Many thousands of incredible people contributed to the outcome of the Revolutionary War, but one of the more important contributors was Major General William Howe. William Howe was born on August 10, 1729 (Showalter, 2015) to Sir Emmanuel Howe and Charlotte Howe. His father was a viscount, a noble just under the rank of Duke. He was also the illegitimate uncle of King George III (Pavao, 2014), giving Howe’s family a tie to the throne. In his youth, William was educated at Eaton. Years later, when he was seventeen, his father bought him a Cornet’s Commission, allowing him to become an officer in the British Army. Thus Howe’s military career began. In 1756, The French and Indian War began. William was promoted to a Major over the 60th regiment …show more content…
He also held a position in parliament. Because of his association with the American Colonists in the French and Indian War, he had compassion on them. Some of them were his friends. In parliament, he spoke out against and resisted the intolerable acts. He preached the unpopular opinion of reconciliation (Hickman, 2015) with the American colonists. In fact, General Howe believed so strongly in what he preached that he publicly refused that he would go against the colonies to war. He knew and loved many Americans and he had no desire to hurt them. Only after King George III commanded him to go, Howe relented. He said that he was “ordered and could not refuse” (Hickman, 2015). So Howe accepted the call as second in command over the British forces in America and set ailed for the Revolutionary …show more content…
His first major battle came when General Thomas Gage, the Commander in Chief, order him to assault Bunker Hill. In this battle, Howe demonstrated his noble character. “‘Behave like Englishmen, and as becometh good soldiers’. Then went on, ‘you will not have to go one step further than where I go myself at your head.’” (Moran). He kept his promise. In each of the three attacks, General William against the fortified rebel lines in front of all his men. Bunker Hill was classified as a British Victory, but they suffered great losses of over 1,000 casualties (McCullough, 2005). Because of the terrible slaughter, the American soldiers lost all favor in his eyes and he ceased defending them in parliament. Bunker Hill also made Howe became much more conservative throughout the rest of the war. It was at this time that he was promoted to Commander in Chief. But his weakness in this position would soon reveal itself. After receiving reinforcements that swelled his army to over 30,000 men (Hickman, 2015), Howe resumed the offensive. Under his command, the British forces assaulted the American Army in the Battle of Long Island. The colonists were badly beaten and retreated to their fortifications on Brooklynn heights. Instead of pursuing the weakened army, Howe ordered a halt (McCullough, 2005). Because of his hesitation, the Continental Army was able to make a daring