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Funny how Americans forget that but for the French Navy, they would have lost the revolutionary war. There were three times more French than Americans fighting in the Revolutionary war, and what caused the final surrender of the British was being surrounded by the French.
But of course, most Americans don't know that Canada kicked their sorry asses in the war of 1812, and the only reason that the White House is white is that the Canadians burned it down.
(And I should remind people that although I live in Canada, I'm an American, and if not for studying Canadian history in high school, I wouldn't have known that either.)
I was just talking about this with a friend the other night. He was on Lafayette Street in NY and started to joke about the french. I reminded him that it was Lafayette and the French who won the Revolutionary war for us. So I reminded him to eat his freedom fries, continue driving until he saw the big statue in NY harbor and remember where we gt that from too.Quote:
Originally posted by Jasun
Funny how Americans forget that but for the French Navy, they would have lost the revolutionary war. There were three times more French than Americans fighting in the Revolutionary war, and what caused the final surrender of the British was being surrounded by the French.
But of course, most Americans don't know that Canada kicked their sorry asses in the war of 1812, and the only reason that the White House is white is that the Canadians burned it down.
(And I should remind people that although I live in Canada, I'm an American, and if not for studying Canadian history in high school, I wouldn't have known that either.)
It's scary how much we don't know about our own history.
But isn't it also historically true that other than the Revolutions (Both Us and French) France has won no other wars - only some battles in war?
GA
meh... kinda...
technically, the Americans haven't "won" that many wars, either.
The first and second world wars were won by the Allies, not exactly the Americans (although the WW2 would most likely not have been won had the Americans not been there), with the exception of the American/Japanese war, which yes, was won by the Americans. The civil war was won by the north, but that means the south lost, so they cancel each other out, and Korea and Vietnam weren't won so much as given up upon.
The "Gulf" war was stopped before it was won, and that wasn't faught by the Americans so much as the United Nations. But again, it probably would have ended differently had the Americans not been there.
And although the war in Iraq was supposedly won a year ago, it sure seems to be still going on...