For the British, maintaining effective leadership was a greater challenge
than raising troops, leading them to suffer crippling losses.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ]
Evaluate the challenges Britain faced throughout the war
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
Germain underestimated the difficulties posed by North American terrain; he also underestimated
the determination of the colonists.
The British supplemented their forces with approximately 30,000 German soldiers, known
as Hessians.
The British also grew in strength with the addition of Loyalistarmy units.
Many British officers did not support the war and declined to command in this conflict.
The many small victories the British achieved in the war were ultimately outweighed by the few
devastating losses they suffered.
The British supplemented their armed forces with 30,000 German soldiers, referred to as Hessians.
Lord George Germain, Secretary of State for the American Department, bore much responsibility for
strategy and coordination of British operations during the war.
The British supplemented their armed forces with 30,000 German soldiers, referred to as Hessians.
Though the British forces attracted almost 20,000 Loyalists from the colonies, they had counted on
greater support.
TERMS [ edit ]
Lord George Germain
George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville PC (26 January 1716 – 26 August 1785), styled The
Honourable George Sackville until 1720, Lord George Sackville from 1720 to 1770 and Lord George
Germain from 1770 to 1782, was a British soldier and politician who was Secretary of State for
America in Lord North's cabinet during the American War of Independence.
Hessians
The Hessians were 18th­century German soldiers hired through their rulers by the British
Empire.
Lord North
Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford, KG, PC (13 April 1732 – 5 August 1792); Prime Minister of
Great Britain from 1770 to 1782.
Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [ edit ]
Lord George Germain served as Secretary of State for America during the Revolutionary
War. He was the primary architect of British strategy in this conflict, working closely with
British Prime Minister Lord North. In addition to strategic planning, Germain was
responsible for promoting and relieving Generals, and distribution of provisions and
supplies. Germain's poor understanding of the geography of the colonies and the terrain of
North America were great disadvantages. Germain and North also underestimated the
strength of the colonists. Following the war, Germain's ministry received much of the blame
for Britain's loss of thirteen American colonies.
In 1775, British forces were sent to America to put down what was initially expected to be a
short­lived rebellion. Because the British army was understrength at the outset of the war,
the British government hired the armed forces of several German states. These allies
supplied roughly 30,000 soldiers, or approximately one­third of the British strength in
North America. These German soldiers became known as "Hessians" to the Patriots and were
viewed as mercenaries. By 1779, the number of British and German troops stationed from
Canada to Florida was over 60,000. The ministry also sought to recruit Loyalist soldiers with
limited success. The British never found the Loyalist support in the colonies they anticipated.
Maintaining capable leadership was a challenge for the British throughout the war.
General Thomas Gage, in command of British forces in North America during the early
rebellion, suffered criticism for his leniency. Several senior British officers turned down
appointments or publicly resigned commissions because they chose not to take sides in the
conflict. William Howe and Henry Clinton, officers with prominent roles in the war, publicly
declared that they were unwilling participants and merely following orders.
Though the British defeated the colonists in a majority of the battles of the Revolutionary
War, these victories rarely achieved decisive results. Conversely, the British defeats at the
Battle of Saratoga and Siege of Yorktown had a strongly negative impact on British morale,
prestige and manpower.
George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville by Nathaniel Hone the Elder, by 1766
As Secretary of State for the American Department, Germain was largely responsible for British
strategy in the Revolutionary War