You will need two colors to complete these notes. I will be using Blue for the

Continental Army (Americans), Red for

British Army (England).

Continental Army (Americans):Soldiers poorly trained / volunteers

Low on money and suppliesGeneral George Washington

British Army (England):Powerful army and navyNative Americans help themGerman mercenariesGeneral Cornwallis leads army

April 1775: Lexington and Concord

First Battle of the War: British troops go to get weapons and arrest colonial leaders. Paul Revere warns minutemen. After shots fired, British march back to Boston under fire from minutemen and suffer casualties.

June 1775: Bunker Hill

British and minutemen battle it out in Boston. Americans take Breed’s Hill and British attack. British win, but many die. Hope for victory is restored in the colonies

August 1776: New YorkContinental Army is defeated; Washington must retreat to Philadelphia

Dec. 1776: Trenton and Princeton

Americans are losing hope; low on supplies during a cold winter. Washington crosses the Delaware River on Christmas Eve to surprise German mercenaries and wins two major victories.

Oct. 1777: SaratogaTurning Point of the War. Local militia and Continental Army force the surrender of the British. France decides it will help the U.S. in the war. Turning point of the war.

May 1780: Charleston and Savannah

British under General Cornwallis take the 2 Southern cities.

Oct. 1781: Yorktown

Last Battle of the War. Washington attacked from the West and French ships attacked from the Atlantic, forcing a British surrender.

Do Now #111) What battle was the turning point of the War

for Independence? Saratoga was the turning point of the Revolutionary War because it gave colonists hope and Frances joins the war.

2) Explain why you think the colonists were able to win the Revolutionary War. We got help from the French which allowed us to surround Cornwallis at Yorktown.

Brainstorm: Why were colonists able to win the Revolutionary War? • Better Leadership

• Foreign Aid/Allies

• Home Court Advantage: Knowledge of the Land

• Motivation/willpower

Better Leadership• British generals were

overconfident and made bad decisions like to attack Bunker Hill.

• Washington learned from his early mistakes and

developed a strategy of dragging out the war to wear down the British.

• He never gave up.

Foreign Aid & Allies• “The enemy of your enemy

is your friend.”

• France helped surround Cornwallis and British troops at Yorktown.

• France, Germany and Spain send money, supplies and troops to America.

Home court Advantage Knowledge of the Land• The Americans knew the

land better and used the knowledge well. • Used snipers. • Used land as defense. • Had good escape routes.

• The British could control the coasts but never controlled the interior.

African Americans in the Revolutionary War   

Women in the Revolutionary War   

Motivation & Willpower• “If there is a will, there is a way!”• Americans had more reason to fight:

• Lives: if caught they would be hung for treason.

• Families • Property• Liberty

The Treaty of Paris • What was it? The official agreement that ended the

Revolutionary War.• What did it do? Created six conditions to satisfy

England and the United States and prevent further conflict.

Conditions of the Treaty of Paris:

New Boundaries of the USA

The Treaty of Paris • How did it work? It was signed by

England and the United States. Neither party fully lives up to its terms. • Americans don’t pay back their debt,

or give property back to loyalists.• England did not return runaway slaves

or give up military forts in the Great Lakes.