outhern colonies, there was actually a majority of African-American slaves. In November of 1775, Lord Dunmore, the royally appointed governor of Virginia, issued a proclamation that granted freedom to any slaves who would take up arms against the Patriots. About 1,000 African-American slaves take up Dunmore on their offer and they actually formed a military unit which briefly saw action against white Virginians in December of 1775. [if ask, mention that they had to flee the mainland in 1776 and boarded ships, where many of them died from disease]. Now dont get the idea that Dunmore wanted to end slaveryhe was a slaveowner himself. But Dunmore did want Patriot slaveowners to get nervous. In that respect, Lord Dunmores proclamation succeeded. Historians estimate that about 50,000 slaves in Virginia and South Carolina ran from their owners, which disrupted the planting of crops and supply lines throughout the Revolutionary War. So today I hope that you understand how many American colonists came to view independence as their only course of action by 1776, but just declaring independence didnt necessarily make it so. There was a war to be foughtand frankly the British Army looked pretty unbeatable. [show overhead] How would these ragtag bunch of guys ever defeat the most powerful fighting force in the world? Thats a fascinating and interesting topic, so interesting that well take it up next lecture....
