The American Revolutionary War formed part of a global conflict in which Britain's most valuable interests lay beyond the Thirteen Colonies. Caribbean trade carried greater economic weight, so Germain's rerouting of troops, convoy delays, and insistence on unescorted merchant sailings damaged the war effort beyond North America. That mismatch made departmental rivalry especially costly because the Navy needed ships, supplies, and transport for a worldwide war rather than a single colonial theatre. Battles at Grenada, Martinique, and Chesapeake made the consequences increasingly visible, but by Chesapeake his position was already beyond rescue.
Notable Point · 30:30-31:47
Why Caribbean trade outweighed the Thirteen Colonies
Britain's wider war priorities placed Caribbean commerce above the Thirteen Colonies, making Germain's convoy delays and solo sailings strategically self-defeating.