Chapter 6 Vocab

Battle of Kings Mountain

Mountain people from the Carolinas who formed a militia and killed or captured about 1,000 British-led Loyalist troops. The militia was angered by British threats to join their side or be killed and their homes destroyed.

Battle of Saratoga

Patriot victory against General Burgoyne that changed the tide of the war. It stopped the 3 prong battle plan by the British to cut off New England from the middle colonies by capturing the Hudson River.

Battle of Yorktown

1781 battle that sealed the Patriot victory against the British. The French fleet and Continental Army pinned General Cornwallis until he surrendered on October 19th.

Blockade

actions used to keep a country or area from communicating and trading with other nations or areas; to close off a country's ports.

Deserters

person/persons who leave without permission or intent to come back.

Hessians

German mercenaries who fought for the British; named after the region they came from.

Hit and run tactic

Surprise attack by Patriots as British soldiers moved through the countryside. They would ambush the British and then disappear.

Inflation

When it takes more and more money to buy the same amount of goods; increase of the price of goods and services.

Privateer

A privately owned merchant ship outfitted with weapons. The goal was to capture enemy merchant ships and cargo.

Treaty of Paris

Signed on September 3, 1783. Great Britain recognized the United States as an independent nation and promised to withdraw all troops from American territory. The U.S. promised to repay British merchants what is owed to them.

Valley Forge

Patriot camp 20 miles west of Philadelphia where General Washington and his men spent the winter of 1777-1778. The Continental Army barely survived the brutal conditions. The troops lacked food, clothing, shelter, and medicine.

Lord Dunmore

Virginia's royal governor who promised freedom to African Americans who joined the British cause.

Mary L.H. McCauley

Also known as Molly Pitcher. She would carry water pitchers to soldiers and was also rumored to have taken part in combat.

Deborah Sampson

She fought in the American Revolution when she disguised herself as a man.

General William Howe

British general in charge of the troops in New York during the revolution. He also captured Philadelphia in 1777.

Nathan Hale

Patriot who disguised himself as a Dutch schoolteacher to spy on the British. He was captured and hanged as punishment. "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."

Peter Salem

A slave from Massachusetts who fought for the Patriot cause throughout the war and won his freedom

General John Burgoyne

British general who captured Fort Ticonderoga but eventually was defeated by the Green Mountain Boys in Vermont and then by General Horatio Gates at the Battle of Saratoga. This was a major turning point in the war.

Ben Franklin

He served as America's ambassador in France. He was responsible for getting France to support the Patriots and declare war on Britain in February of 1778

Marquis de Lafayette

French volunteer who helped Washington as an aide. He was 19 when he arrived in America and believed that the fight for independence represented the future of humankind.

Thaddeus Kosciuszko

Polish volunteer who helped build important defenses for the Americans

Casimir Pulaski

Polish volunteer who rose to the rank of General in the Continental Army. He died in battle in 1779.

Friedrich von Steuben

Prussian Army officer who came to help General Washington. He helped train the soldiers at Valley Forge to make them a more effective fighting force.

Juan de Miralles

Spaniard who came to Philadelphia in 1778. He persuaded Spain, Cuba, and Mexico to send money to the United States to help in the fight for independence.

Henry Hamilton

Nicknamed "the hair buyer," he was a British commander in Detroit who paid the Native Americans for settlers' scalps

John Paul Jones

American naval commander of the ship Bonhomme Richard. He famously said "I have not yet begun to fight." His defeat of the British ship Serapis made him a Patriot hero.

General Henry Clinton

British general who had successful campaigns in the South which led to the biggest defeat of the Patriots in South Carolina. He eventually returned to New York and left General Cornwallis in charge of the Southern forces.

General Charles Cornwallis

British general in charge of the South after Gen. Clinton. His troops faced much Patriot resistance, including the "hit and run" tactics. He eventually marched to Virginia and was defeated by General Washington and the French fleet.

General Horatio Gates

American general who defeated General Burgoyne at Saratoga and then moved to the South and fought the British forces under Gen. Cornwallis. He was eventually replaced by Nathanael Green.

Francis Marion

Patriot leader known as the "Swamp Fox." He fought the British out of the swamps of South Carolina. He was a quick and smart and could never be caught by the British.

Bernardo de Galvez

Spanish governor of Louisiana who shipped supplies and ammo up the Mississippi River to American troops. He also raised an army and drove the British out of the Gulf of Mexico.

Comte de Rochambeau

Leader of the French fleet who, along with General Washington, blocked Gen. Cornwallis at Yorktown and eventually led to Americas defeat of the British and the end of the American Revolution.