I'm sure several of you are shaking your heads, wondering if I got the title wrong. But while American political figures officially declared their independence on July 4, 1776, winning it was another matter. And that came on a hot day in June, instead of a cold day in December.
There's nothing wrong with your textbooks, of course. Emboldened by George Washington's ability to maneuver the British out of Boston thanks to positioning his artillery at Dorchester Heights, America's 2nd Continental Congress did declare their independence in Philadelphia. It's all grandly captured in David McCullough's book 1776 as well.
But what the texts often forget, but McCullough doesn't, is what happened to the Americans after Independence Day. Washington suffered his worst defeat, at the Battle of Long Island. 1776 continues to be a year to forget, as Americans lose Ft. Washington and other key outposts. The army is in full retreat, and it looks bleak.
But while wins at Trenton (the famous attack on the Hessians after Christmas) and against a rear guard at Princeton give Americans a little hope, it's dashed the following year at the Battles of Brandywine and Germantown. The British capture the American capital at Philadelphia in 1777. Many in politics want Washington replaced, by either Charles Lee or Horatio Gates.
While the British enjoy the homes and comforts of the City of Brotherly Love, Washington and his men suffer outside the town at Valley Forge. But they don't just suffer. They train with Lafayette and Von Steuben in the snow, while the British take it easy, and the King's officers party away. By contrast, the American officers share the miserable conditions with their men.
The next test takes place on June 28 of 1778 at Monmouth Court House (a battle reenacted every year), as the British march across New Jersey. Washington hits General Henry Clinton's army in broad daylight, out in the open. This will be no holiday ambush, or hitting a small portion of a force. It means attacking British regulars at their full strength.
General Lee, who dislikes the plan, leads it poorly and produces a disorganized retreat. Washington relieves him of command on the spot, and organizes a rally. "Mad Anthony" Wayne, General Stirling, and Henry Knox's artillery, the goats of Germantown, are ready to withstand an attack by General Charles Cornwallis.
The result is spectacular. Washington's men stop Cornwallis' attack cold, a combination of snipers and stiff resolve (and heroic stories like the legendary Molly Pitcher). While America's cannon rake the enemy, the British guns are off on their timing. As temperatures climb to well over 100 degrees, Washington's order for his men to leave their coats behind is brilliant. The "by-the-book British" keep the heavy items, and lose hundreds more than the Americans to heat stroke. And it's clear who has been hard at work, practicing over the winter. Americans lose fewer soldiers in the pitched battle, and hold their ground, as the British leave the region for New York City.
But there's a final piece that Monmouth battle archaeologists discovered, as seen on the History Channel's Battlefield Detectives. They found, arguably for the first time, buttons issued with a simple pair of words: U.S. No longer would we see ourselves as New Yorkers first, or North Carolinians first, or Rhode Islanders first. We would be THE United States of America. And that's a spirit the British could never beat. We're still united, and can't be divided.
John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Ga. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu.