The American Revolution from a British POV

[Dogovich]

The general rule as to who was a loyalist and who was a "patriot", most sources I have heard mention that there was a split of about 1/3 or less loyalist, 1/3 or greater patriot, with the rest sitting in the middle. As for civil wars, it really did not develop that way until the war expanded into the south. There loyalist and rebel fought each other with great bitterness, urged on by the British forces then deployed there. In many cases, the countryside did not need to be controlled because of the indifference of many of the people.

France's involvement was vital for a number of reasons. The most important of which was monetary. The army could not be supported without adequate arms, ammunition, and other equipment which the French provided in some quantity. Also, French, Spanish, and Dutch involvement meant that the war was no longer an isolated event. Instead, other portions of the Empire were now threatened and the British had to stretch their resources to resist the other powers facing her. This was especially true of her navy which now had to contend with the fleets of the other major powers where before she was barely challenged by anything of consequence. The fight was now a "world war." Faced with this, and the threat of American "Privateers" preying on their shipping, the English eventually became eager to settle and get out of the American quagmire. They won the world war, but settled for the loss of their American colonies.