Revolutionary War Vocab
Terms
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- Olive Branch Petition
- An offer of peace sent by the Second Continental Congress to King George lll
- Battle of Saratoga
- Turning point of the American Revolution.it convinced the French to give the U.S. military support.
- siege
- the surrounding of a place by an army in order to capture it
- Frances Marion
- Part of the guerilla warfare, nicknamed "The Swamp Fox"
- Boston Tea Party
- demonstration by citizens of Boston who disguised as Indians raided three British ships in Boston harbor and dumped hundreds of chests of tea into the harbor
- William Dawes
- American patriot who rode with Paul Revere to warn that the British were advancing on Lexington and Concord
- "I have not yet begun to fight"
- John Paul Jones
- George Rogers Clark
- Leader of a small Patriot force that captured British-controlled Fort Vincennes in the Ohio Valley
- Thomas Paine
- wrote pamphlet Common Sense, it changed the colonist's attitudes towards the British
- Britain
- didn't give the colonists independence, fought against Patriots
- Bonhomme Richard
- John Paul Jones' ship that defeated to Serapis, named after Ben Franklin's POOR RICHARD ALMANAC
- Battle of Dorchester Heights
- Washington used cannons to fire and defeat British; Howe retreats
- Declaration of Independence
- this document was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. It established the 13 colonies as independent startes, free from rule of Britain. Thomas Jefferson wrote the majority of it
- Thomas Jefferson
- Main author of the Declaration of Independence
- "The shot heard round the world"
- the first shot of the Revolutionary War; at Lexington
- "As for me, give me liberty or give me death"
- Patrick Henry's famous saying
- General Horatio Gates
- Patriot General who fought at Saratoga
- First Continental Congress
- September 1774, delegates from twelve colonies sent representatives to Philadelphia to discuss a response to the Intolerable Acts
- Battle of Trenton
- The Americans surprised the Hessian troops and took most of them prisoner; the Americans won.
- Battle of Lexington
- first battle outside of Concord, british attempted to capture patriot leaders Adams and Hancock, start of revolutionary war
- Benedict Arnold
- traitor of Patriots and joined British
- Bernado de Galvez
- Spanish Governor of Louisiana, defeated the British at Baton Rouge, helpful to Patriots
- Second Continental Congress
- organized the continental Army, called on the colonies to send troops, selected George Washington to lead the army, and appointed comittee to make the Declaration of Independence
- Loyalists
- Americans that feared revolution & supported the british; remained loyal to Britain
- "One if by land, two if by sea"
- Paul Revere
- Yorktown
- during the American Revolution the British under Cornwallis surrendered after a siege by American and French troops
- General Howe
- 1 of 3 british generals, was in wars: Dorchester Heights, New York, New Jersey, and Brandywine Creek
- Continental Army
- The official army of the colonies, created by second continental congress and led by George Washington; fought against British
- John Burgoyne
- British general in the American Revolution who captured Fort Ticonderoga but lost the battle of Saratoga
- the Swamp Fox
- francis marion's nick name
- minutemen
- Patriot civilian soldiers that pledged to be ready to fight at a minute's notice.
- Battle of Brandywine Creek
- the British met Washington's troops; miscommunication caused the Patriots to loose almost twice as many casualties as the British; Howe allowed retreat
- Abigail Adams
- John Adam's wife, she appealed to her husband to protect the rights of women
- Nathan Hale
- a soldier of the American Revolution who was hanged as a spy by the British,
- Common Sense
- a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that claimed the colonies had a right to be an independent nation
- Battle of Bunker Hill
- the first major battle of the Revolution, British suffered heavy casualties even though Patriots ran out of ammunition and lost
- Ethan Allen
- Leader of the Green Mountain Boys, Vermont soldiers who captured Fort Ticonderoga
- "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes"
- General Ward and General Putnam
- Patrick Henry
- part of the first Continental Congress, leader of the American Revolutionary and famous orator who spoke out against the British
- Serapis
- British ship surrendered to the Americans led by John Paul Jones after a difficult battle
- Lord Dunmore's Proclamation
- a statement promising freedom to any slave who fought for British; caused thousands of slaves to join British
- long rifle
- gun used in war
- Battle at New York
- Continental Army retreated to Manhattan Island from Long Island; Patriots suffered 1,000 casualties, British lost less than 400; British drove Patriots from Manhattan Island
- Molly Pitcher
- heroine of the American Revolution who carried water to soldiers and took over her husband's gun when he was wounded, real name was Mary Ludwig Hays
- Battle of Vincennes
- French town that surrendered to Clark's army but was recaptured by British without a fight; after a bloody fight, the town was once again in Patriot's hands
- Comte de Rochambeau
- French general who commanded French troops in the American Revolution, notably at Yorktown
- General Von Steuben
- He trained the American troops, focusing on basic military drills at Valley Forge and spoke little English. Prussian officer.
- France
- helped Patriots win the Revolutionary War and also hated britain
- Battle of Princeton
- Continental Army Suprises General Cornwallis. Who retreats to NYC, where they reguoup.
- Valley Forge
- Place where Washington's army spent the winter of 1777-1778, a 4th of troops died here from disease and malnutriton, Steuben comes and trains troops
- Battle of Montreal
- Patriot forces seized town
- General Cornwallis
- Surrendered at Yorktown, British General who also fought at Princeton
- guerrilla warfare
- Type of fighting in which soldiers use swift hit-and-run attacks against the enemy
- Yankee Doodle
- song British sang to mimic Patriots
- mercenaries
- Hired foreign soldiers that are payed
- Battle of Fort Ticonderoga
- Ethan Allen lead the Green Mountain Boys here and the British commander surrendered
- George Washington
- commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War
- Marquis de Lafayette
- 20 year old French soldier who served under George Washington in the American Revolution and gave $200,000 to support the Revolution
- redcoats
- British soldiers who fought against the colonists in the American Revolution; so called because of their bright red uniforms.
- Patriots
- colonists who wanted independence from Britain and fought in the Revolutionary War
- John Paul Jones
- Patriot naval leader who commanded the American ship Bonhomme Richard, which defeated the British ship Serapis
- Battle at Quebec
- Patriots tried to advance and capture but were quickly turned back by the British; Americans suffered almost half of their troops killed, wounded, or captured
- Treaty of Paris
- agreement signed by British and American leaders that stated the United States of America was a independent contry; ended war