The War of American Independence, 1775-1783 (Textbook page 337 through end of Chapter 8)

The War of American Independence, 1775-1783 (Textbook page 337 through end of Chapter 8)

1. Questions to think about:

   1. What was the American objective in the War of Independence?

   2. What did it have to achieve in order to win?

   3. How did it go about achieving this objective?

2. Possible essay questions:

   1. Write a military/diplomatic history of the War of American Independence, 1775-1783.

   2. Write a history of the United States’s diplomatic, economic, and military relations with France from 1777 until 1812.

3. Possible short answer/ID questions

   1. The Battles of Princeton and Trenton

   2. The Battle of Saratoga

   3. George Washington

   4. Benjamin Franklin

   5. Benjamin Franklin in France, 1777-1778

   6. John Adams

   7. John Jay

   8. The French/American Treaties of 1778

   9. The Battle of the Cowpens

   10. The Battle of King’s Mountain

   11. The Battle of Guilford Courthouse

   12. Yorktown

   13. The Treaty of Paris of 1783

4. Section outline

   1. Strategic overview

      1. British strengths

         1. Wealth

         2. Professional army

         3. strong navy

      2. British weaknesses

         1. Distance from America

         2. Poor political and military leadership during this period

      3. British strategy

         1. Find a loyalist base in America

      4. American strengths

         1. Ideology—hard to conquer an idea

         2. Distance from England

      5. American weaknesses

         1. U.S.

            1. Is underpopulated

            2. Is undercapitalized

            3. Is unindustrialized

            4. Has very weak military

            5. Has no allies

            6. Is going up against one of the most powerful countries on earth

      6. Washington’s Strategy

         1. keep army in being—no pitched battles against main British forces

         2. Keep resisting until England gives up and goes home

   2. Operations (Map)

      1. The Northern Phase, 1775-76

         1. Lexington, Concord, Bunker Hill, 1775

         2. New York, 1776: Washington Learns the Hard Way

         3. Washington Crossing the Delaware

            1. Princeton

            2. Trenton

      2. The Middle Phase, 1777-78

         1. Burgoyne’s campaign

            1. The Battle of Saratoga, 1777

         2. The treaties with France, 1778—a direct result of Saratoga

            1. Amity and commerce

            2. Mutual defense

      3. The Southern Phase, 1778-81

         1. British victories

            1. The capture of Savannah

            2. The Capture of Charleston

            3. The Battle of Camden

         2. American counterstrike

            1. The Battle of the Cowpens

            2. The Battle of King’s Mountain

            3. The Battle of Guilford Courthouse

         3. Yorktown and British Capitulation

   3. The Treaty of Paris of 1783

      1. U.S. gets its independence

      2. Britain also cedes the Trans-Appalachian region (between Appalachians and the Mississippi River) to the United States

9. The Confederation Era and the Drafting of the Constitution, ca. 1781-1789 (Textbook Chapter 9)

1. Questions to think about:

   1. What type of government did the United States adopt upon gaining independence?

   2. Why this type of government and not another?

   3. What problems developed with this type of government?

   4. How did the United States address these problems?

2. Possible essay questions:

   1. Describe America’s national government from 1774 to 1789. What were the major changes in the system of national government during this time, and why did they take place?

   2. Write an essay describing the writing and original contents of the United States Constitution. Include attention to the following question: What are the key ways in which the Constitution differs from the Articles of Confederation?

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