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Background[]
After their success in the Second Global War, Britain had won a major victory, but also had serious war debts to pay. They turned to the Byzantines, who could not help as they themselves had large debts to handle, so payment was denied. The Byzantines had to keep their economy steady as to keep their new overseas territories, and to supply their territories with troops. The Byzantines now showed more support for the reconstructed France than Britain, mainly to help re-establish good relations and support a returned ally. What became known as the Diplomatic Revolution, a new France and Spain became allied to the Byzantines, while Britain, who left the Byzantium Pact in 1769, established good relations with many of the states in Germany, and with Russia, which was increasingly becoming antagonistic to the Byzantines. The Byzantium Pact now consisted mainly of the Byzantine Empire, France, Spain, Prussia, Sweden, and Poland in Europe, against the British alliance of Britain, Austria, Hanover, Hesse, Denmark, the Dutch Republic, and Portugal.
Meanwhile, in America, colonists were subjected to increasingly harsh taxes, eventually leading many colonists to feel that the British colonies may need to unite in some way against Great Britain. The Sugar Act,
First Continental Congress, 1774
the Stamp Act, and the Townshend Acts, all of these culminated into the Boston Massacre in 1770. After the Boston Massacre, many colonists began pushing for resistance against Britain. The American colonies sent representatives to the First Continental Congress in September 5, 1774 and officially united economically and militarily against Great Britain, establishing multiple Committees of Correspondence and the Colonial militias were continuously made into Continental organizations. Alexander Georgios, a Byzantine general stationed in Boston at this time, was also invited to the meeting, afterwards he sent a letter to the Byzantine Emperor, stating this:
"The colonists have appeared to have grown increasingly antagonistic to their British overlords, and this may yet be an advantage for our Empire. I believe if given the necessary authority, I may help establish a new relationship with these colonials which may bring a new era to this empire."
He was given the authority as he was given the new rank of Chief Diplomat to the Continental Congress, where he organized a system by which the new American militias would be supplied weaponry and training by the Byzantine Empire. However, whereas guns and cannons cam easy, only very few trainers ever made it and they only trained militiamen in New England, where a majority of the Patriot militias were stationed. The Americans now began to press for independence from Britain, but the British would not allow them to gain independence through the system.
The Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775
Finally, on April 19, 1775, Francis Smith a British Lieutenant Colonel lead 700 British troops out of Boston to the Continental supply depot at Concord, where they were the remaining 400 British soldiers fought against 77 American militiamen, finally beginning the war for American independence.
Northeastern Campaign[]
With the Battle of Lexington, the American Revolutionary War had been started, and the British forces in Lexington now marched west to take the American supply depot at Concord. There they found a much more hardened resistance than at Lexington, as 100 British soldiers now faced 400 American militiamen. The British advanced against the Americans, but the Americans shot deeply into the dense British formation, forcing the British into a retreat. The Americans pursued the British, until they positioned themselves outside of Cambridge near Boston, by then, 3,800 American militiamen had joined to fight 1,500 British soldiers. The British were eventually forced back into Boston, beginning the siege of the city.
Under general George Washington, the new American Continental Army surrounded the city of Boston. 16,000 Colonial troops stationed themselves in the city, or around it, as 11,000 British soldiers attempted to fight them. Under General William Howe, the British advanced on the American fort at Bunker Hill, well defended by 2,400 Americans soldiers. Israel Putnam, referring to their shortage of supplies to "Don't fire until you see the white of their eyes." The British moved up the hill in 3 lines of 800, but the first and second were both repulsed. However, the third line was successful in storming Bunker Hill, and this part of the Battle had ended. However, when the British compared their losses, they found they had lost more men than the Americans, 1,000 dead and wounded to the American's 450. Meanwhile, Henry Knox, an American colonel, had been marching for 3 months from the captured Fort Ticonderoga, now arrived in Boston with around 60 tons of artillery. The new American artillery was placed on Dorchester Heights, giving the artillery a major advantage. Seeing that they had lost the high ground, Howe decided the siege was hopeless and retreated.
Meanwhile, General Georgios met with General Washington in Faneuil Hall, where the two men exchanged
Signing of the Declaration of Independence, 1776
ideas on the new revolution. Alexander then moved to Philadelphia, the new rebel capital, where he ended up observing the Americans as they developed their new government, and ultimately write their Declaration of Independence. Upon the signing of the declaration, Georgios, declared "Let this document forever begin a new age of liberty and freedom in the world!"
But the Americans faced a grave blow to their movement at New York City, Between August and November, New York City and the area around it were captured by the British under William Howe. The British now moved to take New Jersey, where they encountered little rebel resistance. Until, that is, they reached Iron Works Hill, where 600 American militiamen defeated 2,000 British and Hessian troops, forcing a partial retreat to northern New Jersey. Eventually the British counterattacked, but as winter set in, the two sides had to wait for 1777 for fighting to begin again.
Meanwhile, Washington made his winter quarters at Valley Forge in Pennsylvania, there his troops suffered terrible cold and disease, and worst of all, hunger. But then what seemed to be a miracle arrived from the east. Alexander Georgios, who had returned to Constantinople for a couple of months after the Declaration of Independence was signed. But he had arrived with help, a large supply train with food and new clothing gave the Americans new hope, but so did General Georgios' new companion. Arriving with Georgios was a Prussia officer known as Baron Augustus von Steuben, called The Baron around camp, who introduced new military drilling techniques to the Americans and taught them the use of bayonets. But the Byzantines also arrived with their own training officers, and using von Steuben's techniques established a new system by which they would train the Continental Army in European-style drilling across a span of time as to give the Americans a large-scale place to draw professional troops from. Then on December 26, 1776, George Washington launched the Battle of Trenton with his newly trained troops against a group of Hessian soldiers stationed in Trenton. The Battle was a decisive victory for the Americans, who's counterattack in January eventually pushed the British back into New York, but the Americans could move no further.
The British had been defeated in New Jersey, and the Byzantines, meanwhile, began looking for support from France and Spain to assist them as they helped the Americans gained their independence.
Saratoga Campaign[]
The Northwest Campaign began when General John Burgoyne lead 13,000 British soldiers against the Americans from upstate New York, and planned to take Philadelphia from there. His soldiers began the campaign in June of 1777, where he first engaged the Americans at Fort Ticonderoga, where he retook it, and then continued on south to Pennsylvania. At the Battle of Hubbardto, however, things took a turn for the worse as the British lost the battle, but still advanced south. But the British soon began taking more and more American forts, and eventually, they attacked Fort Stanwix. Fort Stanwix was defended by 750 regulars and 800 militiamen, and held out against the siege for 20 days in August 1777 until 1,500 Continental soldiers arrived and relieved the fort. The British were now set on a trail of defeat, at Oriskany, on August 6, they lost a huge defeat to the Americans, who lost half their men, but still repelled the British charge against their encampments. And at the Battle of Bennington 10 days later, 2,350 Americans defeated 1,350 British soldiers, who then continued to march south to Saratoga.
At Saratoga, the British forces under John Burgoyne won their first victory in a long time, they attacked at Freeman's Farm, the only position they though was well defended against an attack. The British had now received the so well-needed morale-boosting victory, and were confident they could defeat the Americans. The next major battle came at Forts Clinton and Montgomery, where 600 Americans were easily defeated by 2,100 British soldiers, giving hope to the British that the campaign may soon end, and they might soon enter Pennsylvania. The next day, on October 7, the British attacked Bemis Heights, with only 5,000 British troops marching initially, fighting 8,000 Continentals. The Continentals were commanded by General Horatio Gates, who ordered his forces to form a trap around where they were reported to be attacked by British troops. The British attacked on the Americans left, where they met heavy resistance, and General Benedict Arnold. Arnold had been removed from field command by Gates, his superior officer, but was now leading his troops in the front. Arnold was reported to have been drinking and that he displayed great negligence in his personal safety. Major Armstrong was sent to reprimand Arnold, but failed at this as he had already gone to deep into the field.
Arnold lead Enoch Poor's men to fight the retreating British and on the Balcarres redoubt, which was taken after some violent fighting. In the fray, Arnold had been shot in the leg by a volley of fire, fracturing his leg and finally allowing Armstrong to catch up with him. Arnold was taken back to a field hospital where he laid in bed to recover. The taking of the redoubt exposed the British camp and Burgoyne was forced to surrender himself and his army when the Americans moved on his camp. Saratoga had been won, and an entire British army had been captured.
News of the victory made its way eventually to Constantinople, Paris, Berlin, and Madrid, where the impressed members of the respective royal families agreed to support the American Revolution. With foreign alliances secured, the Americans received new training and new equipment, and even more importantly, naval support.
Meanwhile in the camp, Arnold was bedridden for five weeks with his injury, and General Gergios visited the camp in November of 1777, where he met Gates and Arnold. Gates had sent back a report only detailing Arnold's recklessness and his injury, so Georgios wanted to inspect the injury of what had become a personal friend. While there he met with some of Arnold's inferior officers, who told him that Gates had lied and that Arnold hadn't lead a stupid charge but rather a valiant that helped capture the fort. When Gates was asked about this, he denied the charges, so Georgios went to the troops who served at the taking of the redoubt. They confirmed the officers claim, and Georgios sent a letter to the Continental Conress, ordering Gate's arrest. Horatio Gates was court-martialled for his actions and demoted from Major General, in command of forces in the North, to Brigadier General, second-in-command to Nathanael Greene, commander in the South. This was seen as disgraceful as at the moment, the south was uneventful and calm. The Continental Congress promoted Arnold to Major General and gave him command of the American forces in New York and Pennsylvania.
Canada Campaign[]
Many American commanders, highest among them Benedict Arnold and Richard Montgomery had been yearning the Continental Congress for the ability to invade Canada, which up until 1778, General Alexander had strongly advised against. But now that Saratoga had been won and the British route out of Canada was exposed, the Continental Congress approved of such an action under the command of General Benedict Arnold and General Richard Montgomery, and they were accompanied by 3,000 Byzantine soldiers who had been transported by sea to the Americas, and were under General Georgios' command. The invasion was marched through deeply-wooded parts of Vermont, although conditions were sometimes harsh, the invasion force lost held strong and advanced into Canada in November of 1778.
Fort St. Jean, which was situated on the colonial border, the invasion force captured it in three weeks, and finally marched into Canada. Riverboats which had been channeled downstream had helped the Americans cross the St. Laurence River and attack Montreal, where 1,200 British troops had been stationed. However, the city did eventually fall to a month-long siege, and the invasion forces now marched by land up the river and to the town of Trois Rivieres, there 2,000 American Continentals pushed 1,000 British soldiers literally to the river, as an American charge of 800 soldiers flanked the British and surrounded them, forcing the British to retreat by boat back to Quebec, but a majority of the baots were picked apart by Byzantine frigates going up along the river.
Now the invasion force came upon Quebec City in December 1779, where what was now around 10,000 American and Byzantine soldiers laid siege to the city. After two days the city showed no sign of falling, so Arnold lead a group of 400 men to go around the defenses and lower on the river, where they would surprise the British. Arnold's plan worked and the surprised British forces retreated into the city, allowing Arnold and his men to open the western gates of the city. Americans and Byzantines charged into the city, and forced an eventual surrender of the city on December 31, 1779. Arnold returned to Philadelphia a hero, and was given the option of becoming governor of the new state of Canada. Arnold denied the position and returned to his field command in the north, where he remained for the remainder of the war.
Southern Campaign[]
Although some small fighting had been going on already in the south between Loyalist militias and the Continental Army, the southern campaign had been mostly uneventful. Until in 1780 when Charles Cornwallis took over, and captured Charleston, South Carolina, beginning the real Southern Campaign. The British then marched almost unopposed throughout South Carolina, but the Continental Army did not give them the decisive victory he needed to march north. Then Cornwallis met American general Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, where he pushed against the American's right flank, defeating their militia and cavalry, which Gates had neglected, and then maneuvering around the Americans and surrounding them from both sides. The British had won a decisive victory in South Carolina, and now had the position to march into North Carolina.
But Gates would offer them no such ability, as he retreated into North Carolina, the British pursued, but found themselves deeply hammered by militia forces, and eventually an American victory at Charlotte forced the withdraw of British forces back into South Carolina. The British and Americans dueled it out for a few months, until on January 17, 1781, the two sides met at Cowpens, South Carolina. Daniel Morgan placed his forces so that his 150 sharpshooters would be the first to fight, then his 300 militiamen, and finally his 450 Continentals. He also purposefully left his left flank exposed so the militiamen could retreat around it after firing just two volleys of fire. His plan worked as the British marched at his center, and suffered heavy losses to the sharpshooters and militiamen's fire. The American Continental marched against the advancing British, who were forced to retreat and then were flanked by a rallied militia. The Americans had won a decisive victory in South Carolina, and now began moving to push the British out.
The British made another unsuccessful attempt to invade North Carolina as three months later a British Pyrrhic victory at Guilford Court House in Greensboro, North Carolina, and were forced again to stay in South Carolina. The British now spent weeks fighting against more and more Americans, as the Americans received more Continental troops from Maryland and Delaware, they now were constantly defeating the British. The British suffered their final defeat at Lindley's Mill in North Carolina, where Cornwallis now finally retreated up north along the coast to Virginia for the final major engagement of the war.
The Siege of Yorktown[]
By September 28, 1781, the British had built themselves in at Yorktown for the coming allied siege. The war had gone south for the British ever since the Battle of Saratoga, and now the last major remnant of British troops outside of New York City remained only at Yorktown. Now Byzantine forces under General Alexander formed from the north, along with Prussians and French soldiers, and Americans under Washington, totalling at 9,000. Meanwhile forces from the south, Americans and Spaniards, totalling at 5,000, marched north to meet the northern army. The two armies surrounded the town, and began placing their guns in and around their lines.
All guns were in place by October 9, and Washington fired the first gun, beginning the 5-day bombardment of the British defenses. On October 14, the generals of the allied armies began ordering the storming of redoubts. Redoubts 9 and 10 were stormed by American troops, almost all light infantry, and at around 6:30 PM, the French stormed a redoubt full of British fusiliers. Although all redoubts were stormed, only the Americans had enough manpower to break into the British lines, and by October 16, the British had been engaged deeply into their lines, and were now faultering.
Finally, on October 17, Cornwallis surrendered his army, and on October 19, he signed the Articles of Capitulation. All British soldiers left were taken prisoner, the war had officially been ended, and the British Empire sufferred a major disaster.
West Indies Campaign[]
The West Indies was the sight of many naval battles between forces allied with the Americans, and those under Britain. The British and Byzantine navies were among the best in the world, but the Byzantines were confident the French and Spanish navies would be the tipping force in the battle. The British began the campaign by harassing shipping between Cuba and the Byzantine Empire, and eventually blew up into a naval war for dominance over the West Indies. The British began that at Habana Harbor in 1779, where two British ships-of-the-line sailed into port and fired upon a Byzantine frigate, the Theodosius. The ships was heavily damaged, and now the fight was on.
The Byzantines sent a fleet of 20 ships to the British-held Bahamas, where they assaulted the island with 400 marines. Without warning and with very few garrisons on the island, it fell in just three weeks. The British now had to deal with a blocade of their trade ships to the Caribbean, and sent their own fleet of 20 ships to break it. The Byzantines were met by the French and Spanish navies off of the Bahamas in early 1780, where they engaged the British in multiple battles. The most decisive of which was the Battle of the Antilles, fought of the Dutch Antilles, ultimately ending in a defeat for the British Navy, and their loss of naval equivalence with the Byzantines.
Treaty of Paris[]
The Treaty of Paris was signed in Paris on September 3, 1783 between delegates from the mutliple nations in the war. The terms were as follows:
- Great Britain shall recognize the independence of the United States of America
- Britain shall cede Minorca to Spain and Tobago to France and the Bahamas to the Byzantine Empire
- All American territory in Canada shall be transferred to the United States (Territory: All of Canada up to the St. Lawrence River)
Britain had been knocked down as a world power by the war, and without a large colony in North America, the British look to Asia and Africa for their colonial empire. The French and Spanish economies were mildly affected by the war, but the Byzantine Empire had serious war debts to pay, still backlashed from debts from the Second Global War. Now, with new debts owed by the government, the Byzantines were about to head down a steep slope of political revolution.