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The Second Continental Congress

• The Second Continental Congress met in June 1775.
• They decided to adopt the militia army around
  Boston and named it the Continental Army.
• They appointed General George Washington as
  commander of the new army.

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Bunker Hill

• The Battle of Bunker Hill took place in June
  1775.
• The colonists were able to turn back two British
  advances but were forced to retreat after they
  ran out of ammunition.

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• The Declaration of Independence was written to
  further the cause of the of the colonists fight
  with the mother country already in its second
  year.
• Although the Declaration was impelled by a
  decent respect to the opinions of mankind, it
  was really addressed to those within the colonies
  who remained loyal to the king or were
  uncommitted to the cause of independence.

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July 4, 1776

• The Declaration stated the principles of
  equality, the natural rights of life, liberty,
  and the pursuit of happiness, the purpose of
  government to secure those rights and the
  right of the people to alter or abolish
  government when natural rights are not protected
  by government.

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More on the Declaration

• The Declaration stated the King, not the
  Parliament, had violated the rights of the
  colonists.
• What He did broke the bonds between the King
  and his loyalists subjects.
• This caused the colonists to unify and form a new
  nation.

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• December 25-26, 1776 - On Christmas, George
  Washington takes 2400 of his men and re-crosses
  the Delaware River.
• Washington then conducts a surprise raid on 1500
  British-Hessians (German mercenaries) at Trenton,
  New Jersey.

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Trenton

• The Hessians surrender after an hour with nearly
  1000 taken prisoner by Washington who suffers
  only six wounded (including future president Lt.
  James Monroe). Washington reoccupies Trenton. The
  victory provides a much needed boost to the
  morale of all American Patriots.

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Saratoga

• October 7, 1777 - The Battle of Saratoga results
  in the first major American victory of the
  Revolutionary War as Gen. Horatio Gates and Gen.
  Benedict Arnold defeat Gen. Burgoyne, inflicting
  600 British casualties. American losses are only
  150.

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Saratoga

• The American victory at Saratoga was the turning
  point of the war.
• It improved American morale and also convinced
  France to commit troops to the American cause.

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Guerilla Warfare

• The militias were poorly trained and fought
  differently.
• They did not always line up for battle. They
  sometimes hid behind trees and walls.
• Hit and run tactics.
• This is known as Guerrilla warfare.

Francis Marion
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Yorktown

• Washington pinned Cornwallis between the
  Continental Army and the Atlantic Ocean (on a
  peninsula).
• The French proved to be invaluable because of
  their naval force.
• Yorktown effectively ended the Revolutionary War.
  

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The Treaty of Paris

• Signed in 1783.
• Britain officially recognized US independence.
• The Mississippi River became the US western
  border.

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A New Nation

• The Declaration also had an impact on the newly
  formed state governments and the Articles of
  Confederation government that Americans
  established immediately after signing the
  Declaration.

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The Articles of Confederation

• The Continental Congress adopted the Articles of
  Confederation in November 1777.
• The Articles established a weak central
  government.
• The states had spent several years fighting for
  independence (and would spend many more) from
  Britain and did not want to give up that
  independence to a central government that may
  become tyrannical.

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The Articles of Confederation

• The Confederation Congress could declare war,
  raise armies, and sign treaties.
• It could not impose taxes and could not regulate
  trade.

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The Articles of Confederation

• These governments (states) relied heavily on the
  role of the legislature and severely limited the
  executive power.
• Many states included their own list or
  declaration of rights.
• Example Virginia granted freedom of speech and
  religion, the right to bear arms, and the right
  to a trial by jury.

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Postwar America

• In the postwar period Americans began to put the
  principles of the Declaration into practice.
• States in the North passed laws that provided for
  the gradual emancipation of slaves.

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• The principles expressed in the Declaration
  remained unfulfilled for certain groups and the
  idea that all men are created equal that they
  are endowed by their Creator with certain
  inalienable rightsto life, liberty, and the
  pursuit of happiness has been a rallying cry for
  those denied their rights throughout American
  history.

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World Wide Impact

• The Declaration of Independence not only impacted
  the colonists fight with the mother country but
  its principles had a worldwide impact.
• The French Declaration of the Rights of Man and
  the Citizen was modeled on the American
  Declaration of Independence and led to
  revolutionary movements throughout Europe in the
  1800s.

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World Wide Impact

• Revolutions in Latin America in the 1800s and
  countless groups fighting for the right to life,
  liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and
  justifying the overthrow of corrupt governments
  have cited the American Declaration of
  Independence.