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American War of Independence, 1775 - 1783
A map illustrating the course and major events during the American War of Independence (also known as the American Revolutionary War or American Revolution) between 1775 and 1783 – an armed rebellion through which thirteen of Great Britain's colonies in North America sought independence. The insurrection stemmed from various reasons, amongst which the colonists' grievances over taxation without representation and limitations on self-governance. Starting with the battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, the conflict escalated into a full-scale war between the Continental Army and the forces of the British crown, and in 1778, it turned from a civil war within the British Empire into an international confrontation as France and Spain joined the colonies against Britain. The war reached its climax with the final British surrender at Yorktown in 1781, leading to the Treaty of Paris in 1783, formally recognizing the United States of America as an independent nation.