The war that led to the independence of the US was fought between 1775 and 1783. It is commonly referred to as the American Revolution. Thirteen American colonies came together to fight Britain to become an independent nation, USA. The war was long because Britain was the greatest nation in the world at that time. One year into the war, the thirteen colonies declared independence and separated from the colonialists and forged an alliance with France whose main role was to bring a military balance between the two fighting sides.
The complexity of the war was based on the fact that Americans were divided into three. Those who remained loyal to the King of Britain were loyalists, those who wanted independence were called patriots, and the others remained neutral. These divisions made it difficult for all the colonies to stand united against Britain.
The major cause of the revolution was Republicanism. Americans had established liberty that was enjoyed all citizens and Britain was opposed to it (Davidson 112). This was a supplement to the issue of Americans demanding to be enjoined through parliament in setting the taxes. The matter was regarded as an issue of representation and therefore people demanded to be consulted. The success of the thirteen colonies could b attributed to several factors.
The British failed to suppress Massachusetts. Britain valued the thirteen colonies because they were the richest and most developed in the whole Empire. The generals of Britain tactically failed to subdue Boston because of the strategy employed by the citizens. They formed a provisional government, trained militia groups, and set informers within the British Empire. They established the minute men system that was used in raising alarms. This structure was well coordinated and as such Britain could not infiltrate.
In Britain decided to engage in a combat with Boston in 1975 after all her political maneuvers had failed. This turned out to be disastrous as the minute men were very effeicient. Major John Pitcaim the man who led the mission failed miserably (Langguth 88). The Americans tasted victory when they launched a seemingly impossible mission during the Battle of Bunker Hill in Boston in 1777.
The structural organization of the Americans worked to their advantage. The war was coordinated by the Continental Congress that was headed by George Washington, a wealthy tobacco planter with military experience. As the commander in chief, he lost many battles against the well oiled British Army but won the most important one that was fought at the end.
The structure allowed unity to prevail through the ranks in the forces. Errors made by British Army allowed chances for the Continental Army to exploit. The Britons failed to develop a counter- revolutionary policy. They held assumptions that it was not a revolution and the rebels would finally be subdued. A policy that could have worked was brought in 1776. This was however very late and little could be done to salvage Britain whose boat had already sunk.
The decisive victory came in 1777 at Saratoga. The battalion that accompanied Burgoyne was unnecessarily large because it slowed the pace. This allowed the Americans to prepare before his arrival. His army men were running short of food at an alarming rate. Though inexperienced, Americans fought in a disciplined way, were sober, courageous, and quite regular in following commands.
It was not until October that the British commander formally surrendered. His men were disarmed, taken to Boston, and then others were sent home never to return to America. However, some redcoats were held hostage to be used in the combats in areas that still experienced war. France supplied money, ammunitions, and forged an alliance against Britain in support of the rebellious colonies.
Works Cited
Davidson, James. U.S. A Narrative History. New York: McGraw Hill, 2012. Print.
Langguth, Andrew. The Men Who Started the American Revolution. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989. Print.