Americká válka za nezávislost – anglicky

AMERICAN WAR OF INDEPENDENCE

American war of independence ended European supremacy on America and confirmed the sovereignty of modern Americans. On the other hand it also cost many human sacrifices.

In fact it was a civil war (perhaps 100,000 loyalists -pro-British- fled abroad at its end), and that it was also a world war (the Americans could scarcely have won without French help). Both of these facts are often forgotten. You must also realise that this war was war between cousins…

Here are some facts about seven years which were in my opinion years of pain, fights, big characters and American physical and psychical fortitude.

Before the official start of war

In 1767 Britain started to have problems with its thirteen colonies on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. George III. had also problems with Anglo-French war and Seven years war; is cost to much money. For all that he made the Stamp act (everything had to be written on special paper which was under the taxes) and the Townshend act (this put taxes on sugar, coffee, cotton, glass, paper etc.).‘Till this time the British authority was not upheld thanks to cruel power, but thanks to loyalty, love and tradition. After this acts wave of troubles came and people did not care about their previous fetters to Britain and also Britons.

In 1768 a ship called Liberty came to America. It belonged to the John Hancock. Hancock did not pay taxes on his cargo of wine, so offices attached everything. People were annoyed, very annoyed…

In 1770 the Boston Massacre came. It started like a struggle between Edward Gerrish (Boston wigmaker) and John Goldfish (British solider) and unfortunately ended with many dead people. This was a presage of The Revolutionary War. Day after this action Samuel Adams was given a difficult task- he had to force Governor Hutchinson to send back the British soldiers. He was successful- soldiers left America at the end of the year 1770.

1773 was the year of Boston Tea party. A group of Boston men wore in Indian’s costumes threw a cargo of tea into the water. Its value was 10 000 pounds. Boston was punished and given under the British control. After this (in 1774) the First Continental Congress was established. Radical colonist carried idea of the Independence.

After the official start …

The war officially started at 1775 in Lexington when the British militia was raided by a group of American radicals. In this year The Second Continental Congress was in Philadelphia. George Washington was named the captain of militias. He did not like the way of militia fighting so he established The Continental Army.

The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4^th, 1776 by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Smith, Benjamin Harrison, Samuel Adams, John Hancock and other men who represented all of the colonies. The text was created mainly by Thomas Jefferson. It explained that “all men all are created equal” and have a same natural right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. One part of The Declaration was a charge against the George III.. Mary Katherine Goddard, publisher of the Maryland Journal made a first printed copy and distributed the documents across the colonies. In 1777 were approved The Articles of Confederation which were the first American constitution.

In 1777 British general Howe took Philadelphia and then general Burgoyne tried to attack America from this point in Canada. He was not successful and his army had to give up at Saratoga. It was thanks to other nations which were British enemies and they took American rebels like ally (It was France, Spain and Holland). So war became world war… Howe was replaced by Clinton. Then came British loss at Charleston and victory at Savannah. Second change came when Clinton was replaced by Cornwallis (also known from the film Patriot). He defeated the rebels at Camden and also at Guilford. Then Cornwallis came to Chesapeake Bay in Yorktown and here waited for supplies or evacuation. The victory of Americans seemed to be far away… Twist came with French admiral de Grasse who contained Chesapeake Bay. On September 29^th,1781 Cornwallis gave up. This was the end of physical fighting but it was followed by diplomatic fights (they were called “peaceful act”). Britain ended American supremacy in 1783 with peace treaty signed in Paris.

After the war

In the USA was an economic crisis, so The U. S. Constitution was created in 1787.

George Washington was elected like the first American president.

Britain has never uplifted taxes in its colonies since this experience any more.

The importance of the war

Through the big sacrifices the war was very important naturally because of its important results. The main results were the emergence of new nation and new state, a type of bourgeois national liberation revolution important for the development of capitalism (the confiscation of the king’s property, the removal of feudal privileges of the nobility), guarantee of religious freedom, extension of franchise (men, property census), beginning of development of the democracy, the republic, in the north the abolition of slavery, creation of a single market and large outlet options.

The Revolutionary War also brought many famous sentences.

“We must all hang together, or … we shall all hang separately.” (Benjamin Franklin)

-This one was said when The Declaration of Independence was signed. The delegates were putting their own lives on the line. If they were to lose the War, then the British government would execute them in a very nasty and painful way.

“Give me liberty of give me death.” (Patrick Henry)

-These words were a part of Henry’s speech to the House of Burgesses in 1776. His speech set the crowd on fire. He helped support the patriot cause.

“… the shot heard around the world”  (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

-Emerson described this way the first shot in Lexington (the beginning of the war), because of the importance of The Revolutionary War.

„I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country “ (Nathan Hale)

-It is a paraphrase of a line from Joseph Addison’s play, Cato. Hale was a spy of American army and he was executed by British army on September 21^th 1776.