"There's no more important story in American mythology than the idea that the American Revolution is rebels versus redcoats, that all Americans were united under the patriot banner, fighting off a foreign invasion force. That's an oversimplification. Plenty of Americans were not so sure about independence. And then when we go digging, we find out that many other groups of people, even other nations, were major players, too. It turns out that our founding fight is actually an example of America's longstanding global entanglements."
"America's founding fight was never solely "America first" or "America alone." It was always "America among." We can even see that in Britain: There was a fiery debate going on in Britain about whether the government's American war was worth all the British blood and British treasure being poured in to win it. We see King George III nurse some doubts. And we see a vibrant opposition in Parliament."
America's fight for independence reverberated across the globe and reshaped international politics. The myth of united patriots versus redcoats is an oversimplification; substantial numbers of Americans doubted independence. Multiple other groups and foreign nations acted as major players in the conflict. The founding struggle exemplified longstanding global entanglements and operated as “America among” rather than “America alone.” Debates in Britain questioned the value of the war amid the loss of British blood and treasure; King George III harbored doubts and parliamentary and popular opposition emerged, including hesitancy among usual working-class volunteers. A British upbringing often yields little Revolutionary history, and long US residence changes perspective.
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