British Problems in American Revolutionary War

British colonized the United States of America for an extended period before eventually attaining their independence after a revolutionary war famously known as the American Revolutionary War. The British attempted to exert more authority over the colonies and force them to pay the crown back for defending her during the Indian and French War. Still, the colonies resisted these measures, ultimately leading to the American Revolution (1754–1763).

Finally, the Americans gained independence after French support enabled the Continental Army to compel the British to withdraw in Yorktown, Virginia, in 1781 (Israel, 2019). During the Revolutionary War, the British faced many challenges that hindered their success, including the American alliance with France, the British debt, distance, and familiarity with the territory. This paper, therefore, seeks to expound on these challenges that hindered the British success in the Revolutionary War.

During the American Revolution war, the Americans felt overpowered by the British, who had superior tactics against them. Benjamin Franklin, the then-American representative, collaborated with the French government by signing the Commerce and Amity Treaty, thus obtaining French support in their bid for independence (Jouet, 2021).

The embattled Continental Army received food, weapons and ammunition, clothing, and, most significantly, naval support and troops from the French between 1778 and 1782. Without the French help, the colonists’ chances of defeating the mighty British empire would have been far worse. Moreover, the British failed to recognize the impact of their loyalist’s abilities in the revolutionary fight (Brannon, 2021). Failure of the British commanders to include them in the fight weakened them, enabling the Americans to succeed in the War.

Ironically, one of the primary causes of the revolution itself was Britain’s debt. Fighting in the Indian and French War had left Britain with a mountain of debt. The British faced a vast financial crisis as they had pressures to pay back the debts they had previously acquired. As such, their attempt to pay the debt by imposing the Stamp Act taxation on the colonialists did not earn revenue but instead caused more animosity (Pollio, 2022). The British crown had not anticipated such adversities initially and thus aimlessly incurred many debts. The War’s increasing costs added to a vast debt mountain that the British could no longer manage, thus losing to the Americans.

Moreover, the distance from England to America was also a stumbling block to the British during the Revolutionary War since there were no phones, telegraphs, or internet to enable effective communication. It took several weeks to send information from England to North America, inconveniencing the British (Israel, 2019). The transportation of munitions, troops, and supplies from England became even more difficult than their opponents, who quickly obtained their weapons.

Familiarity with the North American territory before the fight challenged the British as the Americans had mastered their backyards. Though the British army was well-trained and exposed to more battlefields, their military tactics could not help them in the American terrain they had not mastered (Brannon, 2021). Instead, the colonists took advantage of the British by executing guerrilla warfare tactics, which entailed hit-and-run attacks. This tactic helped them overpower the British army, who moved in targetable, orderly, and massive troops.

In conclusion, the American revolution was triggered when the British crown tried to manipulate their colonies by compelling them to taxation as compensation for defending them during the Indian and French wars. Despite the French interventions, which saw the Americans obtaining their independence in 1781, the British faced many challenges that hindered their success. The British faced challenges: American partnership with France, British debt, distance from the area, and lack of familiarity with the North American terrain.

References

Brannon, R. (2021). Loyalists and the American Revolution. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. Web.

Israel, J. (2019). The Expanding Blaze: How the American Revolution Ignited the World, 1775-1848. Princeton University Press.

Jouet, M. (2021). Revolutionary Criminal Punishments: Treason, Mercy, and the American Revolution. American Journal of Legal History, 61(2), 139–176. Web.

Pollio, G. (2022). The Stamp Act. In the Rise and Fall of Britain’s North American Empire (pp. 127–148). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. Web.