The U.S. Army Campaigns of the Revolutionary War
CMH Pub 71-51
GPO S/N: Not Available

By mid-1778, the United States’ war against Great Britain had produced some successes. A British army of more than 5,000 had surrendered at Saratoga, New York, on 17 October 1777. Following this resounding victory, on 15 November 1777 the Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation of “The United States of America”—although it took until 1 March 1781 for the last state to ratify the compact and enable its implementation. The most significant development was the decision by France to enter into a formal military alliance with the Americans in March 1778. This alliance promised financial, materiel, and manpower aid to the United States, especially the capabilities of a greatly improved French navy. The Franco-American alliance changed the war from an internal colonial conflict into an international conflict, which meant the British had to reallocate military resources from North America to defend more valuable areas such as the West Indies as well as Britain itself.

Compounding the British challenge was a less-noticed development at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. There, the Continental Army had not only survived the harsh winter of 1777–1778 but also used the time to train its soldiers and units into a more skilled and disciplined force. These improvements were evident during the Battle of Monmouth, New Jersey, on 28 June 1778, when American regiments maneuvered effectively, displayed discipline upon receiving fire, and illustrated proficiency with bayonets, all of which contributed to deny the British a clear tactical victory on the battlefield. The emergence of a competent and resilient Continental Army by mid-1778 was another sign that the British chances of suppressing the rebellion were declining the longer the war continued.

British leaders were not willing to admit defeat even as their enemies grew in quality and quantity. Instead, they decided to pursue a new strategy based on assumptions that the economic, social, and political conditions in the southern colonies, especially Georgia and South Carolina, were more favorable to Britain than in the north. However, the British were about to enter a vast geographic region where new American state governments had established firm control over the south.