American War for Independence: A Revolutionary Struggle

The term revolutionary is defined as a dramatic change in government that can occur through force and violence, or in a peaceful manner, such as the election of 1800. Therefore, the American War for Independence was, by clear definition, a revolution. Though not a typical social revolution, as the British government was not entirely destroyed in Europe, it was a revolution in the sense that it created a new government for the Colonies. The American War for Independence was an attempt by the thirteen North American colonies to become independent of the Europeans and their government, the British royalty (Textbook) . The war was prefaced by nearly ten years of extreme tension between the colonials and the British, following attempts at taxing the colonies, as well as not allowing the colonists any sort of representation in the British government (Textbook). A war such as this was inevitable noting all of the outrage and hostilities coming from both the British and the colonies. To the colonists, this war was of great importance, as they were

One historian, Edward Countryman, describes the war as a revolution because of the major transformation it brought to the people of the colonies, stating that “it transformed the way of life, It transformed the terms of life, it transformed the identities, because it opened up possibilities that had not existed in the pre-revolutionary world” (Edward countryman 2:06). With the war came new hope for the colonies, and for all people, rather than the elite white man. The Revolution brought voting for nonelite white men, the decline of slavery in the North, and better and more formal education for women of the colonies (History Video). All of these tremendous changes and steps forward made the war that much more