VOA慢速英语2012 THE MAKING OF A NATION - American History: America's Break with Britain Divides Families and Friends

THE MAKING OF A NATION - American History: America's Break with Britain Divides Families and Friends

建国史话 (13)：美国革命：你站在哪一边？

STEVE EMBER: From VOA Learning English, this is THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

This week in our series, we continue our story of the American Revolution.

On July fourth, seventeen seventy-six, the Second Continental 1 Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, approved the Declaration of Independence. The new country, the United States of America, was at war with its former colonial ruler, Britain. Yet not everyone in the former colonies agreed with the decision to declare independence.

大陆会议代表1776年7月4号正式批准并签署了独立宣言。独立宣言创立的新国家--美利坚合众国--跟英国开战，但是并非所有的人都赞成这样做。

No one knows for sure how many Americans remained loyal to Great Britain. John Adams, the Massachusetts political leader, thought that about a third of the colonists 2 supported independence, a third supported Britain and a third supported neither side.

Today many historians think that only about twenty percent of the colonists supported Britain. Some colonists supported whichever side seemed to be winning.

直到今天，也没有人确定当时到底有多少人继续效忠英国。麻萨诸塞的政治领袖约翰·亚当斯认为，北美殖民地支持独立、效忠英国、和保持中立的人各占大约三分之一。如今，大多数历史学家都相信，当时有大约百分之二十的人支持英国，其余的人要么中立、要么站在胜利者一边。

As many as thirty thousand Americans fought for the British during the war. Others helped Britain by reporting the movements of American troops.

Who supported Britain? These groups included people who were appointed to their jobs by the king. They also included leaders of the Anglican Church and people with business connections to the British.

在独立战争中，北美殖民地有多达三万人加入了英军的阵营，还有一些人向英军泄漏大陆军的动向。支持英国的都是些什么人呢？他们包括英国国王任命的人、圣公会的宗教领袖，以及跟英国有密切往来的商人。

"Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga" by artist Percy Moran, 1911 

Professor Gordon Wood at Brown University in Rhode Island says many colonists from minority groups remained loyal to the king.

"One of the problems of the American revolution that emerged very quickly was the tyranny of the majority, which the founders 3, revolutionary leaders, had not anticipated. But I think we're seeing the problems that emerge when you overthrow 4 an authoritarian 5 leader, and you're going to have a relatively 6 democratic society. Then the protecting the minority becomes a problem.”

Other people remained loyal because they did not want change or because they believed that independence would not improve their lives. Some thought the actions of the British government were not bad enough to bring about a rebellion. Others did not believe that the rebels could win a war against a nation as powerful as Britain.

一些少数群体继续效忠英国国王，因为他们希望得到保护，不受当地多数族群的欺压；另外一些人保持效忠是因为他们不希望看到变革，或是不相信独立会让自己的生活有所改善；还有一些人觉得英国政府的所作所为还没有恶劣到需要奋起反抗的地步，当然了，也有一些人不相信殖民地能打败强大的英国。

American Indians disagreed among themselves about the revolution. Congress knew it had to make peace with the Indians as soon as the war started. If not, American troops might have to fight them and the British at the same time. To prevent trouble, American officials tried to stop settlers from moving onto Indian lands.

In some places, the Indians joined the Americans, but generally they supported the British. They expected the British to win. They saw the war as a chance to force the Americans to leave their lands. At times, the Indians fought on the side of the British, but left when the British seemed to be losing the battle.

The Americans did not forget that the Indians chose to fight for the British. When the war was over, the Americans felt they owed the Indians nothing.

美洲印第安人对北美独立战争的态度也存在分歧。大陆会议的代表们知道，在战争期间，他们必须跟印第安人和睦相处，否则就会腹背受敌。为了防止麻烦，美国官员设法制止定居者侵占印第安人的领地。有些地方的印第安人跟美国人同仇敌忾，但更多的印第安人还是站在英国一边，因为他们觉得最终的胜利将属于英国。在他们看来，这场战争可以迫使北美殖民者离开他们的土地。印第安人有时跟英军并肩战斗，但是英国人打败仗的时候，又会抛弃他们。事实证明，印第安人选择站在英国一边是错误的，因为独立战争结束后，美国人觉得，自己不欠印第安人的情。

African slaves in the colonies were also divided about which side to join during the American Revolution.

Thousands of slaves fought for the British. The British offered them freedom if they served in the army or navy.

Some American states also offered to free slaves who served, and hundreds of free blacks fought on the American side. Many slaves, however, felt their chances for freedom were better with the British.

在北美独立战争期间，殖民地里的黑奴在立场上也出现了分歧。数以千计的黑奴替英军效力，因为如果他们加入英国陆军或海军，就能获得自由。美国的一些州也同意给参军的黑奴自由，因此不少黑奴加入了大陆军的队伍。不过，更多的奴隶觉得站在英国一边获得自由的可能性更大。历史学家说，北方加入英军的黑人要比南方多。

At least five thousand blacks served with the colonial American forces. Most had no choice. They were slaves, and their owners took them to war or sent them instead of the owners' sons.

Other slaves felt that a nation built on freedom might share some of that freedom with them.

独立战争期间，至少有五千名非洲裔美国人加入了大陆军，大多数人是因为没办法，他们毕竟是奴隶，奴隶主让他们去打仗，他们身不由己。也有一些人觉得，一个建立在自由基础上的国家可能也会让他们享受自由。

In the South, many slave owners kept their slaves at home rather than send them to fight. Later in the war, when every man was needed, many slaves drove wagons 7 and carried supplies. Those who served in the colonial army and navy were not separated from whites. They fought side by side with whites during the American Revolution.

But historians say most slaves spent the war as they always had: working on their owners' farms.

在南方，很多奴隶主把奴隶留在农场上。独立战争后期，大陆军急需兵源，即使是在这种情况下，大多数奴隶也没有真正参战，而是负责赶车或是运送供给物资。不少非洲裔美国人还加入了美国海军。在陆军和海军里，黑人和白人并没有分开，他们在独立战争中并肩作战。不过，历史学家说，大多数黑奴始终没有离开农场。

The American rebels called themselves patriots 9. Those who supported the British were known as Tories. Patriots often seized the property of Tories to help pay for the war. They also kidnapped the slaves of Tories to use as laborers 10 for the army. Many Tories were forced from towns in which they had lived all their lives. Some were tortured or hanged.

In New Jersey 11, Tories and patriots fought one another with guns, and sometimes burned each other's houses and farms.

这些人自称爱国者，把支持英国人叫做 Tories, 效忠派。爱国者经常会夺取效忠派的财物，用做战争经费。他们还会劫持效忠派的奴隶，让他们去充军。很多效忠派被迫离开家乡，有些人还遭到折磨，或是被吊死。在新泽西州， 效忠派和爱国者交战，有时还会烧毁彼此的房屋和农场。

Some historians say the American Revolution was really the nation's first civil war. The revolution divided many families.

Jayne Gordon at the Massachusetts Historical Society tells of a woman named Phoebe. Phoebe was married to a patriot 8. But her brother was a Tory.

"And we think of what it must've been like for Phoebe, in the middle between her husband and her brother. So that's a perfect example of a family that was split."

有些历史学家说，独立战争其实是美国的第一场内战，造成了很多家庭的分裂，最著名的恐怕要算是本杰明·富兰克林一家了。富兰克林本人在独立宣言上签了名，但是他的儿子是新泽西的总督，效忠于英国国王。政治上的分歧在父子间筑就了一道难以跨越的鸿沟。

The patriots were also split among themselves in their thinking. The colonies did not really think of themselves as one nation. They saw themselves as independent states trying to work together toward a common goal. Historian Gordon Wood says at first, the United States was more like the European Union is today.

"When Jefferson said 'my country,' he meant Virginia. When John Adams said 'my country,' he meant Massachusetts."

This meant that Congress could not order the states to do anything they did not want to do. Congress could not demand that the states provide money for the war. It could only ask for their help.

爱国者对这场战争也有不同的主张，主要是因为13个殖民地并不把自己看做是一个国家，而是13个各自为营的州，为一个共同目标而奋斗。比如说，麻萨诸塞殖民地的人就觉得宾夕法尼亚是一个很奇怪的地方，住着一些很奇怪的人；还有：南方殖民地的人不喜欢北方人；住在农场地区的人又跟沿海城镇和大城市的人谈不来。

George Washington, the top general, could not draft men into the army. He could only wait for the states to send them. Washington showed that he was a good politician by the way he kept Congress and the thirteen states supporting him throughout the war.

Just as Americans did not all agree about the war, the British people did not agree about it either. Many supported the government's decision to fight. They believed that the war was necessary to rescue loyalists from the patriots. Others did not think Britain should fight the Americans, because the Americans had not invaded or threatened their country. They believed that Britain should leave the colonies alone to do as they wished. 

不仅是北美殖民地的居民对独立战争存在不同看法，英国人对这场战争也出现了分歧。很多人支持政府发动战争，认为这是拯救效忠英国的臣民的唯一出路。另外一些人则认为，北美殖民地并没有入侵英国，英国没有理由跟北美殖民地交战，应该让他们自己处理自己的事务。

King George was not able to do this, however. He supported the war as a way to continue his power in the world, and to rescue British honor in the eyes of other national leaders.

Whichever side British citizens were on, there was no question that the war was causing severe problems in Britain. British businessmen could no longer trade with the American colonies. Prices increased. Taxes did, too. And young men were forced to serve in the Royal Navy.

乔治国王拒绝放弃对北美殖民地的统治。他要通过战争延续自己的权力，同时捍卫英国的荣誉。不管英国人对这场战争的看法如何，没有疑问的是，战争给英国带来了严重的问题：英国商人不能再跟北美殖民地做生意，造成了物价和税务的上涨，年轻人也被迫去皇家海军服兵役。

At the start of the war, the British believed that the rebellion was led by a few extremists in New England. They thought the other colonies would surrender if that area could be surrounded and controlled. So they planned to separate New England from the other colonies by taking control of the Hudson River Valley.

The British changed their plans after they were defeated in the Battle of Saratoga in New York state. Historian Gordon Wood says the British loss changed the nature of the war.

"The French feel at this point that the Americans might make it, and therefore they throw in their support. Once the French come on board, then the British are really panicked. At that point they offer the Americans everything the Americans had wanted, save independence, but it was too late."

战争初始，英国人以为北美殖民地的反叛只是由新英格兰一小撮极端分子挑起的，只要制伏了他们，其它殖民地就会自动投降。因此，他们决定抢占哈得逊河，把新英格兰和其他殖民地分隔开来。纽约州萨拉托加战役英军被击败后，改变了战略，决定占领所有大城市，并控制从北部缅因到南部乔治亚的沿海地带。他们没有成功，但是在整个战争期间，英军一直控制着纽约市，费城和查尔斯敦也曾经在英军的控制之下。

The British experienced many problems fighting the war. Their troops were far from home, across a wide ocean. It was difficult to bring in more troops and supplies. Gordon Wood says the distance across the Atlantic was one reason the British lost the war.

"Even though they were the most powerful nation in the world, had a superb army, and of course completely controlled the seas. And they were dealing 12 with the ragtag army of George Washington and a bunch of militia 13, and they couldn't do it."

英军在战争中遇到了很多困难，其中包括：英军士兵远渡重洋，在兵源和供给方面都十分困难。随着战争的推进，北美殖民地大陆军在水路攻打英军船只方面也越发厉害了，等等。

General Washington's army had its own problems, too. Congress never had enough money. States often did not do what they were supposed to do. And citizens were not always willing to fight. Soldiers were poorly trained and would promise to serve for only a year or so.

不过，北美殖民地的大陆军也并非一帆风顺。首先，大陆会议手里从来没有充足的战争经费，有时无法满足大陆军统帅乔治·华盛顿的军需要求。各州经常不履行义务，殖民地很多人不愿意参军，没有战斗经验，最多只愿意参战一年等等。

The political and economic developments of the American Revolution concerned not just the Americans and the British. European nations were watching the events in America very closely. Those events, and the reactions in Europe, will be our story next week.

You can find our series online with transcripts 14, MP3s, podcasts and pictures at www.voanews.cn. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm Steve Ember, inviting 15 you to join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English.

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This was program #13