The American Revolution happened mostly in the thirteen colonies along the East Coast—but it also affected the land that would later become Alabama. At the time, Alabama was not yet a state. Much of the land was controlled by Native American nations, and the city of Mobile was ruled by the British. But during the war, Spain entered the fight—and things started to change in Alabama.
Spain joined the war against Britain in 1779. Spanish soldiers, led by General Bernardo de Gálvez, attacked British forts along the Gulf Coast. One important battle happened in Alabama. In 1780, Gálvez and his troops fought the Battle of Fort Charlotte in the city of Mobile. After several days of fighting, the Spanish captured the fort from the British. This gave Spain control of Mobile and helped weaken British power in the South.
Native American groups also had to make choices during the war. Some sided with the British because they thought it would help protect their land. Others tried to stay neutral or made their own agreements. The war made life harder for Native nations, as new groups kept coming in and claiming land that was not theirs.
After the war ended in 1783, the Treaty of Paris officially gave the United States independence from Britain. It also gave the U.S. a lot of new land east of the Mississippi River. But there was still confusion about exactly where the borders were. A few years later, the U.S. and Spain signed Pinckney’s Treaty in 1795. This treaty helped fix the border between U.S. land and Spanish land. It set the southern boundary at the 31st parallel, which is now part of the border between Alabama and Florida. That helped make it clearer where the United States ended—and where Alabama would one day begin.