Turn any cell phones or other electronics you may have with you. We have some nice, wright lights this evening because our friends at cspan are fill be ming tonights program, so i can when we go to the q a portion of the event, instead of raising your hand and asking and a question, that we make a line in the front because of the filming from cspan. Be. He teaches history and engineering at George Mason University here in virginia. And at the Stevens Institute of technology in new jersey. He served for over 35 years in the u. S. Navy, u. S. Coast guard and department of defense and was an exchange engineer in the french navy. Larrie is the author of three books, the birth of naval architecture in the scientific revolution, measure of the earth, enlightenment expedition that we shape our world, and is known book brothers at arms american independence and the men of france and spain who saved it. So following his talk this evening if you didnt already pick up a copy of his book they are available in the concourse and larrie will be signing copies. So i again thank you very much for joining us tonight and id like to welcome larrie to the stage. Thank you. [applause] thank you, elizabeth. Good evening. By early 1776 america was citing britain in the war for independence but without a navy, artillery or even gunpowder. Only france and spain who were the historical enemies of britain about the motive and the naval and military strength to defeat the british. We needed their alliance. But they would only do so if america was seen not as fighting a civil war but rather as fighting a war as an independent nation. As john adams pointed out, foreign powers could not be expected to acknowledge us until we had acknowledged ourselves as an independent nation. And Thomas Jefferson said the declaration of independence alone would allow european powers to treat wit with the sps of the declaration of independence was, in fact, an engraved invitation asking friends and spain to fight alongside us. Thats why i say it was not just the declaration of independence, it was also a declaration that we depend on france and spain, too. Now, the americans knew that france and spain wanted a rematch with great britain. They had come out very badly in the seven years war which it ended in 1763 with britain ascendant and france losing canada, and spain losing florida. France and spain were already closely aligned by both famous and military ties. It was called the bourbon, compact bourbon family alliance. And both nations wanted revenge against britain. But i had different goals. France wanted to regain its position at the center of the balance of power in europe. Spain wanted to regain gibraltar and drive the british from the gulf of mexico. And both nations had predicted that the American Revolution would happen long before the americans themselves knew that it would. In 1767, the French Foreign minister said only the future of American Revolution will consign england to a state of weakness. And so they knew that this revolt of the american colonies that were certain to happen in the future would weaken britain. And so they would send spies and observers like the baron to see when that would happen. But it wouldnt take place for another eight years. When the fighting began in 1775 the british army was supplied by gun factories which would turn out hundreds of thousands of arms per year. A few american gunsmiths that they were to produce perhaps one gun per month. So we needed arms from france and spain. France and spain first provided those arms using as their means of conveyance merchants like diego and Pierre Beaumarchais as fronts to disguise their source from britain and not reveal that these arent actually came from the french and spanish governments, but the british were not fooled. In the end, over 90 of all the arms and the equivalent of 30 billion in aid would come from overseas. Now, beaumarchais worked with silas deane who was at the time the american envoy in paris to negotiate a contract for these arms even before the news of the declaration of independence had reached france. And five beaumarchais ships carried those arms across the atlantic in 1776 and 1777, and they arrived just in time to furnish the american troops who were preparing to meet diego de gardoqui at saratoga. And it was the french arms that turned the tide of the campaign. And less these beaumarchais arms had been timely furnish to the americans, start was at the battle and knew what he was talking about, it would invade and easy march to albany. So it was these arms from overseas they gave the americans the first major victory against the british. Meanwhile, most of the french and european volunteers who came to the United States did so to fight the longtime enemies, the british. But along the way they also made the american cause their own. And washington came to depend upon these immigrants who got the job done as the hamilton musical aptly puts it. Duportail became washingtons chief engineer and gave needed strategic advice. The baron was washingtons man to create the Training Plan and regime that would turn the band of militia into a professional continental army, a fighting force to be reckoned with. And lafayette demanded troops in the southern theater. He kept cornwallis from coming north and eventually he followed him to yorktown. Now the battle of brandywine in 1777 was washingtons attempts to prevent the british from occupying philadelphia. And it was the trial by fire of these french and european volunteers who had been so mistrusted as you can see Nathanael Greene pro from up there so many spies in our camp, is how he regarded them, just before the battle of brandywine. But the battle changed all that. The polish officer polaski led a calvary charge that say to the continental troops in retreat. An engineer was commended for particular bravery and, in fact, today the army corps of engineers now has the flurry metal for courage and boldness. And lafayette was wounded in the battle leading and infantr charge. Washington commanded his doctor to treat him as if he were my own son. And after that battle, his initial mistrust turned first to acceptance and then to alliance. And green would have called these men so may spies in our camps just a few weeks earlier actually came to rely on both von steuben and lafayette during the southern campaign. Now, back in for site and help all of you were watching the series, the French Foreign minister was the most important character in this whole story. He made almost all of the key decisions that concerned this alliance. His primary goal as i had mentioned earlier was to have the war of american independence sufficiently weak in britain so the european balance of power was tilted back in frances favor. So he had already decided to ally with the americans, even before the battle of saratoga. On the grounds that without france the americans would certainly lose the war, and that a reunited British Empire on the north American Continent would threaten the french sugar colonies in the caribbean and that was too great a risk. So the american victory at saratoga was simply the pretext that he needed to form that alliance with the americans. So the treaty was signed in early 1778 which effectively brought france into the war against britain and it brought the french navy to the american shores. That forced the british troops to evacuate philadelphia and consolidate in new york city. Now, at this time spain was aligned with the france but they not risk going to war in early 1778. 1778. And the reason was that they still have a treasure fleet at sea, which was carrying 50 billion, equivalent in silver from peru, and until that treasure was safely home in spain they could not risk having it attacked by the british. When that fleet finally arrived safely in spain, late in 1778, spain was now free to go to war with britain. The Spanish Foreign minister had established the spanish goals of the war, recover gibraltar and drive the british from the gulf of mexico. Now, spain offered to mediate between france and britain after the treaty of 1778, and also offered not to enter the war if britain would hand over gibraltar. But britain refused. Now in one of his usual tirades, he called gibraltar is pile of rocks, but for the british this was a Strategic Asset and they would not give it up, and so france went to war against britain on the side of france. It is no exaggeration to say that britain sacrificed america for gibraltar, this pile of rocks. Spain was not actually allied with the americans during this war, but they did agree that the terms of the peace could only happen with britains recognition of the sovereignty of the United States. The entry of spain into the war alongside france fundamentally changed the nature of the war, from a regional clash in north america to a global conflict. The british navy and the british army were now spread ever thinner around the world. The combined navies of france and spain numbered 124 ships aligned against britains 95 95 ships, and they were overwhelm overwhelmed. So instead of only attacking the americans in america, britain now had to shield england from the threat of invasion by france and spain. They had to defend against the siege of the gibraltar, and they had to protect their own colonies, their sugar colonies in the caribbean and their colonies in india. This all happened in 17791780 as the war and america was coming to its lowest point. You can see by Alexander Hamiltons despond and comment, if we are saved, france and spain must save us. That reflected the fact that the americans understood now that winning the war against britain rested with france and spain. After spain declared war in 1779, the french and spanish navies formed an immense fleet of 150 ships, 30,000 troops, to invade britain. This was larger even than the feigned armada of 1588. The plant invasion of britain would capture portsmouth and southampton. It would wreak havoc on the economy, and it would potentially bring britain to the peace table. But it was sidelined by a massive dysentery outbreak which laid low 8000 men and in which the french admirals son was lost. The spanish admiral was unable to carry out this mission, and the entire invasion scheme simply fizzled out. Now, as a side note the french navy had assigned a littleknown american captain, john paul jones, too great a diversion for britain by cruising around the British Empire with a small squadron led by his ship. No british admiral was foolish enough to chase after john paul jones, and his diversion was largely ignored, certainly played no part in the invasion scheme, but his victory over the much larger british break it made the headlines in the american newspapers as a david versus goliath conflict that stood in for the much larger america versus britain war. It was a sorely needed shot in the arm. Back in new orleans, the government a spanish louisiana, he supplied the american troops in western theater, thats up the mississippi and todays pittsburgh with arms and munitions. But when war was finally declared by spain against britain in 1779, he leapt into action and i he launched a seris of attacks that captured the british post at mobile, natchez, and baton rouge. Then after a series of setbacks due to hurricanes, in 1780 when he commanded a joint spanish french force that captured pensacola, which was the british capital of west florida. Britain was effectively now out of west florida, and with spain now rolling the gulf of mexico, and with britain no longer a threat, the french naval commander who had just arrived on scene asked the spanish navy to protect the french sugar colonies while he took his entire convoy, his entire fleet up to the chesapeake. Now, washington learn that they were heading to the chesapeake, so they raced south from new york to medium and encircle cornwallis at yorktown. It was a fighting admiral who was beloved by his failures, who said of him, he stands sixfoot four, and sixfoot five updates of battle. And yes, since you asked, he was an ancestor of the rockstar astrophysicist Neil Degrasse tyson. When he met George Washington who was shorter than the grass by two inches, he embraced him and explained is fleet was landing troops around yorktown. When a bridge fleet under Thomas Greaves appeared, he quickly moved his fleet from chesapeake bay, prevent him from resupplying or from if i could cornwallis and that sealed the fate of the british at yorktown. The story of yorktown is very well known. After they led the troops on a quick march of new york to yorktown, they surrounded cornwallis. This siege began on october 9, 1781. 1781. The guns blasted away for five days while the seizure lines advanced. It was french officers who directed the siege, french officers who directed the placement of the trenches, french officers who directed the gunfire. The french also suffered twice the casualties of the americans during the battle. Once the french and american troops had captured british readouts nine and 10, the situation for cornwallis had become untenable. And so when Brigadier GeneralCharles Ohara who was cornwallis is second in command came out to offer the surrender, which is the scene in the painting, ohara considered the victory to be a french one, and he offered the surrender. He understood this was a french victory but he also understood that the moment belonged to George Washington. So without a word he gestured ohara to washington. And washington intern gestured him to his own secondincommand, Benjamin Lincoln would then accepted the surrender. Now, after yorktown there were no more major american battles, but that did not mean the fighting stopped. In fact, the fighting was continuing around the world between britain, the Burma Alliance and other nations. In fact, by the time of yorktown, written was fighting five separate nationstates. It was simply overwhelmed. For example, the battle at gibraltar absorbed over 60,000 spanish troops in a fouryear siege that ultimately failed, and yes, that is a Mushroom Cloud over the rock of gibraltar. The fighting was that fierce. The dutch republic was drawn into the war for a lot of supplies to go into france, and the battles in the north sea were equally fierce. France had allied with the kingdom in india to drive the British East India Company from the subcontinent, but this failed. And, in fact, the last major battle of the war which was the battle of, in india, equally fierce, happened six months after the preliminary peace treaties had been side. Signed. This ended eight years of war and during that time over 200,000 french and spanish troops and sailors fought in the war, an estimated 250,000380,000 americans. They were as invested in the war as we were. And the americans could have never won the war without france, and france would have never fought the war without spain. So what i hope all of you take away from this is the following. The United States did not achieve independence by itself. It was, in fact, born as the centerpiece of an International Coalition which together worked to defeat a common adversary, and it is, in fact, americas role as the centerpiece of International Efforts for common good that continues even today to define the United States as the indispensable nation. Thank you. [applause] and as elizabeth had said, there is a microphone here in the front, and im very happy to take questions. Thank you so much. I have two quick questions. Never one, related to france. Can you Say Something about the debt france mightve gone into and also maybe spain, the debt they wouldve incurred to up and to fight this . Number one. And number two, wheres rashi and all of this and catherine the great . Im just curious. I have no idea. I do remember reading that she was not a fan of georgia the third, but if you have any comments or come any comment about catherines role and water views are. I do discuss both the my book. The first question was about the debt of france after the war. The short answer was that it was in debt but itd seem that level of debt before and it was not crushing in the way it is sometimes portrayed. Just to give you some background, after the seven years war all the countries, britain, france were heavily in debt, but through very strict Financial Measures france was able to repay that debt, as was britain. So the actually both entered the war of american independence relatively free of debt. It accumulate again for both nations but france had abandoned strict financial policies, allowed a number of less than savory ways of collecting money to creep back in, and they also were not able to get the kind of loan rates that britain was able to get because it had a centralized bank. So at the end of the war of american independence, both nations as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product were approximately equally in debt. But britain had better terms. They could pay it down quicker. France could not pay it down, and the, the accumulated debt on top of that. So the point is that when the french revolution, which was to a large part a result of francisco crisis erupted, yes, the reagan revolution was one cause but it was not the catalyst. It was not the primary cause. It had simply abandoned good fiscal policy. So thats the first one. Catherine the great was a wonderful hidden player in all of this. European politics didnt stop while the american war was going on. And at the center of the juggling of european politics was russia, because they were threatening frances allies, the ottoman empire. In fact they recently had invaded crimea sound familiar . And also it was a siege, im sorry, a petition of poland. Catherine the great was making noises about helping britain,