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In 1777, the British were still in excellent position to quell the rebellion. Had it not been for a variety of mistakes, they probably could have won the war. During early 1777, British officials considered a number of plans for their upcoming campaign. One they apparently decided upon was to campaign through the Hudson River Valley and thereby cut off New England from the rest of the colonies.
General William Howe was to drive north from New York City while General John Burgoyne was to drive south from Canada. Meanwhile, British General Barry St. Leger would drive down the Mohawk Valley in upstate New York. The major problem was not with the plan but with its execution. Historians continue to debate whether Howe was ill-informed or simply acted on his own. Whatever the reasons, Howe decided to capture Philadelphia, the seat of the Continental Congress, rather than to work in concert
with Burgoyne and St. Leger. Howe hoped that by seizing Philadelphia, he would rally the Loyalists in Pennsylvania, discourage the rebels by capturing their capital, and bring the war to a speedy conclusion. Washington tried to thwart Howe's plan, but Howe out-maneuvered him at Brandywine Creek and then at Germantown. While Howe's forces settled into winter quarters in Philadelphia, the Continental Army went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. There, the army faced deprivation in the
extreme. Meanwhile to the north, Burgoyne and St. Leger suffered significant defeats at Oriskany, New York; Bennington, Vermont; and finally at Saratoga, New York. These American victories were critical for they helped convince France to recognize American independence and brought the French directly into the war as military allies. The French Treaty was also a result of a new British peace proposal, announced by Lord North in late 1777. The French were concerned that the Americans would
agree to North's proposal since it offered them virtual autonomy within the British Empire. The French Alliance changed the face of the war for the British; the American war for independence was now in essence a world war. Even so, as many of the documents listed to the right suggest, winning the war even after the French Treaty was still not a certainty. For additional documents related to these topics, search Loc.gov using such
key words as Howe, Burgoyne, Gates, Saratoga, Philadelphia, Brandywine, Germantown, Valley Forge, France, and Vergennes (the French Foreign Minister). Search Washington's Papers and the Journals of the Continental Congress by date (of specific battles, for example), and use the terms found in the documents to the right of the page. Part of
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Who actually won the Revolutionary War?General George Washington led the American army to victory during the Revolutionary War. Despite having little practical experience in managing large, conventional armies, Washington proved to be a capable and resilient leader of the American military forces during the Revolutionary War.
Did the UK lose the Revolutionary War?The British war effort eventually ran out of steam and ground to a halt at Yorktown. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his battered army to the Americans — the British strategies had failed.
How did British lose American Revolution?Inability to Efficiently Supply the British Army
Cornwallis had stretched his supply lines so thin that anything less than a total victory against Nathanael Greene meant the end of his surge. This left him pinned at Yorktown and surrounded by the French Navy. His surrender would end the American Revolutionary War.
Why didn't the British win the Revolutionary War?There are significant reasons why the British lost the war despite having the upper hand in terms of weaponry and soldiers. Some of these include: the British fighting on American land, General Howe's lack of judgment, and the surrender of Lord Cornwallis and his soldiers.
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