The Geographical Independence at Saratoga and the French Treaty
The geographical independence at Saratoga in 1777, as well as the French treaty in 1778, all altered the course of the Revolutionary War, mostly for the British colonialists. The French people's support proved unreliable, and properly planned military assaults between the two new allies took a long time to occur, forcing the British government to change their policy in 1778.
The British Shift in Strategy to Focus on Loyalists
Instead of focusing all of their military efforts on the continental army, they wanted to focus on the loyalists, who were thought to constitute a sizable proportion of the American population. They were also thought to be the dominant force in the South and having hopes of enlisting the slaves in their strategic cause, which was a move that seemed to be very incompatible with the central attention being directed on loyalist communities in the South, which made the British focus on the South. This particular strategy caused the British to record great success in their military campaign in the South. The victory saw them have control over the Savannah, in late 1778, and South Carolina, in May 1779.
The British Campaign in the South
The British also launched a deadly attack on the General Horatio Gates' forces at Camden, in 1780. They also used the guerilla and the hit and run tactic, which gave them to record success. It must be noted that the British had overestimated the loyalist position in the South as their presence in the South coerced many of the people who had not been participating in the war, to choose sides, with most of them taking the Patriots side. They also underestimated the relevant issues they would meet, mainly when their forces were in the interior parts of the South, which implied that they would have problems getting the food supplies. As a result, the Strategy the British used in the South was a tragic failure.
