Revolutionary War Research Paper

The defeat of Great Britain at the hands of American forces in the Revolutionary War presents an interesting question of how colonial forces were able to overcome superior forces in conventional, face-to-face encounters. The British army was, unquestionably, superior in military skill and classical tactics to the American regulars. They were extremely disciplined and very proud. The redcoats also held the advantage of superior leadership and a strong chain of command. Overconfidence in themselves, and the difficulty of fighting so far from the mother country were, perhaps, their downfall. The British did not anticipate the power of an occupying citizenry to defend a land they considered their own. Although it will be seen that the American …show more content…
While the French were mostly responsible for Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown, it was only the culmination of a much longer ordeal. Cornwallis’ men had become exhausted after campaigning all throughout the south, skirmishing with American regulars and militia employing guerilla tactics. The volunteer guerrilla sharpshooters who made up the Marion Brigade are explored in Hugh F. Rankin's Francis Marion: The Swamp Fox. These individuals played a crucial part in the battles of Georgetown, Eutaw Springs, and Parker's Ferry. The tactics of Daniel Morgan, often considered the greatest militia commander in the Revolutionary War, and other militiamen proved quite disruptive and discouraging to the redcoats. British forces ended up surrendering much of their equipment and supplies in an area around Charlotte, North Carolina they dubbed “the hornets’ nest”, where they attempted to elude pesky militia units. The role of these irregular militia units cannot be overlooked just because the enemy would eventually surrender to regular …show more content…
The area across from New York City, known as Bergen County, was a hotly contested area. The British occupied that area for the entirety of the war. A guerilla force led by Major John Mauritius Goetschius developed to confront and agitate the redcoats. At first, terrified, they grew into a hardened and effective unit that rivaled, or even surpassed, the abilities of the regular army. Goetschius, in letters to George Washington, makes it clear that he understood guerilla tactics, and their importance better than the President himself.
Radical Whigs had come to the conclusion that the domestic threat of a standing, professional army far outweighed its usefulness against invaders. Today, it is understood that the militias functioned much more effectively than what had previously been thought. Of course, there are still those who believe that times have changed. Despite the effectiveness of guerilla tactics in the past, some believe such tactics would be useless in a war among major world powers. Perhaps they should consider Vietnam or the Russian Revolution. Trotsky saw that the peasant militia was extremely effective against regular