By Nancy Spannaus
Aug. 4, 2025—Commemorations of our ancestors’ heroic battles against the British Empire in our Revolutionary War are proliferating, as we head toward the 250th anniversary of our nation’s birthday on July 4, 2026. Re-enactments, grave markings, and lectures are being held to remind us today of the sacrifices which American patriots made in order to win the “unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Appropriately, special efforts are being made to include the oft-overlooked contributions of sections of the population, from Native Americans, enslaved Americans, and the female sex.
But there is another whole class of supporters which played an indispensable role in ensuring our victory, and is often being ignored. I refer to the international soldiers, engineers, and political leaders who also put their lives on the line in this war to defeat the tyrannical British Empire.
We American patriots must face the truth: We would not have won the Revolutionary War without the aid of the French (most importantly), probably without Spain, and a plethora of exceptional individuals from many nations around the world.
Why Did They Support Us?
The reasons these individuals and states supported the American cause varied greatly.
For some, like General Gilbert Lafayette, the attraction was to the ideas of liberty and justice our patriot fathers espoused.[1] The Declaration of Independence set out explicitly to explain to the world why the British-American colonies were revolting – and much of the world paid attention. The young French nobleman was unique in his self-less dedication to the ideals the Americans expressed, and despite his disappointment with the persistence of slavery, he never gave up his belief that “the cause of America is in great measure the cause of all mankind.”[2]
Lafayette was granted honorary U.S. citizenship by Congress in 2002.
For others, joining up with the Americans was a life-line for their own survival, an escape from an otherwise-untenable situation in their home countries, or simply a search for military glory. Most had good reason to share American resentment or hatred of the British, whose global empire was in de facto warfare against other world powers and states. Indeed, by the end of the war, there was virtually no nation in the world which sided with Great Britain against the United States.
George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, among others, knew from the beginning of the war that international support from other nations would be necessary for victory. Indeed, it was strategic necessity (with the British fleet moving into New York harbor) which dictated the timing of the Declaration of Independence. To get explicit (not just covert) international backing, the American leadership had to show that we Americans were willing to defy the British Empire by declaring independence.
It took a while for open international support to come, but eventually it did. Nor should it ever be forgotten.
In the rest of this post, I will very briefly highlight the roles of the major European nations, and a few exceptional individuals, in achieving our victory. I encourage you to explore the question more deeply: much material is available.
The French: Supplies and Men
Despite the fact that the British-American colonists had been at war with the French only 15 years before, it was to the French that the American leadership had to appeal for help. As the major world power opposing the British, the French clearly had the interest, and also the resources, to begin secretly providing supplies to the Americans for the war to come. As is well known, Benjamin Franklin was the key diplomat who worked out the details of an alliance, although the flow of materiel began before his arrival in France in late 1776. It is estimated that ultimately 90% of the weapons and ammunitions the American fighters used came from France and its ally Spain.
Equally decisive was the French commitment of manpower, which can be attributed in significant part to the efforts of Lafayette. It followed the formal treaty of alliance reached in 1778. Twelve thousand French soldiers were deployed to the Americas, along with an estimated 32,000 sailors. While these numbers are much smaller than those of the Americans (estimated at 231,000 total in the Continental Army and 145,000 in the militia), they came at the crucial moment, when British General Cornwallis was bottled up in Yorktown. The French naval victory against the British fleet in August 1781 prevented Cornwallis from getting reinforcements, and the French army provided more troops than the Americans at the siege of Yorktown that defeated the British.[3]
The Spanish
While the Spanish monarchy never made a direct treaty of alliance with the United States, it did join the war against Great Britain alongside its ally France in 1779. Its major objectives were to try to reclaim Florida, Minorca, and Gibraltar. Its contributions were such that some scholars have argued that the Revolutionary War couldn’t have been won without them.
The Spanish controlled New Orleans, the vital entrance to the Mississippi River and an easy access point to the Caribbean. Under the Governor of its territories, Bernardo de Galvez, the Spanish forces facilitated the supply of the Americans up the Mississippi, and most critically, battled and defeated the British/Hessian forces which had been sent to the Gulf area in order to try to hold onto western Florida.
For his contributions, Galvez was conferred honorary U.S. citizenship by Congress in 2014.
The Spanish government also coordinated with the French Navy in order to ensure that De Grasse’s entire fleet could travel to Virginia without the danger of losing France’s Caribbean islands to the British. And equally important, De Grasse took a trip to Spanish Havana, Cuba right before heading North, in order to pick up necessary cash to pay the American troops. He succeeded in getting a loan of 1.2 million pounds in hard currency, which ensured that the American forces received sufficient pay to be willing to fight.
The Dutch
The third major world power which Alexander Hamilton projected in 1775 would come to America’s aid against Great Britain was the Dutch. Again, as with the Spanish, the Dutch government did not officially ally with the Americans. Rather, the primary support came from Dutch businessmen providing war materiel and loans, the former coming primarily through Dutch islands in the Caribbean.
The Dutch colony of St. Eustatius, a major supplier of ammunition and and other supplies to the Continental Army, won the distinction of being the first foreign entity to recognize the United States as a nation. In November 1776, the American merchant ship Andrew Doria, which flew the American flag, arrived in St. Eustatius’ harbor, bringing a copy of the Declaration of Independence, and fired a salute. The Eustatian government responded with its own ceremonial cannon fire – making Holland the first major power to recognize the sovereignty of the United States.[4]
League of Armed Neutrality
No picture of the international alignment around the American Revolutionary War would be complete without at least a mention of the League of Armed Neutrality. The League was proposed by Russian Czarina Catherine the Great in 1780, in response to increasing interference by British ships against Russian shipping to nations such as France. Catherine sought to enforce the principle of “free ships, free trade,” although the proposed treaty officially recognized certain categories of “contraband.”
The League was proposed by Russia to the Netherlands, Denmark, Prussia, Sweden, and Portugal in April, and put the British in a rough situation, challenging its global naval power. However, the threat ultimately was more imaginative than real, as Russia – the largest power involved – seemed not prepared to put itself at risk for other members of the League, and the others were too small to protect themselves. Ultimately, the constituent nations all made new treaties with Great Britain, and the League played no decisive role in the outcome of the war.
Exceptional Individuals
As should be clear from the above, the American revolt against the British Empire was THE EVENT of global significance of the 1776-1781 period. Framed by the Americans as a fight for freedom against tyranny, this war would inevitably attract all kinds of individuals to join the effort. In the remainder of this post, I will highlight three of them who made identifiably crucial contributions to our victory.
The first is Thaddeus Kosciusko,[5] a Polish patriot from the lower-class gentry. He was born in 1746.He was educated in the Royal Military Academy of Warsaw, where he came to the attention of the Polish monarch. Kosciusko used this connection to get a scholarship to study in France, where he learned engineering, art, and military strategy, as well as becoming acquainted with republican ideas.
When he returned to Poland in 1774, he sought to marry a noblewoman. But the woman’s father forbade the match. Thaddeus took off to America, arriving in August 1776.
Kosciusko first connected with Benjamin Franklin, then a member of Committee of Secret Correspondence (charged with gaining international support). The Polish engineer proved his worth in designing blockades and fortresses along the Delaware River, and won an appointment as colonel. From then on, he played a significant engineering role in various military campaigns. The most famous was his fortification of West Point and the Hudson River (ensuring the effectiveness of the famous iron chain across the river).
Kosciusko served in the U.S. Continental Army until the fall of 1781, after which time he went back to Poland where he played a role in establishing a new Constitution inspired by the American revolution (1791) , and fought an unsuccessful war against Russian rule. He went into exile, but returned three years later to lead a revolutionary upsurge. After initial success, the revolution was defeated in December 1794 and Kosciusko sent to prison in Russia.
Upon his release, Kosciusko once again visited America in 1797, which he saw (like Lafayette) as his “second fatherland.” But only a year later he returned to Europe where he stayed in Switzerland until his death in 1817.
The next exceptional individual is Casimir Pulaski, also from Poland, Unlike his countryman Kosciusko, however, Pulaski was a nobleman from a military tradition, especially the cavalry. His departure from Poland was dictated by the fact that he participated in a revolutionary plot against the Polish king in 1768; that plot failed by its instigators were forced into exile. Pulaski ended up in France, where he was persona non grata to the government, but was readily accepted by the resident Benjamin Franklin, who was actively recruiting to the American cause.
Pulaski arrived in the summer of 1777, and rushed to join General Washington, who was soon to engage in the battle of Brandywine. Refusing to wait to be commissioned by Congress, Pulaski volunteered to lead a cavalry charge in that battle, in order to save Washington’s army from a devastating defeat. His success led Congress to declare him a Brigadier-General, with the title “Commander of the Horse.”
Although there was no official cavalry in the U.S. Continental Army, Pulaski set up his own unit and operated largely out of central command. In 1779, Washington sent him to Georgia to aid General Benjamin Lincoln in trying to retake Savannah. He was killed outside Savannah when he led a rash charge against the British.
Interestingly, in 2009, Pulaski was granted honorary U.S. citizenship by the U.S. Congress.
The final individual I’m going to single out is probably the best known one of all, Baron Friedrich von Steuben. The Prussian military veteran had been involved in the Seven Years’ War in Europe, and then trained in the art of war in the court of Frederick the Great. Frederick’s army was considered the most advanced army in the world at the time.
After the war, von Steuben deployed to France, where he served as an administrative assistant to the Prince of Hollenzollern-Hechinger from 1764-1777. (That’s where he got the Baron title.) Frustrated at finding a military position in Europe, he finally decided to volunteer in America, even though he could not be promised any pay or position. France paid his passage.
Von Steuben arrived in February of 1778, and traveled to Congress. He presented a letter of introduction from Benjamin Franklin (which misrepresented his rank) and received a promise of pay AFTER the war, depending upon his contribution. He then went on to Valley Forge, where Washington appointed him temporary Inspector General.
It is there that the now-legendary von Steuben developed a training regimen for the American army, and transformed it into an effective fighting force. Despite his lack of English, he was well-liked by the men, whom he worked with directly. He was not put off by the fact that Americans, unlike Germans, would often ask WHY certain maneuvers were necessary before adopting them. As a result of his work, he was confirmed as Inspector General in May of 1778.
Following the battle of Monmouth, von Steuben was deployed to develop the Book of Regulation for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States. This was accepted by Congress, and remained in force until 1814. As for von Steuben, he went back to work with the Army until demobilization after 1783.
He only lived 10 years more, dying on his estate (he had been granted lands in partial payment) in the Mohawk Valley in 1794s.
There’s Much More
So yes, the American Revolution was a world war, with lovers of freedom (as well as adventurers) everywhere willing to give their lives for a better world.
There are many more instances than I have mentioned. Did you know there were two Canadian regiments, the only truly continental units?[6] Did you know of the Haitian participation with our soldiers in the battle to liberate Savannah?
There are also many other individuals who made the decision to fight for America. You may have heard of Johann de Kalb, a German who became a general for France in the Seven Years’ War, and joined Lafayette in travelling to America to fight in the Revolutionary War. He was the one who taught Lafayette English, something he was able to do because the French had deployed him to the American colonies. in the 1760s to do reconnaissance and evaluate discontent with British rule.
Nor were the individuals who came only committed to military action. Think of Englishman Thomas Paine, whose Common Sense and Crisis pamphlets provided crucial inspiration during the dark days of defeats.
So, when we contemplate our good fortune at establishing our freedom from the British Empire, and seek to achieve the noble principles we then put forth, let us remember that ours was a fight for universal values. As men and women of principle rallied to us then, let us rally to ensure those universal principles to all mankind today.
As Founding Father Gouverneur Morris said, he came to the Constitutional Convention “in some degree a representative of the whole human race.”
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[1] For more on Lafayette’s exceptional role, click here.
[2] This statement comes from Thomas Paine’s pamphlet “Common Sense.”
[3] These figures come from the American Battlefield Trust, which can be accessed here.
[4] See a write-up of the presentation on St. Eustatius by the AHA Society’s Sergio Villavicencio here.
[5] For a fuller treatment, see the National Park Service’s write-up. Click here.
[6] See a short report on these units here.
Tags: American REvolutionary War, French, Galvez, Holland, Kosciusko, Lafayette, Nancy Spannaus, Pulaski, Spain, von Steuben