Aquilapus
29-07-2005, 17:09
Tensions had been mounting for decades and the tense atmosphere finally broke out into war when the first shots were finally fired. It was a war that was, at first, not considered a war; just a regional phenomenon, and in the first years was fought with no discernable goals. A war in which some estimates gather that 1/3 didn’t want to fight, 1/3 were indifferent, and only 1/3 wanted to see it to an end. The earlier years were met with victories and defeats. There was a loose “government” that tried to hold the country together through the conflict, but it was ultimately a failed government. As the years rolled on, the prospects of victory looked grim. Only with the help of foreign countries, of which had there own agendas for seeing a victory, did the tides begin to turn. As the war came to an end, a mutual end of hostilities was agreed upon, but the possibility of war reigniting was all too real. It wasn’t until a peace treaty was signed and the occupiers finally left did the war truly come to an end – victory!
The story above is of the early years of the United States of America and of the American Revolution. The war began in 1755 with the Battles of Lexington and Concord, battles of which were seen by many Americans and British not as the first battles of a war, but escalating tensions that had been there for years. The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia three weeks later and agreed to support the war, but they disagreed, at times profoundly, about its purpose. Some favored complete independence from Britain, some were looking for reconciliation with Great Britain, and others tried to find a middle-ground. At first, most Americans believed they were fighting not for independence but for a redress of grievances within the British Empire. The costs of the war – human and financial – were so high that the original war aims began to seem too modest to justify them and with Thomas Paine’s Common Sense came the revelation.
As the patriotism faded, few Americans volunteered for military service. As a result, the states had to resort to persuasion and force: to paying bounties and drafts. In the spring of 1775, Congress created a Continental army under the leadership of George Washington, who had more experience than any other officer available. He had to deal with serious problems of morale among soldiers who consistently received short rations and low pay; open mutinies broke out at times as well. Washington did provide a sense of stability for a new nation still unsure of either its purposes or its structure.
With the Declaration of Independence, signed July 7, 1776, the thirteen colonies of Great Britain became the sovereign nation of the United States of America. There were many Americans, however, that did not rejoice; some had disapproved of the war from the beginning. Others had been willing to support it only so long as its aims did not conflict with their basic loyalty to the king – the Loyalists (labeled Tories by the Patriots).
In November 1777, Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation (which were not ratified until 1781). The Congress would survive as the chief coordinating body of the war effort, but had limited power over the other states and wasn’t made clear that the Congress was to be a real government at all. As a result, the new nation had to fight a war for its own survival with a weak and uncertain central government, never sure of its own legitimacy.
The victory at Saratoga in late 1777 came recognition as a sovereign nation from France and greatly expanded assistance. The war would continue for another four years with decisive victories and defeats. On October 17, 1781, Lord Cornwallis capitulated at Yorktown, ending the hostilities between the Americans and British, but not ending the war. It wasn’t until September 3, 1783 with the Treaty of Paris did the Americans and British reach a final agreement. In the fall of 1783, the Americans celebrated as the last British occupation forces embarked from New York and General Washington rode triumphantly into the city.
“Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those others that have been.”
-- Winston Churchill
The story above is of the early years of the United States of America and of the American Revolution. The war began in 1755 with the Battles of Lexington and Concord, battles of which were seen by many Americans and British not as the first battles of a war, but escalating tensions that had been there for years. The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia three weeks later and agreed to support the war, but they disagreed, at times profoundly, about its purpose. Some favored complete independence from Britain, some were looking for reconciliation with Great Britain, and others tried to find a middle-ground. At first, most Americans believed they were fighting not for independence but for a redress of grievances within the British Empire. The costs of the war – human and financial – were so high that the original war aims began to seem too modest to justify them and with Thomas Paine’s Common Sense came the revelation.
As the patriotism faded, few Americans volunteered for military service. As a result, the states had to resort to persuasion and force: to paying bounties and drafts. In the spring of 1775, Congress created a Continental army under the leadership of George Washington, who had more experience than any other officer available. He had to deal with serious problems of morale among soldiers who consistently received short rations and low pay; open mutinies broke out at times as well. Washington did provide a sense of stability for a new nation still unsure of either its purposes or its structure.
With the Declaration of Independence, signed July 7, 1776, the thirteen colonies of Great Britain became the sovereign nation of the United States of America. There were many Americans, however, that did not rejoice; some had disapproved of the war from the beginning. Others had been willing to support it only so long as its aims did not conflict with their basic loyalty to the king – the Loyalists (labeled Tories by the Patriots).
In November 1777, Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation (which were not ratified until 1781). The Congress would survive as the chief coordinating body of the war effort, but had limited power over the other states and wasn’t made clear that the Congress was to be a real government at all. As a result, the new nation had to fight a war for its own survival with a weak and uncertain central government, never sure of its own legitimacy.
The victory at Saratoga in late 1777 came recognition as a sovereign nation from France and greatly expanded assistance. The war would continue for another four years with decisive victories and defeats. On October 17, 1781, Lord Cornwallis capitulated at Yorktown, ending the hostilities between the Americans and British, but not ending the war. It wasn’t until September 3, 1783 with the Treaty of Paris did the Americans and British reach a final agreement. In the fall of 1783, the Americans celebrated as the last British occupation forces embarked from New York and General Washington rode triumphantly into the city.
“Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those others that have been.”
-- Winston Churchill