An American Triumph

In the early days of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin suggested a Latin motto for use by the burgeoning American Revolutionaries: exitus in dubio est. The English translation is “the outcome is in doubt.” The motto reminded those who supported the Continental Congress and the Continental Army that their success against the British was not inevitable, but sacrifice, dedication, and hard work were required to see it through. The triumph of the American Revolutionaries is a story that continues to be inspirational nearly 250 years later.

In An American Triumph: America’s Founding Era Through the Lives of Ben Franklin, George Washington, and John Adams, author Tom Hand, publisher of the website Americana Corner, chronicles the American Revolution in a way that is both accessible and visually rich. Hand’s goal with this book is to share the story of the Revolution, and the “hard work and bloodshed, brilliant thoughts and difficult decisions” that made it happen, to inspire modern American patriotism. The book is organized into 12 chronological chapters with 58 subsections that variously focus on the contributions and actions of Franklin, Washington, and Adams. Hand concludes the book with helpful pages of recommended reading and related historic sites to visit.

Read an excerpt from the beginning of chapter seven, “The United States Gains Independence,” in which Hand frames the significance of Franklin’s negotiations with France during the Revolutionary War. 

Excerpt

Congress declared America’s independence from England on July 4, 1776, but the most crucial step still lay ahead and that was to secure what we had declared. Delegates knew that to have a real change at success, the United States needed the assistance of one or more European powers.

The natural enemy of England in the 1700s was France. The two nations had fought four wars over the course of eighty years, and, with the right diplomacy and a little luck, American leaders hoped there would be a fifth. Due to the high regard in which Benjamin Franklin was held, Congress sent him to France in December 1776 to join fellow ambassadors Silas Deane and Arthur Lee to negotiate a treaty with that country.

One must remember that Franklin was seventy years old and in poor health, suffering terribly from gout. Nevertheless, he willingly accepted the post as he was now fully committed to the American cause and ready to pay any cost his country required. As Franklin mentioned to his friend Benjamin Rush, “I have only a few years to live, and I am resolved to devote them to the work that my fellow citizens deem proper for me.”

Franklin’s reputation as a brilliant man of science preceded him, but being from the “wilderness” of America, he was still viewed as a bit of a backwoodsman. Ever the deft politician, Franklin played his role perfectly by wearing a plain suit of brown and white linen, a fur cap, and no wig to the most elaborate court in Europe.

The French, especially the Foreign Minister Comte de Vergennes, were initially cautious with the American contingent, refusing to grant them interviews but secretly issuing small loans to Congress. Although the French were anxious to help America if only to hurt England, they needed to see some successes before openly committing to a pact.

The low-point of American hopes for French assistance came in November 1777 when word arrived that Philadelphia, the nation’s capital, had fallen to General William Howe’s forces. Despite the setback, Franklin maintained his calm and positive outlook and showed no signs of defeatism. When told Howe had taken Philadelphia, Franklin wittily replied, “I beg your pardon sir, Philadelphia has taken Howe.”

But Franklin knew things were dire. The British blockade had cut off almost all supplies into America, as well as communications from there. The little correspondence from Congress that did get through desperately pleaded with Franklin to secure an alliance. Without one, it would be difficult to continue to fight.

Finally, in December 1777, the encouraging news from America that Franklin had been waiting for finally arrived in Paris. On October 19, General John Burgoyne had surrendered the entire British Northern Army, all 7,000 men and all their equipment. This news electrified Europe and French attitudes immediately changed, as did those of the English.

Recognizing an alliance was becoming more likely between France and the colonies, British officials began to make peace overtures to Franklin. They offered to rescind all “obnoxious” taxes and readjust American affairs on the “grand basis of the Navigation Acts,” the policies that governed English commerce. However, the Americans would still be colonists and under control of Parliament. As Franklin knew, it was too late to turn back and nothing short of complete independence was acceptable.

On February 6, 1778, France and the United States signed the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, which recognized America as an independent nation, our first official recognition by a foreign power. Representatives also signed the Treaty of Alliance, a defensive pact between the two countries that pledged neither nation would seek a separate peace with England.

Although France had been sending clandestine supplies to the colonies since 1775, the treaty resulted in substantial increases in manpower, naval support, military supplies, and loans. Between 1778 and 1781, France supplied 12,000 soldiers, 22,000 sailors, and 63 warships to the American cause.

Additionally, it is estimated the French spent 1.3 billion livres on the American war effort during the American Revolution, the most of any of the combatants. This staggering expenditure depleted the already diminished French treasury and would come back to haunt King Louis XVI in the form of the French Revolution.

More importantly, the French commitment to the colonies altered how the English viewed the war in North America. Instead of simply worrying about an ill-equipped force with no navy, Great Britain now had to deal with a European power that had a strong presence on the high seas. This threat of the French Navy placed England’s valuable possessions in the Caribbean in grave danger.

The immediate British response was to abandon Philadelphia, which they did in June 1778, and consolidate their forces in New York. They also shifted naval forces to the Caribbean and brought some ships back to home waters. Perhaps most importantly, more officials started to question if the war in America was worth the effort and wondered if making the peace and restoring trade relations with America might be a better route to take.

Tom Hand, An American Triumph: America’s Founding Era Through the Lives of Ben Franklin, George Washington, and John Adams (Americana Corner Press, 2023), 143-145.