Causes of the American Revolution

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Causes of the American Revolution

• SSUSH3 The student will explain the primary
  causes of the American Revolution.
• a. Explain how the end of Anglo-French imperial
  competition as seen in the French and Indian War
  and the 1763 Treaty of Paris laid the groundwork
  for the American Revolution.
• b. Explain colonial response to such British
  actions as the Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp
  Act, and the Intolerable Acts as seen in Sons
  and Daughters of Liberty and Committees of
  Correspondence.
• c. Explain the importance of Thomas Paines
  Common Sense to the movement for independence.

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French Indian War

• Great Britain and France arch enemies
• Began to fight over land (Ohio River Valley) in
  North America.
• Most Indians supported the fur trading French
  because the French only built forts and not
  permanent settlements.
• In the end, British win!!!

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1763 Treaty of Paris

• Ended the French and Indian War.
• Forced France to give up all land claims in N.
  America east of the Mississippi River (with the
  exception of New Orleans).
• Gave G. Britain total control over all American
  colonies. Took away salutary neglect
• Colonists objected to the loss of control over
  their own affairs. Tensions grew.

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Growing Tensions

• King George III of England issued the
  Proclamation of 1763 which forbade Americans to
  settle in the lands west of the Appalachian
  Mountains. Rationale the British soldiers
  couldnt protect the colonists if they moved out
  there.
• Parliament (British lawmaking body) began to pass
  laws to tax the colonist in order to pay for the
  cost of keeping an army in America.

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The Taxation Acts

• The King of England started taxing the colonists
  in the form of Taxation Acts in 1764.
• He felt that the colonists should bear the burden
  of the expense of maintaining the colonies.

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The Sugar, Stamp Declaratory Acts

• The Sugar Act was the first law passed by the
  King of England that over taxed the colonists on
  goods shipped to the colonies.
• The Stamp Act was another taxation law on the
  colonists. This act taxed newspapers, almanacs,
  legal documents, pamphlets, dice, and playing
  cards.
• Stamp Act repealed, but replaced with the
  Declaratory Act which said Parliament had the
  right to make all laws for the colonies.

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Colonial Resistance

• Secret patriotic group Sons of Liberty is
  formed. Led by Sam Adams.
• Tactics used threats and demonstrations
• Daughters of Liberty began to boycott British
  goods
• First example of the colonies really uniting

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The Boston Massacre

• The Boston Massacre a conflict between the
  British soldiers and colonists that occurred on
  March 5, 1770.
• The soldiers opened fire on an unfriendly crowd
  of colonists after they started throwing things
  at the soldiers.
• This resulted in the death of 3 Americans.
  (Crispus Attucks)
• Several state assemblies then created Committees
  of Correspondence whose job was to secretly get
  information about opposition to the British out
  the all of the colonies

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The Boston Tea Party

• The Boston Tea Party occurred on December 16,
  1773.
• Unhappy with the Tea Act imposed by Great
  Britain, the colonists (Sons of Liberty) dressed
  as Mohawk Indians boarded ships in Boston Harbor
  loaded with tea. They dumped the tea and the
  crates into the water.

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Intolerable Acts

• Real Name Coercive Acts Issued as punishment for
  the Boston Tea Party
• Closed Boston Harbor
• Disallowed local elections local political
  jobs.
• Stated that any British official who broke the
  law in the colonies would be tried in England
  not the colonies.
• Also, forced the colonists to quarter British
  soldiers in their homes.

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Reaction to the Intolerable Acts

• No taxation without representation!
• First Continental Congress forms colonial
  militias
• Colonists boycott British tea and all other
  British goods
• Created a huge push toward revolution.

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Thomas Paine Common Sense

• A 50 page pamphlet that said it was time for the
  colonies to break away from England
• Called for a republican form of government under
  a written constitution
• Had a BIG impact on convincing people it was time
  for a revolution.

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Shots fired at Lexington and Concord

• This was first battle in the War of Independence,
  April 1775
• British General Thomas Gage sent 700 soldiers to
  destroy the guns and ammunition the colonists had
  stored in the town of Concord, just outside of
  Boston. They also planned to arrest Samuel Adams
  and John Hancock
• Colonials and the Redcoats met along the way and
  fighting began.
• Shot heard around the world

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The Road to Revolution

• The French and Indian War, the Taxation Acts, the
  Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and the
  Intolerable Acts were the five main causes that
  lead to the American Revolution.

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The American Revolution

• SSUSH4 The student will identify the ideological,
  military, and diplomatic aspects of the American
  Revolution.
• a. Explain the language, organization, and
  intellectual sources of the Declaration of
  Independence include the writing of John Locke
  and Montesquieu, and the role of Thomas
  Jefferson.
• b. Explain the reason for and significance of the
  French alliance and foreign assistance and the
  roles of Benjamin Franklin and the Marquis de
  Lafayette.
• c. Analyze George Washington as a military
  leader include the creation of a professional
  military and the life of a common soldier, and
  describe the significance of the crossing of the
  Delaware River and Valley Forge.
• d. Explain Yorktown, the role of Lord Cornwallis,
  and the Treaty of Paris, 1783.

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Independence Declared
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Enlightenment John Locke

• Social Contract Theory governments are formed
  with the consent of citizens.
• The most important rights are Life, Liberty, and
  Property.
• The state exists only to protect these rights.
• If a government fails in this task, citizens
  should rebel against it and create a government
  that will protect them.

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The Declaration of Independence

• Written by Thomas Jefferson, taken from the ideas
  of Franklin, Locke, Montesquieu, Adams, and
  others.
• Helped to convince the colonists that American
  independence was supported by the ideas of
  important men.
• Natural Rights Life, Liberty, and the pursuit
  of Happiness.

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The Declaration of Independence

• Jefferson planned and wrote the Declaration and
  divided it into several parts each part having a
  specific theme and purpose

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Declaration of Independence

• Part 1 Preamble Introduction
• Part 2 The reasons for seeking independence
• Part 3 Examples of how King George III had
  violated the rights of the colonists.
• Part 4 Declaring Independence controlling
  their own government.

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Loyalists or Tories

• Not everyone was ready to declare independence.
• Colonists who wanted to remain loyal to Great
  Britain were called Loyalists or Tories

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George Washington the Continental Army

• Serving unselfishly without pay and at great
  personal risk throughout the American Revolution,
  Washington triumphed against all odds overcoming
  the most powerful nation on earth.

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Life for the Common Soldier

• Poorly disciplined at first Washington worked
  to train them
• Little to no supplies. Soldiers often brought
  their own guns
• Army had problems providing wages, housing, food,
  clothing, and equipment.

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Crossing the Delaware to Trenton

• It was Christmas, and the Hessians (German
  mercenaries) were on the other side of the
  Delaware River drunk
• Washington leads a surprise early morning attack
  and is successful!
• Victory boosts the troops morale.

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Valley Forge, Pa.

• 1777-1778 12,000 soldiers - extreme cold winter
• Soldiers had very little food, winter clothes,
  blankets, etc. Some even wrapped rags around
  their feet because they had no shoes.
• Washington continued to train the men and turned
  them into a strong army.

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French Alliance

• Benjamin Franklin, ambassador to France,
  convinced the French to support the Continental
  Army
• The Marquis de Lafayette, a prominent French
  citizen friend of Washington volunteered to
  assist the Americans.
• He provided military assistance and played a
  major role in the American Revolution

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American Victory

• Last battle of the Revolution Battle of Yorktown
  in 1781
• Lord Cornwallis, leader of the British troops was
  forced to surrender after his army was surrounded
  by French and American forces.

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Treaty of Paris

• Formally ended the War
• Gave freedom to all 13 colonies
• Established boundaries between British North
  America and the United States with the U.S.
  gaining fishing rights off the coast of Canada.
• Restored land to loyalists
• Released POWs on both sides

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Role of Others in the Struggle
Women
served as nurses, spies, or messengers ran farms
or businesses some fought in battles
Men
many volunteered for army
American Indians
African Americans
fought on both sides but many remained neutral
many fought for British to gain freedom free
African Americans were allowed to join patriots