Warm-Up

1. Define salutary neglect.2. Explain the outcome of the French and

Indian War.3. Why did Nathanial Bacon lead a rebellion in

Virginia in 1676?4. Explain what the Proclamation of 1763 did to

the colonists? Be sure to define it and discuss its impact.

Causes of the Revolution

• Salutary Neglect– Colonist like being in charge

• Stamp Act– Must purchase stamped paper for• Legal documents• Licenses• Newspapers• Playing cards

Stamp Act Protests

• Sons of Liberty – founded by Samuel Adams

• Harassed custom workers, stamp agents.

Townshend Acts

• Duties or Taxes placed on imported goods– Glass– Lead– Paint– Paper– Tea

Boston Massacre – March 5, 1770

• Mob of citizens is shot by British Soldiers.• Mob was provoking the soldiers.• Used as propaganda– Newspapers said the British massacred innocent

civilians

Boston Tea Party

• British East India Tea Company– Going bankrupt– Allowed to sell tea to colonies without paying

taxes• Cut local merchants from the tea trade.• Dec 16, 1773 – rebels dumped tea in the

harbor.

Intolerable Acts

• King George III’s response• Closes Boston Harbor• Quartering Act– Troops stationed in houses

• General Gage became Gov. of Mass.– Martial law

• First Continental Congress– Discussed colonial rights.

Lexington and Concord

• “The shot heard round the world”• British go to seize weapons• Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride– Warn towns, Hancock and S. Adams

• Minutemen– Civilian soldiers

Lexington

• First shots of the war• 70 minutemen await the British• Shots are fired on the village green• 8 killed, 10 wounded

Concord

• Brief skirmish• British march back to Boston• Along the way 3-4 thousand minutemen

ambush the troops while hiding behind trees and walls

• Dozens of British soldiers are killed• The war had begun

2nd Continental Congress

• John Adams – leader for independence• Many still want reconciliation• They form the Continental Army– General George Washington

• Prints money, sets up foreign relations committee

Warm-Up

1. Which act put taxes or duties on multiple imports?

2. What group was founded to protest British policy?

3. What was the impact of the Boston Massacre on the colonial opinion of England?

4. Who was the commander of the Continental Army?

Patriots and Loyalists• Patriots– Economic opportunity – Farmers, artisans, merchants, landowners– German colonists

• Loyalists– Numbers unknown, fewer as war goes on– Some worked for British, some thought Britain

would win the war, some believed the King would be better at protecting their rights

• Many remain neutral

United States

• Strengths – familiar with the land, inspiring cause, good leadership

• Weaknesses – untrained soldiers, shortage of food and ammunition, inferior navy, no strong government

Great Britain

• Strengths – strong, well trained army and navy, strong central government, support of loyalists and Native Americans

• Weaknesses – far away from home, unfriendly civilian population, troops unfamiliar with the terrain, weak military leaders, sympathy of some British politicians for the Americans

Battle of Bunker Hill

• Militia build fortifications on Breed’s Hill• Gage decides to strike• “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their

eyes”• After two failed assaults the British take the

colonists positions• British suffer over 1,000 casualties, their

largest loss of the war

Siege of Boston

• Henry Knox – Artillery officer, brings cannons from Fort Ticonderoga

• 11 month siege• Ends when artillery is in place, Howe (British

Commander) knew he could no longer hold the city

Olive Branch Petition

• 2nd Continental Congress• July 8, 1775 – Send petition to King George III

urging a return to the former harmony between the colonies and Britain

• King George says no

Common Sense

• By Thomas Paine• Pamphlet that urged

the colonists to support independence

• Sold 500,000 copies• Very persuasive

Background

• Where did the ideas of the American Revolution come from?

Thomas Hobbes1588 - 1679

• Argued that people were “bad” by nature

• Book Leviathan

Thomas Hobbes’s Social Contract

• Government is based on a social contract• Must have a strong central government• Not having government leads to never ending

war due to his views of human nature• A strong central government provides

protection and order• In return people give up their natural rights

John Locke1632 - 1704

• Enlightenment• What rights do people

have?• Natural Rights from God– Life, liberty, and property

John Locke’s Social Contract

• People give the government their consent• The government in turn must protect their

natural rights• The people then must obey the government’s

laws and rules• If the government does not protect their

rights the people can overthrow the government

John Locke

• His views were radical for their time

• They challenged the old practice of dictatorial rule

King George III

Which philosopher’s views were used during the American Revolution? Discuss why the founding fathers used those views.

Write a paragraph explaining your answer, you will add to this later.

Declaration of Independence

• Thomas Jefferson – Main author– John Adams and Benjamin

Franklin help edit• Congress wanted a formal

document to explain why the colonies wanted their independence

Declaration of Independence• The ideas of John Locke are used

throughout the document– Natural rights, right to overthrow the

government• “All men are created equal”– What did it mean?

• Jefferson refers to “He”, who is talking about?

How long could this really last?

• A battle between divided colonists (approx. 2.5 million) and the world’s dominate power.

• Colonial troops were underfed, under-clothed, untrained, undisciplined, and rarely paid.

• Who is going to enforce wartime policies?

• The Continental Army (C.A.) did have: home field advantage, cause to fight for, and strong military leadership.

Early Colonial Defeats

Bunker Hill• Gage decided to attack C.A. on Breed’s Hill.• Three bloody British attacks up the hill.• Colonists forced to retreat due to a lack of ammunition.• Deadliest battle of the war-450 Colonial

casualties/1,000 British.

Early Colonial Defeats (cont.)

New York• 32,000 British troops

(includes thousands of mercenaries) vs. 23,000 colonial troops.

• British wanted to isolate New England.

• C.A. defeated and forced to retreat across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania.

• Low-point for Washington:– Many deserters and

casualties.– Initial enlistments were to

end on December 31, 1776.

– In desperate need of a victory.

The Tide Begins to Turn• Christmas night

1776-Washington led troops across Delaware River to Hessian garrison at Trenton.

• The surprise attack resulted in 30 enemy deaths, 918 prisoners, and 6 captured cannons.

• This and another victory eight days later at Princeton provided a much-needed boost of confidence.

Valley Forge• 2,000 men die from disease• Army lacks supplies and food

• Three important events take place while the army is at Valley Forge– 1. Friedrich von Steuben trains the army– 2. Army fixes supply problems– 3. French alliance takes place in Feb 1778• Sign the Treaty of Alliance

The Turning Point

• Another British plan to isolate New England.• British troops struggle with terrain (have to carry

supplies, artillery, personal effects) and lack of food.

• British surrounded by General Horatio Gates at Saratoga and forced to surrender (October 17, 1776).

The Turning Point (cont.)Impact:• New British strategy: stay near

the coast.• France joins the fight: Treaty

of Alliance– Benjamin Franklin negotiated a

treaty with France:o Agreed to support the

revolution.o Recognized American

independence and entered into a military alliance with the colonies.

o Agreed not to make peace with Britain until Britain acknowledged American independence.

o Played a major role in the ultimate American victory.

The Final Chapter• The British suffered from a lack of support for the war in

Great Britain.• The Continental Army becomes a more effective fighting

force (von Steuben).• French reinforcements ultimately help shift the balance in

war (Lafayette).• General Cornwallis commanded British troops in the

south.– Wanted to take Virginia and then move north.– Set-up on peninsula at Yorktown.

The Final Chapter (cont.)

• French navy defeated the British at the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay.

• 17,000 American/French troops surrounded Cornwallis’ 7,500 men.

• Laid siege to Yorktown for three weeks.• Cornwallis surrendered on October 17, 1781.

The Treaty of Paris (1783)

• Negotiations between America, Britain, France, and Spain.

• John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay represented America.

• Treaty signed in September 1783:– America given full

independence.– Boundaries between

Atlantic Ocean and Mississippi River and Canada and Florida.

Symbol of Liberty

• Egalitarianism – belief in equality of all people– Lower class soldiers and upper class officers

• Only applies to white males• Slavery continues– Some northern states begin to outlaw slavery

• Native Americans are threatened