Hey, so I am just some random Australian that loves the movie The Patriot. One thing that bugs me is I have no understanding of which war the move is about.

For example, in the movie they talk about what ol mate did in the previous war plus there story line that relates to slavery.

Is there a youtube channel or documentary I could watch to get an understanding of the different conflicts?

24 comments

  2. Prior to the American war of Independence, there was a war called either the French and Indian war or the Seven Years war. It was fought with the French and most of the Native American tribes against the British and American colonists who also had a few tribes on their side. The latter won.

    The Patriot is about the Revolutionary War, in which we won our independence.

    If you would like a general understanding of everything, the youtuber Oversimplified has two videos about the American Revolution, what caused it, how it happened, etc.

    The Revolutionary War was fought in the 1770s and 1780s. Slavery in America existed until 1865. The Civil War, contrary to what Republicans would like you to think, was fought over whether slavery should be legal or not, with the Anti-Slavery Union army from the North defeating the Pro-Slavery Confederacy in the South. Technically slavery still exists in America’s prison system though.

  3. According to Wikipedia:

    >Most of the film’s events occur in the Southern theater of the Revolutionary War… During the American Revolutionary War in 1776, Captain Benjamin Martin, a veteran of the French and Indian War and a widower with seven children, is called to Charleston to vote in the South Carolina General Assembly on a levy supporting the Continental Army.

    So, the Revolutionary War (1775-1783) when the American colonies were fighting for independence from Great Britain.

    It looks like the previous war they’re referencing is the French and Indian War (1754-1763) when Britain and France went to war on the North American continent over colonial territorial disputes. The British colonies fought the French colonies and won. Both British and French colonies heavily recruited Native American tribes to fight with them in either side, thus the name.

    According to the internet:

    > The French and Indian War ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris in February 1763. The British received Canada from France and Florida from Spain, but permitted France to keep its West Indian sugar islands and gave Louisiana to Spain. The arrangement strengthened the American colonies significantly by removing their European rivals to the north and south and opening the Mississippi Valley to westward expansion.

    But it seems like the movie was heavily criticized by historians so it’s probably fairly loose

  4. Oversimplified guide to major wars in American History:

    * **French & Indian War** (1754-1763) was about disputed land in the Ohio Valley. On one side we have the 13 British colonies (that later became independent US states) supported by Great Britain and they fought against France and most Indian tribes (which is why we call it F&I War, in Europe it’s part of the Seven Years War). America/Great Britain won but Britain had to borrow money and raise taxes to pay for the war which Americans didn’t like. Viewing list: *Last of the Mohicans*
    * **American War of Independence** (1775-1783) was when America declared independence from Great Britain to become our own country. The Patriot forces (pro-independence Americans) and French allies fought against Great Britain and Loyalists (anti-independence Americans). The Patriots won. Watch list: *Hamilton*
    * **The War of 1812** (1812-15) was between the now-independent United States and Great Britain over lingering issues of sovereignty. America felt disrespected by Britain over trade, border issues, Indian policy, and general pride and so we declared war on them. Militarily it was a draw but it did have the effect of spurring on American nationalism and demonstrating that America would defend herself.
    * **Mexican-American War** (1846-1848) was fought between the United States and Mexico. We wanted their land, we beat them in the war, and we got their land.
    * **American Civil War** (1861-1865) was between the Union (ie United States of America) who were mostly northern, anti-slave states and the Confederacy (Confederate States of America) who sought to break away and be independent after they saw the institution of slavery being threatened by the election of Abraham Lincoln. At the heart it it was slavery but this included differences between North and South culturally, economically, and politically. The Union won the war and the Confederacy was forced to return to the USA and slavery was abolished. Series recommendation: *The Civil War* documentary series by Ken Burns
    * **The Spanish-American War** (1898) was between the US and Spain. The US wanted to become a global power and saw Spain as a weak opponent. We beat them and took land such as Puerto Rico, Cuba, Guam, and the Philippines.
    * **World War I** (1917-1918) between the Allies & Central Powers. The US was neutral for the beginning of the war before joining the Allies. You’re familiar with this no doubt.
    * **World War II** (1941-1945) Allies vs Axis Powers. US officially joined after Japan attacked US in Hawaii. Viewing recommendation: *Band of Brothers* series.
    * **Cold War*** (1945-1991) not an actual war but period of heightened tension between US and our allies such as NATO against the Soviet Onion and its allies of the Warsaw Pact. Included proxy wars like…
    * **Korean War** (1951-1953) between South Korea, USA, and United Nations Allies versus USSR-supported North Korea and China. This was about North Korea trying to invade and make South Korea communist which the US didn’t want. It was a draw.
    * **Vietnam War** (1955ish-1975) between communist North Vietnam and South Vietnam & USA. This was also about spread of Communism. The US got tired and left and South Vietnam fell to communism.
    * **Global War on Terror** (2001-Present?) between the US and radical Islamic terrorists and those supporting them. Still very controversial but started with great public support after 9/11 attacks.

    Edit: Yes, there’s a lot more out there. Desert Storm, Quasi War, Indian Wars, Panama, Kosovo, Grenada, Paxton Boys, and any time Philadelphia plays in a sports championship. I was just covering the basics.

  5. Prior to American independence there were various colonial wars between European powers over the continent such as the War of Jenkins Ear (yes , it was called that) and the French and Indian War. They referenced the latter in the movie The Patriot. And obviously the Native American tribes fought various wars among each other and later against the Europeans and Americans.

    Later we fought the Revolutionary War to get our independence from Britain. We won 🇺🇸! We later fought the War of 1812 against Britain for various reasons. We tied (kind of). But our failed invasion of Canada during that war is why they’re a separate country today.

    We then fought the Mexican-American War since it was the 1800s and imperialism was unfortunately pretty common back then. We won and got most of our Southwestern territory.

    Later we fought our Civil War in the 1860s and ended slavery. During this time the French invaded Mexico. Ordinarily we would have tried to stop this (since no one messes with them but us). But we were a little busy at the time. But after our Civil War we helped out the Mexican rebels by giving them a lot of weapons. They won eventually and that’s where Cinco de Mayo comes from (oversimplified version).

    Fast forward a few years and we fought the Spanish American War and got some territories in the Caribbean and the Pacific. Around the same time we also annexed Hawaii. Later we fought in a bunch of stupid low-level conflicts before WWII in the Caribbean and Central America known as the banana wars (not our finest moments).

    That’s pretty much it for our wars in North America (until we invaded Panama in the 1990s for various reasons). Luckily for us we’ve only really fought two border wars and we started both of them.

    Just keep in mind, The Patriot – like most Mel Gibson movies – isn’t really historically accurate. Still a good movie though.

  6. In that movie, the previous war is the French & Indian war and the current war is the American Revolution. Benjamin Martin gets his war tools from his French & Indian war chest after his son Thomas is killed.

    The slavery storyline and the Gullah community on the South Carolina beach is interesting but kind of whitewashed. Freemen working on Benjamin Martins’s plantation? They were slaves… same with the southern belle’s mammy stereotype.

  10. The Patriot is about the Revolutionary War, the war that was fought by the Americans and the French against Britain so we could be an independent country. The war referred to was the French-Indian war which was over territory in what is today Ohio. Because we helped the French with that they helped us with our war. We scratched backs, basically.

    There are ten million and one documentaries and books about the history of America and the various wars. I’d suggest finding the Wikipedia page about it so you can have a timeline to start with before you dig deeper because you could drown in all the things that have gone over our history.

  11. In 1899, the United States fought a significant but forgotten war against the Philippines. The Americans inflicted incredible human suffering on the locals, including civilian executions, dumping them into mass graves, and concentration camps. Over a million people died in this brutal conflict. This war was abominable and has been brushed under the rug in our country. Usually it’s only glanced over and not given nearly enough consideration.

  12. The best starting point is the 7 Years War (French and Indian War if you’re American)

    American Revolution

    War of 1812

    Mexican American War

    Civil War

    Numerous “wars” against Native tribes

    Spanish American War

    I’ll include WWII as Hawaii was our territory, so I think they count as North America.

    There’s also been other smaller conflicts, and revolutions in Mexico and the Caribbean. If you’re looking to be entertained, check out The Pig War by Oversimplified.

    [Here’s](https://youtu.be/VgAS-xIdS78) a link to part 1 of a documentary. I’m not sure if part 2 is up. If you like The Oatriot, check out [this](https://youtu.be/QParA8h9UY4) one.

  14. The Wilderness Campaign the movie “The Patriot” mentions is in the French & Indian War.

    The American War of Independence is known by many names such as American Revolution, or Revolutionary War.

    I also recommend “Turn,” or “Sons of Liberty” if you liked The Patriot. Turn is my favorite of the two.

  17. I can’t beat boyerling’s excellent summary but I can add a few things.

    There were a lot of colonial wars between Britain and France but most American history courses don’t touch upon them until the French and Indian War (1754-1763).

    You might have heard of this war because outside of North America, it is known as the Seven Years War. But in the US and Canada French and Indian War is nearly always used. It is significant because the French were kicked out of North America. They lost all of Canada except for St Pierre. which started the origin of French and English Canadian dislike.

    In the US, it removed the threat of the french so there was less need for the British soldiers but the war cost so much it caused the crown to start taxing the colonists. Fun fact: George Washington started this war by accident.

    American Revolution (1776-1783).
    American colonies declare independence. Loyalists to the crown move to Canada. US gains a bunch of land to the Mississippi river. Declaration of Independence is still read today at important events. Why we celebrate July 4.
    Fun Fact: John Adams believed that July 2nd would be the day celebrated long into the future with fireworks and speeches.

    War of 1812: (1812-1815)
    School said it was to related to impressment (American sailors forced to sail for British ships), Canada says it was because we wanted to invade. Both are true.
    Long story short, we tried to conquer Canada several times and failed miserably. We lost many land battles but won many naval victories. One of our most famous presidents a century later wrote a naval history of the war.
    The white house was burned but not by Canadians, by regular British officers sent from Europe while Napoleon was on Elba. The star Spangled Banner, our national anthem was written during this war.

    In Canada this war is huge. There are monuments everywhere and is a major part of their history and culture. In the US we remember due to our the above reasons and.the Battle of New Orleans. In the UK the war is unknown.

    Fun fact: The treaty of Ghent was signed but the Battle of New Orleans which is immortalized in a song was fought before the news of the treaty arrived. Andrew Jackson, a future president in the mode of Trump got his fame here.

    Mexican War (1845-1848)
    Ten years earlier, Texas became independent from Mexico. Lots of Americans moved there and wanted slavery which was illegal in Mexico. Now the US wanted to annex Texas with Texan permission. Mexico refused and the US won lots of Mexican land. California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Nevada, Utah, and parts of other states were Mexican.
    US picked on Mexico and many saw it as a conspiracy to add to the slave states while peacefully signing a treaty with the UK for the northwest states.

    There was a debate to annex all Mexico but due to racism, only the northern part of Mexico was taken because there were fewer people living there.
    Fun fact: A ton of Civil War generals fought in this war including Lee and Grant, the two most famous.

    The Civil War (1861-1865)
    This war has arguably shaped our country more than any other war. The South tried to secede and President Lincoln led the war effort. Conservatives are strong in the south because a long time ago the Democrats were the conservative party and supported slavery. About 100 years ago, blacks started voting for Democrats and eventually white Democrats switched to voting Republican. The South is less “solid” than it was, but is a big reason the Republican strength is there.

    The reason no state has tried to leave our country since is because the federal government won. Serious talk of secession has been muted even in these times as a result. The federal government became much larger after this war. No one was tried and killed after the war except for those involved in killing Lincoln. The slaves were freed but were later betrayed by future leaders after President Grant left office.

    The Gettysburg address is one of the most famous speeches in our history but is very very short. It was so short in an era when speeches could take hours or all day. But it took just a few paragraphs.

    Not so fun fact: Lincoln was assassinated at Ford’s Theater. His son, Robert Todd Lincoln, a military officer was on the scene of two other presidential assassinations in the next forty years.

    Spanish American War (1898)
    A warship was blown up in Spanish Cuba but was probably an accident. Theodore Roosevelt led a group of cowboy soldiers called the Rough Riders. He really wanted war but at least he fought in the front lines and led a famous charge up San Juan Hill (it was actually a different hill) through a firefight.
    US was barred from annexing Cuba which was supposed to have been liberated. However the US seized the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and some other small islands. Not related to the war, the US also overthrew the independent Hawaiian kingdom around this same time period.

    Fun fact: The US started really thinking beyond North America for the first time with this war.

    World War 1 and WWII: you know these wars so I won’t cover them.

    Korean War (1950-1953): North Korea invades South Korea and nearly succeeded in conquering the country but the US had a perimeter around Pusan (now Busan) on the very edge of the peninsula. General Macarthur, a famous WWII general had the marines launch an amphibious assault on Inchon far behind enemy lines and was able to to regain most of the south. Then he invaded the north and even wanted to get too close to China so the Chinese invaded. Then the rest of the warwas mostly fought around the present day border. Once Stalin died (hensuppoeted both quietly) an armistice was signed but not a peace treaty.

    Vietnam War(1964-1975 officially): I dont know as much military stuff about this war but the US won a bunch of battles with the Vietcong and the regular army but the guerilla campaign kept attacks going and the casualties and war opposition mounted in the US. We were drafting a bunch of men and it was a huge source of opposition to the war. A lot of presidents and politicians in the last forty years had deferments or arrangements to avoid combat. President Nixon pulled our troops out after domestic pressure to end the war mounted. The capital of the south, Saigon fell. Sort of like how Afghanistan quickly fell to the Taliban a year or two ago. It was like that.

    The not so fun fact:
    The late Senator John McCain fought and was torchered in this war, leading him to lose his ability to lift his arm up. His eventually led an unnamed recent political figure to claim he liked people who didn’t get captured.

    Gulf War 1991(?) Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and George HW Bush (a war hero from WWII and a moderate conservative) sent troops to stop Iraq and protect the oil fields. It was a rousing success but the neocons wanted an invasion of Iraq which would have to wait a decade.

    I won’t do the more recent stuff.

  20. A lot of people are skipping it because it was not a war fought by the United States, but the Texas revolution was fought in 1836. This is where the battle of the Alamo occurred.

  21. Instances of the United States overthrowing, or attempting to overthrow, a foreign government since the Second World War. (* indicates successful ouster of a government):

    China 1949 to early 1960s

    Albania 1949-53

    East Germany 1950s

    Iran 1953 *

    Guatemala 1954 *

    Costa Rica mid-1950s

    Syria 1956-7

    Egypt 1957

    Indonesia 1957-8

    British Guiana 1953-64 *

    Iraq 1963 *

    North Vietnam 1945-73

    Cambodia 1955-70 *

    Laos 1958 *, 1959 *, 1960 *

    Ecuador 1960-63 *

    Congo 1960 *

    France 1965

    Brazil 1962-64 *

    Dominican Republic 1963 *

    Cuba 1959 to present

    Bolivia 1964 *

    Indonesia 1965 *

    Ghana 1966 *

    Chile 1964-73 *

    Greece 1967 *

    Costa Rica 1970-71

    Bolivia 1971 *

    Australia 1973-75 *

    Angola 1975, 1980s

    Zaire 1975

    Portugal 1974-76 *

    Jamaica 1976-80 *

    Seychelles 1979-81

    Chad 1981-82 *

    Grenada 1983 *

    South Yemen 1982-84

    Suriname 1982-84

    Fiji 1987 *

    Libya 1980s

    Nicaragua 1981-90 *

    Panama 1989 *

    Bulgaria 1990 *

    Albania 1991 *

    Iraq 1991

    Afghanistan 1980s *

    Somalia 1993

    Yugoslavia 1999-2000 *

    Ecuador 2000 *

    Afghanistan 2001 *

    Venezuela 2002 *

    Iraq 2003 *

    Haiti 2004 *

    Somalia 2007 to present

    Honduras 2009 *

    Libya 2011 *

    Syria 2012

    Ukraine 2014 *

    Overthrowing other people’s governments: The Master List (By William Blum https://williamblum.org/essays/read/overthrowing-other-peoples-governments-the-master-list)

    Q: Why will there never be a coup d’état in Washington?
    A: Because there’s no American embassy there.

  22. The Patriot is about the Revolutionary war (also called the war of independence). The stuff they were talking about when he was younger happened during the french and Indian war.

    There was talk about slavery in the movie because slavery was a big issue at the time then too. In the end, nothing change about slavery until the Civil war happened.

  23. During the timeframe of the Revolution, the ‘previous war’ will generally refer to the Seven Years’ War, also called the ‘French and Indian War’ in the colonies. The terms don’t *entirely* overlap, as fighting in the Americas predated the fighting in Europe proper (1754, while the continental European conflict began in earnest in 1756).

    There were other armed conflicts in pre-independence America, but that was both the biggest and the most recent at the time. A good number of people who were involved in the American Revolution participated in the conflict, including a young George Washington.

  24. I completely understand not knowing what they’re talking about when they reference the previous war (which was the French and Indian war) but how do you not understand that the movie is about the Revolutionary war? Like there’s literally a whole scene where he goes to the meeting where they debate independence and revolution and they reference trying to become an independent country all throughout the movie

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