The Road To Revolution

1763-1775

The French & Indian War Ends

The war was extremely costly for Great Britain.

American colonists were content as English citizens in the New World.

They only sought the “rights of an Englishman.”

Deep Roots of Revolution

Republicanism

In true republicanism spirit, all citizens willingly give up their private, selfish interests.

They devote themselves to the “common good,” or the “good of the whole.”

Radical Whigs

Colonists who feared that their liberties would be taken away by the monarch and his ministers.

Always on guard against corruption in government.

Mother England

Distance weakens authority.

Great distance weakens authority greatly!

The American Colonies

There were no titled nobility in the colonies.

Property ownership and political participation was common.

Mercantilism

Wealth is power and a country’s economic wealth can be measured in the amount of gold and silver in its treasury.

EXPORT MORE THAN YOU IMPORT

Colonies - Raw materialsEngland - reduced need for foreign imports

Navigation Law of 1650All commerce in and out of the colonies must be transported by British ships.This included colonial vessels.European goods heading to colonies must first pass through England for tariffs

No Hard Money

Gold and Silver were scarce in the American Colonies

Gold and Silver are called hard money

No Hard Money

Colonists used butter, nails, pitch, feathers, etc. for exchange

Colonies issued paper notes, which quickly depreciated in value

Currency Act

English Parliament prohibited colonial legislatures from printing money.

This angered the colonists because there was a shortage of necessary cash.

Parliament’s Hand In America

The British Crown could nullify any law passed by a colonial legislature

Only used 469/8,563 colonial laws

Colonists fiercely resented this right of Parliament

Colonial Rebellion

Colonists would disregard or ignore restrictions placed on them by Parliament.

1st American fortunes came from smuggling

John Hancock

Colonial Advantages

Colonists made a large profit from producing ship parts.

Virginia had a monopoly on the tobacco market in colonies and in Britain.

Colonies were protected by the world’s strongest Navy and Army of Redcoats.

Feeling Used…

Colonists felt used in the mercantilism system.

Colonists were dependent on British agents and creditors.

ENGLAND

After The Seven Years’ War, England had the largest empire in the world.

They also owed a tremendous debt for protecting its empire.

England’s debt was over L 140,000,000

Half of which was spent defending the American Colonies.

George Grenville

Grenville became Head of the Treasury

Introduced several taxes on the American colonies.

Felt America should shoulder some of the costs of the 7 Years’ War

Sugar Act of 1764

Increased tax on foreign sugar imported from the West Indies

Quartering Act of 1765

Required certain colonies to provide food and quarters for British troops.

Stamp Act of 1765

Stamped paper that certified the payment of an appropriate tax

ex. Playing cards, pamphlets, newspapers, diplomas, bills of laden, marriage licenses.

Grenville

Colonists saw Grenville as an aggressive tax collector.

Some colonies refused to comply with the new laws.

Colonists wondered why the British Army was still needed in the colonies after the French and Indian War.

“No taxation without representation.”

This becomes the rallying cry of the colonists who disliked Grenville’s taxes.

Irony – Not all the colonies allowed representation.

Colonies didn’t want members of the House of Commons – they would be the minority and the taxes would be passed anyway.

Actual Stamp on Newspapers

The colonists hated the Stamp Act

Stamp Act Congress of 1765

The Stamp Act Congress met in New York City with 27 delegates representing 9 colonies.Drew up a statement of rights and grievances.Asked King and Parliament to repeal Stamp ActTheir pleas were ignored in England

Non-Importation Agreement

The Stamp Act Congress agreed voluntarily not to purchase imported goods from Great Britain to show disapproval of the tax.

Widespread success

Taxation without Representation

The Sons of LibertyThe Daughters of Liberty

Took law into their own hands and violently enforced the non-importation agreement.Mobs destroyed homes of unpopular officialsTAX COLLECTION BROKE DOWN

Stamp Act Mobs

Mobs forced tax collectors to resign from their posts.

There were no agents left on the day the Stamp Act went into effect.

Law was openly defied!

England Hit Hard

Colonies bought ¼ of British exports

½ British shipping devoted to colonial trade

Non-importation hurt British economy

Many laborers lost jobs in England

Repeal of Stamp Act

The British Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in 1766

BUT passed the Declaratory Act of 1766 – declared its “absolute” sovereignty over its North American colonies.

Charles Townshend

“Champagne” Charley

British Prime Minister

Could give great orations in Parliament while completely drunk!

Townshend Acts of 1767

Light taxes on glass, white lead, paper, paint, and tea.

These were indirect customs taxes at the ports, unlike the Stamp Tax.

However, colonists did not overlook the tax, and they were rebellious after the Stamp Act victory

Colonists & Teas

1,000,000 colonists drank tea twice a day

Townshend Acts – revenue went to pay royal governors and judges

Colonists were again angered

London

Parliament shut down the New York colonial legislature for failure to follow the Quartering Act

Colonists found that smuggled tea was cheaper

Smuggling was high in Massachusetts

John Hancock

Boston

Because of rebellious actions of colonies, Britain sent 2 regiments of troops to Boston to face the breakdown of law and order - 1768

Boston Massacre

March 5, 1770

60 Bostonians attacked 10 British soldiers with clubs

Troops opened fire and killed 11 “innocent” citizens

1st to die – Crispus Attucks – “mullato” African American leader of the mob

King George III

In 1770, King George III was 32 years old

Good man in private morals

Bad ruler

Stubborn and lustful for power

Townshend Acts Fail

The Townshend Acts failed to generate any sort of revenue

However, they did produce near rebellion from the colonists

Lord North – King’s “yes man” repealed the Townshend Acts but kept a 3 pence tax on tea…angered colonists

Samuel Adams

From Boston

Cousin of John Adams

His hands trembled

Lived and breathed politics

Zealous, courageous, tenacious, faith in common people

Adams cont…

Samuel Adams organized local committees of correspondence to spread resistance to British laws

Virginia followed Adams’ idea in 1773

Soon, every colony had a central exchange system

Tea

By 1773, colonists were paying the tax on tea

Legal tea was cheaper than smuggled tea

Even cheaper than tea in England

Problems with Tea

The government in London awarded the British East India Company a monopoly on American colonial tea trade – 1773This principle of monopoly outraged the colonistsColonists protested and forced all ships with BEIC tea to return to England with a full cargo (Philadelphia and New York City)

Gov. Thomas Hutchinson

Governor of Mass.

Hated by colonists

Ordered tea ships not to clear Boston Harbor until tea was unloaded

Colonists refused the ship to unload its cargo

Boston Tea Party

Band of Bostonians load the ship dressed as Indians

They smash 342 chests of tea and dumped it into Boston Harbor

Hutchinson left MA for England

Intolerable Acts

Parliament passed a series of acts to punish Boston and Massachusetts for the acts of the Boston Tea Party and other defiant actions of the colonists.Many colonial charter rights were taken away from MA – restrictions on town meetings

Boston Port Act of 1774

Closed Boston Harbor until damages were paid and order was restored.

Quebec Act of 1774

Boundaries of Quebec were extended South to the Ohio River – trans-Allegheny area was snatched away from the colonists.

Continental Congress of 1774

A congress was called to meet in Philadelphia from Sept. 5 – Oct. 26, 1774

Met to consider ways to address their concerns to the King

12/13 colonies – 55 delegates (GA)

Sam Adams, John Adams, George Washington, Patrick Henry

Continental Congress of 1774This was more of a convention than a Congress that makes laws.Congress created The Association – called for a complete boycott of British goods; non-importation, non-exportation, and non-consumptionDELGATES DID NOT CALL FOR INDEPENDENCE !!!!!Congress would meet again May 1775

April 1775British troops were sent to Lexington and Concord to seize stores of gunpowder

They were to capture Sam Adams and John Hancock

8 Americans killed @ Lexington

Redcoats were forced to retreat from Concord

300 dead British soldiers

The Revolutionary War Begins

The fight for America’s Independence

War Against A Mighty Empire

7.5 million British citizens

2.5 million American colonists

British Army of 50,000 men

30,000 Hessian mercenaries

50,000 American Loyalists

Indians

130,000 + British troops for the war…

British Parliament

Parliament was confused and inept

No more William Pitt

Brits didn’t want to kill American cousins

Some Brits openly cheered the colonists

British Army In America

British Generals in America were 2nd rate and untrainedProvisions for troops were scarce, rancid and wormyOne load of biscuits for the troops had been confiscated from French – 15 year old biscuits – a cannon ball dropped on them to soften them up…

Britain

3,000 miles away from home

Delays

Uncertainty

Obvious communications problems

American was HUGE – 1,000 miles X 600 miles

Parliament’s Reaction

Parliament and the King rejected all of the Continental Congress’ petitions

Colonists began to drill openly in the streets with their militias

A clash seemed certain

Lexington and Concord

April 1775 – British troops were sent to Lexington and Concord to seize stores of gunpowder and capture Sam Adams and John Adams to be hanged8 Americans killed and several wounded at LexingtonRedcoats forced to retreat from Concord300 dead British Redcoats

The American Revolution

War Begins

Great American Leaders

George Washington

Benjamin Franklin

Marquis de Lafayette

Fled from France because of boredom

Loved glory

Ultimately loved liberty

19 years old when he became Major General in American Army

Moral Advantage

They believed the war was a just cause

BUT, they were badly organized for war

Lacked unity, states saw themselves as sovereign

“Continentals” – paper money printed in great quantity – became worthless