How did the Colonies win the American War of Independence?

Dan Snow's History Hit

History Hit

History

4.7 • 12.9K Ratings

🗓️ 17 July 2025

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In 1775, American revolutionaries went to war with the British. Seeking independence from colonial ties, they fought more than 150 battles over eight years.

How did a relatively new nation of just 2.5 million people face off against the greatest military power on the planet at that time? And when exactly did the tide turn?

In this first of two episodes with Don Wildman, host of American History Hit, and Major Jonathan Bratten of the National Guard, Dan represents the British in the Revolutionary struggle.

Edited by Aidan Lonergan, and produced by Sophie Gee, Mariana Des Forges and Charlotte Long.

Join Dan and the team for a special LIVE recording of Dan Snow's History Hit on Friday, 12th September 2025!

To celebrate 10 years of the podcast, Dan is putting on a special show of signature storytelling, never-before-heard anecdotes from his often stranger-than-fiction career, as well as answering the burning questions you've always wanted to ask!

Get tickets here, before they sell out: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/dan-snows-history-hit/

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Transcript

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0:45.3	Ticketmaster and Gigs and Tours.com in the Stereophonics
0:57.0	Live
0:59.0	In the morning
1:02.0	In the morning of October 17, 1781, a drummer boy beat out the parley.
1:18.0	A particular rhythm on the drum, recognisable to friend and foe alike.
1:23.1	It was a signal that British wanted to talk.
1:26.7	As was the white handkerchief tied to the end of the sword of a British officer,
1:31.8	a man who mounted the parapet on the British defences at their stronghold on the shores of the Chesapeake in Virginia, at Yorktown.
1:41.3	The officer was blindfolded.
	...

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