WHY DID THE AMERICANS TRIUMPH
The Americans triumphed in the war for Independence due to a number of reasons, which when combined, could only lead to one solution, that of victory for the Americans. As Hugh Brogan says, 'There was no middle ground for the Americans: for them it was either victory or total submission.' The reasons are far and wide reaching and include a number of failures by the British. The British failed to use the loyalist Americans who numbered up to a third of the population, they withheld some of their best troops from the conflict and suffered major communication problems. The role of George Washington as commander-in-chief was an important factor in the success of the Continental Army and the final reason for American success lies in the support it received from other nations and in particular from France.The American Revolution divided the American people in three ways. There were those who wanted a new political order and wanted to be free from the British, there were those who were loyal to Britain and those who had not decided who to side with or did not care which way the conflict went. The revolutionaries called those loyal to Britain 'Tories, royalists or the King's men.' The British did not make enough use of what could
Although these wins were only small ones Washington and the Continental Army were able to settle into their winter quarters on a positive note. The Spanish aid to America included 'Four hundred thousand dollars in subsidies and two hundred and fifty thousand in loans. Throughout 1776 and 1777 the British failed to totally defeat the Continental Army and this gave Americans strength and gave them a symbol to look up to, that symbol was George Washington. Within a few months of this event two treaties had been signed with France, a Treaty of Amity and Commerce 'in which France recognised the United States,' and a Treaty of Alliance. The main foreign support for the Americans came from the French who were still smarting over their defeat by Britain in the Seven Year's War and wanted to see the British defeated. The importance of Washington cannot be over exaggerated, 'Washington was the Army, and at times only the existence of an Army kept the Revolution alive. Therefore the British sent out some of their weaker forces and hired mercenaries to fight for them. American success was cemented by the support it received from other countries including Holland, Spain and in particular from France. Many other possible loyalists were lost to the British cause due to the actions and behaviour of some of the British troops who treated some of the American civilian population with contempt. His skills in his dealings with the politicians and his leadership and the loyalty he received from most of his men were vital in the winning of the conflict. The French supported the Americans from the start of the war when they sent over fourteen ships filled with military supplies. ' The Dutch gave financial aid to the Americans and supplied them with a large amount of gunpowder; they also carried large amounts of the French supplies on their vessels over to America. The rape and ransacking carried out by some of the British troops 'Converted potential friends into enemies. Large parts of the terrain were covered in impenetrable forests.
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