Since most of the historical information on Lewis Van Woert, centers around his involvement in the Revolutionary War, it seems appropriate to give a brief synopsis of the American Revolution and to mention the area around which Louis served, focusing on its significance to the War.

The American revolution, or Revolutionary War (1775-1783), was fought between Great Britain and its 13 American colonies. The American victory resulted in the independence of the Untied States of America.

The causes of the Revolution were both political and economic. For the most part the American colonies were self- governing. But after the British defeated the French in the French and Indian War (1754-1763), the British did many things to assert their control. They decided to station large numbers of troops in the colonies - and to make the colonists pay for this. They also tried to prevent the colonists from settling on land west of the Appalachian Mountains. They told the colonists they could trade only with the British and they passed such acts as the Stamp Act. It seemed to the Americans that the British were trying to govern the colonies for the benefit of Britain - not the colonies.

American anger deepened when a number of colonists were killed by British troops in the Boston Massacre in 1770. When the British placed a tax on tea, the colonists responded with the Boston Tea Party, in which British tea was destroyed. To punish the Americans, the British passed what the colonies called the "Intolerable Acts" in 1774. One of these acts closed the port of Boston.

The colonists now convened the First Continental Congress. They denounced the British laws and said they would not trade with Britain. Most colonists wanted fairness, but not independence. Nevertheless, colonial militias were formed. When the British sent troops to destroy the militias' arms at Concord, Massachusetts, the Americans fought back. The battles of Lexington and Concord marked the beginning of the American Revolution.

In July 1775, the Second Continental Congress named George Washington commander of the Continental Army. A year later the Declaration of Independence was adopted.

Many battles were fought, with neither side gaining a definite advantage. However, one battle that did give the Americans advantage was fought near Saratoga, New York. The Americans defeated British General John Burgoyne near Saratoga, on October 17, 1777. Burgoyne and his 6,000 Redcoats had been trying to cut off New England from the other colonies. This battle was a turning point in the War because the American victory convinced the French to support the American cause. In 1778, France signed an alliance with the United States and sent troops and ships to help. The British commander, Lord Charles Cornwallis, was forced to surrender to American forces at Yorktown, Virginia, on October 19,1781. There was little fighting after this, and on September 3, 1793, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris, Britain recognized the independence of the United States of America.