Backcountry Turning Point

The Battle at Bunker Hill, which occurred on June 17, 1775, lasted no more than two hours, yet it was one of the bloodiest and most important battles of the American Revolution. Despite being defeated by the British, American forces held their own, wounding or killing nearly half of the Redcoats who fought in the battle. The Americans had significantly less soldiers than the British and were running low on ammunition by the end of the battle. However, the Battle at Bunker Hill is significant to the American Revolution because it gave Americans the confidence they needed to continue fighting, eventually winning the revolution, and made the British realize that American forces were stronger than they had originally assumed. During the Autumn and Winter of 1774 tensions between the British and American forces grew.

Revolutionary officer, Francis Marion was a commissioned officer in the South Carolina Second Regiment. Earning his nickname, “The Swamp Fox,” the general hid in the swamps to surprise attack the British troops. This is known as Guerilla Warfare, where he is credited as the Father of this tactic. General Marion lead the Patriots to victory in the American Revolution because of all his military tactics. He is a Revolutionary legend and credited for many victories as a military general in command.

The Peninsula Campaign was an offensive strategy the Union used to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond. Led by General George B. McClellan, the Potomac army would travel by boat to Fort Monroe in late April. McClellan planned to travel to Richmond along the peninsula formed by the York and James rivers. McClellan did not fight or act until late may, the first part of the Campaign took place at the battle of Seven Pines. The Confederacy was led by General Joseph E. Johnston, however, due to injury General Robert E. Lee took command of the Confederate army.

This literary study will define the presentation of the Confederate geographical advantage of Henry House Hill in Manassas: A Novel of the Civil War by Upton Sinclair. The journey of Allan Montague defines the transformation a young man from a Confederate sympathizer to an Abolitionist fighter in Sinclair’s depiction of the Civil War conflict. The First Battle of Manassas defines an important victory for the Confederate forces, which temporarily demoralized the Union Army. Sinclair’s description of this battle defines the geographical advantage of the Confederate Army by taking and holding Henry House hill.

After the Battle of Kings Mountain, Greene sent one of his best commanders, Daniel Morgan, to harass the British in Western South Carolina. While Morgan went West Greene stayed in the North-central part of South Carolina. Compared to standard military doctrine this was unheard of for a general to divide his forces in the face of a superior force. Eventually, Greene’s plan would pay off when Daniel Morgan would defeat Lt. Col. Tarleton at the Battle of Cowpens, where Morgan would employ unorthodox tactics to deceive Tarleton. Daniel Morgan was well known for his success at the Battle of Saratoga and after two years of retirement came back to assist Greene in his Southern Campaign.

The Battle of Saratoga in September and October of 1777 is the turning point of the Revolutionary War because the French joined with allies, British troops surrendered their arms, and the Patriots had crucial victories. It was a victory for the Patriots in the American Revolution and is the most decisive battles in history. The Battle began as a plan by the British to control New York and isolate New England from the Southern colonies and put an end to the Revolution. Which ended as an opportunity for the Patriots.

The American Revolution is arguably the turning point of American history as it resulted in somewhat of a significant, positive change in politics, economics, and society as a whole. However, from 1775 to 1800, the effects of the revolution on the American society were subtle as most principles glorified by revolutionists contradicted the examples set forth by colonial reality. Perhaps most alike to revolutionary beliefs was the American economy and how it participated in free trade or encouraged the independence of hard labor. Politically, the states did apply Enlightenment and republican ideas as promised, but more often than not, the benefits of such ideas were limited to rich, land-owning, protestant, white men. This glorification of

Congress scared of creating a tyrannical government, especially after they had just fought so hard against one, created the Articles of Confederation. While not meant to be permanent more just to satisfy the citizens it still did not last as long as intended. The Articles of Confederation were a major stepping stone on the road to creating a country that will last for centuries. The Articles of Confederation were chosen as Congress felt Parliament had too much power and as a result they severely limited the powers of the national gov’t.

There was no singular event that led to the American Revolution however, there were long-term causes that were brought to the forefront because of short-term events. Many of these long-term causes were tax acts that were being placed on the colonies to help Britain pay debt that was inquired during the war with France. These tax acts included the Sugar Act of 1764, the Quartering Act of 1765, and the Townshend Acts of 1767. These acts required the colonies to pay taxes on coffee, tea, paper, and other item, while at the same time forcing them to feed and house british soldiers (Schultz, 2014 pp. 84-90).

The Battle of Gettysburg was key to the eventual Union victory over the Confederacy. There were many other things that had to fall into place around the same time, that are often overlooked, in order for this to be viewed as the turning point of the war. The victory proved that Lee was not immortal and could be defeated on the battlefield. This victory also left him without the ability to strike the Union offensively, leaving him to fight defensively and attempt to win a war of attrition with the Union who had more manpower. The Western Theater had all but been decided by the time the Battle of Gettysburg had occurred, allowing the Union to focus the majority of their major resources on the Eastern Theater and the defeat of Lee and capture of the Confederate capitol,

It is the American Revolution, and the colonies are on the verge of fighting. Before the first battles of the Revolution, colonists were starting to get ready for the impending conflict. Although some colonists wanted the conflict to come many others remained neutral and hoped to avoid war. However events during the Revolution swayed many colonists to the side of the Patriots. One such event was crucial and important to the American Revolution, the same place where the “Shot heard round the world” was fired, on the North Bridge in Concord.

The American Revolution was the start of the America’s history and one of the biggest turning points in that era. All the colonists remembered the daring fight against Britain for land and liberty. Yet, 29 years later another war broke out between Britain and America. The same arguments were in place as before, America was pushing for land and defending their liberties. In these ways the War of 1812 can easily be viewed as the second American Revolution.

The battle was one of several that took place as a result of the Federal objective of trying to take the Confederate capital, Richmond, in Virginia. The Union army had been defeated in four major encounters with the same objective in the previous two years. As a result of these defeats, morale was low and the Union army was suffering from a high desertion rate. Major General Ambrose Burnside wanted to implement widespread changes in the Army of the Potomac by removing many if its most senior officers, but failed to get the necessary approval from Congress. Disillusioned, he offered his resignation to the President, Abraham Lincoln, but Lincoln persuaded him to accept a different command.