Many of the best seamen available had gone off privateering, and Continental Navy commanders and crews both suffered from a lack of training and discipline. By the end of the war, the British total had risen close to 500, and the American total had dwindled to 20. In 1776 it had 27 ships against Britain’s 270. The navy, taking its direction from the naval and marine committees of the Congress, was only occasionally effective. In October 1775 the Continental Congress authorized the creation of the Continental Navy and established the Marine Corps in November. The importance of sea power was recognized early. Colonists also had engaged in privateering during the French and Indian War, the American phase of that broader conflict (the European phase of which was known as the Seven Years’ War). Colonial ships and seamen had taken part in the British naval expeditions against Cartagena, Spain, and Louisburg, Nova Scotia, during the nine years of war between Britain and France from 1754 to 1763. That merchant service was familiar not only with the sea but also with warfare. The onset of the Revolution found the colonies with no real naval forces but with a large maritime population and many merchant vessels employed in domestic and foreign trade. The status of naval forces at the outbreak of war SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!Īlthough the colonists ventured to challenge Britain’s naval power from the outbreak of the conflict, the war at sea in its later stages was fought mainly between Britain and America’s European allies, the American effort being reduced to privateering.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning.100 Women Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.
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