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In early 1776, the French had secretly sent weapons to the Patriots because they were mad the British had defeated them in the French and Indian War.
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The British troops retreated from Boston, which changed the location of the war to the Middle states instead of the New England colonies.
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During the summer of 1776, General William Howe and Admirial Richard Howe came together and traveled into the New York harbor with the largest British expeditionary force ever assembled. It was made up of 32,00 soldiers, including German mercenaries. In response, Washington assembled 23,000 men to protect New York.
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In late August, the battle for New York finished with a retreat made by American troops and their heavy casualties. The untrained soldiers along with their poor equipment led to the British victory over New York.
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In late fall, the British had pushed Washington's men across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania. Most of the soldiers under the command of Washington died, left, or were captured by the British.
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George Washington led 2,400 men across the cold Delaware River in small rowboats.
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The Continental Army had traveled to Trenton, New Jersey and led a surprise attack that resulted in a victory. The men were able to kill 30 of the enemy, took 918 British as captives, and took 6 Hessian cannons.
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Washington's men defeated the 1,200 British in Princeton. Then, they all went to a winter camp near Morristown, New Jersey encouraged by their newest victories.
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In late August, General Howe and his troops landed near the capital of Philadelphia after sailing from New York to the head of the Chesapeake Bay. The British captured Philadelphia and made the Continental Congress flee the city.
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General John Burgoyne is surrounded at Saratoga by American troops and surrenders his army to General Gates.
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During the winter of 1777-1778 the Continental Army camped at Valley Forge. The rough conditions led to the death of 2,000 men out of 10,000.
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Impressed with the victory in the Battle of Saratoga, the French recognized American independence and signed an alliance with them. Thus, the French agreed not to make peace with Britain unless Britain also accepted the American colonies independence.
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Friedrich von Steuben volunteered to help Washington's men become strong soldiers. He taught the men how to fight in battles and the Continental Army was changing into a powerful force.
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In the summer of 1778, Britain sent their troops to the South after their loss at Saratoga. They hoped their new destination would benefit them as they rallied the support of Loyalists, worked to reclaim their former colonies, and slowly fight their way back to the north.
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The British led a journey that was easily able to take control of Savannah, Georgia.
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In the year of 1779, Marquis de Lafayette offered his assisance to Washington's men and persuaded for French reinforcements in France in order to help the Continental Army.
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In the spring of 1779, a governor from Great Britain (or royal governor) once again held authority over the state of Georgia.
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In the year 1780, General Henry Clinton and General Charles Cornwallis sailed south with 8,500 men to reclaim former colonies. For the most part of that year, Cornwallis succeeded.
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Under the command of General Charles Cornwallis, the British were able to capture Charles Town, South Carolina and take 5,500 American soldiers as prisoners of war.
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General Cornwallis' army was able to defeat the American soldiers at Camden, South Carolina.
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A French army of 6,000 men landed in Newport, Rhode Island right after Britain left the state to focus on the South. The French army had finally arrived to help the colonists.
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From August to November of 1780, the British were able to establish forts across the state of South Carolina.
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General Daniel Morgan's crew of 600 men met with the British at Cowpens, South Carolina. Although the British expected a quick victory, the Continental Army fought and forced the British to surrender.
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Cornwallis attacked Nathanael Greene at Guilford Court House, North Carolina in anger for his defeat at Cowpens. Cornwallis was able to walk out with a victory but it cost him nearly a fourth of his troops.
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in the year 1781, the Continental Congress made a rich Philadelphia man, Robert Morris, as superintendent of finance. The Congress ran out of money and inflation as well as profiteering started to occur. Therefore, Robert and his associate Haym begged and borrowed on their personal credit to raise money for the Continental Army.
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The Continental Army finally earned their salary in specie, or gold coin. The efforts from Robert Morris and Haym Salomon played a huge role in this action.
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Cornwallis is forced to surrender at Yorktown by waving a white flag. He was outnumbered by French and American forces, with no way of getting reinforcements for himself.
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Washington and his men along with the French all joined to accept the British surrender. General Charles O'Hara represented Cornwallis and he handed over his sword before the British troops laid down their arms. The American Revolution was over.
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The representatives of four nations--the United States, Great Britain, France, and Spain--all met in Paris to begin the peace talks and negotiation after the American Revolution ended.
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The delegates signed the Treaty Of Paris, which confirmed that the United States was now independent from British rule and it specified their boundary. The United States was from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River and from Canada to the Florida border.
