Post on 27-Dec-2015
Aftermath of the French & Indian War
• War had enlarged England’s imperial domain– Victory was expensive– Garrisoning troops in America was expensive• Wanted colonists to help pay
• American colonists were becoming more unified
The Deep Roots of Revolution
• Colonists were not saddled by tradition• Two emerging ideas– Republicanism – system in which citizens elect others to
represent them in gov.• Subordination of private interests for common good
– Fearful of governmental abuse of power and corruption
The Deep Roots of Revolution
• Circumstances of colonial life contributed to revolution– No nobility in colonies– Used to political participation– Used to self government– Distance from England
Mercantilism
• Mercantilism – economic theory embraced by the British– A country’s power is measured by its wealth– Export more than import– Colonies used for raw materials & provided a market for
exports (manufactured goods)
Navigation Laws
• Navigation Laws – trade laws which benefited the mother country– All commerce had to be transported in British ships– Goods destined for America first had to stop in England
(taxed)– Colonists had to trade certain products exclusively with
Britain (Tobacco)
The Merits & Menace of Mercantilism
• Up to 1763, many of the Navigation Laws were only loosely enforced
• Benefits to Colonists– Paid well for ship parts & tobacco– Protected by huge British empire
• All for free!
• Burden of the System– Gave colonists no economic initiative– Dependence on British agents & creditors– Americans felt used
George Grenville
• England had a huge debt after the war
• 1763, Prime Minister George Grenville began enforcing Navigation Laws– He was despised by colonists
New Taxes
• Sugar Act of 1764 – tax on foreign sugar imported from the West Indies
• Quartering Act of 1765 – required colonists to provide food and quarters for British troops– Colonists felt army was there to keep an eye on them
• Stamp Act of 1775 – use of stamped paper or using stamps to certify payment of the tax– Required on paper products and documents
The Stamp Tax Uproar
• Violators of the Stamp Tax were sent to England and tried without a jury– Assumed guilty
• “No taxation without representation” becomes rallying cry– Colonists felt only colonial legislatures could tax them– Grenville said colonists were “virtually represented” in
parliament• It represents all British subjects
Stamp Act Congress
• Stamp Act Congress of 1765 – met in NY with 27 delegates from 9 colonies– Drew up request for withdrawal of tax– Was ignored in England, but– Brought together influential colonists
Non-importation Agreements
• Colonists adopted non-importation agreements against British trade goods– Made homespun garments– Drew up petitions– This united the Americans
Sons & Daughters of Liberty
• Sons of Liberty – aggressively fought against new taxes
• “Liberty, Property and No Stamps”– Enforced non-importation
agreements• Tarred and feathered violators• Broke into houses of tax officials
– Many to resigned
England Hit Hard in the Pocketbook
• This noncompliance hurt England– ½ of shipping was devoted to America– Hurt merchants, manufacturers, laborers and shippers
• Some in Parliament called for a repeal of the tax• Others felt the colonists should pay their share– 2 million colonists to 7.5 mil British
Repeal of the Stamp Act
• Parliament begrudgingly withdrew the Stamp Act in 1766
• Passed the Declaratory Act – stated that England had complete sovereignty over the colonists
The Townshend Acts
• “Champaign Charley” Townshend was a leader of Parliament
• Townshend Acts passed in 1767– Created an imports duty on glass, paper, paint, and tea• Many drank tea and did
not like the tax
– Taxes were to pay for theroyal governors and judges
Suspension of NY Legislature
• Legislature of NY is suspended in 1767 by the crown– Upset colonists reinstate non-importation agreements• Most colonists put up with the new tax• Smuggled tea for cheap
Boston Massacre
• British sent two regiments of troops to Boston to enforce the law– Many were young, drunken “ruffians”
• Boston Massacre – occurs on March 5, 1770– Crowd of 60 began taunting and throwing snowballs at
squad of redcoats• They were mad about death of 11 yr old boy, which occurred 10
days earlier during a protest
Boston Massacre
• Troops opened fire and killed 11• Crispus Attucks – a young mulatto, and one of the
instigators, is killed
John Adams
• John Adams served as the defense attorney for the soldiers– 2 were found guilty– The rest were branded on the
hand
King George III
• King George III was 32 by 1770– Was a man of good moral
character– Bad ruler– Poor choices of advisors• Including Lord North
Lord North
• Lord North – the new Prime Minister• Townshend Acts failed to produce much
revenue– Only £295– Military in colonies cost £170,000
• Lord North repealed Townshend Acts– Kept tea tax as sign of
Parliamentary power
The Seditious Committees of Correspondence
• British officials stepped up Navigation Laws
• Samuel Adams – a political agitator, set up local committees of correspondence– Exchange letters & keep opposition to
British gov. alive• 1772 – there were 80 in Mass.• 1773 – intercolonial committees were meeting
Tea Brewing in Boston
• By 1773 no one called for rebellion– Non-importation agreements were slacking– More colonists were paying the tea tax then before• English tea was now actually cheaper than the smuggled variety
• British East India Company – had 17 mil. pounds of unsold tea & was facing bankruptcy
Tea Brewing in Boston
– England stood to lose a lot of tax revenues• Gave it a complete monopoly of the American tea business• Tea would end up being cheaper than before
• Americans saw it as a British ploy to get them to pay the tax– To colonists the principle was more important than the
price
Tea Brewing in Boston
• British authorities decided to enforce the law– None of the thousands of chests of tea made it to their
destinations• Sent back to England instead (NY & Philly)• Ships burned (Annapolis, MD)• Cargo seized and sold (Charleston)
Governor Hutchinson
• Thomas Hutchinson – the gov. of Mass., would not be bullied– He ordered the ships to deliver their goods– He was already unpopular• House had been burned
down• In a letter he called for the “suspension of
English liberties” in the colonies
Boston Tea Party
• Dec. 16, 1773 – 100 Bostonians, disguised as Indians, boarded the ships & dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor– Organized by Sons of Liberty– Several hundred
cheered them on– The tea was a symbol
of colonial solidarity• Everyone drank it
Reactions to Boston Tea Party
• Many colonists were sympathetic to Boston’s plight and cheered the act
• Conservatives believed the destruction of private property threatened anarchy
• Fed up and scared for his life, Governor Hutchinson fled to England
Intolerable Acts
• Parliament responded in 1774 with a series of acts to punish Bostonians– Boston Port Act – closed the harbor until damages were
paid and order restored• Colonies rallied behind Boston by sending food and supplies
– Restrictions placed on town meetings– Gov. officials were tried overseas– New Quartering Act – had to lodge soldiers even in colonial
homes
Intolerable Acts
• Quebec Act– French guaranteed their catholic religion– Could retain old customs• Had no representative government or trial by jury!
– Sphere of influencewould extend south
• This alarmed landspeculators in Ohio
• Upset anti-Catholics
First Continental Congress (1774)
• Met in Philadelphia to discuss grievances– 12 colonies represented, 55 delegates• (including Samuel Adams, John Adams, Washington, & Patrick
Henry)
– John Adams tried to persuade them to a revolutionary course of action
– Drew of Declaration of Rights and appeals to the king– The Association
The Association
• Called for a complete boycott of European goods– Nonimporation– Nonexportation– Nonconsumption
• Colonists were mainly looking for a repeal of the taxes• However Parliament rejected the Congress’s petitions
Tensions Increase• Colonists began boycotting all trade with England• April 1775, British General Thomas Gage marched on Concord
to seize colonial ammunition and put an end to any uprising
• Colonials warned byPaul Revere, WilliamDawes and SamuelPrescott
But wait… What about Sybil?
Sybil Ludington“The Teenage Girl Paul Revere”
•16 years old, volunteered to warn the countryside of the attack and to alert the militia troops to muster at Ludington's. •She became known as the "female Paul Revere“. She rode about twice as far as he (40 miles)did on his famous ride. •Her actions helped stop the advance of the British, and thus give the American militia more time to organize and resist.
Lexington and Concord, April 1775
• Battle of Lexington – 700 British soldiers encounter 77 colonials in Lexington on their way to Concord– John Parker, colonial leader – “Don’t fire unless fired upon. But if they mean to
have war, let it begin here.”– 8 minutemen killed
• Battle of Concord – resistance better organized at a bridge near the city– Hundreds of colonists took cover behind trees and shot at the British– 250 British casualties– 90 American casualties
The British
• STRENGTHS– Population (7.5 million to 2.5 million
colonists)– Monetary wealth– Naval forces– Professional army armed with 6' muskets
with bayonets attached• 50,000 British• 30,000 Hessians• 30, 000 American Loyalists
• WEAKNESSES– Poor leadership– Lack of desire to crush American
cousins– Military difficulties
• Second-rate generals• Inadequate, poor provisions• Need for clear victory• Armies were 3000 miles from home• Vast colonial territory (1000 by 600 miles) to
subdue. No urban nerve center to conquer
The Yankees• STRENGTHS
– Outstanding leadership• Military—Washington• Diplomatic—Franklin
• European imports--Lafayette, Kosciuzko – Colonists fighting defensively– Food sources– Colonists were better marksmen (Americans
accurate at 200 yds.) – Moral advantage. Americans were
supporting a just cause with a positive goal
• WEAKNESSES– Poorly organized & slow to act– No written constitution until 1781 – Economic difficulties
• Little metallic currency available• Fearful of taxation• Inflation
– Limited military supplies• Inadequate firearms and powder• Clothing and shoes scarce. At Valley Forge, 2800
men barefooted
– American soldiers were numerous but unreliable