FAQ

One of the lesser known aspects of the America's independence was the rise of the abolitionist movement within the British Empire due to the preaching of Christian ministers, especially William Wilberforce. In 1772 the Somerset Declaration essentially freed any slave who arrived in the British Isles, even if they were legally owned in America or one of Britain's other colonies. It was considered inevitable that slavery would eventually be abolished throughout British territory. During the war Britain would offer freedom to any slaves who stayed loyal to the Crown and tens of thousands fought for Britain in order to gain their liberty. After Britain's defeat George Washington demanded the return of African Americans to slavery but Lord Cornwallis refused and evacuated thousands of freed African Americans to Britain, Canada and Britain's Caribbean colonies. Post-war Britain would eventually abolish slavery throughout the empire in 1833 and use the military might of the Royal Navy to suppress the trans-Atlantic and Arabic slave trade of other nations. Religion is also an indispensable aspect of the American Revolution, as 53 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were members of abolitionist Christian denominations. Protestants (and one Roman Catholic) who even if British style democracy had been introduced to the colonies would have been denied the vote, ability to stand as Members of Parliament etc. Britain would eventually abolish the established church in 1830 although ironically America would continue to legally enact discrimination against Jews and Roman Catholics for decades afterwards.

Yes, about 20% of Americans stayed true to the Crown and were referred to as Loyalists or Tories (with many more Americans staying neutral, unwilling to side with either Britain or the revolutionaries). The American revolution was in many ways a civil war with the most brutal atrocities on both sides committed by Americans against Americans. Post conflict many Loyalist Americans would settle in Canada or Britain's other colonies but a significant number would eventually return to the United States once the hysteria of the war had died down.

The abolitionist movement had been growing within the British Empire since the Somerset Declaration in 1772, freeing any slaves from British colonies if they came to Britain itself. During the war Britain offered freedom to those who aided their side and tens of thousands of African Americans did so but others stayed loyal to the Continental Army. After Britain's defeat at Yorktown, Washington demanded the pro-British African Americans be returned to slavery but Lord Cornwallis refused and they were evacuated to Britain, Canada and the Caribbean colonies, Britain abolishing slavery entirely in 1833 with the Royal Navy subsequently suppressing the Atlantic and Arabic slave trade.

For three reasons: (1) The officers would be more experienced in defending the column that was escorting Gabriel to prison. They'd be better able than those lower in rank to fight off an attack by a single man and two boys. Additionally, officer training is more intense and involved than basic training, and they would be more knowledgeable in combat tactics. (2) With the officers dead, the other Redcoats in the column would find it harder to organize themselves into a single and effective fighting unit to repel the attack, as we plainly saw happen. So, without the officers yelling orders to the lower ranking soldiers, it was easier for Martin to mount his attack successfully. (3) Targeting officers specifically was not a standard military tactic at the time. It was not part of the gentlemanly code of warfare and would cause upset and confusion when the Rebels used this tactic.

Yes and no. We're probably suspending some of our disbelief for the sake of the story—the scene is an excellent opportunity to introduce us to Martin as a great guerrilla warrior. Also, he had the advantage of his two sons already being excellent marksmen, having taught them that specific skill. With their elevated position on the nearby ridge, they had a huge advantage. Additionally, Martin had extensive knowledge of the area near his farm and the terrain therein. He chose the spot specifically for its cover by the natural flora (trees, shrubs, etc) and the ridge where he planted his sons to act as his snipers.

This is a technique employed by marksmen, especially with less accurate weapons such as the muskets and other muzzle loaded weapons that were used during the American Revolution. What it means is the smaller the target you aim at, the smaller the chance of missing the larger target. For example, if the boys were to aim at an officer, they could miss him. But if they aim at a button on the officer's coat, they may miss the button, but they'd still hit the officer.

As suspected by many people, the "new" Extended Cut features mostly scenes that were first used as deleted scenes for the old DVD release. Now these passages were re-integrated into the movie, adding up nearly 11 minutes to the movie.

No. As with most films of the genre, it is fiction based on/inspired by true events.