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00:14December 1776.
00:16In a rented room, a man works.
00:20Hortiously.
00:22He's building an 18th century homemade bomb.
00:30The target?
00:32Britain's largest and most vital naval dockyard.
00:40Just five months after America declared its independence from Britain,
00:46the American Revolution is about to escalate.
00:51For the first time, revolutionaries are striking at Britain itself.
01:01In this two-part special, I'm reinvestigating one of the most explosive breakups between two nations in history.
01:10This is the Stamp Act. The whole mess starts here, Lucy.
01:13It's a story that's become part of the mythology of both Britain and the United States.
01:20Oh, look at that.
01:22You can just imagine inviting your friends around for a seditious tea party.
01:26Told as a bitter loss of empire.
01:29It was the closest we came to an anarchy.
01:31Or the triumphant birth of a new nation.
01:33He is outnumbered just about two to one.
01:37But 250 years since America's Declaration of Independence,
01:43there's an untold version of the story.
01:46The British perspective.
01:48That's what I want to investigate.
01:51Think James Bond wearing a powdered wig.
01:55Listen to this.
01:57He's giving up the throne.
01:58He's resigning his job.
02:00I'm going to uncover forgotten witnesses.
02:03It's like opening a present.
02:05I'm going to re-examine the original evidence.
02:08Damn you, fire!
02:10And follow new clues.
02:13To get closer to the truth.
02:17Historians have very different views.
02:19What do you think?
02:36In July 1776, the American Revolution was raging on.
02:43And the fighting had now reached New York City.
02:48The 13 colonies had declared their independence from Britain.
02:55And had begun referring to themselves as the United States of America.
03:05Just seven weeks later, though,
03:07this enthusiasm for independence would be brutally tested
03:12in the battle for Long Island.
03:15It happened just over there in the Prospect Park area of the city.
03:19This was the biggest battle yet of the American Revolution.
03:23And the British won it.
03:26In this very park, 20,000 freshly landed British troops squared off against a force of only 10,000 Americans,
03:36led by General George Washington.
03:42The battle ended with Washington's forces surrounded,
03:46their backs to the East River,
03:48and nowhere left to run.
03:51What saved the Americans
03:53was one of the boldest and most successful retreats in military history.
03:59Under the cover of darkness and in thick fog,
04:03the Americans went quietly slipping away across the East River to escape.
04:07It's said that the last man to leave Brooklyn
04:11was George Washington himself.
04:21I think this battle here in Brooklyn
04:23was a real wake-up call for the American colonists.
04:27They weren't guaranteed to win.
04:29It's one thing to declare your independence on paper,
04:32and it's quite another to win it on the battlefield.
04:40At this point,
04:41it looked like the Americans stood little chance
04:44of defeating the might of the British Empire.
04:50Most people believe
04:52the Americans did eventually triumph
04:54thanks to their guerrilla tactics
04:56and their local knowledge.
05:00But I think that's only part of the truth.
05:05That's why I'm continuing my investigation,
05:08not in America,
05:10but 3,000 miles away across the ocean.
05:18There's another side to the story
05:21that gets told less often.
05:23While all the battles were unfolding over there in North America,
05:27American revolutionaries
05:28were also working here,
05:30in Britain,
05:31to destabilise this nation.
05:37The Royal Dockyard at Portsmouth
05:39was the main naval depot for the British
05:42during the American Revolution.
05:45And it was right here,
05:47in December 1776,
05:49that an act of arson
05:51set the docks ablaze.
05:57I'd like to dig into the detail
05:59of this attack
06:00to find out
06:02if it was an American inside job.
06:09I'm descending
06:10to the gun deck
06:12of HMS Warrior
06:13to meet
06:14a terrorism expert.
06:17So,
06:18we've got a wonderful description here
06:20from one of the investigators.
06:22He's brought with him
06:24trial documents,
06:25including
06:25a confession
06:28that reveal
06:29exactly how this attack
06:31was carried out
06:32and by whom.
06:35James,
06:36can you tell me about this bomb?
06:37How did it work?
06:38What did it do?
06:39The bomb was quite ingenious
06:40for its time.
06:41So, this is
06:42a document
06:43from the prosecution.
06:45Wow.
06:46The most ingenious bit
06:47is this in the middle here,
06:48a candle.
06:49So,
06:50it's a timed wick.
06:51It's not just
06:53what we call
06:53today
06:54an improvised
06:55incendiary device,
06:56an IID.
06:57It's a timed
06:58IID.
06:59A candle
07:00would have been
07:01slowly moving
07:01towards the zero hour
07:03and then...
07:04Very ominous.
07:05Gosh.
07:06That sounds quite
07:07effective then.
07:08It really works.
07:09How much damage
07:10did it cause?
07:10In Portsmouth,
07:12pretty substantial damage.
07:13He gutted an entire building.
07:14Wow.
07:15I guess that the people
07:16in charge of the Navy
07:17must have felt
07:17immensely
07:18vulnerable.
07:20Very.
07:20It was a panic.
07:21I mean,
07:22we're talking about
07:22a spate of attacks
07:23at key ports
07:24in the space
07:25of a couple of weeks.
07:26The Navy's being used
07:27to run fresh troops
07:28and munitions
07:29across the Atlantic
07:30and that's the vital
07:31point here
07:32is that it is
07:33the literal lifeline
07:34for the Crown Forces
07:35over there.
07:36Sounds like
07:36the work of a cell
07:37to me.
07:38Well,
07:38that was the assumption.
07:39The second these fires start,
07:41they believe there's
07:41a team of saboteurs
07:42at work
07:43and that they are
07:44indeed American-backed.
07:45Turns out that
07:46it is just one man
07:47and that comes across
07:49in his testimony
07:49when he's put on trial
07:51that he has
07:52no accomplices.
07:53He sounds like
07:54a proper criminal
07:55mastermind,
07:56doesn't he?
07:56Well,
07:56he is and he isn't.
07:58Contrary to the rumor
07:59at the time,
08:00he was not American,
08:01he was Scottish.
08:02He went by the name
08:03of John the Painter.
08:05His real name
08:05was James Aitken.
08:07His plan was
08:08to attack the Royal Navy
08:10at a pretty sensitive time
08:11in the war
08:11when the Royal Navy
08:12has commenced a blockade.
08:14Was he recruited
08:15by the Americans
08:16to help their cause then?
08:17He claims that he was there
08:19in Boston
08:19in December of 1773
08:21to see the Tea Party,
08:23perhaps even participate in it.
08:24And on that basis,
08:25he claims that he was radicalised.
08:28He's not officially American,
08:29but he's definitely acting
08:30in American interests,
08:31isn't he?
08:32Oh, very much so.
08:33I mean,
08:33he really thinks
08:34that he is a fighter
08:35for the cause.
08:40So the bombing
08:41of Portsmouth Dock
08:43was an attack
08:43designed to cripple
08:45the Royal Navy
08:46at home.
08:49And it was carried out
08:50by a British citizen.
08:54Radicalised
08:55by America's new ideas
08:56about liberty
08:57and putting an end
08:59to monarchy.
09:01For the British,
09:03what must have felt like
09:04a little skirmish
09:05happening on the other side
09:06of the world
09:07had suddenly
09:07crossed the Atlantic,
09:09become much closer
09:11to home
09:11and turned
09:13much more troubling.
09:15Here are the 13 colonies.
09:20This is
09:21New York.
09:26This was the front line
09:28at the conventional war
09:29in America,
09:30where soldiers
09:31were clashing
09:32in open battle.
09:34By December 1776,
09:37George Washington's army
09:39was in retreat.
09:42Pursued relentlessly
09:44across New Jersey
09:45by superior British forces.
09:50Five months
09:51after the declaration
09:53of independence,
09:54Washington now feared
09:55the worst,
09:57saying,
09:58I think the game
09:59is pretty nearly up.
10:03In desperation,
10:05and not a moment
10:07too soon,
10:07the Americans
10:08began to devise
10:10a bold new strategy.
10:14They were trying
10:15to get into bed
10:17with Britain's
10:17oldest enemy,
10:20France.
10:22Benjamin Franklin,
10:23their most experienced
10:25diplomat,
10:25was sent
10:26on a top-secret mission
10:28to Paris
10:30to try to secure
10:32French support
10:33for the revolution.
10:38Franklin had once
10:39lived in London
10:40and been a big fan
10:42of Britain.
10:43But now,
10:45it seems,
10:46he's become
10:47Britain's nemesis.
10:52I've come to the archives
10:54of the Royal Society
10:56in central London
10:57to take a closer look
10:59at Franklin's
11:00dramatic transformation.
11:05How is he today?
11:10Meet Benjamin Franklin
11:11in the London phase
11:13of his life.
11:14He looks like a man
11:16who'd be,
11:16as he was,
11:17completely at home
11:18here in the Royal Society
11:19where he enjoyed
11:20electrocuting himself
11:22in the name
11:22of scientific progress.
11:24This is Franklin,
11:25the loyal subject
11:26of the British Empire.
11:29But you've got to see this.
11:31This is the transformation
11:32in his appearance
11:34that happens
11:35when he goes
11:36full-on American.
11:38When he's in Paris
11:40representing the colonists,
11:42he's created
11:43a totally new look
11:44for himself.
11:45He would now wear
11:46a furry hat
11:48from some
11:49North American animal.
11:51He had a beaver one,
11:52he had a raccoon one,
11:53and he was famous
11:54for wearing
11:55a homespun shirt.
11:57There was nothing
12:00of the courtly
12:01or the kingly
12:03about him anymore.
12:04He was channeling
12:05rough-raw American simplicity.
12:09I suppose what he was doing
12:11was presenting himself
12:12as the human face
12:14of this new nation
12:16in the process
12:17of being born.
12:21To the French,
12:23this was extremely
12:24enticing.
12:25They found him
12:26a sort of exotic
12:28embodiment
12:29of liberty.
12:33Franklin's look
12:34was so different
12:35to the normal
12:36formal powdered
12:38dandy thing
12:39they had going on
12:39at Versailles
12:40that the French
12:41ladies
12:42found him
12:43rather attractive.
12:44They would come up
12:44to him
12:45and stroke
12:46his furry hat
12:47which he found
12:49amusing
12:50but also
12:51he was quite pleased
12:52about
12:53because he was
12:53winning them
12:54over to his cause.
12:55But
12:56underneath
12:57his furry old hat
12:58Franklin
12:59was hiding
13:00a dark
13:01secret.
13:05America
13:06was on the brink.
13:08Washington's army
13:09was running out
13:10of money
13:11and gunpowder
13:12and time.
13:15In a final attempt
13:17to turn the tide
13:18Washington launched
13:19a surprise
13:20night attack
13:21on Trenton
13:22closely followed
13:23by Princeton.
13:25The Americans
13:26fell back
13:27on guerrilla tactics
13:28using their local
13:30knowledge
13:30to strike fast
13:31and disappear.
13:34But despite
13:35these small victories
13:37Washington's army
13:38had shrunk
13:39from 10,000
13:41to just 3,000
13:43men.
13:49America's hopes
13:50now lay
13:51in the salons
13:52of Versailles.
13:53To the French
13:54elite
13:55Franklin
13:56was a living
13:57legend.
13:58A master
13:59of scientific
14:00experiments.
14:04But behind
14:05his showmanship
14:06he knew
14:07that if he
14:08didn't secure
14:08French support
14:09the American
14:10cause would
14:11fail.
14:15But Franklin
14:16was being
14:17watched
14:18by
14:19the British.
14:21I'm interested
14:23in the man
14:23standing
14:24just behind
14:25Franklin.
14:27His protégé
14:28Edward
14:29Bancroft.
14:32Bancroft
14:32wasn't just
14:33Benjamin Franklin's
14:34right-hand man
14:35he was also
14:36a spy
14:37working for
14:38the British.
14:39The Americans
14:40thought that he
14:41was working
14:41for them
14:42but the British
14:42had recruited
14:43him as their
14:44secret agent.
14:46Think
14:46James Bond
14:47but wearing
14:48an 18th century
14:50powdered wig.
14:53to uncover
14:55what Edward
14:55Bancroft
14:56was really
14:57up to
14:57in Paris
14:58I've called
14:59in reinforcements.
15:02A professor
15:03who specialises
15:04in secret
15:05intelligence.
15:08We're meeting
15:09at Imperial
15:10College London
15:11to examine
15:12the Bancroft
15:13papers.
15:16These
15:16were once
15:17classified
15:18documents
15:19sealed
15:20for over
15:21a century.
15:29I can see
15:30then that
15:30things are
15:31really hotting
15:31up in Paris
15:32we've got
15:32this possible
15:33alliance
15:33shaping up
15:34between the
15:34French
15:35and the
15:35Americans.
15:36How does
15:37Bancroft
15:38who's the
15:38spy for the
15:39British
15:39in the middle
15:39of it
15:40all get
15:40his information
15:41out and
15:42back to
15:42London?
15:43It's classic
15:44spycraft.
15:44He is
15:45copying
15:46material
15:47stealing
15:47material
15:48to copy
15:48it
15:48and
15:49then
15:49secretly
15:49return
15:50it
15:50and
15:51he
15:51gets
15:51the
15:51messages
15:52out
15:52by
15:53using
15:53secret
15:54code.
15:55And you
15:56can see
15:57here
15:58in this
16:00document
16:00where
16:01he refers
16:02to
16:02Franklin
16:03but
16:03to have
16:04a bit
16:04of
16:04trade
16:05craft
16:05again
16:05he
16:06doesn't
16:06use
16:06the
16:06word
16:06Franklin
16:07he
16:07uses
16:07his
16:07code
16:07number
16:08which
16:08you
16:09can
16:09see
16:09there
16:09is
16:0958
16:1058
16:11and
16:11here
16:12we
16:12have
16:1358
16:13and
16:1445
16:14were
16:15up
16:15to
16:15something
16:15and
16:1645
16:16is
16:17bankrost
16:18code
16:18for
16:18Silas
16:19Dean
16:19who
16:19worked
16:20with
16:20Franklin
16:21in
16:21Paris
16:21and
16:22what's
16:22particularly
16:23lovely
16:23about
16:23this
16:23document
16:23is
16:24makes
16:24the
16:24historian's
16:25life
16:25a lot
16:26easier
16:26is
16:27someone
16:27has
16:27cracked
16:28the code
16:28and
16:28written
16:28in
16:28the
16:29answers
16:29for
16:29us
16:29number
16:3089
16:30refers
16:31to
16:32the
16:32king
16:33he
16:33is
16:33what
16:35sort
16:35of
16:35thing
16:35was
16:35he
16:35sending
16:36then
16:36he
16:36was
16:37a
16:37fantastically
16:38placed
16:38spy
16:38with
16:39access
16:39to
16:40amazing
16:40material
16:41because
16:41he
16:41was
16:41living
16:42with
16:43Ben
16:43Franklin
16:44he
16:44was
16:44living
16:44with
16:45the
16:45people
16:45he
16:45was
16:45spying
16:46on
16:46his
16:46job
16:46was
16:47to
16:47copy
16:47their
16:47work
16:48he
16:48was
16:49sending
16:50material
16:51about
16:52the
16:52relationship
16:53between
16:53France
16:54and
16:55America
16:56he
16:56was
16:56sending
16:56material
16:57about
16:57various
16:58French
16:58ships
16:59are
16:59setting
17:00sail
17:00to
17:00go
17:00and
17:00support
17:01the
17:01fighters
17:01he's
17:02telling
17:02them
17:02that
17:03a
17:03deal
17:03is
17:04on
17:04the
17:04cards
17:05he's
17:05telling
17:06them
17:06that
17:06the
17:06French
17:07are
17:07at
17:07first
17:08secretly
17:08and
17:08then
17:08increasingly
17:09openly
17:09supplying
17:10weapons
17:10and
17:11artillery
17:12to
17:13the
17:13rebels
17:14it
17:14sounds
17:14like
17:15Bancroft
17:15is
17:16sending
17:16pure
17:16gold
17:17back
17:17to
17:17London
17:17in
17:17terms
17:18of
17:18information
17:19what
17:20do
17:20the
17:20government
17:21ministers
17:21do
17:21with
17:22it
17:22he
17:22would
17:23be
17:23feeding
17:24intelligence
17:24back
17:25which
17:25made
17:26its
17:26way
17:26all
17:26the
17:26way
17:27up
17:27to
17:27the
17:28king
17:28himself
17:29but
17:30one
17:30of
17:30the
17:30challenges
17:31that
17:31spies
17:32have
17:32is
17:33to
17:33tell
17:33truth
17:33to
17:33power
17:34and
17:35king
17:35George
17:35didn't
17:35like
17:36the
17:36truth
17:36that
17:37Bancroft
17:37was
17:38telling
17:38him
17:38he
17:38was
17:39telling
17:39him
17:39the
17:39French
17:39are
17:39going
17:39to
17:40get
17:40involved
17:40properly
17:40and
17:41it's
17:41going
17:41to
17:41be
17:41pretty
17:42messy
17:44and
17:44George
17:44III
17:45thought
17:45I
17:46think
17:46that
17:46you
17:46are
17:47exaggerating
17:47I
17:48think
17:48that
17:48you
17:48are
17:49trying
17:49to
17:49give
17:50me
17:50as
17:50pessimistic
17:50an
17:51account
17:51as
17:51possible
17:51I
17:52don't
17:52want
17:52to
17:52hear
17:52this
17:59King
18:00George
18:00III
18:00was
18:01increasingly
18:02uneasy
18:04Bancroft's
18:05intelligence
18:05was clear
18:06but
18:07George
18:07was
18:08still
18:08clinging
18:09on
18:09to
18:09the
18:09belief
18:09that
18:10one
18:10final
18:10decisive
18:11victory
18:11in
18:12America
18:12would
18:13end
18:13the
18:13revolution
18:14and
18:15make
18:15the
18:15French
18:16threat
18:16go
18:16away
18:19yet
18:20as
18:20the
18:20war
18:21dragged
18:21on
18:22the
18:22French
18:23became
18:23bolder
18:25smuggling
18:26arms
18:27and
18:27uniforms
18:28to
18:28the
18:28rebels
18:33but
18:34I
18:34think
18:34France
18:35was
18:35playing
18:36a
18:36very
18:37risky
18:37game
18:37here
18:40so
18:41we've
18:41got
18:41the
18:41Americans
18:42fighting
18:42for
18:43liberty
18:43and
18:44against
18:44the
18:44whole
18:45concept
18:45of
18:46monarchy
18:46but
18:47who
18:48is
18:48secretly
18:49bankrolling
18:50them
18:50from
18:50the
18:51shadows
18:51well
18:52it's
18:52only
18:53King
18:53Louis
18:53the
18:5416th
18:54of
18:54France
18:55the
18:55most
18:55absolute
18:56monarch
18:57in
18:57Europe
18:57it's
18:59almost
18:59surreal
19:00that a
19:00struggle
19:01against
19:01monarchy
19:01is being
19:02funded
19:02by
19:02another
19:03monarch
19:04what
19:05could
19:05be
19:05in
19:05it
19:05for
19:05Louis
19:06then
19:06well
19:06what
19:07he
19:07wanted
19:07was
19:08revenge
19:09if
19:10the
19:10Americans
19:11could
19:11drive
19:11the
19:11British
19:12out
19:12of
19:12North
19:12America
19:13it
19:14would
19:14reset
19:14the
19:15balance
19:15of
19:15power
19:15in
19:16Europe
19:16and
19:17France
19:17would
19:18once again
19:18be
19:18dominant
19:20by
19:211777
19:22it
19:23had
19:23been
19:23over
19:23a
19:24year
19:24since
19:24the
19:25Americans
19:25first
19:25asked
19:26France
19:26for
19:26help
19:29but
19:30before
19:31officially
19:32declaring
19:32their
19:32support
19:33the
19:33French
19:34wanted
19:34to
19:35see
19:35results
19:36on
19:36the
19:36ground
19:39the
19:40British
19:40strategy
19:41was to
19:42isolate
19:42the
19:43rebellion
19:43in
19:44New
19:44England
19:44and
19:45and
19:45crush
19:46it
19:46quickly
19:46but
19:47in
19:48the
19:48autumn
19:48of
19:481777
19:49that
19:50plan
19:50unraveled
19:51at
19:52Saratoga
19:53using
19:54hit and
19:54run
19:55tactics
19:55the
19:56Americans
19:56picked
19:57off
19:57around
19:572000
19:58of the
19:59British
19:59troops
19:59before
20:00engaging
20:01the rest
20:01of them
20:02directly
20:04after
20:05two
20:05bloody
20:06battles
20:06the
20:07British
20:07surrendered
20:08nearly
20:096000
20:19men
20:20the
20:21French
20:21thought
20:21they
20:22could
20:22smell
20:22blood
20:23in the
20:24water
20:24they
20:25calculated
20:26that
20:27the
20:27British
20:27were
20:27doing
20:28so
20:28badly
20:28on
20:29the
20:29military
20:29front
20:30in
20:30North
20:30America
20:30that
20:31the
20:31Americans
20:32might
20:32well
20:33be
20:33able
20:33to
20:33beat
20:34them
20:34if
20:35France
20:35helped
20:36out
20:37and
20:38on
20:38the
20:386
20:38of
20:39February
20:391778
20:41George
20:41III's
20:42nightmare
20:43became
20:43real
20:44France
20:45signed
20:46a formal
20:47alliance
20:47with the
20:48American
20:48rebels
20:50I want
20:51to dig
20:51into how
20:51this news
20:52went down
20:53in Britain
20:55and I've
20:56sourced
20:56the newspapers
20:57from 250
20:58years ago
21:00the papers
21:01are full
21:02of reaction
21:03to the news
21:03of this
21:04new alliance
21:05between
21:05France
21:06and America
21:07and the
21:08reaction
21:08is bad
21:09it's
21:10negative
21:10people
21:10are
21:11frightened
21:11in this
21:12article
21:13it's
21:13described
21:14as a
21:14crisis
21:15of
21:15national
21:16peril
21:17an
21:17insult
21:18a
21:18menace
21:19from
21:19the
21:20ambition
21:20and
21:20treachery
21:21of a
21:21perfidious
21:22enemy
21:23it's
21:24described
21:24as a
21:24moment
21:25of
21:25danger
21:25that
21:26threatens
21:26the
21:27very
21:27destruction
21:28of the
21:29British
21:29Empire
21:29and
21:30this
21:31is
21:31just
21:31how
21:31perfidious
21:32the
21:32enemy
21:33is
21:33here's
21:34a
21:34letter
21:35that's
21:35been
21:35written
21:36by
21:36a
21:36French
21:37major
21:38general
21:38he
21:39says
21:40how
21:40glorious
21:41will
21:41it
21:42be
21:42to
21:42France
21:42to
21:43establish
21:43American
21:44independence
21:44and by
21:45that
21:45means
21:46ruin
21:47the
21:47naval
21:48power
21:48of
21:49England
21:49it's
21:50it's
21:50where
21:51he's
21:51coming
21:51from
21:52and
21:53people
21:53are
21:53really
21:54angry
21:55as well
21:55as
21:56fearful
21:56they're
21:56angry
21:57with
21:57the
21:57cabinet
21:57who've
21:58got
21:58them
21:58into
21:58this
21:59position
21:59people
22:00are
22:00complaining
22:01here
22:01about
22:01the
22:02folly
22:02the
22:03imbecility
22:03and
22:04the
22:05pusillanimity
22:06that's
22:07the
22:07timidity
22:07the
22:08rubbishness
22:09of the
22:09British
22:10cabinet
22:10for
22:10allowing
22:11this
22:11to
22:11happen
22:13and
22:13Britain
22:13is
22:14in
22:14big
22:14trouble
22:15because
22:15now
22:15it's
22:15got
22:15to
22:16fight
22:16two
22:16wars
22:17at
22:17once
22:18one
22:18over
22:18the
22:19sea
22:19in
22:19America
22:19and
22:20another
22:20much
22:21closer
22:21to
22:22home
22:22weapons
22:23are issued
22:24to
22:24local
22:25people
22:25the
22:25militia
22:26is
22:26roused
22:27and
22:27the
22:27coastal
22:28towns
22:28of
22:29southern
22:29England
22:29get
22:30ready
22:30for
22:30a
22:30possible
22:31invasion
22:31by
22:32the
22:32French
22:34how
22:34had
22:35it
22:35got
22:35to
22:35this
22:35point
22:36where
22:37Britain
22:37was
22:37not
22:38only
22:38in
22:38danger
22:39of
22:39losing
22:39its
22:3913
22:39colonies
22:40but
22:41also
22:41of
22:41being
22:42at
22:42war
22:42with
22:43its
22:43oldest
22:43enemy
22:45makes
22:46you
22:46turn
22:47to
22:47drink
22:5116
22:52French
22:53ships
22:54set
22:55off
22:55for
22:56North
22:56American
22:56waters
22:57their
22:59aim
22:59was to
23:00protect
23:00America's
23:01ports
23:02and
23:02supply
23:03lines
23:03and
23:04to
23:04smash
23:04through
23:05Britain's
23:05naval
23:06blockade
23:11but
23:12it
23:12turns
23:12out
23:13that
23:13France
23:13was
23:14only
23:14just
23:14getting
23:15started
23:20in
23:20the
23:21spring
23:21of
23:211778
23:22something
23:23crucial
23:24happened
23:24King
23:25Louis
23:26the
23:2616th
23:26of
23:26France
23:27declared
23:28that
23:28the
23:2813
23:29colonies
23:29were
23:29now
23:30to
23:30be
23:30called
23:30the
23:31United
23:31Provinces
23:32of
23:33America
23:34they'd
23:35become
23:35a
23:35proper
23:36country
23:36with
23:36a
23:36name
23:37that
23:37was
23:37being
23:38recognised
23:38by
23:39other
23:39countries
23:39and
23:40at
23:40this
23:41point
23:41they
23:42also
23:42got
23:42themselves
23:43a
23:43new
23:43flag
23:44remember
23:45these
23:46stripes
23:46from
23:47before
23:47well
23:48instead
23:48of
23:48that
23:49union
23:49jack
23:49in
23:50the
23:50top
23:50left
23:50they've
23:51now
23:51got
23:5113
23:52stars
23:53to
23:53the
23:5313
23:54colonies
23:55not
23:55the
23:5650
23:56stars
23:56that
23:56there
23:57are
23:57today
23:57but
23:57this
23:58is
23:58getting
23:58recognisable
23:59isn't
23:59it
24:00we're
24:00well
24:00on
24:00our
24:01way
24:01to
24:01the
24:06almost
24:07two
24:08years
24:08after
24:09the
24:09battle
24:09of
24:09long
24:09island
24:10mainly
24:11thanks
24:11to
24:11franklin's
24:12master
24:12diplomacy
24:13britain
24:14was
24:15suddenly
24:15the
24:16one
24:16on
24:17the
24:17defensive
24:20king
24:21george
24:21was
24:21receiving
24:22intelligence
24:23reports
24:23including
24:24from that
24:25spy
24:25edward
24:26bancroft
24:27warning
24:28him
24:29that
24:29louis
24:29the
24:2916th
24:30was
24:30encouraging
24:31his
24:31uncle
24:31charles
24:32the third
24:32of
24:32spain
24:33to
24:33join
24:34the
24:34war
24:35as
24:35well
24:37prime
24:38minister
24:38lord
24:39north
24:39now
24:40feared
24:40the
24:40worst
24:44britain
24:45was
24:45on
24:45the
24:45brink
24:45of
24:46a
24:46much
24:46larger
24:46and
24:47more
24:47costly
24:48conflict
24:48one
24:49it
24:49might
24:50not
24:50be
24:50able
24:50to
24:51win
24:52what
24:53was
24:53going
24:53through
24:54george's
24:54mind
24:59george
25:00the third
25:00letters
25:01to his
25:01prime
25:02minister
25:02still
25:03survive
25:03today
25:04in the
25:04royal
25:04archives
25:05at
25:05windsor
25:06castle
25:09to help
25:10decode
25:10them
25:11i found
25:11someone
25:12whose
25:12time
25:12in
25:13politics
25:13makes
25:14her
25:14knowledgeable
25:14about
25:15affairs
25:15of
25:15state
25:16ruf
25:17what are
25:18his
25:18particular
25:19concerns
25:19about
25:19the
25:20campaign
25:20and the
25:20way
25:21it's
25:21going
25:21what's
25:22really
25:22interesting
25:22in
25:23this
25:23letter
25:23is
25:23he
25:23works
25:23through
25:24his
25:24thinking
25:24so
25:24he's
25:25saying
25:26at
25:26one
25:26point
25:27that
25:27oh
25:28this
25:28only
25:28came
25:28out
25:28from
25:28a
25:29little
25:29tax
25:30issue
25:30but now
25:31it's
25:31grown
25:31into
25:31the
25:32thing
25:32that's
25:32the most
25:32challenging
25:33conflict
25:33in the
25:33world
25:34he says
25:35that really
25:35specifically
25:35here
25:36should
25:36America
25:37succeed
25:37the West
25:38Indies
25:38must
25:38follow
25:38them
25:39Ireland
25:39would
25:40soon
25:40follow
25:40the
25:40same
25:40plan
25:41and be
25:41a
25:41disparate
25:42state
25:42and then
25:42this
25:43island
25:43would be
25:44reduced
25:44to
25:44itself
25:45basically
25:46basically
25:46says
25:46if
25:46we
25:47lose
25:47North
25:47America
25:47we
25:47lose
25:48everything
25:48the
25:49West
25:49Indies
25:49are
25:49going
25:49to
25:49go
25:49Ireland
25:50are
25:50going
25:50to
25:50go
25:50all
25:51our
25:51merchants
25:51are
25:51going
25:51to
25:51live
25:52somewhere
25:52sunnier
25:53the
25:53entirety
25:54of
25:54Britain
25:54will
25:55be
25:55ruined
25:55there's
25:56going
25:56to
25:56be
25:57one
25:58country
25:58falls
25:58and then
25:58another
25:59and then
25:59another
25:59a domino
26:00effect
26:00right
26:01around
26:01the
26:02British
26:02Empire
26:03which
26:03will
26:04leave
26:04the
26:04as he
26:04calls
26:05it
26:05the
26:05mother
26:05country
26:06as
26:06a
26:06rump
26:07an
26:07isolated
26:07state
26:08so
26:09what
26:10should
26:10George
26:11do
26:11then
26:12in
26:12this
26:12situation
26:13do
26:13you
26:13think
26:14I
26:14mean
26:14I
26:14can
26:14imagine
26:15that
26:15you
26:15would
26:15send
26:16in
26:16more
26:16and
26:16more
26:16and
26:16more
26:17resources
26:17wanting
26:18to
26:18avoid
26:18this
26:18domino
26:19effect
26:19from
26:19happening
26:20well
26:20we
26:21see
26:21from
26:21the
26:21conversations
26:22that
26:22are
26:23recorded
26:24in
26:24George's
26:24voice
26:24in
26:24these
26:25letters
26:25that
26:26his
26:26Prime
26:26Minister
26:26is
26:26telling
26:27him
26:27look
26:27we
26:27can't
26:27afford
26:28this
26:28war
26:28we
26:28need
26:29to
26:29send
26:2940,000
26:31new
26:31soldiers
26:32to
26:33put a
26:34rebellion
26:34down
26:34in
26:34a
26:34land
26:35war
26:35over
26:36there
26:36and
26:36let's
26:36remember
26:37in
26:37the
26:371700s
26:38our
26:38population
26:38was
26:39only
26:398
26:39million
26:39people
26:40this
26:40would
26:40be
26:40a
26:41huge
26:41army
26:41that
26:42we
26:42would
26:42send
26:42on top
26:43of
26:43the
26:43troops
26:43that
26:43are
26:44already
26:44there
26:44is
26:45there
26:45anything
26:45else
26:46he
26:46could
26:46have
26:46done
26:46instead
26:47the
26:48way
26:48usually
26:48that
26:49you
26:49try
26:49and
26:49avoid
26:49conflicts
26:50around
26:50the
26:50world
26:50is
26:51by
26:51signing
26:51treaties
26:52and
26:52doing
26:52deals
26:53but
26:53he's
26:53got
26:53no
26:53allies
26:54in
26:54the
26:54world
26:54France
26:55are
26:55supporting
26:56the
26:56colonists
26:57Spain
26:57are
26:58also
26:58trying
26:58to
26:58help
26:58out
26:59so
26:59he's
27:00isolated
27:01trying
27:01to
27:01fight
27:02a
27:02continent
27:02away
27:03when
27:03he's
27:03got
27:03a
27:04mess
27:04at
27:04home
27:04he's
27:04got
27:05almost
27:05no
27:06money
27:06in
27:06the
27:06public
27:07coffers
27:07and
27:08he's
27:08got
27:08no
27:08friends
27:08in
27:08the
27:08world
27:09that
27:10explains
27:10something
27:11I'd
27:11always
27:12not
27:12really
27:12understood
27:13which
27:13is
27:13why
27:14he
27:14was
27:14so
27:14intransigent
27:15as
27:15a
27:15war
27:16leader
27:16the
27:17thing
27:17about
27:17George
27:18was
27:18he
27:18took
27:18time
27:19to
27:19make
27:19the
27:19decision
27:20but
27:20in
27:20a
27:21sense
27:21the
27:21decision
27:21almost
27:22made
27:22itself
27:22you
27:22can
27:22read
27:22it
27:23in
27:23his
27:23thinking
27:23there
27:23are
27:23things
27:24that
27:24cost
27:24more
27:24than
27:25money
27:25to
27:25our
27:25country
27:25even
27:26as
27:26he's
27:26being
27:26warned
27:26we
27:27can't
27:27afford
27:27to
27:28have
27:28a
27:28war
27:28in
27:29a
27:29continent
27:29across
27:29the
27:29sea
27:30things
27:31can
27:31cost
27:31a
27:31nation
27:32more
27:32than
27:33capital
27:33so
27:34what
27:34am
27:34I'm
27:34going to
27:35risk
27:36it
27:36all
27:36I'm
27:36going
27:36to
27:36throw
27:37resource
27:38at
27:38this
27:38and
27:39see
27:39if
27:39we
27:39can
27:39make
27:39it
27:39win
27:40and
27:40I
27:40won't
27:40take
27:40a
27:40backward
27:40step
27:48Ruth's
27:48given me
27:49a lot
27:49to think
27:49about
27:51George
27:52clearly
27:52feels
27:53he has
27:54no
27:54choice
27:54but
27:55to
27:55fight
28:00and
28:01the
28:01threat he
28:01faces
28:02comes
28:02from
28:02not
28:03one
28:03but
28:03two
28:04different
28:05sets
28:05of
28:05problems
28:07lining
28:07up
28:08at
28:08the
28:08same
28:08time
28:12one
28:12of
28:13them
28:13is
28:13a
28:13threat
28:13that
28:13he's
28:13familiar
28:14with
28:14from
28:14the
28:15old
28:15world
28:15the
28:16ancient
28:16rivalry
28:17with
28:17France
28:18and
28:18Spain
28:19too
28:19is
28:19out
28:20to
28:20grab
28:20Britain's
28:20colonies
28:21but
28:22then
28:22there's
28:22a
28:22new
28:22threat
28:22in
28:23the
28:23new
28:23world
28:24that's
28:24much
28:25less
28:25tangible
28:26it's
28:26an
28:26idea
28:27the
28:28Americans
28:28don't
28:29want
28:29to
28:29grab
28:29land
28:29they
28:30want
28:30to
28:30bin
28:31the
28:31monarchy
28:31it's
28:32an
28:32ideology
28:33isn't
28:34it
28:34and
28:35ideologies
28:35can
28:36be
28:36contagious
28:44George
28:45the
28:46third
28:46had
28:46every
28:47reason
28:47to
28:48be
28:48worried
28:48America's
28:50revolutionary
28:50ideas
28:51liberty
28:52self-rule
28:53a republic
28:54without
28:54kings
28:55they
28:56were
28:57starting
28:57to
28:58spread
29:05250
29:06years
29:07later
29:08historians
29:09have
29:09worked
29:09out
29:09that
29:10there
29:10was
29:11an
29:11American
29:11plot
29:12Benjamin
29:13Franklin
29:14was
29:14pretty
29:14involved
29:14in it
29:15to
29:15fan
29:16the
29:16flames
29:16of
29:17revolution
29:17in
29:18other
29:18countries
29:19beyond
29:19America
29:20they
29:21wanted
29:22to
29:22cause
29:22trouble
29:22for
29:23George
29:23III
29:23in
29:24countries
29:24much
29:25closer
29:25to
29:25the
29:26heart
29:26of
29:27the
29:27British
29:27Empire
29:28and
29:29you
29:29don't
29:29need
29:29a
29:29PhD
29:30in
29:30history
29:30to
29:31work
29:31out
29:31which
29:32country
29:32their
29:33eyes
29:34were
29:34looking
29:34towards
29:40that's
29:41why
29:41I've
29:41come
29:41to
29:42Dublin
29:42in
29:431778
29:45Ireland
29:46was
29:46tense
29:46unemployment
29:48was
29:49soaring
29:49after
29:50Britain
29:50imposed
29:51an
29:51embargo
29:52on
29:52trade
29:52to
29:53the
29:53American
29:53colonies
29:55I've
29:56dug
29:56out
29:56a
29:56pamphlet
29:57that
29:57shows
29:57exactly
29:58how
29:58Franklin
29:59capitalized
30:00on this
30:00moment
30:01this
30:02may
30:02look
30:03like
30:03just
30:03another
30:03boring
30:04political
30:04pamphlet
30:05but
30:05this
30:05one
30:06was
30:06dynamite
30:07it
30:07was
30:08a
30:08best
30:08seller
30:08it's
30:09purportedly
30:10by
30:10Benjamin
30:11Franklin
30:11and
30:12he's
30:13addressing
30:13the
30:13good
30:14people
30:14of
30:14Ireland
30:15on
30:15behalf
30:16of
30:16America
30:16it's
30:17basically
30:18a rant
30:19against
30:20the
30:20British
30:20government
30:21it says
30:21that
30:22tariffs
30:22should
30:22not
30:23exist
30:23and
30:24it
30:24says
30:24that
30:25the
30:25Irish
30:25should
30:26make
30:26common
30:27calls
30:27with
30:27the
30:27Americans
30:28it
30:28calls
30:28the
30:29Irish
30:29people
30:29our
30:30dear
30:30and
30:31good
30:31friends
30:35Franklin's
30:35prose
30:36wasn't
30:36just
30:37flattery
30:37it
30:38was
30:38fuel
30:41I'm
30:42at
30:42Collins
30:42Barracks
30:43now part
30:44of the
30:44National
30:44Museum
30:45of Ireland
30:45to
30:46examine
30:46a rare
30:47weapon
30:50it
30:51was
30:51wielded
30:52by
30:52a
30:52citizen
30:53army
30:53the
30:54volunteers
30:54that
30:56formed
30:56at
30:57this
30:57tense
30:57time
31:01this
31:02is a
31:02really
31:03beautiful
31:03sword
31:04here
31:04did
31:04this
31:04belong
31:05to
31:05one
31:05of
31:05the
31:06volunteers
31:06this
31:07was
31:08actually
31:08a
31:08gift
31:09a
31:09gift
31:10sword
31:10and
31:11it
31:11is
31:11it's
31:11stunning
31:12it
31:12says
31:13on
31:13it
31:13the
31:14sacred
31:14rights
31:15of
31:15Ireland
31:15obtained
31:16by
31:17the
31:17union
31:17courage
31:18and
31:18value
31:19of
31:19its
31:19volunteers
31:20and
31:21so
31:21this
31:22likely
31:22was
31:23a
31:23gift
31:23given
31:24to
31:24an
31:24officer
31:25or
31:25a
31:26leader
31:26of
31:27the
31:27volunteers
31:27what
31:28does
31:28it
31:28say
31:28here
31:28it
31:29says
31:29god
31:29religion
31:30and
31:30liberty
31:31so
31:32this
31:32is
31:33like
31:33a
31:33manifesto
31:34for
31:34the
31:34volunteers
31:35is
31:35it
31:36yes
31:36how
31:37did
31:37they
31:37work
31:37then
31:37these
31:38companies
31:38of
31:38volunteers
31:39so
31:39the
31:40protestant
31:40subjects
31:41of
31:42Ireland
31:42set
31:42up
31:42these
31:43volunteer
31:43companies
31:44which
31:44are
31:44a
31:45militia
31:45a
31:47are
31:47going
31:47to
31:47defend
31:48Ireland
31:49in
31:49the
31:49place
31:50of
31:50the
31:50military
31:51that's
31:52gone
31:52away
31:52because
31:53British
31:53soldiers
31:54have
31:54gone
31:54to
31:54North
31:55America
31:55to
31:55do
31:55fighting
31:56there
31:56is
31:56that
31:56right
31:57so
31:57typically
31:57there
31:58would
31:58have
31:58been
31:58a
31:58large
31:59kind
32:00of
32:00garrison
32:00in
32:00Dublin
32:01and
32:01the
32:02military
32:02station
32:03around
32:03the
32:03island
32:03and
32:03so
32:04that's
32:04where
32:04the
32:05volunteer
32:06movement
32:06begins
32:07in
32:07Belfast
32:08the
32:08first
32:08companies
32:09begin
32:09to
32:09form
32:09and
32:10across
32:11the
32:11island
32:11there's
32:12kind
32:12of
32:12this
32:13rage
32:13for
32:13volunteering
32:14but
32:14the
32:15volunteers
32:15see
32:16early
32:16on
32:16with
32:17the
32:17military
32:18forces
32:18gone
32:18we
32:19have
32:19this
32:19opportunity
32:20to
32:20push
32:20for
32:20political
32:21demands
32:21and
32:22so
32:22the
32:22first
32:22big
32:23political
32:23demand
32:24that
32:24they
32:24kind
32:25of
32:25gather
32:25behind
32:26is
32:26free
32:27trade
32:27so
32:28they
32:29shift
32:29to
32:30demanding
32:31political
32:31concessions
32:32from
32:32their
32:32British
32:33masters
32:33that's
32:35right
32:35but
32:35what
32:35they're
32:35really
32:36getting
32:36at
32:36is
32:37this
32:37idea
32:37of
32:38pushing
32:39the
32:39British
32:39parliament
32:40to
32:41kind
32:41of
32:41release
32:42or
32:42to
32:42get
32:43rid
32:43of
32:43this
32:44embargo
32:44on
32:44Irish
32:45goods
32:45being
32:45sent
32:45to
32:45America
32:46so
32:47what
32:47do
32:47the
32:47volunteers
32:48do
32:48what
32:48happens
32:49so
32:50in
32:501779
32:51the
32:51volunteers
32:51decided
32:52to
32:52stage
32:53a
32:53big
32:53free
32:54trade
32:54protest
32:55over
32:55a
32:55thousand
32:55volunteers
32:56march
32:57through
32:57the
32:57city
32:58to
32:58the
32:58beat
32:58of
32:58drums
32:59and
32:59they
32:59march
32:59to
33:00college
33:00green
33:00which
33:00is
33:01the
33:01heart
33:01of
33:01the
33:01city
33:01they
33:02shoot
33:02off
33:03a
33:03volley
33:03with
33:04their
33:04rifles
33:04right
33:05in front
33:05of
33:06the
33:06parliament
33:07building
33:07right
33:07in front
33:08of
33:08Trinity
33:08College
33:08the
33:09volunteers
33:09also
33:10hung
33:11signs
33:11around
33:12the
33:12last
33:12of
33:13which
33:13read
33:13a
33:13free
33:14trade
33:14or
33:14else
33:15or
33:15else
33:16or
33:16else
33:17that's
33:17threatening
33:18a threat
33:18that
33:19we
33:19want to
33:20see
33:20these
33:20concessions
33:21and
33:22we've
33:22got
33:22guns
33:23yeah
33:23if
33:23not
33:23what
33:24will
33:24happen
33:24and
33:24in
33:25that
33:25sense
33:25it's
33:25actually
33:26just
33:27a
33:28kind
33:28of
33:28desire
33:29to
33:29fight
33:29for
33:30the
33:30liberty
33:30of
33:30Ireland
33:31they've
33:31got
33:32political
33:32demands
33:33they've
33:33got
33:33guns
33:34that's
33:35almost
33:35a
33:36revolution
33:36if
33:37I
33:37were
33:37George
33:37III
33:37I
33:38would
33:38be
33:38seriously
33:39worried
33:43Joel
33:44is
33:45taking
33:45me
33:45to
33:45a
33:45special
33:46temperature
33:46controlled
33:47room
33:47in
33:47Collins
33:48Barracks
33:48to
33:49show
33:50me
33:50a
33:50piece
33:50of
33:50evidence
33:51that
33:51revealed
33:52how
33:52the
33:52king
33:53responded
33:53to
33:55this
33:55wave
33:55of
33:56unrest
33:56there
33:57it
33:58is
33:58isn't
33:59that
33:59lovely
34:02this
34:03is
34:03a
34:04volunteer
34:04flag
34:05celebrating
34:06free
34:07trade
34:07and
34:08legislative
34:09independence
34:09beautiful
34:10isn't
34:11it
34:11yeah
34:12it's
34:12incredible
34:13the
34:13detail
34:14the
34:14intricacies
34:15hurrah
34:17for the
34:17volunteers
34:17they've
34:18established
34:18Ireland's
34:19legislative
34:20rights
34:20what a
34:22lovely
34:22thing
34:25threatened
34:26on all
34:27sides
34:27George
34:28III
34:29and his
34:29government
34:30capitulated
34:31and allowed
34:32Ireland
34:33to trade
34:34with
34:34America
34:36this
34:37was
34:37clearly
34:37a
34:37different
34:38strategy
34:39than
34:40Britain
34:40had
34:40followed
34:40in
34:41North
34:41America
34:41instead
34:42of
34:42crushing
34:43dissent
34:44there
34:44was
34:45evolution
34:46going on
34:46here
34:47in the
34:47hope of
34:48avoiding
34:48revolution
34:50George
34:51had made
34:52concessions
34:53in Ireland
34:53but
34:54America
34:55was a
34:55different
34:56matter
34:56entirely
34:59he
34:59he had
35:00staked
35:00everything
35:00on
35:01victory
35:01there
35:02convinced
35:03that
35:04losing
35:04would
35:04mean
35:04the
35:05collapse
35:05of his
35:05entire
35:06empire
35:06and
35:07everything
35:08he stood
35:08for
35:11yet
35:12the
35:12reports
35:13from
35:13across
35:14the
35:14Atlantic
35:14were
35:15grim
35:16and
35:17things
35:17were
35:17about
35:17to
35:18get
35:18even
35:18worse
35:22in
35:221779
35:24Spain
35:25officially
35:26entered
35:26the
35:26war
35:27and
35:28Gibraltar
35:29was now
35:30under
35:30siege
35:31in
35:32the
35:33Caribbean
35:33Britain
35:34was
35:34locked
35:35in
35:35combat
35:35with
35:36the
35:36French
35:36Navy
35:37trying
35:38to
35:38keep
35:38hold
35:38of
35:38its
35:39lucrative
35:39sugar
35:40colony
35:40in
35:41the
35:41battle
35:41of
35:41Martinique
35:45and
35:46war
35:46in
35:46America
35:47entered
35:48its
35:48fifth
35:49year
35:49Britain
35:51had
35:51been
35:51forced
35:52to
35:52abandon
35:53the
35:53northern
35:53colonies
35:54and
35:54casualties
35:55were
35:56mounting
36:02Britain
36:03was
36:04on
36:04the
36:04rack
36:04and
36:05tensions
36:06exploded
36:07in the
36:07heart
36:08of its
36:08capital
36:09I've
36:10come
36:10to
36:10one
36:10of
36:10the
36:10targets
36:11of
36:11the
36:11unrest
36:12the
36:13Bank
36:13of
36:13England
36:16so
36:17far
36:17we've
36:18seen
36:18protests
36:18in
36:19Ireland
36:19but
36:19if
36:20you
36:20really
36:20want
36:20to
36:21see
36:21uncontrolled
36:22political
36:22violence
36:23you
36:23need
36:23to
36:23travel
36:24to
36:24London
36:24in
36:251780
36:26the
36:27Gordon
36:27riots
36:28were
36:29the
36:29biggest
36:29and
36:29most
36:30destructive
36:30riot
36:31that's
36:31ever
36:31happened
36:32on
36:32English
36:32soil
36:33here's
36:33a
36:34picture
36:34of
36:34it
36:35they're
36:36fighting
36:36with
36:37swords
36:37here's
36:38a
36:38man
36:38with
36:38a
36:39huge
36:39sort
36:40of
36:40hatchet
36:41axe
36:41type
36:42thing
36:42look
36:42he's
36:43injured
36:43he's
36:43down
36:44he's
36:44hurt
36:44his
36:44head
36:45here's
36:46a man
36:46holding
36:46up a
36:47little
36:48pamphlet
36:48that says
36:50England
36:50in
36:51blood
36:53this
36:53violence
36:54was triggered
36:55by a new
36:55law
36:56parliament
36:57were desperate
36:58for more
36:59troops
36:59so for the
37:01first time
37:01they allowed
37:02Catholics
37:03to join
37:03the army
37:04but in a
37:06country
37:06divided by
37:07religion
37:07this lit
37:08the touch
37:09paper
37:14I'm on
37:14the trail
37:15of a
37:15first-hand
37:16account
37:16of these
37:17riots
37:18the diaries
37:19of Ignatius
37:20Sancho
37:21an account
37:22which has
37:23obsessed
37:23one of
37:23Britain's
37:24leading
37:24actors
37:25we've got
37:26this
37:27shopkeeper
37:27Ignatius
37:28Sancho
37:29in Westminster
37:30and I think
37:31he witnesses
37:31the Gordon
37:32riots
37:32doesn't he
37:33yeah he more
37:33than witnesses
37:34what he does
37:35Lucy
37:35is he writes
37:36to his friend
37:37John Spink
37:37about what he
37:38sees
37:39so he doesn't
37:40just see a bit
37:40of it
37:41or hears a bit
37:41of it
37:41he literally
37:42sees it
37:43through the
37:43shutters of
37:43his door
37:45the shops
37:46are all
37:46shuttered up
37:46because the
37:47mob has been
37:47going for a
37:48few days
37:48by this point
37:49and what's
37:49really terrifying
37:50to me
37:50is that he's
37:51got kids
37:52upstairs
37:52so this is
37:53terrifying picture
37:54not just of
37:55a man
37:56delivering facts
37:56but of a man
37:57terrified of his
37:58own safety
37:59and the safety
38:00of his
38:00black family
38:01upstairs
38:02these letters
38:03what do they say
38:04well they
38:05they talk about
38:05this narrow
38:06fairly narrow
38:07street
38:08next to parliament
38:09this mob
38:09thousands of
38:10poor miserable
38:11ragged
38:12rabble
38:12so the poorest
38:13of the poor
38:14from 12
38:15to 60 years
38:16of age
38:17sees them
38:18attack a carriage
38:19and try to pull
38:20Lord Sandwich
38:21out of his carriage
38:22and he thinks
38:23what is this
38:25this is Britain
38:26the land of liberty
38:27liberty to pull
38:28people's carriages
38:29apart
38:29exactly
38:30this isn't freedom
38:31this isn't what freedom
38:31should be
38:32this is anarchy
38:32and he says
38:33this is liberty
38:34genuine British liberty
38:35and he's got his
38:36exclamation marks
38:37so mark it out
38:38but then it turns
38:39then it turns
38:40violent
38:40super violent
38:41they just went
38:41and attacked
38:42everything
38:43particularly
38:44areas of authority
38:45you know
38:46they build these monuments
38:47to be strong
38:47and just to say
38:48you know
38:48keep away from us
38:49we're powerful
38:49and this mob just
38:51cracked it
38:52wanted to crack it open
38:53I love the idea
38:54that they were going
38:54for places like
38:55the fleet prison
38:56they were going
38:57they were going to
38:57release people
38:59who were rioters
39:00but ended up
39:01releasing everybody
39:02ah
39:02bad move
39:03let all the murderers
39:04out
39:05let all the murderers
39:06out
39:06and all the people
39:07who had just
39:07wanted to cause
39:08total chaos
39:09and so it was
39:10I guess a lot of
39:11people who owned
39:12property
39:12had a stake in society
39:13were feeling vulnerable
39:14for the first time
39:16or for the first time
39:17in ages at least
39:19when the riots
39:20started
39:20yeah I can't think
39:21of any conflict
39:22that we've had
39:24as a nation
39:24where the property
39:26of the rich
39:27was attacked
39:28yes
39:28to actually go
39:29to Buckingham Palace
39:31which is what
39:31they were trying to do
39:32to actually go
39:33to St James's Palace
39:34to go to Parliament
39:35to come to the Bank of England
39:36to attack the Lord Chief Justice
39:38this is very
39:39it was very pointed
39:41do you think though
39:42that maybe Sancho
39:43might have had
39:44some sympathy
39:45that was
39:46with what was
39:47going on
39:47oh no
39:48Sancho
39:49Sancho was a proper
39:50man of the status quo
39:52he was a monarchist
39:53he really enjoyed
39:55the fact that
39:55America was our colony
39:56and was in outrage
39:57they were leaving
39:58no no
39:59he would have wanted this
40:00and he says it
40:01he thinks this is
40:03lawlessness
40:03so he's got no chance
40:04of turning into
40:05a proper revolution
40:06really
40:07because the stakeholders
40:08in society
40:08are not behind it
40:09I mean it could have
40:10been close
40:10but it was so
40:11as I say
40:12it was so incoherent
40:12that it couldn't
40:13really have taken off
40:14but it was the closest
40:15we came to an anarchy
40:16where it was like
40:17there was nothing
40:18you could do about it
40:21for six days
40:23London was effectively
40:24in the hands
40:25of the rioters
40:29until George III
40:31sent in the army
40:41troops opened fire
40:43on the crowds
40:44killing hundreds
40:45in these very streets
40:46by the time order
40:49was restored
40:50more than 500 people
40:52were dead
40:56the Gordon riots
40:58could have been
40:59this tipping point
41:00the moment
41:01the moment that Britain
41:02actually had
41:03a revolution
41:03but for revolutions
41:06to work
41:06you need the people
41:08in the middle part
41:09of society
41:09to be on board
41:10with it all
41:11people like
41:12Ignatius Sancho
41:14and in London
41:15they weren't
41:17they maybe just wanted
41:18to change the system
41:19a bit
41:20not bring it down
41:21so in Britain
41:22the centre
41:24held
41:30Franklin was still
41:32in Paris
41:33plotting his next move
41:37at last
41:38French troops
41:39had landed
41:40on American soil
41:41and not just soldiers
41:43but elite
41:44siege specialists
41:47every diplomatic gamble
41:49Franklin had made
41:50had been leading up
41:51to this moment
42:01Britain had stopped
42:03fighting in the
42:04northern colonies
42:05New York City
42:07alone
42:08remained under
42:09crown control
42:10all hopes
42:12were now pinned
42:12on retaining
42:13the south
42:14where General
42:15Cornwallis
42:16led over 7,000 men
42:18that's a third
42:19of Britain's
42:20remaining force
42:21but after six
42:23brutal years
42:24of war
42:24both sides
42:25were spent
42:26each desperate
42:27to strike
42:28the final
42:29decisive blow
42:35in August
42:361781
42:37the British General
42:38Charles Cornwallis
42:40brought his men
42:41here to Yorktown
42:42on the banks
42:43of the York River
42:43this is a super
42:45strategic spot
42:46and his orders
42:47were to dig
42:48in
42:49to create
42:49a stronghold
42:50and to wait
42:51he was to wait
42:52for the Royal Navy
42:53to come
42:54either to bring
42:55supplies
42:55or to evacuate
42:57him
42:57this plan
42:59went wrong
43:06a battle took place
43:08here in Yorktown
43:10which brought
43:11the American Revolution
43:12to an unexpected end
43:16history remembers
43:17it as America's
43:19greatest triumph
43:20over Britain
43:21George Washington
43:23achieving
43:23the impossible
43:26yet
43:27as with all
43:28great victories
43:28the truth
43:29is a little
43:30more complicated
43:32who's where
43:32who's where
43:33all right
43:33so we've got
43:34the British
43:35back here
43:35with the British
43:36flag
43:36that's Cornwallis
43:37we've got
43:38the Americans
43:38over here
43:39and the French
43:40in this direction
43:41and this is called
43:42the Surrender Field
43:43it is called
43:44the Surrender Field
43:45I'm sorry to say
43:46to understand
43:48how the British
43:49campaign
43:50unraveled
43:50right here
43:51I've enlisted
43:52a military historian
43:55why did this place
43:57Yorktown
43:58end up being
43:59so important
44:00the location
44:01of the last battle
44:02and what goes wrong
44:05the French
44:06send a naval fleet
44:08from the Caribbean
44:09to come
44:10occupy the waters
44:12in the Chesapeake
44:13the British
44:14come down
44:14to try to fight
44:16them off
44:16and they fail
44:17and so he ends
44:18up trapped
44:19he's cut off
44:20in there
44:20he is cut off
44:22in the water
44:22and Washington
44:24comes down
44:25the Americans
44:26and the French
44:27come down
44:27on land
44:28so he's trapped
44:29here
44:29on land
44:30by the Americans
44:31and French
44:31and then
44:32by sea
44:33by the French
44:34Cornwallis is doomed
44:36right
44:36because no supplies
44:38can get to him
44:38by sea anymore
44:39that's right
44:40he is surrounded
44:41and he is outnumbered
44:43just about
44:44two to one
44:45and what's so
44:46difficult to imagine
44:47when you see
44:48this beautiful field
44:49is that there were
44:50more than 25,000 people
44:53maybe up to
44:5428,000 soldiers here
44:57there were horses
44:58there are cannon
44:59of different types
45:01and sizes
45:01that are booming
45:02there's smoke
45:03there are cries
45:04so the French
45:06oh goodness me
45:07they keep firing guns here
45:10who are the key players
45:11Christy
45:12the who's who
45:13of the American Revolution
45:15are all here
45:16so this means
45:17General George Washington
45:19is here
45:19General Rochambeau
45:21of France is here
45:22who exactly is
45:23this General Rochambeau
45:25he is an expert
45:27in the modern
45:28European ways
45:29of large scale war
45:31and in things like
45:33conducting sieges
45:34he knows how to
45:35beat the British
45:36he knows how
45:37to beat the British
45:38the French
45:39are the ones
45:39who brought the tools
45:40to dig the deep trenches
45:43to build ramparts
45:45they're the ones
45:45who arrived
45:46with the different sizes
45:48of artillery
45:48the very large cannon
45:50down to mortars
45:51that would rain
45:52shrapnel down
45:53into the British lines
45:55and then they have
45:57Rochambeau
45:58who knows how
45:59to conduct a siege
46:00now he's in charge
46:01of the French army
46:02but he's subordinate
46:03to George Washington
46:05that's exactly right
46:06how did that work out?
46:08well
46:08I will say that
46:11when we talk
46:12about Yorktown
46:13it's often touted
46:15to be Washington's
46:16greatest victory
46:17but in so many ways
46:19because it was
46:20the force of the French
46:22the navy
46:23the army
46:25this knowledge
46:26and the equipment
46:27and the artillery
46:28for how to conduct
46:30a siege
46:30in so many ways
46:32Washington's victory
46:33was based on him
46:34listening to the French
46:36right
46:36and so
46:37and so we could
46:38actually consider
46:39Yorktown
46:40to be France's
46:41greatest victory
46:42over the British
46:43and it's the one
46:45that led to
46:46the establishment
46:47of a new nation
46:48and a new world power
46:51the loss
46:52at Yorktown
46:53was catastrophic news
46:57the scale
46:59of the victory
46:59stunned
47:00the British public
47:05in the short term
47:06the British
47:07could have gone on
47:07fighting a little bit longer
47:09but in the long term
47:10this war
47:11was now lost
47:13which is why
47:15right here in Virginia
47:16they pull out
47:16all the stops
47:17to reenact the battle
47:18with hundreds of people
47:20coming to watch
47:30the British government
47:31now knew
47:32that peace talks
47:33were inevitable
47:35but George III
47:37refused to accept
47:39that Yorktown
47:40was the end
47:42he couldn't face
47:43the fact
47:44that after
47:44a hundred years
47:45of expansion
47:46the British Empire
47:47was now shrinking
47:52he ordered
47:54a detailed map
47:55of Yorktown
47:56which showed
47:57the exact spot
47:59where Cornwallis
48:00surrendered
48:07the royal archives
48:09at Windsor Castle
48:10hold intriguing evidence
48:12of what the king
48:13did next
48:16there were thousands
48:17of maps
48:18and artifacts
48:19here
48:20from George III's
48:21personal collection
48:26but I'm looking
48:28for a document
48:28that could have
48:29changed the course
48:31of British history
48:33an early draft
48:35written
48:36in George's
48:37own hand
48:41listen to this
48:42this is extraordinary
48:45his majesty
48:47with much sorrow
48:49finds
48:49he can be
48:51of no further
48:52utility
48:53to his native country
48:55which drives him
48:57to the painful step
48:59of quitting it
49:01forever
49:03he's abdicating
49:07he's giving up
49:08the throne
49:08he's resigning
49:09his job
49:10and I guess
49:11when he says
49:12he's quitting
49:12the country
49:13forever
49:13he probably means
49:14he's going to go
49:15back to live
49:15in Hanover
49:16in Germany
49:17where his family
49:18came from
49:20so what's going on
49:22why
49:22he explains it
49:24up here
49:25he says
49:26that the change
49:27of mind
49:28of the legislature
49:29that's his government
49:30about going on
49:31with fighting the war
49:32they don't want
49:33to fight the war
49:34anymore
49:34he says
49:35that this decision
49:36of theirs
49:36has totally
49:38incapacitated him
49:39he can't
49:40go on
49:41with the war
49:41effort
49:42or obtain
49:43any peace
49:43but on terrible
49:44conditions
49:46so he's fallen
49:47out with his government
49:48he thinks
49:49that they don't
49:50want him
49:50so he's going
49:51to go
49:53but
49:54this is just
49:55a draft
49:57of his
49:58memorandum
49:59of abdication
50:00he didn't actually
50:01press send
50:02on it
50:03he didn't
50:03actually abdicate
50:04in the end
50:05so what on earth
50:06was going on here
50:08I think that when
50:09the government
50:10didn't want to go
50:10on fighting the war
50:11this went against
50:13his wishes
50:13it hurt him
50:15it bruised his pride
50:17he was angry
50:18he was upset
50:19this to me
50:20this to me is a moment
50:21this to me is a moment
50:21of high emotion
50:22in the heart
50:23of the king
50:24it's such an insight
50:27and I think that once
50:28he'd calmed down a bit
50:29he realised
50:31that the best thing
50:32for him to do
50:32was in fact
50:33to carry on
50:35to see things through
50:36to sort things out
50:40and that's really
50:41important
50:43he knows
50:44when to bend a bit
50:45and not
50:46to break
50:52with the war
50:53now finally over
50:55George III
50:56had changed
50:56approach
50:57from defiance
50:58to diplomacy
51:00and in
51:011783
51:02he officially
51:03recognised
51:04America
51:05as an independent
51:06nation
51:11at the time
51:13the nation's
51:13mint
51:14for making coins
51:15was at the
51:16Tower of London
51:17it's the perfect
51:19place to examine
51:20two small objects
51:21which reveal a lot
51:23about the countries
51:24that produced them
51:32this tiny thing
51:33is
51:34a bog standard
51:35British penny
51:36in the 1780s
51:37it's such
51:38an everyday
51:39object
51:40and
51:41anybody who did
51:43handle it
51:43would have known
51:44who was in charge
51:45with their empire
51:46it's King George III
51:48he's shown here
51:49as an emperor
51:50a Roman emperor
51:51in his laurel reef
51:55this on the other hand
51:56this on the other hand
51:56is something
51:56much more exciting
51:57and novel
51:58in 1787
51:59North America
52:01got its first
52:02official coin
52:03this is the first
52:04cent
52:05and guess who
52:06designed it
52:07it was Benjamin
52:08Franklin
52:09he gets everywhere
52:10that man
52:10instead of putting
52:12somebody's face on it
52:13because in a republic
52:15the people
52:16are the sovereign
52:17instead of a face
52:19he's put 13
52:20interlinked circles
52:22to represent the 13
52:23different colonies
52:24all working together
52:24down at the bottom
52:26it says
52:27mind your business
52:29mind your own business
52:31look to yourself
52:32it's a very sort of
52:34individualistic way
52:35of looking at things
52:36isn't it
52:37these two little things
52:38aren't just pieces of money
52:40they're mini manifestos
52:42for two very different ways
52:44of looking at the world
52:45the British one
52:47is all about
52:48ancient power
52:49and stability
52:50but the American one
52:52is racing towards
52:53a future
52:54in which the individual
52:56can flourish
53:00Franklin's penny
53:01was a tiny coin
53:03with a radical promise
53:05the power
53:06belonged not to a monarch
53:07but to the people
53:11a promise that became
53:13a reality
53:14when citizens
53:16of America
53:16returned to Britain
53:18not as subjects
53:19but as equals
53:22opening their first embassy
53:25right here
53:26in Grosvenor Square
53:27in London
53:28the capital
53:30of the country
53:31they'd fought so hard
53:32to free themselves from
53:34the American Revolution
53:36is usually described
53:39as a heroic struggle
53:41taking place
53:42on American soil
53:43but that's only
53:45half the story
53:46America didn't just
53:48challenge British power
53:49overseas
53:49it also shook
53:51the foundations
53:52of Britain itself
53:55but Britain
53:57didn't fall apart
53:59it burned
54:00it bled
54:01but in the end
54:03George III
54:04survived
54:05by adapting
54:06to a new world
54:08250 years ago
54:11both nations
54:12were remade
54:14one by casting off
54:16a crown
54:17the other
54:18by reshaping it
54:22into a platform
54:22the other
54:22of the
54:22candied
54:22are
54:41here
54:50for the
54:50You
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