Declaring IndependenceChapter 5 Lesson 4

Objectives

• Evaluate the reaction of the colonists to the rejection of the Olive Branch Petition

• Summarize the steps taken that led to the writing of the Declaration of Independence

• Understand the four parts of the Declaration of Independence

Vocabulary

• Petition – formal request

• Preamble - introduction

The Second Continental Congress May 10th 1775

• Returning Members from 1st CC– John and Samuel Adams– Patrick Henry– George Washington– Richard Henry Lee

• Newcomers– Ben Franklin – leader in PA

legislature helped repeal the Stamp Act

– John Hancock – wealthy merchant in MA. Helped fund Patriot groups, voted President of 2nd CC

– Thomas Jefferson – served in the VA legislature and was known as a brilliant thinker and writer

They voted not to split from Britain just yet. It would be another year before Jefferson would write the Declaration of Independence

Key Actions• Continental Congress:

• Authorized printing of money • Set up a post office • Formed committees to handle Native

Americans and foreign countries• Created Continental Army• Appointed George Washington as

commander

• Delegates offered Britain one last chance to avoid war:

Olive Branch Petition• Assured King George that the colonists

wanted peace• Asked him to protect colonists rights• King rejected it; prepared for war• Hired 30,000 German troops to fight with

Britain

The War Heats Up• Congress found out British troops from

Canada were going to attack New York

• Americans decided to attack first• Captured Montreal• Benedict Arnold led an attack on Quebec

and failed

• Washington had to train civilians into soldiers

• March 1776 Washington moved soldiers and cannons into position overlooking Boston while the redcoats slept

• The attack surprised the British and they withdrew from Boston and sailed to Nova Scotia (part of Canada)

Moving Towards Independence• Many colonists still held onto

hope that the colonies could remain part of Britain

• Support for independence was growing

• Thomas Paine wrote a pamphlet called Common Sense

• Called for a complete break from Britain

• Greatly influenced people in the colonies to support the Patriots

What do you predict the Americans will do next?

• Turn to page 131 in your textbook.• Under the title “Primary Source” read the

quote by Richard Henry Lee

What did Richard Henry Lee propose at the Second Continental Congress?

Writing the Declaration• Committee of people wrote it:

John Adams, Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman

• Jefferson wrote the first draft and drew ideas from English philosopher John Locke to explain why the 13 colonies were proclaiming their freedom

• Locke expressed the idea that people are born with certain natural rights to life, liberty and property

Writing the Declaration• Locke wrote that people

form governments to protect those rights, and that government interfering with those rights could rightfully be overthrown

• Delegates approved the document July 4th 1776

• John Hancock signed it first (the largest) followed by 56 delegates announcing the birth of the United States

The Declaration of Independence has four parts.

The first part says that people who separate from other people should

tell why they must do so.

The second part gives important ideas in American government

• All men are created equal

• All men have rights that cannot be taken away by another person.

- Life - Liberty- Pursuit of happiness

• Government gets its power from the consent of the governed.

• Government should protect the safety and happiness of everyone.

• If a government disregards the rights of the people for a long time and will not change, the people have a duty to form a new government.

The third part of the Declaration of Independence is the longest. It lists many bad things King George III has

done to the American people.

The fourth part--the actual declaration--says the colonies have

decided to be independent.

• They are free to make war and peace.

• They can form alliances with other countries.

• They can trade with other countries.

• They can do everything that an independent country can do.

Representatives from all thirteen colonies signed the Declaration of

Independence.

Close and Reflect

Which phrases in the Declaration of Independence do you think are most important?

Would you be able to be a delegate in the Second Continental Congress?

Review

• Why do you think the delegates chose John Hancock to be president of the Second Continental Congress?

• Why did the Americans attack Montreal?

• What was the Olive Branch Petition?

• Explain the significance of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense.

• According to John Locke, what is the purpose of government?