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David Mccullough 1776 Chapter 3 Summary

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1776, a book written by David McCullough discusses the political, social and overall major events that were caused by the American Revolution. Up until chapter 3, McCullough discusses both Washingtons and Howe’s strategies and and how both the colonists and the English were impacted by the battles. Chapter 3 starts off by Major General Henry Clinton, a British General, demanding that they must occupy Dorchester Heights because as he described,”It was absolutely necessary for the security of Boston.” Additionally, the Americans also thought it was a priority to occupy Boston, but both armies were hesitant and didn't do much about it. Instead, the British fortified Bunker Hill for the winter. However, the British armies weren't used to the American winters and consequently they lost several men due to the extreme temperatures causing the men to freeze to death. On the other …show more content…

One main argument was the debate between who was going to occupy Boston first. As we know it was the colonist, but McCullough believes that if the British took matters into their own hands and took over Dorchester Heights then the war would have had a completely different outcome. Therefore, McCullough is saying that since the British military was immensely strong and well trained they would have had the colonist beat without a doubt and would have won the war as a whole. Additionally, he argues that If Washington didn't give it his all and straighten out his troops the English would have also won. The American military were very inexperienced and uneducated whereas the British had the best military in the world which is why the colonists couldn’t slack at all. Overall, McCullough's arguments support that the British came close to winning the war several times, but the colonist made all the right decisions that helped them to defeat the British at Dorchester

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