@dcjogger It paid to be 3,500 miles from the home country in 1775. That would not be a 9 hours today, but it would have been up to 30 days then. The colonies were a far flung part of the Empire then with a thinly spread navy. France in 1779 persuaded its Spanish allies to declare war on Britain. The Revolutionary War was not over until January 14, 1784.
Civil Wars are another thing completely. They put you at risk, particularly if you have been policing the world and have a tiger by the tail, like the Muhammadans.