Guerilla Warfare
As many people can remember from their history classes, the British army was far superior compared to the colonial militias in the Revolutionary War. The Americans lacked both military experience and numbers altogether. As a result, the Americans were forced to adapt and find new ways to conquer such a well-equiped and gifted group. As social studies teacher Andrew Lefer puts it, “guerrilla warfare was instrumental in helping American forces find success” in the Revolutionary War. This style of warfare included uses of raiding, ambushing, and sabotaging the enemy. Lefer also says that employing this fighting method would tire out the British soldiers and drive up the costs of the war for the Empire since they'd be forced to use more resources, contrary to the colonists.1
George Washington best utilized guerilla warfare during the winter of 1777 at the colonists' Valley Forge encampment. There, his army raided British supply lines and ambushed large units of British soldiers to catch them by surprise. About 900 British soldiers died in this phase of guerilla warfare alone. His "Culper Ring," a network of American spies, also used disinformation to their advantage by spreading lies making the British think the Americans had more soldiers than what their smaller army really had.1 One instance of this ocurring is mentioned in a 1782 edition of The New-Hampshire Gazette and General Advertiser. This newspaper states that General Nathanael Greene "finessed the enemy into thinking the whole army was present" which drove the British towards the coast near Savannah and Charleston.3 It's also noted that Washington often paid these spies out of his own pocket to keep his business dealings more under-the-table.2 Lefer also states that this played the most impactful role in the southern colonies since the army was able to draw the British away from their supply lines under General Nathanael Grenne. This enabled them to attack with smaller units, therefore spreading out their soldiers over a wider area. Another area of interest for the guerilla war tactics used was on the high seas. Privateers worked to both earn money for themselves and prevent British ships from carrying supplies to the colonies. British losses due to these actions are estimated to range anywhere from $15 million to $60 million in today's currency. About 10% of British soldiers and supplies meant to reach the colonies never actually made it, due in large part to these privateers.2
1. Lefer, Andrew. “Guerrilla Warfare in the American Revolution.” Guerrilla Warfare in the American Revolution | Tactics & Reasons, November 21, 2023. study.com/learn/lesson/guerrilla-warfar-american-revolution-overview-methods-tactics.html#:~:text=Beginning%20at%20the%20Battles%20of,to%20surprise%20larger%20British%20forces.
2. History, Military. “How the Americans Defeated the British in the Revolutionary War.” The Past, November 10, 2021. the-past.com/feature/how-the-americans-defeated-the-british-in-the-revolutionary-war/.
3. Humanities, National Endowment for the. “The New-Hampshire Gazette and General Advertiser. [Volume] (Portsmouth [N.H.]) 1781-1784, February 09, 1782, Image 3.” News about Chronicling America RSS. Accessed September 25, 2024. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83025585/1782-02-09/ed-1/seq-3/#date1=1775&index=7&rows=20&words=Green+Greene&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1783&proxtext=greene&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1.