Two difficult things covered (so far) in Ken Burns' "American Revolution"

[Fil1957]

17. I've heard it said that if we lost the revolution, or there was no revolution every thing would be SO different. We'd

be more British culturally and speak with British accents etc. Well that's not true. If anyone wants to know what America would be like in that situation, to find out, just go to Canada, that part of British North America that DID NOT revolt.

Informed by the Canadian experience, it's fair to say if there was no revolution, things would be pretty much the same with some differences. Slavery probably would have ended sooner. Instead of George Washington on the dollar bill, we'd have the reigning monarch on our currency.

We'd probably have a better health care system. We'd still would have gone to war as an ally of Britain in World War I and II, we just would have gotten involved sooner.

In most ways things would be about the same as they are now if we'd lost the revolution. For example, when Queen Elizabeth passed, American flags were lowered to half staff on government buildings. That of course, would still happen if we lost the revolution