Lawrence’s Journal

Shots of a Massacre - March 6th 1770

Paul Revere’s engraving. Lies, all of it

What really happened at the “massacre”

!!!!!!!!I!cannot!believe!the!injustice!performed!yesterday.!Those!traitors!attacked!the!storage!facility!where!the!King’s!taxes!are!kept!!How!dare!they!!Those!taxes!were!collected!to!help!the!King!pay!off!the!cost!of!the!Seven%Year%War,!a!brutal!war!fought!for!us,!the!colonists.!That!war!nearly!killed!my!father!!They!were!stealing!from!our!beloved!mother!country!!Attacking!the!soldiers!with!clubs!and!ice!and!snow.!Death!threats!and!profanities!screamed!into!the!wind!caught!my!attention!whilst!I!was!polishing!my!riDle.!I!set!it!down!and!stepped!towards!the!window,!watching!what!the!fuss!in!the!square!was!about,!half!hidden!by!my!curtains.!!

!!!!!!!!What!I!saw!was!brutal!and!dishonorable.!The!traitors!had!the!soldiers!surrounded,!and!were!so!close!they!were!pressed!against!the!barrels!of!their!guns,!bearing!clubs!and!throwing!snow!and!ice!at!the!soldiers.!Captain%Thomas%Preston!was!going!into!the!crowd,!telling!people!to!go!home,!but!did!they!listen?!No!!They!ignored!him!and!soon!he!was!on!the!Dloor!after!taking!a!club!to!the!arm.!Traitors!were!screaming!“Taxation!without!Representation!”!upset!about!the!Stamp!Act,!which!was!released!by!the!King!to!pay!off!the!war!that!gave!us!more!land!!Shouts!of!“FIRE!”!Dilled!the!air,!and!you!could!see!the!confusion!on!the!soldier’s!faces.!One!of!them!lifted!their!gun,!and!shot!aimlessly!into!the!crowd.!This!caused!mass!panic!and!people!were!scrambling!to!get!away.!

!!!!!!!!The!other!soldiers!heard!the!shot!and!were!Diring!too,!but!bless!them,!took!no!aim!as!to!not!harm!the!traitors,!though!many!of!them!were!on!the!Dloor!and!some!had!broken!limbs.!Twenty!minutes!after!I!Dirst!heard!the!ruckus,!the!only!people!in!the!square!were!the!soldiers,!struggling!to!pick!themselves!off!the!Dloor,!and!the!bodies!of!Dive!traitors!sprawled!out!in!the!stained!bloodPred!snow.

!!!!!!!!This!morning,!loud!noises!in!the!town!square!awakened!me.!The!bodies!laid!where!they!had!the!night!before,!and!people!were!grieving!over!their!losses.!I!felt!nothing!towards!those!sinners.!They!were!ungrateful!pigs!performing!treason!against!mighty!England!!A!man!was!shouting!lies!into!the!crowd,!saying!that!the!“Red%Coats”!had!Dired!into!an!unarmed!crowd,!murdering!Dive!innocents,!though!he!was!one!of!the!ones!carrying!a!club!!And!he!announced!that!a!silversmith!by!the!name!of!Paul%Revere!would!make!an!engraving!showing!his!version!of!the!“Boston%Massacre”.!!And!this!lie!was!to!be!told!all!over!the!nation!!All!thirteen!colonies!would!know!of!the!crime!committed!last!night,!but!not!the!right!story.!

!!!!!!!!Of!course,!the!loyalists!like!me!would!realize!that!our!own!soldiers!would!not!Dire!at!innocents,!and!not!believe!this!story,!but!the!others!would!be!easily!manipulated.!Oh!what!shame!this!act!has!brought!upon!us!colonies.!What!must!the!people!back!in!Britain!think?!They!must!think!we’ve!gone!insane!!What!has!this!country!come!to?

PLawrence!Thatcher

Tea for a Price-May 11 1773

Crates of tea from the latest shipment

Tar and Feathers, done to people who support the Tea Act

!!!!!!!!I!have!no!hope!for!this!country!if!they!make!such!a!fuss!about!even!the!tiniest!little!things!!The!Tea%Act!passed!yesterday!makes!it!so!that!we!can!only!buy!British!tea,!which!is!the!very!best,!in!any!case,!yet!the!other!colonists!Dind!this!intolerable.!What!is!the!issue!about!paying!a!little!more!for!tea?!King%George%III!has!already!taken!taxes!off!everything,!yet!they!still!complain!about!giving!some!back.!We!have!yet!to!pay!off!the!debt!of!the!Seven!Year!War,!yet!King!George!III!has!allowed!us!to!stop!paying!the!taxes,!simply!because!we!were!upset!about!them.!I!had!no!arguments!against!paying!the!taxes,!as!I!remember!the!cost!of!the!war.!Money!and!people!lost.!I!nearly!lost!my!father!to!that!war,!and!many!more!never!made!it!home!to!families!that!grew!up!in!a!sad!household.!Do!they!really!refuse!to!pay!the!price!for!that!bloody!war?!I!for!one!will!never!forget!the!war!fought!for!the!American!colonies,!so!that!we!would!have!more!land!to!serve!resource!scarce!England.!The!land!was!under!the!rule!of!those!wretched!French.!Of!course,!the!war!was!all!for!not,!as!the!land!was!populated!with!savage!Indians.!Nonetheless,!that!war!was!fought!for!us,!and!we!should!pay!back!the!people!who!helped!us.!

!!!!!!!!The!Tea!Act!was!passed!to!help!the!East!India!Company,!a!British!tea!company,!as!it!was!on!the!verge!of!bankruptcy.!They!were!helping!them,!as!they!are!good!people,!and!didn’t!want!people!to!go!broke.!This!enraged!the!colonists!though,!as!it!meant!that!some!of!the!teaPselling!merchants!were!going!to!lose!their!jobs.!This!is!sad,!of!course,!but!people!of!the!tea!company!would!lose!their!jobs!too!if!this!act!was!not!passed.!The!merchants!would!be!able!to!Dind!work!more!easily!than!the!workers!though,!as!there!are!always!things!to!sell,!and!as!merchants,!they!were!already!wealthier!than!many!of!the!farmers!here.!There!is!really!no!need!to!complain.!There!are!no!taxes!from!the!Sugar%Act,!or!the!Stamp%Act!anymore,!and!we!are!only!allowed!to!buy!the!absolute!best!tea!in!the!world!!How!could!they!see!this!as!a!bad!thing?!I!swear!these!people!can!complain!even!about!the!best!things!in!life.!There!is!absolutely!no!need!for!all!this!nonsense!!

!!!!!!!!But!the!strangest!thing!happened!today.!I!ran!into!a!strange!man,!he!was!tall!and!lankly,!with!dark!hair!and!shady!dark!eyes.!Though!I!was!rushing,!he!came!up!to!me!and!asked!me!what!I!thought!of!the!Tea!Act.!Knowing!that!some!colonists!would!pour!tar!and!feathers!on!those!who!supported!the!act,!I!knew!I!had!to!lie.!Hearing!my!answer,!he!then!continued!on!telling!me!about!this!devious!plot!to!dump!the!next!shipment!of!tea!from!Britain!into!the!harbor!!Tens!of!thousands!of!dollars!worth!of!tea!!And!what!would!that!accomplish?!The!Parliament!would!see!this!as!a!declaration!of!war,!and!it!would!all!be!thanks!to!the!“Sons!of!Liberty”.!What!an!outrage!!I!have!just!bought!a!few!extra!boxes!of!tea,!as!I!know!that!soon,!tea!will!be!scarce.!I!have!told!a!few!of!my!friends!as!well,!and!I!am!now!off!to!join!the!soldiers!posted!here,!as!I!know!of!the!troubles!that!will!soon!face!the!colonies.!

PLawrence!Thatcher!

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of HappinessJuly 5th, 1776

A copy of the Declaration

Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration

! What!an!outrage!!I!was!drinking!my!afternoon!tea!as!I!though!back!to!what!happened!three!years!prior,!the!Boston!Tea!Party.!Because!of!that!mysterious!man,!I!had!been!prepared!for!the!shortage!of!tea,!so!it!was!not!as!devastating!for!me,!but!others!were!upset.!I!have!since!left!that!all!behind,!and!almost!as!soon!as!I!joined!the!army!I!was!relocated!here,!to!Philadelphia.!!Well,!as!I!was!thinking,!I!heard!a!commotion!from!the!town!square,!right!outside!my!window.!Glancing!out,!I!saw!a!man!on!a!raised!platform!reading!from!a!piece!of!paper,!a!copy!of!what!he!called!the!“Declaration%of%Independence”.!The!Declaration!claimed!that!we!the!colonists!were!not!being!treated!as!normal!British!citizens,!and!so!we!would!be!American,!severing!our!bonds!with!our!mother!country.!Stunned,!I!dropped!my!tea.!I!continued!listening!to!the!man!going!off!about!Natural%Rights,!saying!that!all!men!are!born!equal!with!rights.!And!they!think!that!they!are!being!treated!like!secondPclass!citizens.!How!could!they!believe!this?!They!do!not!have!to!pay!any!more!tax!than!other!citizens.!In!fact,!we!may!be!paying!less!tax.!And!who!are!they!to!talk!of!Natural!Rights!when!the!man!speaking!in!the!square!is!known!to!have!at!least!three!slaves!simply!to!clean!his!house!and!prepare!his!food?!The!slaves!should!have!the!same!amount!of!rights!as!a!normal!citizen!under!their!logic.!And!that!would!put!a!stopper!on!our!production!of!tobacco.!Oh,!people!would!not!be!happy!with!that.!

! Other!rights!included!the!rights!of!life,!liberty,!and!the!pursuit!of!happiness.!Are!they!saying!we!do!not!have!all!of!this!presently?!And,!the!people!can!decide!if!they!like!their!government,!and!if!not,!they!can!abolish!it.!Which!means…no!king.!No!queen.!No!monarchy.!What!kind!of!government!would!that!leave!us!with?!No,!this!cannot!happen!!It!WILL!not!happen.!I!do!not!think!they!know!what!they!are!up!against.!England!will!not!go!down!without!a!Dight,!and!Britain!has!the!world’s!best!navy.!They!also!have!thousands!of!soldiers!and!generals,!all!well!trained,!including!me.!All!the!“Americans”!have!are!some!farmers!with!guns!and!some!mediocre!generals!that!have!no!clue!how!to!run!an!army.!George!Washington!stands!no!chance!against!British!generals.!All!the!people!who!signed!the!Declaration,!John%Adams,%Benjamin%Franklin,%Thomas%Jefferson,%Robert%Livingston,%John%Hancock,%and%Roger%Sherman!to!name!a!few,!will!be!dead!in!a!year.!John!Hancock!even!had!the!courage!to!write!his!name!in!that!big,!clearly!readable!signature!right!at!the!bottom.!He!just!signed!his!own!death!sentence.!!

! I!look!forward!to!the!day!where!I!can!bring!these!traitors!to!justice.!If!war!does!break!out,!it!is!impossible!for!the!Americans!to!win!even!a!single!battle.!Lack!of!troops,!experience!and!equipment!will!do!them!in,!and!they!will!be!lucky!if!Britain!treats!them!like!“second!class!citizens”!ever!again.!They!will!be!sorry!they!ever!challenged!Great!Britain.!Long!live!King!George!III!

PLawrence!Thatcher

Christmas Gone Wrong-December 26th 1776

George Washington

America’s Flag

!!!!!!!!Those!savages!attacked!like!cowards.!Attacking!our!camp!in!Trenton,!New!Jersey,!as!we!were!celebrating!not!only!Christmas,!but!also!an!unbroken!chain!of!won!battles!since!the!beginning!of!the!war.!I!admit,!many!of!the!Hessians!and!even!a!few!of!the!English!soldiers!were!more!than!a!little!tipsy,!and!I!had!had!a!few!drinks!myself.!As!I!was!laughing!with!a!few!of!my!comrades,!I!heard!a!shot!from!a!distance,!and!a!drunken!Hessian!fell!onto!the!ground,!staining!the!snow!red!with!the!blood!seeping!out!of!his!thigh.!His!screams!pierced!the!air!like!a!knife.!It!took!a!few!people!a!moment!to!comprehend!what!had!happened,!just!long!enough!for!Captain%George%Washington!and!his!2,400!troops!to!come!over!the!hills.!

!!!!!!!!The!cowards!attacked!us!when!we!were!weak.!We!were!unarmed,!as!Christmas!was!a!time!for!peace!and!joy.!Almost!none!of!us!were!completely!sober.!And!we!were!outnumbered!with!only!1,500!men.!The!Continental%Army!was!bound!to!win.

!!!!!!!!Shots!were!being!Dired!everywhere!in!the!square.!The!Hessians!were!slow!and!unable!to!aim!well!because!of!the!alcohol,!and!so!the!Americans!came!to!little!harm.!Remembering!what!my!commander!had!said,!I!climbed!to!higher!ground,!onto!the!roof!of!a!nearby!home.!I!had!not!retrieved!my!gun!from!the!storage!rooms,!and!so!I!resorted!to!taking!the!roof!tiles!and!hurling!them!at!the!Patriots,!disarming!a!few!and!knocking!out!a!few!more.!The!Dighting!only!lasted!about!fortyPDive!minutes,!and!before!I!knew!it,!more!than!half!of!the!Hessians!were!captured,!and!many!more!were!injured,!leaving!us!with!only!about!500!men!able!to!walk.!I!was!among!the!lucky!ones!that!left!the!battle!without!a!scratch,!and!so!I!ran!around!with!the!medics!helping!to!clean!the!wounds!and!bandaging!them,!until!all!of!them!were!able!to!at!least!limp!around.!

!!!!!!!!!We!crossed!the!Delaware!to!get!to!safety,!seeking!refuge!with!the!vast!number!of!loyalists!in!New!York.!!I!am!writing!this!in!the!attic!of!an!elderly!man’s!home,!with!three!other!soldiers!snoring!nearby.!It!is!cold!and!the!entire!space!is!lit!by!only!a!feeble!oil!lamp.!The!Dloorboards!creak!whenever!you!move,!and!there!are!cobwebs!everywhere.!Tomorrow!we!will!work!to!free!the!prisoners!of!war!from!this!savage!battle,!and!who!knows,!it!might!take!months.!I!heard!from!my!captain!that!we!will!march!towards!Yorktown!in!southeastern!Virginia!to!meet!up!with!another!team!of!soldiers,!a!bigger!team.!We!were!going!to!take!down!Washington!and!his!men.!We!were!going!to!reclaim!America!as!a!British!colony,!and!it!may!teach!the!rest!of!the!world!a!lesson.!The!king!rules!all,!and!traitors!will!be!crushed!with!no!mercy.!I!sign!off!here,!as!tomorrow,!I!hope!to!avenge!my!twentyPtwo!fallen!comrades!of!last!night,!a!night!meant!for!peace!and!joy.!Not!war.!They!shall!pay.!They!shall!all!pay.!They!will!regret!ever!messing!with!the!“Red%Coats”.

PLawrence!Thatcher

The Wrong Side-September 4th 1783

Lord Cornwallis

The flag of my mother country, England

! The!war!has!Dinally!come!to!the!end.!The!right!side!has!lost.!We!had!failed!to!free!our!comrades,!and!so!we!came,!defeated,!to!Yorktown.!The!siege!started!on!September!28th,!1781.!We!never!saw!it!coming.!Everything!was!peaceful!before!the!siege,!like!the!peace!before!a!storm.!It!was!a!nice!day,!sunny!and!warm.!And!everyone!went!to!bed!feeling!good!after!a!nice!day.!The!Americans!and!French!came!the!next!day,!with!an!army!three!times!the!size!of!ours.!This!started!the!Battle%of%Yorktown.!They!easily!surrounded!the!city,!cutting!off!supplies.!The!people!in!the!town!had!no!idea!what!was!going!on.!They!had!nothing!to!do!with!the!war!!Why!were!they!punishing!them!like!that?!It!isn’t!right.!Over!the!period!of!twentyPone!days,!everyone!was!starving.!Many!people!died.!Lord!Cornwallis!had!no!choice.!He!had!to!end!the!suffering!of!the!innocents.!On!October!19th,!1781,!the!mighty!Lord%Cornwallis!surrendered,!ending!the!war,!losing!the!war.!

! The!Americans!were!overjoyed!with!their!victory.!They!shouldn't!have!been.!The!only!reason!they!won!was!because!they!were!so!uncivilized.!They!used!Guerrilla%warfare,!behaving!like!animals.!There!was!no!order!to!it.!No!line!up,!no!organized!shooting!or!commanders!ordering!to!Dire.!We!were!not!trained!to!deal!with!this!type!of!Dighting!!They!ambushed!us!whenever!they!could.!Be!it!when!we!were!sleeping,!drunk,!or!walking!back!to!a!city!after!a!long!day!marching,!they!would!attack,!outnumbering!us!every!time.!They!didn't!even!try!to!defend!their!cities.!They!had!help!from!the!French.!Do!they!not!remember!what!the!French!did?!Do!they!not!remember!the!SevenPYear!War?!The!lives!lost!on!both!sides?!They!should!not!have!anything!to!do!with!those!scoundrels.!The!war!has!been!lost!to!the!sinister!and!the!traitors.!Is!there!no!good!left!in!this!world?

! Some!American!ofDicials!have!been!sailed!off!the!France!to!sign!the!Treaty%of%Paris.!When!all!the!signatures!have!been!signed,!America!will!no!longer!be!a!British!colony.!It!will!be!independent.!Britain!has!just!lost!land!that!it!has!fought!over.!That!it!has!paid!to!be!populated.!And!what!of!the!new!government?!A!democracy.!Everyone!else!in!the!world!expected!them!to!fail!in!their!attempt!towards!independence.!I!was!among!these!people.!I!write!this!from!a!ship!bound!towards!Britain.!I!have!left!my!childhood!home.!I!do!not!wish!to!be!there!when!they!start!punishing!the!“traitors”.!I!will!not!be!there!to!see!the!country!fall!to!pieces.!What!a!shame.!I!still!wish!to!see!the!real!traitors!get!what!they!deserve.!Their!government!will!fall.!The!slaves!will!realize!their!rights.!They!are!already!in!debt!due!to!the!war.!And!how!will!they!pay!back!the!French?!There!is!no!way!those!beasts!will!give!them!their!services!for!free.!They!will!be!paying!them!back!for!generations!to!come!!I!cannot!wait!to!wake!up!one!day!and!see!“America’s!Brief!Tate!of!Freedom!Gone!Rotten”!splashed!all!over!the!headlines!worldwide!!Oh,!and!I!shall!be!safe!in!my!mother!country,!choosing!the!right!side!all!along.!

PLawrence!Thatcher

Citations

Mintz,!Steven.!"Digital!History."!Digital'History.!Digital!History,!n.d.!Web.!13!May!2013.

Lucas,!Stephen!E.!"Declaration!of!Independence."!Http://www.archives.gov.!N.p.,!n.d.!Web.!13!May!2013.

Brandy,!Timothy.!"Liberty!"!PBS.!PBS,!n.d.!Web.!13!May!2013.

Causes!of!the!Revolution!1765P1774,!Safari!montage,!Copyright!2004,!American!Revolution!for!Students.!Schlessinger!Media!

Revolutionary!War!1776P1783,!Safari!montage,!Copyright!2004,!American!Revolution!for!Students.!Schlessinger!Media!

Creating!a!Nation!1783P1791,!Safari!montage,!Copyright!2004,!American!Revolution!for!Students.!Schlessinger!Media!

Pictures

Comicvine.com. N.p., n.d. Web.

"Great Britain Flag." Www.fanpop.com. N.p., n.d. Web.

"Tar and Feathers." Nwta.com. N.p., n.d. Web.

"Boston Massacre." Http://www.sonofthesouth.net. N.p., n.d. Web.

"Crates of Tea." 123rf.com. N.p., n.d. Web.

Venus Casagrande [STUDENT]

IntroductionThis is the journal of Lawrence Thatcher, written by me. It tells of his life as a loyalist throughout the war, starting from the Boston Massacre and ending at the Treaty of Paris. Lawrence was forever loyal to his mother country, England, and was outraged from the very start of the other colonists' rebellious acts. His father had nearly been lost at the Seven-Year War fought between the British and the French to give them more land, and so the fact that the colonists were mad about paying them back was well...stupid. He thought they should all be loyal to the country that had given them so much. As he was still young and able to defend his country, he decided to join the British army, and that brought him to the front line of the war. He had no greater pride than knowing that the had brought at least some traitors to justice.ConclusionWith the war now over, America was free. They had yet to set up a new government though. As they were working out the bugs in their new government, another problem surfaced. Debt. They were in serious debt due to the war, and so they had only one choice, and that was the tax the people. Some of the people thought they were being treated unfairly, and that was what started the Revolutionary War in the first place. Many people thought like this and this started Shay's Rebellion, where many farmers rebelled against the new government. This, along with all the other problems that come with starting a new government, made life hard. But as we all know, these problems have all been solved. America has paid back it's debt. It has returned the favor with France. And every year on the 4th of July, Americans celebrate the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, and the freedom that it brought on an eagle's wings.The government that followed the war changed history. Never before had the people been able to vote for their head of government. Never before had the people been able to have any say in the way the government was run, or what happened to their country. Never before had they been able to take down the government if need be. Never. Now, people could do all of that. They had control, they had power. They could choose. The monarchy they had before gave them no choice. If the king wanted to increase taxes, no one would stop him. He could do whatever he pleased. The people had no say in anything, they simply had to listen. The Americans did not have to live under that anymore. Many things stayed the same though. They made little changes to their language, they still traded with England, and some Englishmen stayed behind in America. They still kept some of the living habits of the British, as they still drank tea and dressed similarly. So in a way, things were different yet the same at the same time.American democracy has survived throughout history, and is still being used today. The phrase "majority rules" comes from democracy, and is still used today. Many more countries have developed a sort of democratic government, even the British. This is one of the things that is similar today. The American English has changed a little since then, but not significantly. The rules of Natural Rights have been enforced a bit more, and because of Martin Luther King Jr, "blacks" and "whites" can now live peacefully together, without slavery. This means that there are no more slaves to do the farming for the people. Everyone is treated equally, which was the point of the revolution in the first place. And so in the end, the American Revolution served its purpose to the world, getting all that it demanded. Fun Fact: the "bald" in bald eagle actually comes from the old English word "balde" which means "white patch", not because the bird looks bald.