It’s safe to say that without the American Revolution, the world would be a vastly different place, in so many more ways than we could ever imagine. This got me thinking, what are some cool facts about the American Revolution you were never taught in school?
Lasting between 1765 and 1783, the revolution would result in American independence from Great Britain, becoming the first country to do so.
Inadvertently, the American Revolution would also lead to the French Revolution, due to King Louis XVI spending billions of dollars in today’s money to help fund the Americans, neglecting his own people in the process…
15. Americans Caused The Boston Massacre
In 1768, Britain implemented the Townshend Acts, which alongside the Stamp Act passed three years prior, essentially levied huge taxes on the American colonists so that the British could fund their war against the French.
Without representation in the British parliament, many colonists viewed these taxes as a violation of their rights. Hoping to settle this definitively, the colonists petitioned King George III to repeal these acts.
King George, however, did not respond.
With tensions running high, a 13-year old wigmaker’s apprentice would insult Captain-Lieutenant John Goldfinch for not paying a bill. Although Goldfinch ignored the insult, British Private Hugh White would hear the insult and tell the young man to respect the officer more.
Briefly exchanging insults, Private White would strike the wigmaker’s apprentice with his musket.
Angered at what they saw as an overstep of British power, onlookers would begin crowding and insulting Private White, who soon took refuge on the steps of the Boston Custom House (which he’d been guarding before all of this).
Calling for reinforcements, the crowd would only get bigger, with some estimates claiming as many as 400 Bostonians crowding Private White. When reinforcements arrived, they pushed past the crowd and took a semi-circle position on the steps.
Although mostly verbal assault before hand (minus the Crispus Attucks incident), when the reinforcements arrived it more violent, with anything that could be thrown at the troops being thrown at them.
Being hit by one of these volleys and falling to the floor, one British Private would get back up and return fire, telling his fellow troops to do the same. Five colonists died and served as a prelude for what was about to come…
14. Join, or Die
Today, the Join, or Die political cartoon is one of the most famous examples of propaganda to have ever been produced.
Although the exact author of the cartoon has been lost to time, it’s generally believed that the cartoon was drawn by Ben Franklin himself, and published in the Pennsylvania Gazette (a newspaper he owned) on May 9 1754 for use during the French and Indian War.
When first published, it was used to encourage people to join the American militias against the French. Decades later, however, it would similarly be used to encourage people to join the militias – this time to fight the British.
Indeed, it was one of the most effective recruitment tools during the American Revolution (much like the “Your Country Needs You/Uncle Sam Needs You” posters from WWI).
Yet, when you look at the poster more carefully, you’ll find that it’s only represents eight colonies, not the traditional thirteen. And this was done deliberately.
At the time it was published, Delaware was still a part of Pennsylvania (before becoming independent by the Revolution). For unknown reasons, Georgia was omitted entirely.
Instead of having the four states that make up New England, it was listed as a single entity.
Despite having played a huge role in two wars (the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary Wars), the revolution was not the end of the Join, or Die poster.
Years later, during the Civil War, both sides would subtly redraw it to depict their view of the role of the federal government. Even today, it’s still used, albeit for merchandising purposes (flags, t-shirts etc.) instead.
13. It Wasn’t a War
When the American colonists rose up against the British, they called their struggle a “war of independence”. The British, however, didn’t see it the same way. Instead, they saw it as a rebellion.
After all, whilst there were military men involved on both sides, the Thirteen Colonies was not a sovereign nation, and thus, no actual declaration of war could be issued (as a country can’t declare war on another part of the same country).
Due to the fact that both sides viewed the conflict differently, both sides acted differently.
When Britain captured American troops, they were treated as rebels – more specifically traitors against the crown. As such, when they were captured, the British often put American “officers” to death.
For non-commissioned officers, the treatment varied from commander to commander. Some, would have all the American “soldiers” executed alongside their “officers”, whilst others had them locked up, and others let them join the British Army.
The Americans, on the other hand, viewed the conflict of as a war, and thus adhered to the rules of engagement. Here, when they captured British troops, they were treated well and with dignity.
Only ones that were caught trying to escape were executed.
Despite this, the Americans would try to woo British soldiers to their cause with the promise of land, which varied in size up to 800 acres depending on rank.
12. Mass Use of Guerilla Warfare
Today, we associate the term “guerilla warfare” with revolutions like those in Angola and Cuba in the mid-20th century. Yet, during the revolutionary war, the American colonists became quite skilled at it.
Although the American colonists didn’t invent guerilla warfare – that would be Sun Tzu in China, or Fabian in Ancient Rome – Washington soon became a master at it.
You see, for most of the war, the Americans were vastly outnumbered and had relatively little training and weaponry compared to the might of the British Army. As such, a full-front assault on the British would’ve been suicide.
Instead, the Americans (who knew they land better than the British did) would use their knowledge of the land to their advantage, attacking the British when they least expected it, before disappearing into the dense forests again.
This method prevented the British from using their main weapon – the Royal Navy – as cannons could only fire so far inland, and guerilla warfare made it impossible for the Army and Navy to co-ordinate attacks.
Plus, compared to the green forests and swamps the Americans engaged the British on, the red uniform worn by the British stuck out like a sore thumb!
11. The Culper Spy Ring
When we think of the word “spies” today, we tend to think of Cold War-era espionage. However, there were also spies in the American Revolution too, they were called the Culper Spy Ring, Culper Spies or Culper Ring depending on the author.
During the war, the Culper Spies would travel from British to American territory with information vital to the war effort. Although extremely dangerous, the information they delivered to Washington himself arguably won Washington the war!
Interestingly, we actually know very little about the Culper Spy Ring given their importance to American history.
For example, we know that the Culpers had a female agent – known as Agent 355. Despite being an integral member of the Culpers (helping to uncover Benedict Arnold’s treason), her exact identity is unknown.
Currently, historians believe that Agent 355 was one of three women – Anna Strong, Mary Underhill or Sally Townsend – but we don’t know for certain.
Then there’s also the fact that it wasn’t until 1930 – 147 years after the end of the war – that the existence of the Culper Spies would become common knowledge, only coming to light after a historian studied the family letters of a long since dead Culper Spy!
10. Helped Make The Rothschilds Rich
When the American colonists rose up against British rule, Britain needed to field troops quickly. Not wanting to destabilize their empire by removing troops from other colonies, Britain would turn to mercenaries for help.
Here, they’d hire hundreds of German mercenaries under the command of Johann Rall and Wilhelm von Knyphausen, mostly from the Landgraviate of Hesse, then in the Holy Roman Empire.
To acquire the services of these Hessian mercenaries, the British would pay the Landgrave of Hesse Wilhelm IX (later Prince-Elector of Hesse) a handsome sum for his troops.
Much like most other wealthy noblemen of his era, Wilhelm didn’t manage his own finances. Instead, he had an expert do this for him. In Germany, these experts were almost exclusively Jewish, having the title of “Court Jew”.
Wilhelm’s “Court Jew” was a man by the name of Mayer Amschel Rothschild – the founder of the Rothschild banking dynasty.
In exchange for his services, Mayer took a percentage of all the transactions he did on Wilhelm’s behalf. As the British essentially placed an order for 25% of their army during the war, you can bet that this transaction was huge!
For Mayer Amschel Rothschild, he netted a healthy percentage, with this money eventually being used to help establish the “five arrows” of the Rothschild family in Frankfurt, Vienna, London, Naples and Paris.
9. Articles of Confederation
Today, we’re taught that the Constitution is the most important document that Americans ever signed into existence. After all, without the Constitution, we have literally no laws!
Yet, the Constitution wasn’t the first document of this nature that the Founding Fathers had written. Indeed, that would be the Articles of Confederation, which was ratified on March 1 1781.
So you’re probably wondering why you’ve never heard of the Articles of Confederation.
Although it was ratified and became the basis of US law in the early 1780’s, it essentially gave the federal government no power whatsoever. Instead, the individual states had all the power.
Surprisingly, this was actually intentional. You see, the colonists had broken away from Britain because the central government didn’t care about them, as such, when they started their own country, they didn’t want a strong federal government.
Instead, they hoped that goodwill and friendship would fix the issues affecting all the states.
Perhaps not surprisingly, this didn’t happen. When Washington needed money for food to feed his troop, the individual states ignored his pleas, and the Continental Congress couldn’t do anything.
Seeing this as cause for future conflict, the Articles of Confederation were soon scrapped and replaced with the Constitution that we all know and love.
8. Ben Franklin’s Activities in Paris…
At the onset of the American Revolutionary War, in December 1776, the Continental Congress would dispatch Ben Franklin to the French court in the hopes of negotiating for aid from the French. Mostly weapons, uniforms, training and the like.
Once in Paris, Franklin would take up residence in the Parisian suburb of Passy, in a house that was donated to him by pro-American independence Frenchmen, Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont.
In the French court, Franklin would be instrumental in securing aid from King Louis XVI during the war, as Louis wanted to stick it to Britain by funding the American colonists.
Beyond his services to his country, Franklin would also get around the French court, soon becoming known for his flirting with the women of the court (although there would be no affairs).
Due to this, it became quite fashionable for upper class French families to have paintings of him in their parlors, especially so if they were in the painting with Franklin – as it was a sign of the power the family held internationally.
When he returned to the US in 1785, many Frenchmen were under the false assumption that he had become president. Intriguingly, this false assumption has survived the ages, with in France today believing that Franklin became president!
7. The Role of Native Americans
When the war first broke out both the British and American forces pleaded with the Native American population to stay neutral in the war. Despite this, most tribes ignored the pleas and picked a side.
Although not all Native Americans did, the overwhelming majority sided with the British. You see, American forces had always been quite hostile to the Native Americans, often raiding and destroying their villages for seemingly no reason.
The British, on the other hand, kept to their territory and showed few signs of wanting to take more Native American land.
As such, when the war broke out, most tribes secretly began supporting the British. Some tribes, like the Mohawk and the Chickamauga Cherokee, even went as far to fight for the British, using their knowledge of the land to attack the American forces.
Despite the majority of Native American tribes preferring the British to the Americans, there were some that preferred the Americans.
For the most part, this was the tribes that were heavily involved in trade were more sympathetic to the Americans and their French allies, mostly due to their involvement in the lucrative fur trade.
Much like their British-aligned neighbors, most American-aligned tribes would secretly support the Americans. A few, such as the Oneida and Tuscarora, would similarly use their knowledge of the land to stage attacks against the British.
6. Why Benedict Arnold Turned
Today, the name “Benedict Arnold” is synonymous with the word “traitor”.
After all, when the American Revolution first started, Benedict Arnold was only a captain in the Connecticut militia. However, he served with distinction at several decisive American victories, bringing him to the attention of George Washington.
In recognition of Arnold’s service, he would be granted the rank of major general, and be given command of West Point’s Fort Clinton. Whilst the commander of Fort Clinton, Arnold made plans to hand the fort over to the British.
However, his plan was discovered, and he was forced to flee to British lines or face execution.
Arriving at British lines, Arnold surrendered, before being commissioned as a brigadier general. From here, Arnold would lead British troops against many of the very men that once under his command in the Continental Army.
Since the end of the war, people have wondered what exactly made Arnold switch sides. Indeed, there are hundreds of theories, all with evidence to back them up.
However, the most likely story was that Arnold switched sides due to a smear campaign by Joseph Reed, then the President of the Continental Congress.
You see, Reed took an immediate dislike to Arnold, choosing to spread rumors about him, before attempting to prosecute Arnold for something he didn’t do.
Ironically, even though he was one of the best British generals of the war, many in the British ranks didn’t trust Arnold owing to his turncoat past. Some British officers feared he was a double agent, whilst others simply found him dishonorable.
5. The Actually Independence Day
If you’ve ever sat in on an American history class, you were probably taught that the US (then the Thirteen Colonies) became independent from the UK on July 4 1776. Whilst true, it’s not the whole story…
Gathering on July 2 1776, the Continental Congress would vote to formally declare independence from the UK. However, it would only be two days later when it was ratified, thus making it official (and legally binding).
It was due to this fact – eg. it was legal – that July 4 1776 was viewed by the Continental Congress as “independence day” rather than July 2 1776, when they actually voted on it!
Despite this declaration of independence, the American Revolutionary Wars would continue to be fought for another seven years, with thousands dying on both sides during this time.
It wouldn’t be until the Treaty of Paris of 1783 that Great Britain would formally recognize the Thirteen Colonies as an independent state.
Funnily enough, the Thirteen Colonies would still be called the “Thirteen Colonies” until September 9 1776, when the Continental Congress formally changed the name to the “United States of America” – a name already used before the revolution.
4. Post-War Mass Migration
A little known fact about the Revolution was that not everyone in the Thirteen Colonies wanted to be independent.
During the war, these pro-British colonists were often targeted by their pro-independence neighbors, who were often covered in tar and feathers (in a technique known as “tarring and feathering”).
Perhaps not surprisingly, during the war, many of these pro-British colonists would help the British or their allies in almost every way possible.
Risking even more tarring and feathering and further mistreatment once the war was over, between 70,000 and 100,000 pro-British colonists (up to 2.4% of the US population at the time) would leave the US.
Here, the British crown would reward these loyalists for their services to the crown during the war (however futile) by giving them land, particularly in New Brunswick and Upper Canada (Ontario).
Whilst most of these pro-British colonists would head northwards for British-owned Canada, being given the title of “United Empire Loyalists“, a few would migrate to Britain itself, heading to London via a Canadian port.
Arriving in London, their strange accent and American origins saw many of them ostracized from British society, whilst others would flourish in London for the exact same reasons!
3. Napoleon’s Views on The American Revolution
France was the first country to recognize US independence, doing so on February 6 1778. Even when the French Revolution deposed the king and declared a Republic, they still recognized the US.
Growing up the son of Corsican nationalists, a young Napoleon Bonaparte would be in awe of the American Revolution, once going as far to say that Washington’s cause: “His cause is that of humanity”.
Despite his love for the American Revolution and George Washington, when Napoleon rose to power, he chose to declare himself “Consul of France” in the vein of Julius Caesar, rather than “President” in the vein of Washington.
Indeed, Napoleon liked the US so much that when he lost Waterloo, the the Marquis de la Fayette would secure him passage on a ship headed for the US, where he was supposed to live out the rest of his life in exile.
Alas, this plan would be pointless, as the British chose to exile the former emperor to the island of Saint Helena instead, fearing that Napoleon may have instead declared himself Emperor of America and launched yet more attacks on British soil.
It would also be this love for the US that would convince him to sell Louisiana to the Americans, hoping that this would make the UK and US rivals, and thus lead to some form of official Franco-American alliance during the Napoleonic Wars.
2. Not That Significant
Today, we’re taught that the American Revolution was one of the most significant events in the 18th century, and how the entire world watched on to see if a small rag-tag group of semi-trained soldiers could defeat the British.
Whilst the American Revolution is undeniably a significant historical event, it wasn’t so much at the time.
Reading books about the revolution, especially those written by American authors, it’s easy to think that everyone in Europe, regardless of whether you were a peasant or a king, was on the edge of their waiting to hear the latest news.
In reality, however, most Europeans didn’t care about some far-off colony and their “war of independence”. Indeed, even people in other parts of the modern-day US, such as Louisiana, didn’t care about it either – and it was on their doorstep!
People only really took notice of the American Revolution when the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783. And even then, it was soon forgotten about as the much more significant French Revolution took place only a few years later.
The reason the American Revolution is made out to be historically significant is due to the US’s huge impact on the world in later centuries – namely their contributions to WWI, WWII and their aftermaths.
1. The Influence of Lafayette
When the American Revolution first broke out, the American forces were nothing more than semi-trained militia men, lead by relatively inexperienced officers (at least compared to their British counterparts anyway).
Hoping to destabilize Britain, Louis XVI would aid the Americans, giving them their iconic blue uniforms, gear and more training. Several French military officers would also travel to America to aid the revolution.
Although not the only one, by far the most famous was Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de la Fayette. Better known in the US as simply Lafayette.
Coming to the US in 1777, Lafayette was only 19 years old and was relatively experienced military-wise, not to mention the fact he spoke very little English. Despite this, he’d be commissioned as a Major General, and become one of Washington’s most trusted Generals.
Due to this, literally hundreds of streets, schools, towns, cities and counties have been named in his honor – only being beaten in the sheer number of these places by George Washington!
Beyond this, Lafayette served as the inspiration for the name of a car manufacturer, LaFayette Motors (1919-1937), the Lafayette Aviators baseball team and the Lafayette Flying Corps during WWI (American pilots fighting for the French).
Not to mention countless companies in almost every industry imaginable!
Which are your favorite facts about the American Revolution? Tell me in the comments!