The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was an armed conflict that was part of the broader American Revolution, in which American Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army. The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war ended with the Treaty of Paris (1783), which resulted in Great Britain ultimately recognizing the independence and sovereignty of the United States.

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American Revolutionary War

Part of the American Revolution

Clockwise from top left: Surrender of Lord Cornwallis after the siege of Yorktown, Battle of Trenton, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill, Battle of Long Island, and the Battle of Guilford Court House

Date	April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783^{[lower-alpha 1]} (8 years, 4 months and 15 days) Ratification effective: May 12, 1784
Location	Eastern North America, North Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean
Result	American and allied victory Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776. Great Britain would not recognize American independence until signing the Treaty of Paris. End of the First British Empire^[2]
Territorial changes	Great Britain cedes generally, all mainland territories east of the Mississippi River, south of the Great Lakes, and north of the Floridas to the United States. Great Britain cedes Tobago and Senegal to France. Great Britain cedes Menorca, West Florida and East Florida to Spain.

Belligerents

Patriots:

Thirteen Colonies (1775)

United Colonies (1775–1776)

United States (from 1776)^{[lower-alpha 2]}
List
France
Spain
Dutch Republic

Great Britain

Combatants

Br. Canadien, Cong. rgts.^{[lower-alpha 3]}
Br. Canadien mil., Fr. led^{[lower-alpha 4]}

Native Americans^[6]

Combatants

Commanders and leaders

Strength

United States:
- Army and militia:
  - 40,000 (average)^[13]^{[lower-alpha 12]}
- Navy:
  - 53 frigates and sloops^[15]^{[lower-alpha 13]}
- Marines: 2,131 (peak)^[17]
- State navies:
  - 106 ships (total)^[18]
France:
- Army: 10,800^{[lower-alpha 14]}
- Navy: 2 fleets;^{[lower-alpha 15]} escorts^[24]
Spain:
Army: 12,000^{[lower-alpha 16]}
Navy: 1 fleet;^{[lower-alpha 17]} escorts
Native Americans: Unknown

Great Britain:
- Army:
  - 48,000 (average), most in North America^{[lower-alpha 18]}
- Navy:
  - Task-force fleets & blockading squadrons^{[lower-alpha 19]}
Loyalist troops:
- 25,000 (total)^[31]^{[lower-alpha 20]}
German troops:
- 29,875 (total)^[32]
Native Americans:
- 13,000^[33]

Casualties and losses

United States:
- 178,800–223,800 total dead
- 6,800 killed
- 6,100 wounded
- 17,000 dead from disease^[34]
- 25,000–70,000 war dead^[35]
- 130,000 dead from smallpox^[36]
France:
- 2,112 killed– East Coast^[37]^{[lower-alpha 21]}
Spain:
- 371 killed – W. Florida^[39]
- 4,000 dead – prisoners^[40]
Native Americans: Unknown

Great Britain:
- 8,500 killed^[41]^{[lower-alpha 22]}
Germans:
- 7,774 total dead
- 1,800 killed
- 4,888 deserted^[13]
Loyalists:
- 7,000 total dead
- 1,700 killed
- 5,300 dead from disease^[42]
Native Americans
- 500 total dead^[36]

Close

After the British Empire gained dominance in North America with victory over the French in the Seven Years' War in 1763, tensions and disputes arose between Great Britain and the Thirteen Colonies over a variety of issues, including the Stamp and Townshend Acts. The resulting British military occupation led to the Boston Massacre in 1770. Among further tensions, the British Parliament imposed the Intolerable Acts in mid-1774. A British attempt to disarm the Americans and the resulting Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775 ignited the war. In June, the Second Continental Congress formalized Patriot militias into the Continental Army and appointed Washington its commander-in-chief. The British Parliament declared the colonies to be in a state of rebellion in August 1775. The stakes of the war were formalized with passage of the Lee Resolution by the Congress in Philadelphia on July 2, 1776, and the unanimous ratification of the Declaration of Independence two days later, on July 4, 1776.

After a successful siege, Washington's forces drove the British Army out of Boston in March 1776, and British commander in chief William Howe responded by launching the New York and New Jersey campaign. Howe captured New York City in November. Washington responded by clandestinely crossing the Delaware River and winning small but significant victories at Trenton and Princeton. In the summer of 1777, as Howe was poised to capture Philadelphia, the Continental Congress fled to Baltimore. In October 1777, a separate northern British force under the command of John Burgoyne was forced to surrender at Saratoga in an American victory that proved crucial in convincing France and Spain that an independent United States was a viable possibility. France signed a commercial agreement with the rebels, followed by a Treaty of Alliance in February 1778. In 1779, the Sullivan Expedition undertook a scorched earth campaign against the Iroquois who were largely allied with the British. Indian raids on the American frontier, however, continued to be a problem. Also, in 1779, Spain allied with France against Great Britain in the Treaty of Aranjuez, though Spain did not formally ally with the Americans.

Howe's replacement Henry Clinton intended to take the war against the Americans into the Southern Colonies. Despite some initial success, British general Cornwallis was besieged by a Franco-American force in Yorktown in September and October 1781. Cornwallis was forced to surrender in October. The British wars with France and Spain continued for another two years, but fighting largely ceased in North America. In the Treaty of Paris, ratified on September 3, 1783, Great Britain acknowledged the sovereignty and independence of the United States, bringing the American Revolutionary War to an end. The Treaties of Versailles resolved Great Britain's conflicts with France and Spain and forced Great Britain to cede Tobago, Senegal, and small territories in India to France, and Menorca, West Florida and East Florida to Spain.^[43]^[44]