Independence Day

In spring of 2007 the wife, kids and I made a trip to Washington DC.  As part of the trip we visited the National Archives to view the original copies of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The worn, barely legible ink evinces the age of the documents. There is a strong resonance of history in that building, when you are among some of the most consequential documents in US and perhaps world history. With the Declaration of Independence the signers were committing treason against Britain, the home country to the thirteen colonies. The United States of America celebrates Independence Day on July 4, marking the date of the 1776 signing of the Declaration of Independence as the official day. Although, we all know, however, that the Revolutionary War was fought to obtain independence from Great Britain. 

US Archives

Other dates could have been used to mark the start of nationhood, such as the 19 October 1781 surrender of British forces at Yorktown, or even the 3 Sept 1783 signing of the Treaty of Paris. Of course neither of these would fall within the vacation and outdoor months of the summer. Say what you will about the founding fathers, they knew when to sign the document to effect the beginning, according to the movie "Jaws" of the beginning of the Martha Vineyard vacation season. The fledgling country was then and is today very British centric. So much so that the pivotal role played by the one key ally to the Continentals is often downplayed in history and today.

The French were the main ally of the fledgling nation, or from a Brit point of view colonies in rebellion. The new nation, abhorrent to taxing its citizens (think 1765 stamp act, which ironically was used to help pay for the predominantly Western European power Seven Year War (Brits on one side with Prussia, and with France on the other with varied allies)), depended on the French for a substantial contribution of monetary resources to fight the war. The French provided 1.3 billion livres to the US cause, which would have a substantial impact to France down the road. Their king would literally pay for this with his head. This blog will focus on the one critical battle in the Revolutionary War, but one downplayed in current history and our knowledge base. The reason it is downplayed is our penchant for praising ourselves, combined with a national British-centric mindset. The nation fought two wars against the Brits, one for the nation's founding, and the penchant of many in the US for British Royalty makes it seem like they wish we were 50 colonies. The most critical battle was at sea between French and British naval forces.

French General deGrasse
He deserves credit for the Yorktown engagement
and US Victory in the Revolutionary War
Battlefields.org

More than a month prior to the surrender at Yorktown, this critical battle was a faceoff between 24 French and 19 British warships. While not a clear cut victory for France, France gained both a tactical and strategic victory by sending the British warships back to New York for repair. This allowed the French navy to cut off a sea escape route for Cornwallis who became trapped on a peninsula at Yorktown. Ground forces, first led by the Frenchman Marquis de Lafayette ,and later joined by General Washington, over several weeks pressured the Cornwallis, but the key was the French sea engagement, which allowed the continued pressure, and cut off the viable escape route. Cornwallis was running out of food, and as a result killed many of their horses, as they lacked forage, which they dumped in Chesapeake Bay. I don't think one would want to drink water out of that body of water.

The French contribution is significant, because they stuck with the Continental army even after patriots in Massachusetts killed a French sailor for no reason other than being French and Catholic. His burial in the then Protestant state occurred under cover of darkness so as to not further inflame the bigotry of the residents. With friends like that one wonders what the enemy would be like. France and Britain were coming off the costly seven year war, and the Revolutionary War was taxing to both sides, although a greater burden for the French who had lost that prior engagement to Britain. The French could easily have cut bait after that sailors death in America, but stuck it out. 

Battlefields.org

The French stuck it out even counter to their own interests. For example, General de Grasse, leader of the French fleet at Chesapeake Bay was eager to get some ships to the Caribbean to protect French merchant fleets from piracy, not to mention the cost, but he kept his forces combined. It was de Grasse who came up with the idea for meeting the Brits at Chesapeake Bay, not Washington, who preferred an attack on New York, which posed much more peril to the French fleet. This bit of advice and quite frankly, cajoling to get a stubborn Washington to move off his attack New York position, led to the end of this already long conflict. Yes, the leader of the French fleet was not an Admiral, but a man tuned to land combat, a General, yet he led his forces to a key victory over the Brits, one of their admirals of their highly regarded navy.

At Yorktown, the French provided 10,800 troops to the continental army's (including local militias) of 8,000. The French also provided up to 29 warships that October to block any escape by Cornwallis. In the US we give a great deal of credit to the American forces, but the key was really the French, as the French provided the overwhelming troops against the 8,000 of Cornwallis, and the most critical piece--the navy. 

Marquis de Lafayette
18 Yrs old when came to US to fight for the Colonies
Wikipedia

The pivotal battle of the Revolutionary War was in fact the Battle of Chesapeake Bay, fought on the water with a strategic and tactical victory by a land general leading a French fleet over a British Admiral. With George and the Continental Army out of the picture for this crucial engagement, it is no wonder it is downplayed in US history. We write our own history, or we allow the Brits to write it for us. John Adams claimed that the revolution was "effected before the war" in the hearts and minds of many of the residents of the colonies. 

France lost 2,112 men and incurred a great expense in supporting the American colonies in the war. The debt France wracked up, would in part lead to the Reign of Terror in which King Louis XVI would lose his head. With friends like the US, the French really did not need any enemies. At the conclusion of the Treaty of Paris, which was the end of the Revolutionary War, France essentially got a small island. Ben Franklin would admit to the French that the Americans had made a side deal with the British on the treaty cutting out the French. Downplaying French importance in the war started right away. Before losing his head, King Louis came to regret French involvement in the war, stating that all they got for helping America was a loss of young men. 

This Fourth of July, 248 years after the approval of the Declaration of Independence, we need to recognize the contribution of the French that allowed the colonists to win the war. The new nation was sure quick to turn on its main ally in the conflict and start to embrace its antagonist. Then came the war of 1812 when the US declared war on Britain. I am not sure if  John Adams is right that the revolution was effected before the war, but I do think that if Britain had won the war, the Declaration of Independence would be lost to history, with little meaning for us today. And it would mean there would not be a National Archives in Washington DC that would contain the Declaration of Independence or the US Constitution that families, like ours in 2007, could visit.