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The Battles of Lexington and Concord
Nearly 900 British troops under the control of British General Gage marched towards Boston with means to remove any weaponry being stored by the colonists. However, by way of Paul Revere and others the colonist had already been warned and moved the supplies as well as prepared themselves for an attack. While passing through Lexington the British troops were ambushed but they outnumbered the militia and they retreated. A bigger attack in Concord, the militia were able to gain British retreat. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
Following the fighting in Lexington and Concord militiamen flooded the city and gathered weapons and the British not happy with the strength attempted to attack and were defeated twice by the militia even though they almost doubled the number of colonists fighting, On the third attack the British were finally able to push the militia back but still suffered great losses. At this point it was realized that this was not merely a rebellion but a full-on revolution -
Capture of Montreal
While a magority of the British forces were in Boston, the Continental Congress began establishing a Continental Army under the command of George Washington, they aspired to march to Canada and encorage them to join the rebellion against Britian. In Sept. 1775 the American forces marched towards Montreal which fell with out much fight and they then turned towards Quebec -
Assault on Quebec
Two American forces traveled towards Quebec one under command of General Montgomery, the other under General Arnold. His group arrived in early November and lakced men and supplies but he still ordered an attack, the city refused to surrender so they retreated and waited for reinforcments. When Montgomery arrived in December the two began planning an attack and it took place on Dec. 31, a snowstore blew in and the muskets proved useless, they retreated. Total failure. -
British Fleet Arrives in New York
After abandoning Boston, the British decided to focus efforts on New York, led by two Howe brothers they launched an attack on the coast of New York. The Continental Congress was unaffected by this advance and the following day of the landing the Declaration of Independance was approved. -
Battle of Long Island
General Howe began sending his forces across the channel on Aug. 22, soon almost 20,000 troops were in Brooklyn, General Washington sent some 10,000 men to slow the advance under General Putnam. The rest prepared for battle, the Americans suffered great losses. Putnam evacuated and joined Washintons forces in Manhattan. However, he called off the attack due to insufficiency for the fight. -
The Battle of White Plains
After abandoning Manhattan, Washington reestablished his troops on higher ground near White Planes. General Howe launched an attack forcing the army off the field and had the opprotunity to destroy the Continental Army however he chose to stop and construct artillery batteries. This gave Washington and troops to retreat and regain strength. -
Battle of Trenton
General Washington and his troops were able to get back into Pennsylvania in November of 1778, followed by the British. Yet, in early Dec. General Howe ordered his troops too cease for the winter he deemed the Continental Army not to be a threat and would resume in spring. The army set camp in Valley Forge and Washington viewed the option that men would leave at the end of their enlistments. He decided to launch a sneak attack on the British. it was highly successful. -
Battle of Princeton
Washington hoped to attack the British once more before ending for the winter so he and his troops crossed the Deleware again and almost got trapped by a General Cornwallis at Trenton. However, he was able to avoid this and started towards Princeton. In only a few days Washington was able to force them out of most of New Jersey. This act seemed to reenergize the Revolution. -
Battle of Ticonderoga
In 1777 the British resumed their efforts in New York, they were trying to separate the New England states from the rest. They began moving south from Canada and along Lake Champlain. The biggest obstacle was Fort Ticonderoga commanded by General Arhtur St. Clair who believed his troops could hold off the attack. He was sadly mistaken and forced to have his men evacuate during the night. -
The Seige of Fort Stanwix
A British force advancing along Lake Champlain almost half beign Iroquois Indians. They surrounded Fort Stanwix and tow days later attacked a column of militia going to relieve the fort. However, they refused to surrender and over time the indians began to desert the troops. Benidict Arnold sent a rumor that he had huge troops advancing and this caused the British to flee and free the Fort. -
Battle of Brandywine
While the British worked to unload supplies from their ships, Washington traveled with the Continental Army to set up defenses at Chadds Ford but Howe divided his forces and eventually forced Washington to retreat. Now nothing kept Howe from Philadelphia. The Continental Congress fled to York, Pennsylvania and Howe advanced onto the capital. -
Battles of Saratoga
This was two battles in fact, in the first Benedict Arnold was able to keep the British back but was otherwise uneventful. The second battle took place and the Americans were able to not only resist the British attack but launch a counterattack causing British to withdraw and eventually surrender. Generally seen as the turning point in the war. -
Battle of Monmouth
British left Philadelphia and turned back towards New York. Washington decided to attack them on their march and there two forces met near Monmouth, New Jersey. Americans came close to retreating but were able to rally and fight the two British counterattacks. This fight gained nor lost anything except heavy losses and turned to be the biggest fight in the Northern Theater