American Revolution

The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence,[1] was a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the thirteen "United Colonies" which expelled royal officials in 1775, set up the Second Continental Congress, formed an army, and declared their independence as a new nation, the United States of America, in 1776. The war was the culmination of the political American Revolution, whereby the colonists overthrew British rule. By 1778 major European powers had joined against Britain. American Indians fought for both British and American sides.

Throughout the war, the British were able to use their naval superiority to capture and occupy coastal cities, but control of the countryside (where 90% of the population lived) largely eluded them. After an American victory at Saratoga in 1777, France, with Spain and the Netherlands as its allies, entered the war against Britain. French involvement proved decisive, with a French naval victory in the Chesapeake leading to the surrender of a British army at Yorktown in 1781. The Treaty of Paris in 1783 ended the war and recognized the sovereignty of the United States over the territory bounded by what is now Canada to the North, Florida to the South, and the Mississippi River to the west.

The American Revolutionary War began in 1775, when Paul Revere's midnight ride alerted the Massachusetts militia that British troops were moving to seize an arms depot in Concord, Massachusetts. The militia held a bridge at nearby Lexington, and the "Shot heard 'round the world" was fired. After this short skirmish, and the subsequent Battle of Lexington, delegates from the Thirteen Colonies met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and drafted a Declaration of Independence on July 4 of the following year. The war concluded with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, granting independence to the colonies.

American Revolutionary War

Clockwise from top left: Battle of Bunker Hill, Death of Montgomery at Quebec, Battle of Cowpens, "Moonlight Battle" Date 1775–1783 Location Eastern North America (present-day United States and Canada), Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Caribbean Sea Result Treaty of Paris and the establishment of the United States of America Territorial changes Britain recognizes independence of the United States, cedes East Florida, West Florida, and Minorca to Spain and Tobago to France Combatants American Patriots France Spanish Empire Dutch Republic Oneida and Tuscarora tribes Polish volunteers Prussian volunteers Kingdom of Great Britain Iroquois Confederacy Hessian mercenaries Loyalists Commanders George Washington Nathanael Greene Gilbert de La Fayette Comte de Rochambeau Bernardo de Gálvez Tadeusz Kościuszko Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben King George III Sir William Howe Sir Henry Clinton Lord Cornwallis John Burgoyne Johann Rall Joseph Brant (more commanders) Campaigns and theaters Boston – Canadian – New York and New Jersey – Saratoga – Philadelphia – Western – Northern – Southern – West Indies and Gulf Coast – Naval