Revolution in America PP Notes

nThe French and Indian War
n1754 to 1763 war fought over the land in America between the English and French.
nIt was called the Seven Years War in Europe.
nCalled the French and Indian War because the Indians helped the French in the war against the British. The Indians had nothing to lose. The British were taking their land, the French were not.
nThe British won, but at a cost a lot of money.
nProclamation of 1763
nForbid colonists to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains.
nCreated to protect colonists from the Indians
nMany colonists reacted with anger toward the Proclamation. They did not like being told what to do or where they could live.
nThe American Revolution was like a parent/child relationship.
nLet’s examine what this means.
nTaxes
nFrench and Indian War cost a lot of money.
nParliament (the British government) decided to tax to colonies to help pay for it.
nThe first tax was the Sugar Act of 1764. It placed a tax on molasses and sugar imported by the colonies.
nStamp Act of 1765 placed a tax on all printed material, such as newspapers and playing cards.
nThis tax upset the colonists even more.
nNo Taxation without Representation
nThe colonists claimed “no taxation without representation” because they were being taxed but had no vote in Parliament and had no say in how the colonies were being governed.
nThe colonists started a boycott, or a refusal to buy certain goods, from the British.
nSam Adams and the Sons of Liberty
nSamuel Adams led the protests in Boston against the taxes.
nHe began a secret society called the Sons of Liberty.
nTar and Feather
nThe Sons of Liberty used violence to scare off the tax collectors.
nThe Stamp Act was repealed (to do away with) because of all the protests.
nThe Boston Massacre
nColonial men were shouting insults at the British soldiers.
nThey started throwing things, probably snow balls and rocks.
nSomeone yelled “fire” and the Red Coats (what the British soldiers were called) shot.
nFive colonists were killed. These were the first Americans killed in the War for Independence.
nSam Adams started calling the incident the Boston Massacre. He used the incident to get more people angry at the British.
nA Tax on Tea
nParliament began taxing tea. Tea was the most important beverage in the colonies.
nThe colonists decided to boycott all British tea.
nThe Boston Tea Party
nColonists dressed up like Mohawk Indians and boarded three British ships full of tea.
nThe colonists dumped all the tea into the harbor, about 90,000 pounds.
nKing George III was furious!
nThe Intolerable Acts
nLaws passed to punish the colonists for the Boston Tea Party.
nThe port of Boston was closed until the tea was paid for.
nThe Quartering Act was put into place which forced colonists to quarter, or house and supply British soldiers.
nMore Tea Parties
nBoston was not the only city to have a “tea party.”
nThey took place in Charleston, New York, Annapolis, and others.
nEdenton Tea Party
nThe Edenton Tea Party was one of the earliest organized women’s political actions in United States history. The women joined in the boycott of British tea.
nFirst Continental Congress
nA group of important men met to discuss the crisis in the colonies.
nMilitias were set up. (citizen soldiers)
nThe “Shot Heard Round the World”
nBritish soldiers in Boston were sent to capture the militias weapons.
nPaul Revere, William Dawes, and Israel Bissell warned the colonists that, “The Red Coats are coming.”
nBritish troops marched to Concord to capture colonial leaders and the ammunition and weapons that were stored there.
nThe first two battles of the American Revolution were fought at Lexington and Concord, when the American militia met up with British forces.
nThe Second Continental Congress
nThe Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia to discuss the next move of the colonists.
nAppointed George Washington as commander of the colonial army.
nWar with Great Britain was imminent.
nCommon Sense
nCommon Sense, written by Thomas Paine was a pamphlet that encouraged colonists to declare independence from Great Britain.
nCommon Sense was very influential because it was read by many people.
nThe Declaration of Independence
nThe United States first needed to declare independence from Great Britain.
nThomas Jefferson, at the young age of 33, wrote the Declaration of Independence.
nThe Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776.
nThat is why we celebrate Independence Day on July 4th.
nThis is the day that the United States of America declared their independence from King George and Great Britain.
nBenjamin Franklin
nBenjamin Franklin, one of the most famous men in the world, was sent to France to ask for military aid as well as a loan.
nAnd so the war began