The American Revolution:

The American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.

American Revolution Quick Facts

Date:

April 19, 1775 - September 3, 1783

Location:

On Land:

Eastern North America
Gibraltar
Balearic Islands
Central America
French, Dutch, and British colonial possessions in the Indian subcontinent and elsewhere

At Sea:

European coastal waters
Caribbean Sea
Atlantic Ocean
Indian Oceans

The Road to Revolution (1763–1774)

Following the French and Indian War, Great Britain incurred massive debt and attempted to recoup its losses by imposing a series of heavily protested taxes and restrictive laws on its colonies:

1765 Stamp Act: The first direct tax on American colonists, requiring stamps on all legal documents and paper goods.
1770 Boston Massacre: British soldiers fired on a hostile crowd, becoming a massive propaganda tool for colonial patriots.
1773 Boston Tea Party: In protest of the Tea Act, colonists dumped British tea into Boston Harbor, prompting the punitive and restrictive Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts).

Key Battles and Turning Points

Lexington and Concord (April 1775): "The shot heard 'round the world." These first skirmishes in Massachusetts officially ignited the Revolutionary War.
Declaration of Independence (July 1776): The Continental Congress officially adopted the document, shifting the conflict from a tax protest to a formalized war for national sovereignty.
Battle of Trenton (December 1776): General George Washington's surprise Christmas night crossing of the Delaware River yielded vital victories that boosted the morale of the Continental Army.
Battle of Saratoga (October 1777): Often considered the war's turning point, a decisive American victory convinced France to openly ally with the United States, providing troops, funds, and naval support.
Battle of Yorktown (October 1781): A combined American and French force trapped British General Cornwallis, effectively ending major military operations in North America.

Result:

Treaty of Paris (1783) - The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, and it was ratified by congress on January 14, 1784. It marked the end of the American Revolutionary war.
Declaration Of Independence

Territorial Changes:

Britain: loses area east of Mississippi River and south of Great Lakes & St. Lawrence River to independent United States.
Spain: gains East Florida, West Florida and Minorca.
Britain: cedes Tobago and Senegal to France.
Dutch Republic: cedes Negapatnam to Britain.

Belligerents:

American Forces:

American Forces By State:

Record of Connecticut Men in the Military and Naval Service during the War of the Revolution, 1775-1783
Official Register of the Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Revolutionary War - By William S. Stryker
New York In The Revolution as Colony and State - A compilation of documents and records from The Office Of The State Comptroller
New York In The Revolution - Documents Relating to the Colonial History of the State of New York by Berthold Fernow
Pennsylvania in the War of the Revolution, Associated Battalions and Militia, 1775-1783
Vermont In The Revolution - Rolls of the Soldiers in the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783 Compiled and edited by John E. Goodrich.

British Forces:

Commanders and Leaders:

Revolutionary War Generals

Pensions

Burials

Strength:

United States (at height):

35,000 Continentals
44,500 Militia
5,000 Continental Navy sailors (at height in 1779)
53 ships (active service at some point during the war)
12,000 French (in America)
60,000 French and Spanish (in Europe)

Great Britain (at height):

56,000 British
78 Royal Navy ships in 1775, 171,000 Sailors
30,000 Germans
50,000 Loyalists
13,000 Natives

Casualties and losses

United States:

American: 25,000 dead
8000 in battle
17,000 by other causes
Total American casualties: up to 50,000 dead and wounded
Allies: 6000 French and Spanish (in Europe)
2000 French (in America)

Great Britain:

20,000 Soldiers from the British army dead and wounded
19,740 sailors dead
42,000 sailors deserted
7,554 German dead

Prisoners:

American Prisoners of the Revolution

Honor Rolls:

Honor Roll of Massachusetts Patriots--Herertofore Unknown--Being a list of men and women who loaned money to the federal goverment during the American Revolution 1777-1779.

American Revolutionary War Campaigns And Battles (1775-1783)

More information on the American Revolution:

American Revolutionary War Forts

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