In truth, by the time the shooting started, most of the colonists were already self-governing and had developed a sense of themselves as something separate and different from Great Britain, as evidenced by these Committees of Correspondence, which functioned as shadow governments, eventually reaching out to foreign governments, establishing an espionage network, tarring and feathering loyalists and royal officials, which, by the way, is incredibly painful and dangerous to the victim, and even recruiting physicians to tell American men that drinking British tea would make them weak and effeminate. Thanks, Thought Bubble. Now, despite all this, about 20% of colonists remained loyal to Great Britain throughout the war, especially in the major cities that Britain occupied. Also, lots of slaves continued to support the British, especially after Britain promised that any slaves who fought with them would be freed. And it's worth noting that while we generally celebrate the Revolution and see it as a step toward justice and equality, the people who most needed the protection of a government might have been better off and more free if Britain had won, especially since Britain ended slavery well before America did and, you know, without a civil war. Also, even though most Americans had come to see themselves as separate from Britain before 1776, the British certainly didn't see it that way. They continued to fight either until 1781 or 1783, depending on whether you calculate by when they actually gave up or when the peace treaty was signed.