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French were secretly sending weapons to the Patriots because they were still bitter from their war with the British.
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The British fled their camp in Boston and moved the war to the middle states in order to capture New York City.
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General William Howe and his brother Admiral Richard Howe sailed into New York harbor with over 32,000 soldiers.
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George Washington gathered 23,000 men, but it wasn't enought to beat Howe's army. The Americans retreated and lost New York in this brutal battle.
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The British had pushed the Continental Army across the Deleware River into Pennsylvania.
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Washington led 2,400 troops to Trenton, New Jersey and surprised the British with a successful attack.
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The 8,000 remaining soldiers of Washington's army were due for the end of their enlistment. Washington needed something to keep them going.
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Washington's army had another victory over the 1,200 British soldiers in Princeton, New Jersey.
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General Howe landed near the American capital of Philadelphia. Washington's army tried to hold them off at Brandywine Creek, but the British ended up capturing it.
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General John Burgoyne, leader of the British army, had a plan to meet up with General Howe and his troops in Albany, New York. General Howe was too busy with Philapelphia to meet him and in Saratoga, American troops surrouned Burgoyne and he was forced to surrender to American General Horatio Gates.
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The patriots spent the winter of 1777-1778 at Valley Forge under harsh conditions. They lived in freezing woods and 2,000 out of 10,000 soldiers were recorded dead.
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The victory at Saratoga supported the French trust in the American army. The agreement was that the French couldnt make peace with Britain unless America was independent.
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In the winter at Valley Forge, Friedrich Von Steuben, a Prussian captain, volunteered his his services to General George Washington and began teaching the soldiers fighting techniques that would ultimately help them win the war.
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After a bad loss at Saratoga the British moved South with hopes of reclaiming their Southern colonies with support from the loyalists. Then they planned to slowly move North.
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Near the end of 1778, the British took Savannah, Georgia during an expedition.
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A 20 year old French arisocrat, Marquis de Lafayette, offered his assistance to George Washington at Valley Forge. He got French reinforcements in 1779 and led a command in Virginia in the wars final years.
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General Henry Clinton and Charles Cornwallis moved south with 8,500 British troops.
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The British captured Charles Town, South Carolina as well as 5,000 American troops as prisonors of war.
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For most of 1780, the British were advancing and joining thousands of slaves who had escaped their Patriot owners.
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AFrench army of 6,000 were now stationed at Newport, Rhode Island. Marquis de Lafayette had heard of Cornwallis' troops in Yorktown, Virginia and had suggested that the French and American forces join to attack the British there.
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The British captured Camden, South Carolina from the Americans and procceded to build forts across the state.
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General Daniel Morgan was sent by Nathanael Greene under General George Washington's rule to harrass the British. Cornwallis sent Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton to attack the Continental troops. When they met in Cowpens, Soth Carolina, the Americans forced the British to surrender.
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Greene wrote a letter to Lafayette asking for help because he was concerned about the fight for the South.
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Congress appointed Robert Morris to become superintendant of finance. During his time as auperintendant he raised money for the Continental Army.
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The American troops were finally paid in specie (gold coin) after help from Robert Morris and his associate Haym Solamon.
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A French naval force blocked the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay while French and American soldiers surrounded the British at the Yorktown penninsula. This battle lasted about 3 weeks.
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On a road near Yorktown, Virginia, the American and French armies stood to witness the surrender of the British. General Charles O'Hara represented Cornwallis and gave up his sword.
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Representatives from the United States, Great Britain, France and Spain began meeting to discuss their veiw on things. Britain didn't want to give Americans full independance but France supported it. Spain wanted partial ownership of the land.
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All countries finally accepted America's full independance and signed a document called the Treaty of Paris. The United States was now independent and stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Missisippi River and from Canada down to Florida!
