🇬🇧 BRIT Rugby Fan Reacts To THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION! 

It doesn't appear anyone's mentioned this yet: John Adams (Yes, one of the Founding Fathers) was the defense lawyer who represented the british soldiers from the Boston Massacre, who had been arrested and tried for murder. He did this for a small sum and at great risk to his reputation, because he believed it important that the trial be a fair and just one, and no other lawyers would take the soldiers' case. None were convicted of murder. The commander, and six of the soldiers were acquitted, while 2 were convicted of manslaughter.

Benedict Arnold btrayed the Patriots.The term Turn Coat was given to him.

I few things... Many of the colonists were 5+ generations in the colonies, but they still considered themselves British. Their problem was that they were not being treated as full citizens. The taxes, for instances, were not that high, but taxes in the homeland were generated by acts of parliament. The colonists, having no representatives in parliament, felt that the taxes were illegal BECAUSE they had no representation. But representation was a sticky matter. With the colony population approaching 50% of that of England and growing fast, adding the American colonists representatives directly to parliament would be a major shake-up in the balance of power. And to make matters worse, if land ownership was used in any formula for calculating representation the massive amount of land in the American colonies could turn them all into voters. Intelligent people foresaw an England where the population at home would become a minority dominated by British citizens living outside of the homeland. There were attempts at compromise, but they were poorly designed and failed. Back to Washington... he was an officer in the colonial army, not the redcoats. After the 7 years war (We call it the French and Indian War in the U.S.) Washington wanted a commission in the royal army, but was rejected... again, 2nd class citizen. It is very important to understand that George Washington did not join the continental army to fight for independence. He and most others felt that they were fighting for their rights as English citizens when the conflict started. Kill each other for a few months and the idea of independence became more popular - but it never became extremely popular. Most people just wanted the fighting to stop regardless of outcome. Also, most colonists resented parliament, but the King was still popular until the war was well underway. Today a lot of media portrays the American colonists as hating the crown but that was not true at the time. Another thing to understand is that each colony was effectively a corporation from the English point of view. They often treated each separately and the colonists themselves had little loyalty collectively. When dealing with the post-7 Years War issues Franklin advocated that the colonies needed to negotiate collectively. Many of the images used during the war were based not on rebellion, but on failed attempts at collective bargaining, like the chopped up snake "Join or Die" isn't about joining the army. Side note: The Boston Tea Party actually had invitations... the 1000s of on-lookers knew it was going to happen... it was a real party. I do living history presentations and sometimes portray a loyalist. It is surprising to Americans today to learn that the idea of independence wasn't popular at first - they're fooled by the modern media into thinking we hated England. We didn't - we hated parliament - and who doesn't at any point in history? This was a civil war, with families being very split on the issues. Brothers fought brothers, literally at times.

Fun side note, when he talks about the Stamp Act, he shows the merchant stamping a deck of cards. Back then, they would stamp the Ace of Spades specifically, and some colonists thought they'd be sneaky and buy every card except that one to get around the tax. Problem was, almost every card game there is requires the Ace of Spades, so that deck would be borderline useless. This is the origin of the saying, 'Not playing with a full deck', to describe someone as stupid.

Benedict Arnold was indeed a traitor, as you'll see in Part 2. SPOILER ALERT: it doesn't go well for the Brits.

This was the point in time that Americans fell away from drinking tea. During these tax boycotts. We switched to coffee and then never really went back.

As a history major I was getting ready to destroy this and dumb it down for ya, but they really nailed the video. I have nothing to add lol.

The famous ride of Paul Revere where he was supposed to have said "the British are coming" is false. The colonist considered themselves to be British. What Revere and the other riders said was "the Regulars are coming".

This is something we Americans are taught in grade school. At least I was. I don't know about what today's children are being taught. I also was taught some of the history of the rest of the world too.

You should react to all of his videos. He doesn’t do a lot of videos, (only like 5 or do a year), but they are extremely well animated and researched. Edit: and yes he did show up every day in a military uniform, even though he never actively campaigned to be head of the army, (talk about dressing for the job you want!)

ALREADY WAITING FOR PT2!! 😁😁 Great reaction!

One thing that added to the early success of the minute men militias was that due to previous experiences in the French Indian War, veterans adopted Native American guerrilla tactics not commonly used by the British, and totally switched up military strategies.

I live by fort Ticonderoga it was a so heavily armed because of its location, less then 8 miles from a French fort at Crown Point. The Green mountain boys come from an area that would eventually become Vermont.

King George was literally crazy. Also the American ICBMs for nuking anywhere in the world are called minutemen keeping to tradition of being ready at all times.

Fun fact: Jefferson got "life liberty and the pursuit of happiness" from the British author the narrator mentions, Thomas Paine, who in Common Sense declared all men deserve "life, liberty, and property". He also talked of the equality and inalienable rights of man, so Jefferson was definitely inspired, if not responding directly in agreement with

You will see it was not necessarily the Always the British with the best training throughout the war. Most of the Minutemen were seasoned veterans of the 7 Years War.

One point about the Battle of Lexington and Concord (that first major engagement in Massachusetts): It wasn't just numbers (though per Wikipedia the British had the numerical advantage overall, 4,000 vs. 1,500), the colonists were a) likely more motivated (if you're some random dude from Yorkshire, what do you care about Massachusetts) and b) were far more familiar with the terrain (so they had an advantage in setting ambushes and otherwise turning circumstances to their benefit).

speaking of `divine intervention', during the war of 1812 when the americans fought the brits again, a tornado actually happened in washington d.c. and helped the americans win.

You would be amazed at what normal fruits and veg came from the Americas. Avocado Green beans, lima beans, dry beans, wax beans, soybeans, peas, and fava beans Cacao (the source of chocolate) Cassava Chia seeds Corn Papaya Peanuts Chili peppers Pineapple Potatoes Popcorn Quinoa Multiple species of squash, including pumpkins, zucchinis Sunflower Sweet Potato Tomatillo Tomato Turkey

Good reaction! Yes, money was a key factor, but you are missing half of the issue, which was representation in Parliament. There was no one in Government who could argue a case for the Colonies. The British Commonwealth System is very much the byproduct of the American Revolution.

That was fun and educational. When I was growing up history was always my worst subject in school because teachers usually focus on events and dates making class very dry. It wasn't until getting out of school that I realized there is always a story behind every event that makes it far more interesting and memorable.

Because much of the fighting in the Seven Years War was in North America, the Members of Parliament were reminded of the existence of the colonies. Up until then most of Parliament simply gave the colonies no thought. And the colonies had been thriving due to that benign neglect. As others have stated, there was a tax issue. In general, the serious taxpayers in Britain were Members of Parliament. They had to be; they were the ones with the money. They were looking for other revenue sources, and they hit on the idea of taxing the colonists. The problem was, at this time everyone in Britain thought of wealth in terms of species; that is, gold or silver coins. But due to Parliament’s own previous policies, there was very little space in the American colonies; most transactions were a combination of barter and credit. Some colonies issued limited paper currency, which basically made the barter-and-credit economy a bit more convenient. To make matters worse, the colonial governments had gone into debt during the war, and they were already collecting local taxes (in specie) to repay the debts. Thus the new taxes from Parliament hit when the colonies had an even worse than usual cash shortage. It is interesting that Mr. Hanover (a.k.a. George III) privately observed just this problem with the Stamp Act, but publicly he did nothing about it. What Parliament ought to have done was to assume the colonies’ war debt, and then tax the colonies for repayment but accept barter/credit/ colonial paper currency. It would have been cumbersome and time-consuming for the British government to convert goods to cash, but it would have been taxation in a form the colonists could actually have paid. Indeed, by eliminating the need to find rare species Parliament would have been praised by most colonists. In hindsight, we can see the souring of relations starting in 1763, but in reality, things had basically been worked out until the tea crisis of late 1774. That was caused by both sides’ escalating overreactions

Its an historic event in American history know as "the Boston tea party."

"If your outnumbered 5 to 1 it's pretty much over for you." Napolean: Um....

Alfalfa called Spanky a Bennedict Arnold in Little Rascals. That's where I first learned that Bennidict Arnold was a traitor. Haha

Love your sense of humor, my brother. You're a good dude

Love your reactions! I don't know if you did this on purpose, but you released this vid on one of our major holidays - Memorial Day! Today is our day of remembrance for all those who have fought and died for the American way of life. (Veterans Day is celebrated in November, paying honor to all who have served in the military.) Perfect day for this video! Thanks!! Stay safe!

It mentions Thomas Jefferson owned slaves. It fails to mention he originally wrote a paragraph in the declaration of independence that said slaves were equal too. But the fear was too many southern delegates would refuse to sign it. So, they omitted that paragraph.

What you really gotta start watching is Drunk History produced by Comedy Central. Very funny stuff! Edit: Oh my Lord! I didn’t even know you guys had your own version in the UK!

It’s good to see your channel growing Man!

The American knowledge of the local terrain and the general misunderstanding of the terrain and how to fight in it by the British was a huge tactical advantage the colonists used repeatedly against the British. Pretty much any time the Americans attempted to meet the world's greatest military of the time in open field it ended in a sound defeat. Hit and run tactics, feigned retreats, ambushes, etc (as you watched in Part 2 as well) wreaked havoc against the British and with the help of European allies proved decisive to the end result of the war. Edit: Now off to part 2!

This narrator reminds me of my favorite high school history teachers! I loved his classes. 🤗

You are going to have to follow this up with the, Civil War also by OverSimplified. Can't wait for Part II good reactions.

Even though I've seen this video you reaction was epic and well worth another watch. You've been on a tremendous roll with great videos and very entertaining reactions Kabir. You know we Americans love remembering historical events where we come out on top. It feeds right into our tremendous egos, so thanks for that!! LOL...😝😝😝😝😝

More info: it wasn't just that goods like tea were taxed. It was also that British megacompanies like the East India Company could evade the taxes. Most colonists, for example, bought discount tea imported from the Netherlands and sold cheaply through local stores. But now these local stores and goods carried heavier taxes, so it was cheaper to buy pricier goods imported through these megacompanies. This meant that many local merchants and stores were being run out of business because, thanks to the taxes, they couldn't compete with the larger companies' prices. So it wasn't just the tax, it was also that British companies were weaponizing the tax to run out local competition. Kind of like if big companies like Walmart got tax breaks while local ma and pa shops had to pay full tax, so Walmart selling generic national goods became so much cheaper than local sellers peddling locally made/grown goods that no one would buy local and the small businesses (and their local suppliers) would go bankrupt. Oh, wait...

It's always surprising(?) to me how differently this subject is taught in US schools, vs UK schools.

Great video! The creator is having too much fun! Oversimplified does leave out some facts but does give good overview of history.

As a native Bay Stater (person from Massachusetts) it’s killing my ears to hear this narrator pronounce “Concord” as “con-chord” like the airplane; we pronounce it “con-kurd”, like the word “conquered” ahhhh that’s better 😊😊😊

18:30 The New York area has always been susceptible to fog, that's not that unusual. The British decision to dig in I think comes from the fact that, from Britain's perspective this isn't a foreign war, but a civil one. I assume their goal was to intimidate the Americans into surrendering, then they could arrest Washington and the other leaders. Because their goal, of course, was to prevent the colonies from leaving and being them back into the fold. That will be a lot harder to do if you've just killed a bunch of them with their backs to a river

There were several instances where fog moved in to conceal the Americans movements from the British.

I love this stuff man. Oversimplified does a very good job for what it is. I'm very much a history guy, so I'm going to enjoy this. Since you asked, Benedict Arnold is indeed known for being a traitor. He'll get to that bit in part 2. I was surprised that yall aren't really taught about this. My wife really learned all this stuff after she met me. It seems like it would be seen as important, even though it isn't exactly flattering. I'm glad you're deciding to learn about it. Basically, all of the founding fathers you've ever heard of are known for this.

The 7 years war had just ended. Britain had basically just beaten France in the battle for global dominance. So France was more than willing to help the colonies just to spite the British as long as it wouldn’t mean a beat down for France after the war. So they became much more open about their ties to the colonies and sent real men and ships to fight after they believed the brits were for sure going to lose. Then as everything comes full circle the debt and ideas of the American revolution for France led to the French Revolution and overthrowing of their monarch. History is for real wild.

Pineapples came from Brazil and central America don't know who brought em but a Spaniard figured out the volcanic soil was perfect for growing them and I'm so glad because they are awesome.

U.S. history teacher here! I have taught these lessons sooooo many times. Most learn a high level overview of the history, unless you choose to study it more in depth in high school and college. Paul Revere’s ride was actually a 3 man team. Revere was actually caught and questioned, then released later. He only made it to one or two stops. His partner Dawes had to turn around to avoid being captured. The main guy was actually Prescott, who was the one that delivered the news to Concord. Franklin and Jefferson were notorious ladies men. Jefferson wrote diaries about his drug experimentation, while lobbying in France. Marquis de Lafayette helped write much of the new constitution of France, with help from American delegates. General von Steuben, who trained the U.S. continental army, was supposedly gay. He lived with George Washington’s aide and was given land by Washington. Wasn’t bothered by anyone, apparently.

The part always left out of this story (and i understand this is an oversimplified version) but the fact that the issue of slavery in the new country was debated hotly for a long time. One of the only reasons slavery wasn’t outlawed at this time was because the southern states relies so heavily on slave labor and would not agree to the revolution. It’s unfortunate that we extended the legal practice slavery for another century or so but eventually we fought our own brothers in one of the bloodiest wars we’ve seen.

You don't need for us to call out the videos man. Definitely got a great view in your own mind.

Benedict did some amazing things for the US in the war. We would have built statues to honor him if not for his betrayal.

Youve gotta watch "Patriot" the movie with mel gibson and heath ledger(RIP). GREAT MOVIE

Can't wait for part 2 ! Oversimplified videos are GREAT !!

Just a quick note Common Sense is still in publication and re-manes the #1 best seller in the U.S.

i like that you light up so much in learning

Lol you knew more info that you relayed to us then most US high school graduates. Bravo!!

I grew up 2 towns away from Lexington & Concord..

You gotta react to all Oversimplified’s stuff eventually- One of the best creators on RU-vid 🙌

Props to this guy, good content, need more subs

Despite Washington's reputation, at the beginning he was a pretty terrible general. He was very charismatic and held his army together but took many losses in New York and was lucky he was facing General Howe who believed the Americans were still British subjects and didn't need to be crushed. He thought just showing up with a huge army would cause a surrender thus he allowed Washington to slip through his fingers when he could have destroyed Washington's Army and ended the Revolution.

can't wait for Part 2 as well

After doing part 2, history of the entire world is the perfect follow up.

11:00 It wasn't just numbers at the time. American in the rural areas relied on hunting to feed themselves so a lot of them were superior shots and they new the back trails and could maneuver around the British Army easily conducting raids and ambushes without presenting the line formations that the British Army was used to fighting in. While this wasn't the total strategy it was implemented enough to give the Americans an advantage.

"No taxation without representation" was the cry of the American Revolution (due to not having any votes in Parliament). But a few people wanted independence before this & some people remained loyal to Great Brittan through the entire war. What changed many people's minds was King George III's heavy handed response to the protests in the American colonies. Americans were arrested & taken to Canada to be tried by juries loyal to the King & King George even disbanded some Colonial Assemblies.....

I just found your channel and I love it!

That solo building during the protest is still their. Faneuil Hall. Great area thru all seasons....

14:19 if you go to 4:12, you can see that both Spain and France were allied against Britain during the Seven Years' War, so I'd say relations were already soured between them

That’s why we call them the founding fathers.

Benedict Arnold & Judas Iscariot are the 2 names most synonymous w traitorous acts.

Reading suggestion..... Declaration of Independence....goes into SERIOUS details why the colonists revolted.

Paul Revere didn't make the ride by himself. There were something like 30 additional riders that spread the word.

2:55 He also "discovered" corn 🌽 Prior to him bringing the yellow vegetable, that killed thousands across Europe because Columbus didn't include a required purification process (nixtamalization,) corn originally meant grains in general.

After all the debate, and fighting... America and the Brits became the best friends, each other could have. Despite the differences, we found common grounds. Off Topic... This guy does a lot of history on his channel...it's all comical. "The Bucket War" was hilarious.

Please look into the Armchair Historian! He has amazing history content and you’ll have tons to react to if you so choose. I personally would recommend one of the modern middle eastern wars as a start. Also great reactions! Love your videos bud! Cheers from Texas!

Dude I’m so pumped you’re reacting to Oversimplified. His videos are so good! (As are yours!)

Been waiting for this one

American history - awesome

The humor helps to reinforce memory.

Hey kabir dude you have to react to this short film called fighter pilot red flag it’s about what fighter pilots training simulator in real world one it’s amazing bro since I know you love this kinda stuff I thought you would love it 👍🏽

It will always be disputed; but Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci is the person "the Americas" is named after. Then you've got British Columbia in Canada; Columbus, Ohio in the States; and the nation of Colombia in South America.

I have ancestors on both sides of every war fought on US soil. My NDN family fought for the Brits in this one. And then, just for there own existence.

Hey Kabir check out the LA Galaxy v San Jose game. If you like alot of saves youll love it!

I love when people discover the joys of OverSimplified. (When you get to the American Civil War -- an even better video -- you'll find the UK's feelings interesting.) Funny how Americans running out of ammo was a thing back then. How times have changed!

Crispus Attkus was the first killed and he was a black and just a gem of history

The incident where men dressed up as Indians, went on the ship and threw tea overboard is known as the Boston Tea Party.

New subscriber, don't mind me while I binge watch. Lol

The minute men shoot off the muskets ever time the Patriots get a touchdown...

Fyi: ( the picture of the orginal diplomat sent to George III was of John Adams) John Adams wasn't the original diplomat to GB in 1774, that was Benjamin Franklin. Adams did eventually became the first recognized American ambassador to GB but that was a decade later in the mid 1780s, post arse kicking.

Funny thing is, the more I learn about the revolution, the more clear it becomes that we didn't really win, it just took us too long to lose. Eventually the war became too expensive and unpopular in England, so they had to give up.

there is a reason those dudes at the continental congress are refered to as the Founding Fathers

Not strictly about numbers. There were strategic differences. First, the colonists knew the countryside. It was their home. Second, the Redcoats fought with techniques of the time. They stood in a line in a middle of the field. The colonists learned from the Native Americans about standing behind a tree, or in a gully, or lying on their bellies. The Redcoats accused the colonists of being ungentleman-like.

The funny thing is that General Washington drank to George III’s health during the revolution. Even the rebels didn’t hate the king, they assumed he was in their side. That changed when he did nothing to stop Parliament.

Realest reactor on RU-vid

If you ever come to Boston all those buildings where the Boston massacre the battle of bunker hill the battle of concord e Lexington happened still stand

Just for informational purposes, Concord is not pronounced as Con-cord, it's pronounced Con-kerd. Mass native here, so felt it was my duty to advise of that. Lol

Love all of your content keep it up

Watch the series Patriots rising.shows the contribution of little known everyday people in the revolution.

14:05 they placed Falmouth in Maine not Massachusetts. Lol.

I will say that was a good way to transition into a sponsor

I was extremely disappointed when I realized that my children were taught only a fraction of American history...compared to all the American history I was taught throughout my school years... My children had no knowledge of Virginia Dare and the Lost Colony of Roanoke... My children are now 52 and 50... I fear that the students of the last 3 decades were taught even less of our American history... That is sad... 🇺🇸

I learned more about English History pre Revolution in school than you know about America.

If anyone wants to see a great cartoon series on the prelude to the revolution, check out Liberty's Kids on youtube

After the Boston Tea Party it became patriotic to boycott tea and the US has been a coffee drinking country ever since.

Yes us Americans at one time were British Citizens that were sent to America to colonize and find gold etc like had been found in central and south america. Well the eastern side of the country didn't have much of those things. And the 13 divisions were called Colonies which later became states. And I have been doing some genealogy work and have found out that my family has had someone in most of the wars our country was in. I have two that fought for America in the Revolutionary War. One was a Lt. in the Colonial Army and the other was what we called Minute Men or citizen soldiers. Both made it through the Revolutionary War and one because a court Cryer in the 1st American court in this country. And from the little town in Nebraska that my dad grew up in. I have a family name that goes back 500 years. Which puts more than 260 years back in British History. And that there were two or three other families that came over from England with the same last name but the ones I am related to are the only ones from that time that made it. To me this is cool cause for all of my growing up years and most of my life because my dad was in the military for over 22 years and I only once saw my dads parents and never saw his brothers. And only 4 times saw anyone on my moms side of the family. It felt like its just the 7 of us against the world. Now I feel like I have roots and it feels sssooooo good.