General howe, the british commander, believed he could defeat the americans by

General Howe, a British commander during the 1700's first identified his tactics of war as peaceful and negotiable. After a few defeats his choice of action soon changed. Joined by his brother who also served on the royal navy a new tactic was applied. Howe split up his troops and focused on covering more ground while offering rebels a peace offering if they submitted to his army. The army marched across farms and villages showing their presence and strength. This worked for a short time until the prisoners escaped. Howe still attempted to rebuild his troops and carry onward. Rather than risk losing all his troops in a single battle Howe was focused on preserving them. Howe resigned at the defeat of never being able able to catch the rebels.