978-1-4222-3353-5

A Glorious Cause

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what became known as the Battle of Bunker Hill. But the cost was appall- ing: of about 2,400 redcoats who fought in the battle, more than 1,050 were casualties, including 226 dead. American casualties, meanwhile, totaled approximately 450, with about 115 dead. “A few more such vic- tories,” Henry Clinton recalled later, “would have shortly put an end to British dominion in America.” Extending an Olive Branch On July 3, 1775, George Washington officially took command of the Conti- nental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts. In spite of the militias’ recent brave performance at Bunker Hill, Washington was dismayed at the condi- tion of the army. The troops lacked discipline. Drunkenness and brawling were common. Men routinely ignored orders from their officers. In turn, many officers seemed to have little regard for their duties. Some disappeared from camp for days or weeks on end. Clearly, Washington faced a difficult task in transforming the Continental Army into an effective fighting force. At this point, though, most American colonists hoped to avoid a full- scale war. Patriots who favored a complete break with Great Britain were in the minority. A significant proportion of the colonial population took the Crown’s side in the recent disputes. These colonists were known as Loyalists. A larger group of colonists remained neutral. They neither took up the Patriot cause nor stood with the Loyalists. Many simply wanted to go about their normal lives. The Continental Congress made an attempt to resolve colonial disagree- ments with Great Britain. On July 8, the Congress sent to King George III an appeal known as the Olive Branch Petition. It expressed the American colonists’ loyalty to the king. It blamed the king’s ministers and Parlia- ment for the oppressive policies that colonists disliked. And it asked the king to intercede to bring colonists relief from those policies. This, the petition suggested, would lead to “a happy and permanent reconciliation” between Great Britain and the colonies.