The American Revolution: A War for Independence Essay Example

The battle toward American independence was a  complex process, which had many variables rutted that caused the result of the American emancipation from the British. Even though, analysts would have guessed the Americans would fail, due to several reasons which will be discussed thoroughly later on in this essay. Therefore, this discussion is very important to understand how the little details of this war between an empire and a colony resulted in such a bizarre result.

The British soldiers underestimated the colonies, however, the thing they most underestimated was the American nationalism and motivation. This is because, after the Boston Massacre, more Americans joined in the cause of independence as they thought this massacre was the greatest injustice as only “innocent Americans” came in a tumult to protest “No taxation without representation”. Even if it is known only five Americans were murdered, and also that they were rather violent towards the soldiers. Nevertheless, the media presented this issue as an unjust murder where the British took their power to punish the Americans. The publications made by newspapers, especially the picture made by Paul Revere caused extreme anger towards the British, as it was interpreted as the British killing calm and unharmful people. This further added to the anger and feeling of unfairness that was broiling in the American colonies due to the now taxation implemented on tea. This massacre is so important, as it was the start of the war, the colonies now had a reason to go and fight. This motivation caused two-thirds of Americans to support the cause of emancipation. This created more money, information and soldiers as more people were eager to join the cause. Furthermore, this motivation only grew after the battle in bunker hill. This battle is so important, as it showed the Americans could finally hold a fight against the British. Even Though the Americans lost the battles, they caused many casualties; approximately the number of British that were wounded or killed was 1054. Which was a huge deal as an army that wasn't even trained caused so much damage to the most powerful army in the world. This causes a huge increase in morale and confidence. As they saw a way of winning the battle. That happened in the battle of Saratoga in 1777. This was the turning point of the war as they finally managed to win against Britain in a huge battle, with a whole army. This was a turning point in this year-long war as Burgoyne was defeated and the British army was also defeated. Finally, motivation was the gasoline to turn on the car to win their emancipation. If they didn't have morals they wouldn't have found a way to make the British army weaker and make them loose.

The Americans wouldn't have won the war without using tactics to attack and weaken the opposing army rather than winning battles. This is because of the famous guerilla warfare. This type of tactic to fight a war was aimed only to weaken your opponent. This means the soldiers using this tactic couldn't spend too much time because if they did the opponent would respond. The Americans used this as a method to weaken the British army, as they knew that only fighting and trying to win the battles would not get them a victory. What would, is causing casualties. Some examples in which this method was used are, Lexington; where 70 minute men (patriots) were lined up to prevent the British from achieving their journey to concord by shooting them, this resulted in 73 killed, 74 wounded and 26 missings, this was the first time guerilla warfare was used. Another one would be the Trenton attack, where Burgoyne was ambushed and surrendered. Not only did they attack but also intruded on communication and supply lines. Making it insecure for the British to trust it. The majority of guerrillas were called “bushwackers”, named because they tended to hide behind foliage and forest lines to attack the British. Bushwhackers were un-uniformed civilian resisters, who had no affiliation with the Confederate army, and were a source of constant confusion for the Union army who had no way of distinguishing a peaceful Southern civilian from one who would attack them later, this is because this kind of tactic was most used in the south. This kind of warfare used to only attack the opponent or in more descriptive words ``hit and run”, helped the American win the war, as everyone tried, uniformed and uniformed officers, to cause casualties to the British.

Guerilla warfare worked just fine, however, they wouldn't have gotten anywhere without great leadership. Fortunately, the Americans were given this by George Washington. He was another reason why Americans got emancipation, due to his great experiences, as he had fought in the French Indian war. Fighting in this gave him great  knowledge so that he could victor opposing one of the greatest armies in the world. His great knowledge on the battlefield helped motivate the soldiers. As they saw George Washington as the man who would bring the 13 colonies liberty. He always managed to avoid defeat, and always found a way to cause the other army many losses. Some examples of his great leadership and great skill in making choices to help the continental army would be; The decision of Valley Forge. In late 1777 while the British occupied the patriot capital of Philadelphia, George Washington decided that in winter to have his troops at Valley Forge, only a short distance from the city. Valley Forge was a naturally defensible plateau where they could train and recoup from the year’s battles while winter weather, impassable roads, and scant supplies stopped the fighting. Another example would be the Trenton attack, where the Americans attacked a garrison of Hessian mercenaries, this boosted morale and helped the soldiers be more motivated. Finally, another example, however, not the least important, would be the Yorktown Battle. This battle would be the most important in George Washington's career as this was the battle that gave Americans independence. They had cornered the British with battleships from the French and soldiers, so they finally retreated. This battle is the battle that granted emancipation, as the British army in Yorktown was the biggest there, so it ended with Americans celebrating.

George Washington was a great leader, however, that would not be enough. They needed training and resources from an army that was trained to win. So, the French alliance came in handy. This Franco-American alliance helped the soldiers to know what to do, and how to attack the enemy and defend themselves. This alliance also granted many resources that they crucially needed due to a long time in war with Britain. These resources were very varied such as; battleships, appropriate guns, battle strategies, finance, an industry of weapons, and natural supplies. It also gave a boost of confidence to the Americans as a very powerful army helped them and gave them financial help. Furthermore, the French offered great generals and great soldiers to help them, resulting in a turning point in the war. This is because, now the Americans had an advantage, the knowledge and power of the french. Finally, the franco alliance was fundamental for the achievement of emancipation, as they were a huge part of the victory in Yorktown. This is because they were the ones who offered battleships to make sure the British soldiers couldn't bring more soldiers or resources and to make sure they couldn't escape. By land, they were also cornered by the American soldiers with guns.

The Americans had one more huge advantage against the British and it was that the war was fought in their land. Even though, experts would say it is convenient due to the destruction of the land. However, that wasn't so important when other factors, like, the distance between Britain and the United States came in hand for the British. Britain needed to spend great amounts of  money to send resources across the Atlantic ocean in a wooden ship, meaning it would take a long time to get to America. These resources were fundamental, like uniforms, soldiers, food, weapons, munitions, etc. This was sent to the British soldiers in America and after the 8-year long war, their budget was only growing narrower every second. In addition, not only was the distance from Britain the problem, but also, the number of soldiers sent to control the American people. Britain was a huge empire that couldn't spend all its resources in only one colony, so the number of weapons and soldiers was limited. Even if there were more British soldiers than Americans and they were much better trained, it still wasn't enough to control such land size. Finally, another advantage the Americans had was how they knew their land. They knew where to go to attack and use the guerilla warfare tactics the best. They knew how to hide from soldiers. This was a huge advantage as they could harvest and produce their supplies and could maintain each other throughout the war without the budget to be as affected in pain as the British.

In conclusion, there were many reasons why the British lost to the Americans, even if the odds were against it. It is important to understand each variable even little, to know the importance of union and battle strategy. This history is so important as the dramatics have affected the laws and beliefs created nowadays.