Topic # 9What Experiences Led to the American

Revolution?RAP: Explain the importance of each of these documents:*Magna Carta*Petition of Right*English Bill of Rights

Lesson Goal:-How British ideas about government were put to use in the colonies.-Why the colonists came to feel that the British government threatened their rights.-How constitutional government developed in the colonies.-Why the colonists decided to fight for their independence.

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Ideas American colonists used to establish a British colony.

-legal document needed to establish a British colony- granted land to a person or a company-did not define government

-Based on two concepts that protect them from:

- Abuse of power by the British government

- Abuse of power by their colonial government

Charter

Colonial Governme

nt

Britain's control over colonies.

Britain’s neglect of colonies

Britain’s renewed interest

-Britain was becoming a world power and was busy fighting wars-Not much time devoted to colonies-Long distances-Communication was slow because news traveled by ship-Orders took months to reach colonies

-War against France was costly-Britain left with large national debt-Colonies should pay their share with increased taxes-Tightened trade restrictions between colonies and other countries

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New British law’s that

affected the

colonies

- Proclamation of 1763 - banned settlement west into Indian territory - British able to withdraw army and reduce costs

- Sugar Act of 1764 - stop smuggling of goods in and out of colonies - taxes on all incoming sugar, coffee, wine, and cloth - Gave British Navy “writs of assistance” (search warrants) to search colonial ships - all colonial trade ships had to go directly to Britain

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- Stamp Act, 1765 - taxes on every legal document, newspaper, pamphlets, deck of cards coming into the colonies- Quartering Act, 1765 - British Army moved into colonial cities requiring innkeepers and public officials to house and feed British soldiers- Declaratory Act, 1766 - gave Parliament the right to pass laws for the colonies in “all cases whatsoever” to remind colonist they were subject to the king.

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- Tea Act, 1773 - forced colonies to buy tea from The East India Company to keep the British company from going broke

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- Colonist felt British Parliament was threatening their rights.- New tax and trade laws meant that colonists would lose money.- Parliament’s laws went against colonists’ belief in representative government.- Colonists believed if they had no right to elect representatives to Parliament, Parliament had no right to tax the colonists.

Colonists’ view of

laws

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- “No Taxation without Representation”- believed tax laws should be passed only by the colonial legislature- King George felt colonists were acting like ungrateful children- King thought that since the well-being and

safety of colonies was due to British protection the taxation was fair

- Parliament didn’t understand representation because they represented the whole nation no matter where and not individuals

- growing conflict in beliefs

Rally Cry for

Colonists

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Colonies Resist British Control

- tension growing- colonist organized town meetings and wrote angry letters to the newspapers

- Small groups of volunteers that made sure each colony knew about events and opinions of other colonies- raised spirits of people- united and linked all colonies together

Between1763 – 1775

Committees of Corresponden

ce

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- organized resistance to the Stamp Act- mobs attacked tax collectors’ homes- burned effigies (straw people) of royals- marched in streets and some committed violent acts

- formed by women- helped boycott British trade- instead of buying British goods they made their own- gave up drinking tea

1765Sons of Liberty

Daughters of Liberty

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- British troops opened fire on protestors and killed 5 colonists.- Colonists believed British government would use military force to make them obey laws

- colonist tried to stop cargo of tea in the Boston Harbor

- dumped 342 chests of tea - British closed the harbor

1770Boston

Massacre

1773Boston Tea

Party

Fall 1774 – colonists decide to take united action and committee of correspondence calls for representatives from each colony to meet and deliberate on general interests of all colonists.

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Representatives from 12 of 13 colonies met in Philadelphia to decide on best response to actions of British government.- start of unified American government- agreed to impose ban on trade- hope of change in British policies

- beginning of Revolutionary War- fighting broke out- British troops marched on to Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts to capture guns and supplies by surprise- system of signals warned colonists and they fired on British forcing them back to Boston

FirstContinentalCongress

April 19, 1775

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- Representatives again met in Philadelphia a few weeks later- Congress organized new Continental Army and called colonist to send troops- George Washington selected to lead troops

- a year later, Congress drafts document to explain why they should be free from British rule- this document later becomes the “Declaration of Independence”

SecondContinentalCongress

Declaration of

Independence

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Create a timeline of the important events in this lesson. Explain the significance of the event and include drawings that help depict each event.