98
●
Chapter 6
The Colonies Fight for
Freedom fromEngland
L E S S O N 1 9
Key Questions
1. What were four main
problems with the American
colonies declaring their
independence from England?
2. What was thewar for
freedom called?
3. For what was Valley Forge
well known?
4. How did the people of
Pennsylvania help in thewar
for freedom?
KeyWords
American Revolution
ConestogaWagon
loyal
Key People & Places
New York City
New Jersey
Trenton
Washington Crossing
Brandywine
Friedrich von Steuben
Valley Forge
Yorktown, VA
Mary Hays
Our Fight for Freedom
I
n the last lesson, we learned how the
American colonies declared their
freedom from England. It was one
thing to say we wanted freedom. It was
quite another thing for the king to say,
“Okay, you colonies can have your
freedom.” It was not that easy. The king
and his leaders did not like the statements
in our
Declaration of Independence
. Even
though powerful England was 2,000 miles
across the Atlantic Ocean, King George
decided to fight. He had a powerful navy
and a large army. The colonistswouldhave
to fight awar to gain their freedom.
This war has several names. The most
popular one is called the
American
Revolution
. A revolution is a big change.
In this case, the American colonies wanted
to change their government. Bydoing this,
our nation could have the freedom to rule
itself with its own laws. England could no
longer rule theAmerican colonies. Thewar
began in 1775 and ended in 1781.
When you think about it, declaring
freedom from England’s rule was not a
smart move for the American colonies. At
this time, England was a very powerful
nation. However, the American colonies
had no navy, no army, no money, no
supplies, no flags, no uniforms, and no
weapons. How can you fight awarwithout
