Plant-for-the-Planet

Mercenary soldiers (yollanma askarlar) from Europe

Spain also supported the Americans. First, like France, the Spanish contribution consisted of money and weapons. But in 1779, Spain joined France with military support. Also like France, the Spanish navy played an important role in combating the formidable British fleet. Land and sea battles were sometimes fought far from the North American continent—in the Mediterranean and West Africa. But French, Spanish, American, and British armies were not the only armies fighting in the American Revolution. A quarter of all soldiers under the British flag were actually from the area known as Germany today—30,000 hired men in all. These soldiers were known as Hessians, because many of them were from the independent principality of Hesse-Cassel.

6. Impossible to remain neutral

Native Americans also fought in the American Revolution. Most considered the United States to be a threat to their territory, so they fought on the British side. In total, approximately 13,000 Native Americans fought for the British. But other Native Americans fought against them. The Revolution was, for some Native Americans, a controversial and divisive matter. For instance, the Iroquois Confederacy, also known as the Six Nations, was a powerful organization of tribes that tried to stay neutral. But pressed to choose a side, the Confederacy could reach no agreement; it split up, with two tribes pledging their allegiance to the Americans, and four to the British.

7. Devoted to the American cause

Other notable figures were two men from Poland: Tadeusz Kościuszko and Casimir Pulaski. Tadeusz Kościuszko was born in Poland, moved to France, sailed to America, and rose to the rank of brigadier general. His countryman, Casimir Pulaski, has been called the “father of the American cavalry.” Pulaski organized and trained the Continental Army's horsemen, which had been used mostly for scouting. Pulaski was also promoted to general but was killed in the war. Pulaski and Kościuszko joined the Americans out of idealism. They believed in the struggle for freedom and self-governance. As Pulaski wrote to George Washington after his arrival in Massachusetts, “I came here, where freedom is being defended, to serve it, and to live or die for it.”

Extra heading: George Washington's heritage