This is the third episode in an occasional series examining major counterfactual scenarios in history. The most recent installment (Nov. 30, 2023) examined what would have happened to slavery in America without the Civil War.
Imagine the National Mall in Washington without monuments to Washington or Jefferson. Think about libraries without shelves upon shelves of books about the founding fathers. Consider how different our origin story might be — along with our sense of national greatness and exceptionalism — had Great Britain crushed the American Revolution. The North American colonies eventually would have gained their independence, most likely as peacefully as did Canada, but the foundational ideas of 1776 would not have animated political life in America.
In this episode of History As It Happens, University of Virginia historian Andrew Jackson O’Shaughnessy discusses why Great Britain failed to defeat the Continental Army and win back the rebellious colonists’ loyalty. Despite possessing a professional army, powerful navy and industrializing economy, the British faced great difficulties in waging a war thousands of miles from home.
Also discussed in this episode are the importance of the Boston Tea Party and the ensuing Coercive Acts in destroying the strained bond between the colonists and Parliament; General Washington’s escape in the Battle of Long Island in 1776; British errors that led to the American victory at Saratoga in 1777; and why British victories in the southern campaign did not produce ultimate victory.
Mr. O’Shaughnessy is the author of “The Men Who Lost America: British Leadership, the American Revolution, and the Fate of Empire.” History As It Happens is available at washingtontimes.com or wherever you find your podcasts.
SEE ALSO: History As It Happens: Our radical Declaration, part three
