Africans in colonial America fought on both sides of the American Revolution. The British offered freedom to those who escaped bondage to join their forces. Eventually, some 20,000 enslaved or self-liberated men enlisted in the British army or navy. A smaller number of enslaved men, about 4,000 or 5,000, fought on the side of the Americans. Of these, some accompanied their owners who served in the war, while others served as substitutes for their owners. Most of the enslaved who fought on the American side were from the northern colonies, as the southern colonies typically forbade their enlistment. Southern plantation owners were reluctant to have the people they held in bondage trained to use weapons and military tactics.