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View Full Version : Who was the best British general of the Revolutionary War?


ren0312
10-08-2009, 07:39 AM
In your opinion who was the best British general of the Revolutionary War, in my opinion it was probably William Howe, unlike Burgoyne and Cornwallis, he did not commit major mistakes in his campaign that can be regarded as being his fault, and Bunker Hill, despite what Americans think, was still considered a victory, although a dearly bought one, he also came close to ending the Revolutionary War with the capture of Philadelphia, his mistake, if it was his fault at all, was not assisting Burgoyne when he down from Canada to Albany.
Britishhawk
10-08-2009, 07:41 AM
Thomas Gage because he started it! :)

Sort of...
Arfah
10-08-2009, 09:31 AM
They were all British !

Even the revolutionaries ! p-)
commanding
10-08-2009, 09:53 AM
Cornwallis, from a rebel point of view, because he surrendered. p-) The world turned upside down....
Johnny_H02
10-08-2009, 10:42 AM
Cornwallis wasn't totally at fault for the surrender, it was the British Admiral (name escapes me) who didn't break the French blockade. If the RN had broken the blockade then the battle would have been far different methinks. Just speculation I realize but its possible.

I'd have to nominate Howe but I don't know a hell of allot about the American Rebellion ;) j/k.
Britishhawk
10-08-2009, 10:45 AM
They were all British !

Even the revolutionaries ! p-)

Tis' true. It was more of a Civil War, British vs British. That means that we, the British.. won! Result.
oldsoak
10-08-2009, 11:05 AM
Charles Grey.
oldsoak
10-08-2009, 11:18 AM
Cornwallis wasn't totally at fault for the surrender, it was the British Admiral (name escapes me) who didn't break the French blockade. If the RN had broken the blockade then the battle would have been far different methinks. Just speculation I realize but its possible.

I'd have to nominate Howe but I don't know a hell of allot about the American Rebellion ;) j/k.

Indeed. The subsequent RN victory at the Saintes against De Grasse left the French unwilling to press support for the US incase the the British pushed them out of the Carribbean. It was sugar, rum and molassess that were the money spinners, not N American produce. This led to the Brits being more concerned about revenue loss from the W Indies than N America.
cbreedon
10-08-2009, 03:57 PM
They were all British !

Even the revolutionaries ! p-)

very true... most people think that Paul Revere rode around warning people by saying "the British are coming" when in actuality he supposedly said "the regulars are coming"... as opposed to the colonial militia.

Back on topic, I would say Howe as well
camerashy
10-10-2009, 07:31 PM
Charles Grey.
Wasn't he a member of The Unit? :)
Soldat_Américain
10-10-2009, 07:37 PM
very true... most people think that Paul Revere rode around warning people by saying "the British are coming" when in actuality he supposedly said "the regulars are coming"... as opposed to the colonial militia.

Back on topic, I would say Howe as well

It was redcoats...I swear it, and it wasn't him. Fool got captured, Billy Dawes warned everyone else. Cornwallis knew a **** ton about warfare, however the Brits certainly didn't send the cream of the crop as far as their generals were concerned. Bunch of old farts.
cbreedon
10-10-2009, 07:56 PM
wiki says we're both wrong... "the regulars are coming out"... I guess we'll never know :-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Revere#Myths_and_legends_of_the_Midnight_Ride
Maine Finn
10-10-2009, 07:58 PM
Cornwallis wasn't totally at fault for the surrender, it was the British Admiral (name escapes me) who didn't break the French blockade. If the RN had broken the blockade then the battle would have been far different methinks. Just speculation I realize but its possible.

I'd have to nominate Howe but I don't know a hell of allot about the American Rebellion ;) j/k.

That was Admiral Thomas Graves, if I remember correctly.
Royal
10-13-2009, 12:13 PM
however the Brits certainly didn't send the cream of the crop as far as their generals were concerned. Bunch of old farts.

That was because north America was hicksville - a colonial backwater. The West Indies were important, but India proper was where it was at.
a_very_ex_STAB
10-13-2009, 03:13 PM
It was redcoats...I swear it, and it wasn't him. Fool got captured, Billy Dawes warned everyone else. Cornwallis knew a **** ton about warfare, however the Brits certainly didn't send the cream of the crop as far as their generals were concerned. Bunch of old farts.

It's worth remembering that the American colonies were only one front for Britain in a global war with France.
oldsoak
10-14-2009, 06:20 PM
And not just France - Spain as well.
Was India the great jewel in the 1780's though ? I've a feeling that failure in N America drove the UK to look for colonial expansion elsewhere - Africa and India.
Royal
10-14-2009, 06:30 PM
Was India the great jewel in the 1780's though ?

We were expanding our territory there long before a certain Arthur Wellesley and his brother turned up on those shores in the 1790s - more to secure trade than to piss off the French (although that was an added bonus).