But what such skeptics fail to realize is that even though the British triumphed in these early attempts of France's Navy to provide some form of power at sea, the final victory was, of course, France's and the colonialists', largely because of the effort end expenditure that such battles took on the British. The Colonial war was fought over a period of six years, during which time the British were fighting a war on multiple fronts against multiple opponents. The aggregate of British victories, then, became so pyrrhic that British forces were eventually defeated.
Despite the fact that the French fleet suffered some early losses, it was able to gain the final victory largely because of its prowess on the waterways and the aid it was able to supply the colonialists with as a result. The great irony of this victory, of course, was the fact that 15 years prior to this triumph, France and her fleet were soundly defeated by the same British forces during the French and Indian war. Yet it was the combination of the French forces with those of the fledgling Americans that was responsible for their victory during the Revolutionary War. By providing the colonists with a potent strike force in the sea,...
Additionally, the very fact that France joined the war meant that Britain now had to fight on multiple fronts, which further weakened its ability to successfully emerge victorious. Lastly, it should be noted that the final triumph for the American and French forces occurred in no small part due to the prowess of the latter in the sea at the Battle of Chesapeake, which provided for Britain's surrender at Yorktown. France's power in the sea contributed significantly to the achievement of American Independence.
References
Brecher, F.W. (2003). Securing American Independence: John Jay and the French Alliance. Westport: Praeger Publishers.
Chartrand, R. Francis, R. (1991). The French Army in the American War of Independence. Long Island City: Osprey.
Corwin, E.S. (1962) French Policy and the American Alliance of 1778. North Haven: Archon Books.
Dull, J.R. (1985). A Diplomatic History of the American Revolution. New Haven: Yale U. Press.
Dull, J.R. (1975). The French Navy and American Independence: A Study of…
