Chapter 7 - The American Revolution
Section 3 – The Path to Victory
Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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Savannah and Charles Town
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Believing most Southerners were Loyalists, the
British moved the war to the South – after three
years of fighting in the North, they were no
closer to victory
The British could capture cities, but didn’t have
enough troops to take the countryside - they
hoped to enlist the help of Loyalists in the South
to help them hold captured territory
The British also hoped a large number of slaves
would join them to win their freedom – although
thousands did run away to join the British, not all
were freed – some were sold by the British
officers into slavery in the West Indies
Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
Savannah and Charles Town
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
The Swamp Fox and Guerilla
Fighting
Finally, the British wanted to use Southern ports
to transport troops stationed in the West Indies
back and forth between the two regions
In 1778, the British captured Savannah, Georgia,
then went on to capture most of Georgia
In 1780, General Henry Clinton landed in South
Carolina and captured 5,000 Americans soldiers
at Charles Town – nearly all of the Southern
army – It was the worst American defeat of the
war
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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After the loss of the Southern army at Charles
Town, Congress assigned General Horatio Gates
to build a new Southern army with Continental
soldiers led by Baron de Kalb at its core
Gates added 2,000 new untrained militia, and
headed for Camden, South Carolina to confront
the British army led by General Cornwallis
On the way, he met Francis Marion and a small
band of his men – Marion provided Gates with
valuable information on the swamplands in
South Carolina
Gates sent Marion and his men to destroy British
boats on the Santee River to cut off British
communications with Charles Town
In 1780, Gates ran into British troops outside
Camden – his troops were in no condition to
fight; they were out of supplies and half-starved
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
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The Swamp Fox and Guerilla
Fighting
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Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
To make matters worse, Gates put his
inexperienced militia on the front line instead of
his seasoned veterans
When the British attacked, the militia, along with
Gates, panicked and ran; only Kalb and his
troops remained to fight - Kalb received several
wounds and died
This was the second defeat in the South and
resulted in Gates being removed as head of an
army – this also caused American spirits to fall
After Camden, Marion then set up a base of
operations in the swamps and cut the British
supply lines that led inland and north from
Charles Town
Marion used guerrilla tactics, or hit-and-run
tactics, to keep the British off balance
Both Patriots and Loyalists formed guerrilla
bands, carrying out vicious raids on each other
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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The Tide Turns
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Some of the bloodiest battles of the war were
fought in the South – for example, at the Battle
of Kings Mountain, fought on the border
between North and South Carolina in 1780,
Patriots surrounded a force of 1,000 Loyalist
militia and British officers – then proceeded to
slaughter most of them
Many of the dead had been shot or hanged after
they surrendered – the slaughter at Kings
Mountain was in revenge for an earlier battle in
which the British had slaughtered Americans
who had surrendered
Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
The Tide Turns
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
The End of the War
A former Quaker kicked out of his church for
supporting the war, Nathanial Greene was
placed in charge of the Southern army
Under Greene's command, the American army
avoided full-scale battles with the British and
instead let the British chase them around the
countryside wearing themselves out
When they did confront the British, they made
sure the British suffered heavy casualties - this
lead to increased opposition to the war in Britain
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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In 1781, most of the fighting took place in
Virginia - in July Cornwallis made his base at
Yorktown on the peninsula in Chesapeake Bay
When the French fleet arrived in August of 1781,
Washington took advantage of Cornwallis's
decision and blocked the Chesapeake Bay
When Washington moved his troops down from
the north, Cornwallis was trapped on the
peninsula, unable to receive reinforcements or
supplies
When British ships tried to reach Cornwallis, the
French fleet drove them back
During the Battle of Yorktown, the Americans
and French troops bombarded Yorktown,
reducing its buildings to rubble - Cornwallis had
no way out
Chapter 7 - The
American Revolution
The End of the War
Chapter 7.3 – The War Expands
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On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his
8,000 troops
Although some fighting continued, Yorktown was
the last major battle of the war - When Lord
North heard the news he reportedly gasped, "it's
all over!“
Lord North and other British leaders were forced
to resign - the new leaders began to negotiate
peace terms - the Americans had won their
independence
wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Surrender_of_Lord_Cornwallis.jpg