The American Revolution Name Date Pd I. The American Revolution A. Reasons for the American Revolution (1763-1775) 1. To pay off, Britain created a series of new on the American colonists a. The colonists were that Parliament in England would pass laws without the colonists b. Their slogan became: No without 2. Colonists responded to new taxes with (refusing to British goods that were ) 3. Boycotts were effective, but the king & believed the Americans should British laws & took power away from the colonial 4. From 1763 to 1776, between the English government & the American colonists increased 5. Americans were & read books by leading Enlightenment thinkers, especially, & used these ideas to justify their protest B. The Declaration of Independence (1776) 1. British abuses & inspired Americans to declare independence 2. Ben Franklin, John Adams, & served on the committee to draft the Declaration of Independence 3. On July 4, 1776 Americans sent King George III the Excerpt from the Declaration of Independence 1. When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. 2. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 3. To secure these [basic] rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. 4. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive [in protecting rights and responding to the people], it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government." 5. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having, in direct object, the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these States. 6. To prove [that England has interfered with colonial rights], let the facts be submitted to a candid world: He has refused to assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. 7. In every state of these oppressions, we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms; our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. 8. We, therefore solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states What the Excerpt Means A. England has repeatedly interfered with colonists rights. In doing so, it has unfairly ruled over the American colonies B. Individuals have some basic rights that are obvious and that should not be taken away. Freedom, for example, is one of those rights. C. We now consider ourselves to be an independent nation. D. Here is proof that England has interfered with colonial rights: the King has not allowed laws that help colonists the most E. When one group of people is going to break away from a country to form its own nation, they should explain why they are doing it. F. When a government is taking away the rights of citizens and is not doing what the people want, then the citizens have the right to overthrow the government. G. Every time we colonists felt that we were being treated unfairly, we wrote to the King. He answered by treating us more unfairly. A ruler who abuses his power should not be able to rule us. H. Governments are formed to make sure peoples rights are protected. Government power should come from the people. 4. The Declaration of Independence used ideas from the Enlightenment (especially John Locke) to explain Americans were declaring C. The Revolutionary War (1775-1783) 1. The American Revolution lasted from 1775 to 1783 2. After 6 years of fighting, the Americans the British at the Battle of Yorktown 3. The Treaty of Paris, 1783 granted the United States from Britain & all lands east of the Mississippi River D. Independence 1. The Constitution wasn t the first government the USA established. 2. Originally the colonies were ruled by a loose agreement called the. 3. The Articles of Confederation was an experiment in government that, it gave too much to the governments and not enough to the government.
9 2 CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION: AN OVERVIEW Road to Revolution When a certain great king, whose initial is G, Shall force stamps upon paper, and folks to drink tea; When these folks burn his tea and stamp paper, like stubble, You may guess that this king is then coming to trouble. Philip Freneau CAUSES FOR BREAKING WITH BRITAIN 1. ENGLAND S NEGLECT OF THE COLONIES 2. TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION 3. LIMITATION OF INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS CAUSES FOR BREAKING WITH BRITAIN 4. TAXATION 5. MERCANTILISM ENGLAND S ECONOMIC POLICY Gold in the treasury makes a nation strong. So, a nation must have more gold coming in than going out meaning, a favorable balance of trade Therefore, a nation must regulate its trade to sell more than it buys. Colonies exist for the trade benefits of the mother country. 6. TRADE RESTRICTIONS Britain regulated trade with the colonies for her own benefit through navigation, or shipping, laws that forced the colonists to trade mainly with Britain. 7. ECONOMIC POWER But England failed to enforce the navigation laws, and the colonists traded with whomever they pleased and made money doing so. 8. FREE ENTERPRISE The colonists grew accustomed to free enterprise (free, unrestricted trade). When Britain finally began enforcing too late! 119 Adventure Tales of America Vol. 1 http://www.signalmedia.com/adventure3/ SAISD Social Studies Department Page 5
Reasons for Revolution First Shots of the American Revolution at Lexington and Concord 1775 SAISD Social Studies Department Page 6
Declaration of Independence - Introduction 9 10 THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, JULY 4, 1776 Neither aiming at originality of principle or sentiment, nor yet copied from any particular and previous writing, it was intended to be an expression of the American mind... THOMAS JEFFERSON, AUTHOR OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; when a long train of abuses and usurpations...evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right...their duty, to throw off such government and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their form of government." THOMAS JEFFERSON that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it and to institute new government... Adventure Tales of America Vol. 1 appears on the next 2 pages. 133 The entire Declaration of Independence http://www.signalmedia.com/adventure3/ SAISD Social Studies Department Page 7
The Declaration of of Independence - - Introduction TWEET What you think each of the panels mean! SAISD Social Studies Department Page 8