Plant-for-the-Planet

Read the passage quickly. Choose a heading for each numbered paragraph
(1 – 7). There is one more heading than you need.

Non-Colonists-in-the-American-Revolution

1. Enlightenment ideas
From the point of view of some Europeans, the American Revolution pitted the ideals of the Enlightenment, republicanism, and democracy against Europe's established order, as exemplified by Britain. Some countries found that watching wasn't enough—they joined the fight.

2. French withdrawal (chiqib ketish/qo’ldan boyberib qoyish) from North America

One of these countries was France. Without France, a very important ally of America in the Revolutionary War, the Americans might not have defeated the British army. The French supported the Americans for a number of reasons. A weakened England could only heighten France's status and influence—both in Western Europe and around the world as various countries competed to establish colonies. Some French might have been seeking payback. Only twelve years before the American Revolution, France was at war with Britain in the Seven Years’ War, and they lost. This resulted in France being forced to give North American territories to Britain.

3. Undercover support (yashirin yordam)

Five months after the Declaration of Independence was signed, Benjamin Franklin traveled to Paris. He hoped to explain the revolutionary cause to the French and enlist their support. Franklin was already popular in France for his writings and scientific discoveries, and he was able to secure French support. At first, France supported the Americans only in secret. Gunpowder, ammunition, weapons, and money were smuggled into the country, hidden in commercial ships. Military strategists crossed the Atlantic to advise Continental Army military commanders.

4. A valuable support and new expectations

In February 1778, France officially recognized the United States (following the Battle of Saratoga, in which the Continental Army decisively defeated the British army and gave a resurgence of hope to the Americans’ fight for independence), and the countries signed an alliance. French soldiers fought alongside Americans; French and British fleets clashed from Rhode Island down to Georgia. In addition to manpower, France contributed money and weapons. For helping the American cause, France spent the equivalent of what would be about 13 billion dollars in the U.S. today.

5.