Chapter 7 sec. 2 People in the back row grab a book for your row

Help from Abroad France was still bitter with England from the French & Indian War In 1776, France began giving secret aid to America After the American victory at Saratoga, King Louis XVI recognized the U.S. an independent nation France then persuaded its ally Spain to also help America against the British With the Spanish & French entering the war, England was forced to spread their resources out over many different fronts King Louis XVI

Europeans Help Washington Experienced military officers from France, Poland, and the German states came to Washington’s aid The Marquis de Lafayette (19 yr old French nobel man) served in Washington’s army Winning Washington’s confidence, Lafayette was given his own division to command – respected & loved by his men Baron von Steuben (German officer) helped train the inexperienced Continental Army

Winter at Valley Forge The winter of was extremely harsh for Washington and his men. Forced out of Philadelphia by Gen. Howe, Washington moved his winter camp to Valley Forge in S.E. Penn. The men were in short supply of everything Over the winter ¼ of the men died from malnutrition, exposure to the cold, or diseases like smallpox & typhoid fever Read Valley Forge section on p.202

The Frontier Patrick Henry (governor of Virginia) commissioned George Rogers Clark to defend the Ohio River Valley With a much smaller force, Clark through wit and brutality was able to scare the British into surrendering at Fort Sackville His victories in the west gave the US control of the northwest region from the Great Lakes to the Ohio River

The War at Sea By 1777, Britain had about 100 warships off the American coast and controlled all Atlantic trade routes Because the Americans didn’t have a navy that could match the British, they commissioned privateers The Privateers partook in open piracy again all British merchant ships This disruption of trade caused the British merchants to call for an end to the war

A Naval Hero Despite being outnumbered, The Continental Navy won several naval victories against the British John Paul Jones won the most famous sea battle against the British warship the Serapis When the British Captain demanded Jones surrender, he shouted back, “I have not yet begun to fight!” After a 3 ½ hour battle Jones’ ship was so badly damaged he and his crew had to abandon their ship and sail on the Serapis