged them in the Battle of Monmouth at Monmouth courthouse in New Jersey. In a long and sweltering battle during June, both armies fought to a stalemate.
Following the Battle of Monmouth, the British advanced towards New York, resulting in Washington achieving a technical victory. Nevertheless, the war persisted and attention shifted to the southern colonies as tensions reduced in the north. Although Charleston, South Carolina endured an unsuccessful assault by the British early on in the conflict, there had been minimal combat in this region. This was unexpected given its considerable importance and contribution to Britain’s reliance on goods such as tobacco, rice, indigo, and others that it could not produce itself.
The surplus from these crops generated a substantial profit in England and Europe. The southern colonies relied heavily on imported manufactured foods and banking services from Britain. Previously loyal to the king of England, the Loyalists changed their allegiance when faced with the threat of losing their homes and property to invading British forces. They realized they actually supported independence. However, the British expectation that loyal colonists in the South would support their cause did not materialize. In December 1778, Lord Cornwallis led a British army to Savannah and conquered Georgia.
Congress quickly formed a southern army led by Benjamin Lincoln. Lincoln and the British went through the tidal swamps of South Carolina for a year. General Clinton trapped Lincoln in Charleston and he surrendered in May 1780. The surrender of Lincoln’s army was the largest American defeat in the war. With South Carolina seemingly under control, Clinton departed for New York. Meanwhile, Congress appointed Horatio Gates, the hero of Saratoga, as the new commander in the South. Gates faced Cornwallis at Camden in South Carolina.
Gates’ militia fled at the sight of British bayonets, taking their commander with them. Congress removed Gates from his position and requested Washington to appoint a new leader in the South. Washington chose Nathaniel Greene, a former bookseller from Rhode Island. Upon Greene’s arrival, the situation had significantly shifted. With two victories, Cornwallis’ western side was weakened, allowing Greene to focus on confronting the main British army. Cleverly, Greene allowed Cornwallis to freely navigate the forests of North Carolina without engaging his own troops in battle.
Cornwallis quickly realized the same thing as Burgeoned – after marching for hundreds of miles, he discovered that he had gained nothing but the land beneath his feet. In March of 1781, Greene finally engaged in battle at Guilford, North Carolina, resulting in a stalemate. Desperate for a victory, Cornwallis pursued Greene, but Greene cleverly escaped into Virginia. Regarding the war in the west, it was primarily the Indians who continued to fight. The British informed the Indians that if the colonists emerged victorious, they would be forced out of their territories and the colonists would establish their farms there.
According to reports, the English allegedly offered gifts to Indian warriors who provided them with human scalps. George Rogers Clark, a brave and audacious frontiersman, decided to bring an end to the Indian attacks in the Western regions. Leading a group of men along the Ohio River, Clark surprised the British frontier fortresses situated in present-day Illinois and Indiana. After leaving a small contingent in Viennese, now part of Indiana, the fort was recaptured by Colonel Hamilton, the British commander. Hamilton anticipated that the Americans would attempt another assault on the fort but believed they would wait until spring.
Clark successfully led a small group of men through icy and snowy conditions to reclaim the fort, which resulted in the Americans gaining control over a significant expanse of land encompassing the Great Lakes, the Ohio River, and the Mississippi River. As a result of Clark’s campaign, the presence and threat of Native American tribes diminished along the frontier. Meanwhile, the American Navy saw action as fishing vessels and merchant ships from New England, armed with guns and crews, set sail to intercept enemy ships. These privately owned ships, referred to as privateers, managed to capture numerous British merchant vessels, bringing them back to port.
The cargo of the captured ship was sold and the money divided among the privateer’s crew. As the war continued, fewer American ships sailed out due to British man-of-wars closely monitoring the coast for privateers. When they were still British colonists, Americans relied on the British fleet for protection. However, the same fleet was now their adversary. Congress started constructing a navy early in the war. John Paul Jones, a Scottish seaman residing in Virginia, advised Congress to construct fast and small ships. Throughout the Revolutionary War, this advice was followed.
During the American Revolution, the United States Navy had around forty ships. However, before the war ended, their crews captured or sunk thirty-six ships to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. Despite its small size, the American navy showed impressive skill. One of the most famous naval battles of the Revolution was between a British man-of-war and a French-built ship commanded by John Paul Jones. Cruising along the British coast on his vessel, named Bonhomie Richard, Jones came across a fleet of merchant ships guarded by four British warships. In a daring move, he launched an attack on Serapes.
During the intense three-hour battle, the Bonhomie Richard sustained significant damage and began to leak heavily. Captain Jones maneuvered his ship so close to the Serapes that their cannons nearly touched. The British commander asked, “Have you lowered your flag?” In words that have become legendary, Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight,” and continued firing. Soon, the decks of the Bonhomie Richard became filled with dead and injured soldiers, while the Serapes also suffered severe damage. When the mainmast of the Serapes collapsed, the British commander surrendered to Jones. Through this victory, John Paul Jones demonstrated that Americans were capable of fighting effectively both on land and at sea.
After residing in Europe for a significant portion of his later years, Jones’ remains were eventually returned to the United States and presently lie in a distinguished grave at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. In any conflict, there exist individuals who can be categorized as either heroes or traitors, those who make substantial contributions to the cause and those who seek to undermine it. The two most renowned figures embodying such roles are Nathan Hale and Benedict Arnold. When the British took control of New York City, Washington desired to gather intelligence regarding their plans. Consequently, he requested volunteers willing to infiltrate New York City for espionage purposes.
Among the volunteers who secretly entered New York City, one was Captain Nathan Hale, 21 years old. Tragically, he was captured and executed by the British for espionage. Even in the face of death, Nathan Hale bravely uttered his last words: ‘I regret only having one life to sacrifice for my country.’ Another important occurrence took place in 1780 involving a Patriot leader named Benedict Arnold. Having displayed remarkable skill earlier in the war through assaults on Quebec and involvement in the Battle of Saratoga – an event that ultimately resulted in Burgoyne’s surrender.
Arnold, an ambitious man, believed he deserved greater recognition for his contributions to the Patriot cause. Despite being the military governor of Philadelphia, he faced criticism and was court-martialed due to misuse of his powers. Additionally, Arnold was burdened by significant debts. His desperate need for money and wounded pride led him to seek alliance with the British. Not only did he provide them with confidential military information, but he also persuaded Washington to appoint him as the commander of West Point fort in New York. Arnold intended to betray the fort and surrender it to the British forces.
In 1780, the plot to surrender West Point was discovered through the capture of Major Andre, an English officer engaged in dealings with Arnold. Andre was executed as a spy while Arnold managed to reach the British lines safely. He then fought for the British during the remainder of the war. In later years, Arnold died in England as an unhappy man. His name became synonymous with treason in his homeland and he was even regarded with contempt in England. The Battle of Yorktown saw Cornwallis realizing that to maintain control over the Carolinas, he would need to conquer Virginia. In April 1781, he began moving north, anticipating…
Instead of following Greene, Greene maneuvered around the British forces and went towards South Carolina. Meanwhile, Cornwallis was advancing through Virginia while Greene gradually took control of the British outposts in South Carolina. However, this strategic move by Greene left Virginia vulnerable to Cornwallis. To monitor Cornwallis, Washington dispatched Lafayette with command over a small number of Virginian and Maryland Continentals. Once von Stouten and Anthony Wayne joined forces with Lafayette, Cornwallis withdrew to Yorktown, located near Chesapeake Bay, in anticipation of support from New York.
Lafayette established a camp at Williamsburg and corresponded with General Washington. In his letter, Lafayette informed Washington that if he could bring the main army south before the relief ships arrived, Cornwallis could potentially be trapped. Luckily, alongside Lafayette’s letter, news arrived at Washington’s New York headquarters from French Admiral De Grasses that the French fleet would be present in American waters that summer. Subsequently, Washington instructed De Grasses to go to Chesapeake Bay to blockade Cornwallis while he swiftly moved south. De Grasses transported him through Chesapeake Bay, and together with the combined French-American force, Lafayette possessed control over Yorktown.
When the British relief force arrived, both fleets engaged in a battle that resulted in no clear victory, but forced the British ships to return to New York for repairs. This left Cornwallis trapped. Eventually, on October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his army. With Greene having control of South Carolina, the fighting ceased and the British found themselves back at their starting point.
