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CHAPTER 6 Recreating America: Independence and a New Nation, 1775-1783 Learning Objectives After you read and analyze this chapter, you should be able to: 1. Identify the strengths of the British army at the outset of the Revolutionary War and account for England’s failure to win it quickly. 2. Analyze why France joined the war on the American side and the importance of this decision to an American victory. 3. Explain how different American and British choices during the war might have changed its outcome. 4. Show how white women and African Americans hoped for changes in their respective positions in society and analyze the degree to which their conditions actually changed. Chapter Outline I. The First Two Years of War A. The Battle for Boston 1. The American army at Boston had insufficient arms. a) Benedict Arnold, aided by the Green Mountain Boys, seized British cannons at Fort Ticonderoga for Boston. 2. General Gage attempted to destroy the American forces surrounding Boston. a) The misnamed Battle of Bunker Hill led to heavy British casualties and an American retreat. B. Washington Assumes Command 1. Washington took command of an undisciplined force when he arrived in Massachusetts. 2. William Howe assumed command of British land forces; his brother, Richard, commanded naval forces. C. The British Strategy in 1776 1. Howe decided to attack in the Carolinas and in the Middle Colonies. a) He counted on backcountry loyalist sentiment in both regions. 2. British attacks in the South failed. a) Troop and supply movements were uncoordinated. b) The American fort at Charleston held. c) Loyalists found themselves abandoned when the British withdrew from North and South Carolina. D. Escape from New York 1. The attack on the Middle Colonies focused on New York City. a) To defend New York, Washington moved his forces south from Massachusetts. 2. The Howes decided not to deliver a knockout punch. a) After American forces suffered defeat on Long Island, they were allowed to