Charles Cornwallis: The Man Who Lost the American Colonies

Sdílet
Vložit
  • čas přidán 11. 07. 2024
  • The first 100 people to go to www.blinkist.com/biographics will get unlimited access for one week to try it out. You’ll also get 25% off if you want the full membership.
    → Subscribe for new videos at least twice a week!
    czcams.com/users/biographics...
    Simon's Social Media:
    Twitter: / simonwhistler
    Instagram: / simonwhistler
    This video is #sponsored by Blinkist.
    Geographics: / @geographicstravel
    MegaProjects: / @megaprojects9649
    SideProjects: / @sideprojects
    XPLRD: / @xplrd
    TodayIFoundOut: / todayifoundout
    TopTenz: / toptenznet
    Highlight History: / @highlighthistory
    Business Blaze: / @brainblaze6526
    Source/Further reading:
    Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, in-depth (paywall): doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/6338
    Britannica overview: www.britannica.com/biography/...
    History of the Stamp Act: www.history.com/topics/americ...
    Primer on the Revolutionary War: www.history.com/topics/americ...
    Bio of Sir Henry Clinton: www.nps.gov/people/henry-clin...
    Revolutions Podcast, Cornwallis in the Carolinas: thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/...
    Revolutions Podcast, Cornwallis at Yorktown: thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/...

Komentáře • 1,1K

  • @Biographics
    @Biographics  Před 3 lety +51

    The first 100 people to go to www.blinkist.com/biographics will get unlimited access for one week to try it out. You’ll also get 25% off if you want the full membership.

    • @sleepydoghistory9994
      @sleepydoghistory9994 Před 3 lety +5

      each of your video teach me more than my whole history class

    • @RodolfoGaming
      @RodolfoGaming Před 3 lety +3

      Helen Keller?

    • @starchildone4871
      @starchildone4871 Před 3 lety +3

      Do a video about Spanish civil war, or at least of German involvent in it. Condor Legion is interesting, or explain long period of fashism in Spain.

    • @mijicmugendo
      @mijicmugendo Před 3 lety +2

      Ireland never joined a union with England. English people in Ireland voted for it because Irish people where not allowed to vote

    • @tommothedog
      @tommothedog Před 3 lety +2

      Are you the new minister for american propoganda?

  • @abigfish1620
    @abigfish1620 Před 3 lety +535

    You know, his story is actually kind of sad. He was a decent man, sensible, loyal to his country and tried his best to do the right thing. You can see his quality in how he tried to reconcile the Ireland debacle, and his frustrations with how it turned out. Also the fact that his wife, whom he actually married for love, died of illness while he was off on campaign is a tragedy. I genuinely feel for him.

    • @danielboggan2479
      @danielboggan2479 Před 3 lety +12

      He was a bit of a dick to the Carolinians, he burned a lot of Baptist and presbyteries churches

    • @alrox1
      @alrox1 Před 3 lety +29

      Agreed! What he did in India is appalling, but seems like in the American Revolution he was just dealt a bad hand. I think he did try to do the right thing in Ireland--it was a very progressive thing to do in that era to try to get different religions to cooperate towards a common goal--it was only the dishonesty of those above him that caused it to fail. It had to suck achieving success just to have the rug pulled out from under him by his own king.

    • @danielboggan2479
      @danielboggan2479 Před 3 lety +2

      @Jake Stout unless you don’t count journals from people of the time period there absolutely is. Mainly Baptist and Presbyterian churches in the Deep South colonies

    • @danielboggan2479
      @danielboggan2479 Před 3 lety +6

      @Jake Stout yes, yes there is. St Phillips church in Brunswick North Carolina. They also burned the whole town of Russelburough shortly thereafter.
      Do some research before spouting off

    • @danielboggan2479
      @danielboggan2479 Před 3 lety +2

      @Jake Stout you can’t cite a source for that, because it’s not true.
      Colenel Rawdon of the British army burned every Presbyterian and Baptist Church he encountered in the Carolinas and Georgia because they “ Are workshops of seditions”
      Barnastre Tarleton burned several himself, as did Patrick Ferguson. Eventually even 7 Anglican churches were burned in the south

  • @marquisdelafayette1929
    @marquisdelafayette1929 Před 3 lety +1052

    He lost because I’m awesome, duh! 🤩 😎

    • @YodaSmokes
      @YodaSmokes Před 3 lety +95

      You have been waiting for this huh? 😂

    • @aurumsultan7319
      @aurumsultan7319 Před 3 lety +11

      Lol

    • @aurumsultan7319
      @aurumsultan7319 Před 3 lety +36

      @@YodaSmokes he's been waiting for something like this for 4 years lol

    • @marquisdelafayette1929
      @marquisdelafayette1929 Před 3 lety +111

      @@YodaSmokes Technically I have been waiting 263 years.. but who’s counting? 😉

    • @atomic_wait
      @atomic_wait Před 3 lety +51

      @@marquisdelafayette1929 You're a real bro, Marquis, really appreciate what you did for my country. Can I call you Marq? Is that too much?

  • @ryanh4499
    @ryanh4499 Před 3 lety +393

    I've always wondered about Cornwallis, in America we heard his name many times in history class but never really knew much about him. Thank you for posting this video!

    • @eurodoc6343
      @eurodoc6343 Před 3 lety +22

      Yes, he's probably the one British General most Americans schoolchildren can name (Sorry, Marlborough and Wellington).

    • @michaelterrell5061
      @michaelterrell5061 Před 3 lety +11

      @@eurodoc6343 I can name wellington, John Churchill, Henry Clinton, Sir Douglas Haig etc and I'm in the 8th grade.

    • @Samm815
      @Samm815 Před 3 lety +1

      @@michaelterrell5061 Must have changed some stuff. Also i only know wellington cause of waterloo (and steak), churchill cause of churchill, clinton cause of clinton, and haig sound familiar.

    • @Samm815
      @Samm815 Před 3 lety +1

      @@eurodoc6343 Sorry General Cigarette and General Steak!

    • @michaelterrell5061
      @michaelterrell5061 Před 3 lety

      @@Samm815 What must have changed?

  • @SuperPiratesfan
    @SuperPiratesfan Před 3 lety +164

    I had a history professor in college who once characterize the stamp act as “imagine if you had to pay a fee every time you wanted to use Wi-Fi on your phone anywhere for any reason.” I’ll never forget the horrified silence that settled over the classroom, and this one guy a few seats behind me even muttered “I would murder someone.”

    • @GuinessOriginal
      @GuinessOriginal Před 3 lety +9

      That will come

    • @metfan099
      @metfan099 Před 3 lety +18

      This type of thing happening nowadays is not unfathomable. For instance, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has suggested that, as more electric vehicles replace gasoline vehicles, the way to supplement the decrease in gas tax funds is to tax people for the amount of miles driven in their vehicles. Government overreach will continue to escalate until the people decide to put an end to it. What the American revolutionaries decided to do is one option.

    • @mbryson2899
      @mbryson2899 Před 3 lety +14

      @@metfan099 , how do you think roads get built and maintained? Taxes.
      I'm not a Buttigieg fan, but taxing those who use the resource makes sense.
      What would you suggest?

    • @revanofkorriban1505
      @revanofkorriban1505 Před 3 lety +4

      Most people did not really get affected by the Stamp Act. A lot of the stuff that was taxed by it wasn't something the average colonist would use. Those who were worst-affected, the press, kicked enough of a fuss about it to make it into a problem.

    • @jamesholden6142
      @jamesholden6142 Před 3 lety +8

      @@mbryson2899 stop giving our tax money to foreign countries and wasting it on trillion-dollar money-laundering schemes disguised as covid relief would be a good start

  • @aalam5747
    @aalam5747 Před 3 lety +334

    Cornwallis: the man who lost America, then took his revenge in India

    • @JonManProductions
      @JonManProductions Před 3 lety +41

      And then got kicked in the nuts in Ireland.

    • @nothingtoospiffy7913
      @nothingtoospiffy7913 Před 3 lety +12

      @@JonManProductions did he? I haven't heard about that.

    • @CatnamedMittens
      @CatnamedMittens Před 3 lety +12

      Man he really was average haha

    • @tobydawes6007
      @tobydawes6007 Před 3 lety +7

      to be fair to the guy England was fighting to other wars as well as the sideshow in America so couldn't focus purely on America plus the logistics involved in supplying the forces in America.

    • @rahultiwari-dx8qo
      @rahultiwari-dx8qo Před 3 lety

      Lord Cornwallis,isn't that him?

  • @ViniciusKRISCHKE
    @ViniciusKRISCHKE Před 3 lety +150

    Léo Major, French-Canadian soldier who almost single-handedly liberated the Dutch city of Zwolle in WWII.

  • @trisgilmour
    @trisgilmour Před 3 lety +165

    That’s a fair summary of him “being average and not being above average “

  • @tonymondelli1732
    @tonymondelli1732 Před 3 lety +184

    Honestly he sounds like the right man at the wrong time. Decent guy just put into positions he really didn’t care for or want but was told to anyways.

    • @Dubmaster3
      @Dubmaster3 Před 3 lety +19

      That's what I got out of this too. It seems he tried to do what he believed and it was stacked against him and ordered to do the opposite.

    • @alexanderforsman2166
      @alexanderforsman2166 Před 3 lety +15

      Yeah, seems like in another life he could’ve been an early reformist politician. There’s something melancholic about a decent but mediocre life like his.

    • @freefall9832
      @freefall9832 Před 3 lety

      I benifit from his incompetence haha wrong man in the right place at the right time

    • @richardlahan7068
      @richardlahan7068 Před 3 lety +1

      Military officers can't pick their wars.

    • @tonymondelli1732
      @tonymondelli1732 Před 3 lety

      @@richardlahan7068 exactly what I’m saying. They just do as they’re told.

  • @timetraveltvniles7650
    @timetraveltvniles7650 Před 3 lety +43

    Cornwallis lived a few miles away from where I live. His house is gone now but the gate house of his estate is still there and is now a pub.

    • @RCAvhstape
      @RCAvhstape Před 3 lety +2

      I used to live a few miles away from Brandywine Battlefield, part of which is preserved as a Pennsylvania state park with a visitor center museum and often reenactment battles.

    • @lisasmith516
      @lisasmith516 Před 3 lety +6

      I have a new respect for Cornwallis. Despite his "failures," he was humane. I believe I will have the honor of meeting him in Heaven. Lisa Rae Rousseau 🤗💯

    • @Britspence381
      @Britspence381 Před 3 lety +3

      My paternal family is from Yorktown. The papers of capitulation were drawn up in my 22nd or 23rd ggrandfather's house, the 'Moore House', now on the Yorktown Tour. I know, big deal...At least you know my last name now.

    • @freefall9832
      @freefall9832 Před 3 lety +1

      Gates of mediocrity

  • @BygoneChina
    @BygoneChina Před 3 lety +239

    The Royal Navy ship HSM Cornwallis was named in honour of Charles Cornwallis. This ship was instrumental in the defeat of China in the First Opium War, and it was aboard the HMS Cornwallis that representatives from the British and Qing Empires negotiated and signed the Treaty of Nanking, which is considered the start of China's century of humiliation.

    • @taylorlibby7642
      @taylorlibby7642 Před 3 lety +17

      Good thing he wasn't commanding that ship ; )

    • @ShannonCarter55
      @ShannonCarter55 Před 3 lety +30

      Should send the ship back to Hong Kong and humiliate the Chinese Communist Party.

    • @mikepatrick5909
      @mikepatrick5909 Před 3 lety +2

      @@ShannonCarter55 lol

    • @michaelterrell5061
      @michaelterrell5061 Před 3 lety +2

      Eh it wasn't really a century of humiliation. They still had arguably the greatest economy in the world and within a few years turned a country in the middle ages(probably before that honestly) into an industrial and military powerhouse especially after they beat Japan.

    • @ShannonCarter55
      @ShannonCarter55 Před 3 lety +3

      @@michaelterrell5061 brutal as the Japanese were on the Chinese (and rather sickening), the CCP still take the cake.

  • @manuelacosta9463
    @manuelacosta9463 Před 3 lety +75

    The Irony of him being against those acts that led to unrest in the colonies that would eventually erupted into the US war for independence. One has to wonder if he recalled that as Yorktown devolved into defeat and surrender.

    • @CatnamedMittens
      @CatnamedMittens Před 3 lety +9

      He was probably staring at the battlefield with glass eyes like "goddamnit"

    • @manuelacosta9463
      @manuelacosta9463 Před 3 lety +7

      @@CatnamedMittens Lol too true. The fact that he never left his tent until the very end means he probably had a breakdown or something.

    • @CatnamedMittens
      @CatnamedMittens Před 3 lety +2

      @@manuelacosta9463 yeah

    • @thunderbird1921
      @thunderbird1921 Před 3 lety +5

      From what I've read, there were also at least a sizable handful of parliament members who opposed the no representation taxation. They must have been yelling "You **** IDIOTS!" at PM Lord North and his staff by the time Yorktown rolled around. A completely avoidable war that devastated Britain's empire and lost the American colonies forever (and sour relations for DECADES afterward).

    • @SpitfireMLG
      @SpitfireMLG Před 3 lety +4

      @@thunderbird1921 It didn't devastate the empire but the war was incredibly unpopular with the British public and even Parliament. It dragged out for so long because of George III. The war could have probably been won for Britain but it would have been costly for Britain and to not much gain. The 13 colonies were relatively worthless in relation to the West Indian colonies and their protection and governance were somewhat expensive. The British actually gained economically after the war because they could continue trading with America without having to sustain it.

  • @linaiisaye8357
    @linaiisaye8357 Před 3 lety +64

    "failing upwards", is my favourite phrase in the entire video.

  • @Taistelukalkkuna
    @Taistelukalkkuna Před 3 lety +17

    Now I have this image of Cornwallis chasing Washington, with Yakety sax playing.

  • @w0lfr0gue53
    @w0lfr0gue53 Před 3 lety +31

    Didn’t set lookouts at Trenton. Why they needed a General to tell them that goes against all military logic.

    • @jasminelav.332
      @jasminelav.332 Před 3 lety

      Vast underestimation was a factor. Britain was the greatest military power on the planet; the Rebels were mostly a bunch of untested exiles and hicks with muskets. Basically no one thought we'd win.

  • @JC-ks3yk
    @JC-ks3yk Před 3 lety +25

    "A kick in the nuts or a rectally inserted cactus"
    I'll get back to video when I stop laughing....

    • @davidringle7
      @davidringle7 Před 3 lety +3

      Little bit of the blaze came out there lmao

  • @TihetrisWeathersby
    @TihetrisWeathersby Před 3 lety +66

    That's the tale of a lot of the Generals and Admirals, Born to Wealthy families with connections

    • @kingstarscream320
      @kingstarscream320 Před 3 lety +8

      Like most modern-day lawyers and doctors.

    • @jakealter5504
      @jakealter5504 Před 3 lety +2

      And some of those generals/admirals are still able to rise high. Grant and Sherman were good examples of this, both started their careers well and by the time the American Civil War began they had fallen by the wayside only to become the two best union generals by the late part of the war (hell, it could be argued that Sherman taking Atlanta and Savanna is what actually secured the union victory)

    • @nomdeplume5446
      @nomdeplume5446 Před 3 lety +3

      @@jakealter5504 that’s because American military promotions are largely merit based. Back in those days Britain’s military promotions were largely based on who your family was.

    • @jakealter5504
      @jakealter5504 Před 3 lety +3

      @@nomdeplume5446 true though in the cases of Grant and Sherman they had connections as well as merit

    • @TheProtagonistDies
      @TheProtagonistDies Před 3 lety +2

      Too much to lose, no heart no fight smh

  • @MrrMechassult
    @MrrMechassult Před 3 lety +29

    I love when little bits of Business Blaze pokes through in Simon's more serious channels

  • @redhandedjill
    @redhandedjill Před 3 lety +27

    "And which Pitt would this be? Pitt the Toddler? Pitt the Embryo? Pitt the Glint in the Milkman's Eye?"

  • @harrisonclay714
    @harrisonclay714 Před 3 lety +38

    When Cornwallis requisitioned my family’s cattle and barns for his troops before the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, my x6 great grandmother met with him and demanded the cattle back. Apparently Cornwallis acquiesced, and resupplied my family despite having a son in the patriot militia. Shows he wasn’t necessarily a bad man.

    • @grilledleeks6514
      @grilledleeks6514 Před 2 lety +2

      Pretty cool if true.

    • @guacre2675
      @guacre2675 Před 8 měsíci +2

      Yeah, hard to know if it's true or not, but that's a really fun story

    • @Planet_Shel
      @Planet_Shel Před 8 měsíci +1

      I've come across this video, because through genealogy I found out today that he is an ancestor of mine on my paternal grandmother's side of the family. Our side of this family is from Virginia which I find interesting.

  • @dulio12385
    @dulio12385 Před 3 lety +74

    For someone so mediocre, Cornwallis lived a fairly extraordinary life, even as a supporting actor to greater events.
    Can't really blame a guy for losing a war where he was outnumbered 20 to 1.

    • @oxtheunlikelycontemplator2682
      @oxtheunlikelycontemplator2682 Před 3 lety +21

      It's because he wasn't mediocre. Even in his most ardent critics paint as a great logistics officer and military engineer. Yorktown also might never fallen if he had received the reinforcements which he requested well multiple times and held out for before finally surrendering.

    • @RobertLee-wi5kc
      @RobertLee-wi5kc Před 10 měsíci

      No try 2 to 1 in numbers.

  • @alfredthegreatkingofwessex6838

    “Mostly Decentl, But Useless”
    That’s going to be in my grave stone

  • @watcherofwatchers
    @watcherofwatchers Před 3 lety +25

    Calling someone "useless" is about as serious an insult as I give.

    • @BobJohnson648
      @BobJohnson648 Před 3 lety +4

      Calling someone useless seems spiritually vaccous...like kissengers" useless eaters remark...but I still like Simon

    • @jr2904
      @jr2904 Před 3 lety

      @@BobJohnson648 Simon doesn't write, he just reads

    • @BobJohnson648
      @BobJohnson648 Před 3 lety

      Maybe he should read it before he tapes

    • @oxtheunlikelycontemplator2682
      @oxtheunlikelycontemplator2682 Před 3 lety

      It's because it's usually inaccurate. And almost slanderous here.

    • @BobJohnson648
      @BobJohnson648 Před 3 lety

      Yep, labeling someone as useless is questionable

  • @TappanZee1234
    @TappanZee1234 Před 3 lety +21

    Peter Drucker’s "Peter Principle" where everyone gets promoted to their level of incompetence.

  • @michaelsinger4638
    @michaelsinger4638 Před 3 lety +71

    Honestly I wouldn’t describe him as “mediocre.” He seemed to be pretty competent and well-intentioned to me.

    • @DMurphyApple
      @DMurphyApple Před 3 lety +5

      yeah i find this overly negative, seems like a fairly good bloke given time and circumstances

    • @Dazz3rz450
      @Dazz3rz450 Před 3 lety +5

      Mediocre is more about his actions and results than his intentions.

    • @JustinSolomon33
      @JustinSolomon33 Před 3 lety +3

      Totally agree, I couldn’t help but think he was a good guy just trying to make it work

    • @gordonlumbert9861
      @gordonlumbert9861 Před 3 lety +3

      Unfortunately most of his challenge s need him to be Great. For Ireland sounds like the politicians screwed him.

    • @diarmuidbuckley6638
      @diarmuidbuckley6638 Před 3 lety +1

      @@gordonlumbert9861 and George. The Prime Minister promised Representation in Parliament for the majority *but* the King refused even to discuss it because of his Coronation oath. PM resigned and only when Wellington as PM (who was Irish-born and appreciated the soldiery from Ireland he had) did Catholics gain legal right to have MPs - around the same year as Jewish members of Parliament were permitted

  • @hammerofmariotos
    @hammerofmariotos Před 3 lety +3

    It is worth noting the second commander of England's forces in America, Sir William Howe, actually *asked* to be relieved of command, what he described as, "This very painful service". And that's a man who assailed, personally, the deadly American volleys on Breed's Hill, ALONGSIDE his regular infantry--THREE times. The British had no shortage of brave soldiers or Generals.

  • @Kaiserland111
    @Kaiserland111 Před 3 lety +56

    Honestly, I feel really bad for Conwallis. He seems like a really decent man, who loved his wife, country, and soldiers who fought under him. He did his duty as he thought necessary, and as Simon said, probably would have been great at a lesser role if he hasn't been promoted beyond his abilities. I know he fought against my ancestors in the Revolutionary War, but I still feel sorry for the man.

    • @freefall9832
      @freefall9832 Před 3 lety

      I don't haha he got served

    • @Abhishek-sr2pu
      @Abhishek-sr2pu Před 3 lety +1

      Yeah you are that kind of person who would also feel bad for confederate and Nazis.

    • @v.emiltheii-nd.8094
      @v.emiltheii-nd.8094 Před 2 lety +1

      Sometimes I wish lobotomy was legal for those two idiots above me.

    • @ardenalexa94
      @ardenalexa94 Před 8 měsíci

      @@Abhishek-sr2pu you can feel bad for someone without agreeing with their actions.

  • @chuckvelzy6615
    @chuckvelzy6615 Před 3 lety +2

    Simon...I have to say...now that you have so many channels i love how personal you have been. The sense of humor you add is unmatched. Easily the best way to earn some historical context. I consider myself to know something about history in general and you always shock me with some random fact. Nicely done sir!!

  • @bullghani
    @bullghani Před 3 lety +3

    Simon, love your videos, behind the scenes crew, you guys are amazing as well. So well researched and still you make it fun to listen to.

  • @Designarchi1
    @Designarchi1 Před 3 lety +3

    Well done. Tons of info and a great perspective.

  • @sleepydoghistory9994
    @sleepydoghistory9994 Před 3 lety +33

    That great! you should do one on Black George of Serbia, the Balkan's mad lad

  • @SEAZNDragon
    @SEAZNDragon Před 3 lety +16

    I kinda want to see a Hamilton style musical from the British side now.

  • @fredorman2429
    @fredorman2429 Před 3 lety +8

    Thanks for a different perspective on Lord Cornwallis than I was taught in school. Our public school textbooks cram great events into a few brief paragraphs, omitting in depth examination of the people who played the pivotal roles.

  • @kingstarscream320
    @kingstarscream320 Před 3 lety +21

    Tavington... damn him! Damn that man!

    • @Anaris10
      @Anaris10 Před 3 lety +4

      Historically it was Banastre Tarlington or "Bloody Ban" as he was known for his actions. This Narrator leaves out a lot of information pertaining to what and why events transpired the way they did.

    • @mitchellneu
      @mitchellneu Před 3 lety

      Don’t know why they changed his name from Banastre Tarleton to William Tavington...takes away some of the fear by giving that portrayal a generic name rather than sticking to his actual name.

    • @RCAvhstape
      @RCAvhstape Před 3 lety +5

      @@mitchellneu Well considering the ridiculous war crimes Tavington committed in that stupid film it's a good thing they changed his name. Tarleton was known to be ruthless but he never locked people in churches and burned them alive. I'm an American and I thought that movie was embarrassing the way it painted the Brits as barbarians.

    • @mitchellneu
      @mitchellneu Před 3 lety +2

      @@RCAvhstape yeah I’m American too, and I don’t remember reading of the Brits doing anything to that ridiculous extreme.

    • @kingstarscream320
      @kingstarscream320 Před 3 lety

      @@RCAvhstape I’m a Canadian with a history degree and I think The Patriot is a fine film. A rip-roaring good time.

  • @taniaroman5857
    @taniaroman5857 Před 3 lety +83

    *Sees title*
    My brain: "General Cornwallis, or as his friends called him 'J-Corn'"

    • @TrueRetroflection
      @TrueRetroflection Před 3 lety +13

      I prefer, “Corn-dawg and Aunt Jemima”

    • @behunter215
      @behunter215 Před 3 lety +2

      I am so glad I'm not the only one who thought this 😂

  • @indycole396
    @indycole396 Před 2 lety +1

    Great video!

  • @Captofthisship
    @Captofthisship Před 3 lety +2

    That was a good video, thanks!

  • @danthegamechanger3855
    @danthegamechanger3855 Před 3 lety +3

    Great video keep up the good work on your channel loving it 👍🏻🙂🔥

  • @TihetrisWeathersby
    @TihetrisWeathersby Před 3 lety +75

    The man we have to thank for the founding of America

    • @MisterAndrewBuckley
      @MisterAndrewBuckley Před 3 lety +9

      Yeah, sorry about that 🤷🏼‍♂️😁

    • @watermelonium9671
      @watermelonium9671 Před 3 lety +3

      @@MisterAndrewBuckley damn u cant say that
      i agree tho

    • @thfccfht
      @thfccfht Před 3 lety +4

      America is a Continent you clown, your the ununited states.

    • @rc59191
      @rc59191 Před 3 lety +5

      @@thfccfht we'll be united again once we dump Commiefornia and all the left wing maniacs into the ocean.

    • @thfccfht
      @thfccfht Před 3 lety +11

      @@rc59191 the last time you fought commies you got humiliated in Vietnam.

  • @bennygarcia7786
    @bennygarcia7786 Před 3 lety +1

    Always good historical videos, I'm always looking forward to more, very educational

  • @davefellhoelter1343
    @davefellhoelter1343 Před 3 lety +1

    never knew this angle!
    Thank YOU!

  • @ARIXANDRE
    @ARIXANDRE Před 3 lety +62

    A subject suggestion: who are the people depicted in notable currencies around the world and why were they chosen. Cheers!

  • @val_baby74
    @val_baby74 Před 3 lety +5

    I love this channel so much. I just love learning - education is elevation ❤️

  • @sammurphy3343
    @sammurphy3343 Před 3 lety

    Fantastic video. Keep em coming

  • @THEtodd_83
    @THEtodd_83 Před 3 lety +1

    Love these historical videos.

  • @rgnyc
    @rgnyc Před 3 lety +3

    Thank you - I learned so much from this fascinating mini-biography.

  • @ethanramos4441
    @ethanramos4441 Před 3 lety +59

    “A man who dares to waste one hour of life has not discovered the value of life”
    Charles Cornwallis

  • @alec2726
    @alec2726 Před 11 měsíci

    Brilliant Simon!

  • @sirsmartypants7086
    @sirsmartypants7086 Před 3 lety

    You learn so much from your channels! Thank you Simmon

  • @AshLilburne
    @AshLilburne Před 2 lety +5

    Sounds to me like he was loyal to a fault; entered into unwinnable battles and actually had some success, had a genuine love for his wife, continued on fighting through grief, and his only downfall was kicking Simon's great great great grandfather's dog.

  • @michaelgreen1515
    @michaelgreen1515 Před 3 lety +4

    Cornwallis was a loyal soldier who spent most of his career fighting for things he didn't believe in.

  • @batstacomics1748
    @batstacomics1748 Před 3 lety

    how funny... I listen to you when i'm folding my laundry lol!! videos are great, I have a deep love for history and i'm very grateful to have found your channel!!

  • @jimrothery1289
    @jimrothery1289 Před 2 lety +1

    This was an excellent presentation. It had humor as well as scholarly explanations. Thank you.

  • @aniruddhbhatkal1834
    @aniruddhbhatkal1834 Před 3 lety +3

    We here in India talk about Cornwallis too, about the Anglo-Mysore war. When I heard he was the same Cornwallis who lost at Yorktown I was really surprised. By the way, his successor was Governor General Wellesley, whose brother was the famous guy who beat Napoleon at Waterloo. I believe that Sir Arthur Wellesley also fought in the final Anglo-Mysore war, and learned much there about rocketry. Quite a matchless career, the Duke of Wellington had

  • @georgequalls5043
    @georgequalls5043 Před 3 lety

    Well done.

  • @akshaymanta55
    @akshaymanta55 Před 2 lety +4

    Lord Cornwallis as he's popularly called in India is also known as the father of Indian civil service. Came to India on 12th sept. 1786 as the Governor-general of Bengal.
    In 1793 introduced Cornwallis code, a body of legislation introducing governing, policing, judicial and civil administrative provisions.

  • @CFG-eb3my
    @CFG-eb3my Před 3 lety +5

    Outstanding yet again. Thank you sir, as a Yank I've always felt his role in our revolution was not as conventionality depicted - no doubt the surrender could well have been avoided by a effective political Cornwallis in a leadership House role - not to be

  • @jeffsanders1609
    @jeffsanders1609 Před 3 lety +2

    You should do John “Black Jack” Pershing
    Most great American generals from WWII served and were mentored by General “Black Jack” Pershing during WWI. These include Patton, Eisenhower, McArthur, George C. Marshall, and Omar Bradley
    For that reason, he’s extremely under rated in American history in my opinion. Not to mention he charges up San Juan Hill next to Teddy Roosevelt, and commanded the expedition sought out Pancho Villa
    Before any of that he also taught at an African American school and when he was 4 years old his home was raided by Confederate in 1864 looking for his Father because he flew the Union Flag over his general store in Missouri
    He lived and amazing and forgotten life that would be the worded set up for a biographics video

  • @ehrldawg
    @ehrldawg Před 2 lety

    Great vid ! Im sharing !

  • @Yourmomma568
    @Yourmomma568 Před 3 lety +3

    just to clear up, the stamp act wasn't considered ridiculous because it was an undue burden, it was considered ridiculous because they saw it as an obvious circumvention of law regarding taxation. taxation of colonies had been debated before and it was considered illegal because of the representation requirement under the british constitution. the legality aside the stamp act was not unreasonably costly, in fact its main economic effect (and real purpose) was to curb smuggling in deep water ports. by keeping track of paper the government could keep track of who was writing falsified receipts on imports. a couple of dollars was all it took to convince a harbor worker to report a much lower tonnage and thus lower import duties. by issuing stamps 9n certain paper products the dock workers were forced to keep themselves account to british authorities. the point was to improve collection of legal duties and improve revenue, (the stamp cost was very small), and since the local elite were almost all profiting from smuggling and acting as a mafioso of sorts, they generated a lot of unrest locally for these new measures. they burned families of british officials alive in their homes, rioted, tortured people, and destroyed vast amounts of property in a campaign of disruption and intimidation to fight enforcement, and it worked. it led to a larger debate about the spirit of the law and was eventually co-opted by revolutionaries, radicals, and secessionists, culminating in the american revolution. you'd be amazed how many founding fathers had made their fortune in the "import export" business. like with things today, it wasn't a clear cut and simple, one idea vs another, conflict. it was a convoluted mess of conflicting ideas and motivations on both sides that eventually led to the outcome with which we are familiar, but pretending that it wasn't also a sordid affair on the part of the americans, or not a wholly greedy and malicious affair for the part of the british, is at best historical revisionism.

  • @augustusera7402
    @augustusera7402 Před 3 lety +12

    This channel is amazing, I have so many interests in history, and the lives of those who went through it all but never really liked reading books or do research and having a video that puts it all into one 20-30 minute video is amazing. Thank you!

    • @CFG-eb3my
      @CFG-eb3my Před 3 lety

      Read

    • @2MeatyOwlLegs
      @2MeatyOwlLegs Před 3 lety +1

      That's pretty much the reason why infotainment is so popular on CZcams.^^

    • @Anaris10
      @Anaris10 Před 3 lety

      Be careful, this guy cherry picks his points while not telling you the whole story. I've studied Military History for decades and could do the same if I wanted too.

  • @jroch41
    @jroch41 Před 10 měsíci +1

    Very informative summary of the life and career of Cornwallis.

  • @maximodeleon2502
    @maximodeleon2502 Před 3 lety +1

    Hey Simon, I only have 2 things to say.
    1. I simply love all your CZcams videos, I have learned more about History from u than I did in school.
    2. Just an idea, how about doing a Biography on Admiral Thomas Cochrane, he was a man with an incredible story and career, I’m pretty sure it would be an excellent video.

  • @ViniciusKRISCHKE
    @ViniciusKRISCHKE Před 3 lety +5

    Aníbal Milhais, aka Soldier Millions, most decorated Portuguese soldier of World War I. Single-handedly held back a German assault with his Lewis gun allowing his whole company to retreat... Twice.

  • @coolguy1983
    @coolguy1983 Před 3 lety +5

    Wow. Very open and truthful view of Irish history at the end. This is a perfect time to request as an Irishman a video of Theobald Wolfe Tone. The leader of the United Irishmen and key figure in the disaster that was the 1798 Rebellion. In Irish Schools we are thought of 3 key events in the 1700s, the American Revolution and the establishment of Democracy, the French Revolution and the Republic, and the attempt to bring these values to Ireland. The attempt to live in a free society, where people are born equal, protected by Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, like our French and American nabours. Lets just say jts Ironic that said rebellion and Democratic aspiration led to the Act of Union of 1801.

  • @v.emiltheii-nd.8094
    @v.emiltheii-nd.8094 Před 2 lety +1

    Cornwallis: Send help plz!
    Clinton: Eh! I'll ignore that!

  • @christopherwebb3517
    @christopherwebb3517 Před 2 lety +2

    Very informative. Now I know why Cornwallis had the habit of walking off cliffs, but not falling until he noticed that there was no ground under his feet. And why he primarily communicated with others by holding up pre-written signs.

  • @petermillist3779
    @petermillist3779 Před 3 lety +6

    “Useless”? That’s unfair and untrue.

    • @freefall9832
      @freefall9832 Před 3 lety

      He was about as useful as a empire without it's colony

  • @25xxfrostxx
    @25xxfrostxx Před 3 lety +3

    I grew up in Eastern Virginia in the area of Yorktown. I have been to "Cornwallis' Cave" carved into the side of the York River where he set up one of his final command centers/hiding spots. I have also seen an archaeological dig in the York River where they are uncovering a ship that his forces sunk to create artificial reefs to prevent the French ships from entering the river.

    • @BobJohnson648
      @BobJohnson648 Před 3 lety +1

      I used to live in Gloucester county. Always wondered if some of Cornwallis' troops were the ancestors of the guinea men over there.

    • @25xxfrostxx
      @25xxfrostxx Před 3 lety

      @@BobJohnson648 I grew up in Gloucester. I had heard that the guineamen's unique accent originated with folks with a cockney accent. It is possible that they could have been British troops that stayed though I don't know for sure if that actually happened.

    • @BobJohnson648
      @BobJohnson648 Před 3 lety

      @@25xxfrostxx I have heard that Cornwallis had some Hessian troops...based on that I'd expect a German accent but the Guinea people I have encountered definitely seem to have more of a cockney way of speaking

  • @zeus66061
    @zeus66061 Před 3 lety +1

    This was the funniest Biographics so far!

  • @andrewscrutton
    @andrewscrutton Před 3 lety +2

    Hey Simon, you absolutely need to do a video on Terry Fox. In 1980, in his early 20's he ran the equivalent of a marathon a day as he set out to cross Canada to raise awareness and money for cancer research. He did this with only one leg since his other leg had been amputated. His "Marathon of Hope" had to be abandoned half way through as his cancer got worse, taking his life shortly after. His legacy has lived on with a yearly run in his honor and has gone on to raise millions (likely billions) for cancer research.

  • @josephrossi6775
    @josephrossi6775 Před 3 lety +6

    SUGGESTION: Admiral Yi, The Greatest Medevial Naval Commander

  • @josephrossi6775
    @josephrossi6775 Před 3 lety +6

    Would like to see a biography on either Ishikawa Goemon or Benkei the Giant Samurai or Admiral Yi!!!!

  • @adamhartz5483
    @adamhartz5483 Před 2 lety

    Simon, I rather enjoyed this video. One of my favorites so far.

  • @navidhendrix
    @navidhendrix Před 3 lety

    The segue into your commercial at 8:52 is gold!

  • @power_trip84
    @power_trip84 Před 3 lety +6

    as far as the tipur peace part, ive heard in one of your videos im sure, that if both sides are unhappy about the treaty, then its probably fair...or something smart like that

  • @108_hariswirananda7
    @108_hariswirananda7 Před 3 lety +11

    Why can I feel him, a mediocre dragged around to do things that requires expertise beyond himself

  • @thomaspiresle3587
    @thomaspiresle3587 Před 3 lety

    Favorite youtuber ever

  • @washubrain
    @washubrain Před 3 lety +2

    "but Canadians, fortunately, don't have to have Boris Jonson"! What a lucky lot they are! 🤣😂

    • @chrissuave92
      @chrissuave92 Před 3 lety +1

      Yeeesss...We are lucky. Trudeau is the best. Idiots.

    • @ShannonCarter55
      @ShannonCarter55 Před 3 lety +2

      @@chrissuave92 Trudeau embarrassed Canada in India. They still laugh at it.

    • @chrissuave92
      @chrissuave92 Před 3 lety +2

      @@ShannonCarter55 Trudeau is an embarrassment. Regardless of the country!

    • @washubrain
      @washubrain Před 3 lety

      @@chrissuave92 still can't be worse than BJ though )))

    • @chrissuave92
      @chrissuave92 Před 3 lety

      @@washubrain I can see how you would think that. If you are not Canadian and are an idiot! Have a nice day. Eh.

  • @MCorpReview
    @MCorpReview Před 3 lety +5

    Cornwallis: I deserve to be executed, your excellency. Pitt: don’t be so hard on yourself. How about a promotion in India?

  • @candiceyoung8244
    @candiceyoung8244 Před 3 lety +4

    I've been lucky enough to have visited Yorktown,,its a wonderfully interesting national park. A great place to visit if ur a history buff. Alot of history happened in Virginia.

  • @AgentOroko
    @AgentOroko Před 3 lety +2

    Hey Simon, I would love to see a video on Lord Louis Mountbatten. His character is pretty interesting to watch on "The Crown", and I'd like to see more about him!

    • @daithipol
      @daithipol Před rokem

      Bit of a nonce by all accounts

  • @TheEvilCommenter
    @TheEvilCommenter Před 3 lety

    Good video 👍

  • @dudemanguy8509
    @dudemanguy8509 Před 3 lety +4

    Why have we not got a Bernard Montgomery Bio yet but you did Patton years ago? Im calling shenanigans.

  • @kc2110
    @kc2110 Před 3 lety +4

    There's just something about listening to someone with a British accent talk about the American Revolution that makes me tingly inside. 🇺🇸
    Love your work!

  • @loupiscanis9449
    @loupiscanis9449 Před 3 lety

    Thank you

  • @nakedref8997
    @nakedref8997 Před 3 lety +1

    One of my favourite biographics yet! Would be a really sad story if he weren’t just so comedically inept.

  • @ryanthomas4022
    @ryanthomas4022 Před 3 lety +4

    Can we get a Simon Whistler biographics

    • @nic2588
      @nic2588 Před 3 lety

      or danny from business blaze

  • @Kauan_Ollvr
    @Kauan_Ollvr Před 3 lety +3

    Could you pleeeease do an video about the second and last emperor of Brazil, Pedro II? He was the greatest brazilian ruler and patriot and you never did an video about an brazilian guy

  • @grahampowelljr1
    @grahampowelljr1 Před 3 lety

    Really good video. As a guy who’s gotten roped into things I had no desire or aptitude for, I sympathize.

  • @rosscroft3954
    @rosscroft3954 Před 3 lety

    Excellent episode!
    Would make a nice link to wolf tone and the United irishmen

  • @phantombeard6262
    @phantombeard6262 Před 3 lety +7

    "What could possibly go wrong?"
    *things go wrong*
    Maybe another famous British soldier for a Biographics, Sir Robert Baden Powell (the founder of the Scouting Movement)
    Amazing job as always Biographics

  • @AridosUK
    @AridosUK Před 3 lety +3

    I Suspect that this is one of those Arnold j Rimmer past lives

  • @playingbadgolfwell9732

    "Super Un-Exellent." My new go-to phrase. Love it!!!!

  • @joeyshofner639
    @joeyshofner639 Před 3 lety

    I just learned more about Cornwallis from this channel than I ever did at school. Thanks.

  • @samsoncrosswood7259
    @samsoncrosswood7259 Před 3 lety +8

    All I’ve read about Cornwallis confirms this. He wasn’t evil, he just was - and thank God for that.

    • @kingstarscream320
      @kingstarscream320 Před 3 lety +1

      He was a racist

    • @FimiliarGalaxy9
      @FimiliarGalaxy9 Před 3 lety +3

      @@kingstarscream320 lol. K

    • @Aztesticals
      @Aztesticals Před 3 lety +3

      @@kingstarscream320 Well he was a Briton from the 1700s your gonna have to look pretty far to find someone at that time that wasnt

    • @Bazza1993ify
      @Bazza1993ify Před 3 lety +1

      @@kingstarscream320 LOL loser.

    • @kingstarscream320
      @kingstarscream320 Před 3 lety

      @@Bazza1993ify What? He was. It is hard to qualify abusing a people and intruding on their land for profit as being something a good guy would do.

  • @thegunslinger1363
    @thegunslinger1363 Před 3 lety +6

    Could you cover Major General Smedley Butler? A two time receipt of the Medal of Honour. Who would later write the book "War is a Racket".

  • @kathrynkramer8345
    @kathrynkramer8345 Před 2 lety +2

    VERY interesting! Growing up in the US, I have heard Cornwallis’ name many times, but never really knew who he was. This was very interesting. And, I feel sorry for the guy.

  • @benjaminhoover6427
    @benjaminhoover6427 Před 3 lety

    Good lessons
    "Kick in the nuts"
    Keep up the great work

  • @biggtoe90
    @biggtoe90 Před 3 lety +4

    "a kick in the nuts or the rectal insertion of a cactus" 😂😂😂 I'm definitely stealing that. The dig at the current UK government was unnecessary tho. Save it for the "Brexit" history video in a few years. I come here for info on the past. Not for commentary on the present.