Muhammed Ali Week 7: What If America Lost the Revolutionary War?
The American Revolution, also known as the Revolutionary War or The War for Independence, was a bloody battle fought between Great Britain and their thirteen American colonies. Considered by many to be one of the most successful fights for independent rule by any country, the American Revolution was a pivotal moment not just in American history, but in world history as well. But what if it wasn’t a successful run? What if the colonists didn’t overcome the incredible odds stacked against them? What if America lost the war?
The simple answer is that there would be no United States. Britain would have regained control of the colonies, and now being in even more debt, they would have to skyrocket taxes again in order to compensate. Although dissatisfaction from the colonists would once again ensue, the fear of Great Britain’s might and the fact that they had defeated the colonies once before would have likely halted any uprisings early on.
"Traitors" such as George Washington and Samuel Adams would have been dealt with swiftly by the British, further demonstrating their power and scaring the colonists further. With their leadership and many of their supporters gone, American Patriots would take a long time to recoup before any meaningful efforts could be made against the British.
Because the British were against moving into Native American lands in the Midwest in an effort to avoid conflict, the Natives would have kept their land, at least for a much longer time. The Iroquois tribes would have stayed powerful and would have not been suppressed and murdered by the colonists.
It’s likely that long after the war, dissatisfaction with British rule and the desire to be independent would rise up once more and cause yet another Revolutionary War, but it’s hard to say who would emerge victorious in that fight. Britain would have solidified and expanded their empire by then, but the colonists would have had decades to gather support and prepare for another revolt.
There are international effects to America losing the war as well, a huge one being that France never undergoes the French Revolution. The French Revolution took heavy inspiration from the American Revolution, and it happened mainly because the French people saw the success of the Americans in their fight for independence. If the Americans were defeated, the French would have likely been deterred to take any action. The monarchs would remain in power, and the lower classes would continue to live in poverty.
Of course, there are many more effects to be mentioned, both political and social, that would have come about with an American defeat. The American Revolution quite literally changed the course of history in so many ways, and it would be extremely incorrect to limit the ripple effects to just these five.
What US Would Be Like if America Lost the Revolution (for picture)
Hi Muhammad! I think your topic is really interesting and it is clear you have put a lot of thought into this. Your contextualization of the American Revolution was efficient in that it did not provide unnecessary information, but introduced the immense relevance of this war in world history. Following this information, you included multiple questions that accurately encapsulated your main ideas, and allowed the reader to develop a thought process surrounding these question, before reading your thoughts. As for what you believed would occur is the British won the Revolutionary War, I completely agree with your assumptions, and it is crazy to think about how different our lives would be in these alternate outcomes. Overall, I think you did an incredible job in picking a unique topic that prompts an interesting conversation, and supporting it with excellent writing techniques.
ReplyDeleteHi, Muhammed! I like how you mentioned how the “traitors” would be killed; I remember the emphasis put behind the punishment of the people who signed the Declaration of Independence. The fact that the British may not have moved West to fulfill Manifest Destiny is also not something I thought of before. That sounds like a much better fate for the Native Americans. I wonder if the British would eventually change their mind and invade anyway? I like how you mentioned that there would likely be another Revolutionary War instead of the British staying in charge forever. That also makes the topic of the French Revolution more interesting. What if the French eventually had the idea to rebel against their monarchy and the United States tried again instead? The British would probably be more prepared to quell the rebellions. I like how much your blog makes me think about the scenarios!
ReplyDeleteHi Muhammed! I consider your topic of choice to be an especially interesting one. The formation of these hypothetical questions and answering them with historical context and precedents can be a fun and rewarding experience. Reworking history itself can be a difficult process, but you manage to consider the political, economic, and social implications of a change of the magnitude that you have chosen as your subject matter. Undoubtedly, the American Revolution was a significant event that changed the course of global politics and the balance of power throughout the New World.
ReplyDeleteThe introduction to your blog is powerful in the way you present consequent and related rhetorical questions that serve to elevate a feeling of confusion and cause speculation on what could have happened if the United States of America had lost the Revolutionary War. That leads to the question of what would have happened to every subsequent war in history that the United States has greatly contributed to. For example, World War I and World War II would have greatly changed their results if the United States had been under British control.
I admire that you explore the social impact that American subjugation would have globally. I feel that we often prioritize the concrete outcomes of political and economic changes; however, it is instrumental that we consider the changes in mindset that many may have encountered after such a defeat. If the United States did lose the Revolutionary War, many patriots may be too mentally paralyzed to even consider mounting a second rebellion. Altogether, I enjoyed your analysis of the intricate changes and the overall impact that is dealt with because of the United States not coming into being.