As NBC reports, the specific year of Yankee Doodle's composition is up for debate among historians, though there is consensus that it occurred in the latter half of the 1750s. Written by the aristocratic British army doctor Richard Shuckburgh, it was intended to berate colonial troops for their comparatively unkempt appearance and undisciplined combat performance. Despite colonial militiamen making up much of the total British forces, this did not stop British regular troops from using the Yankee Doodle to jeer at their compatriots.
With this song constantly reminding them of their divide, it is no wonder that their animosity grew to be untenable as taxation was imposed upon them to pay for Britain's subsequent war debt. The lyrics describing them as vain simpletons saw variation throughout the years as it was used by both sides during the Revolution. In 1781, the colonies finally took the song's lyrics out of British mouths as they played it after their victory at Yorktown, recognized by many as the end of the war and British rule.
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