unit 2 american revolution

11th us history

Why did the British Parliament pass the Stamp Act (1765)?

- To increase revenue from the colonies
- To pay the debt for the French and Indian War and for all the other European wars that were happening at the same time.

How did the colonists respond to the Stamp Act?

- Colonists organized the Sons of Liberty (Samual Adams) and the Daughters of Liberty
- they held the Stamp Act Congress and the Albany Plan of Union (first step towards colonial unity)

Who were the Sons and Daughters of Liberty?

Sons of Liberty: Male colonists who protested violently by harassing tax collectors by pouring hot tar on them and feathering them or pouring hot tea down their throats.

Daughters of Liberty: Female colonists who protested peacefully by boycotting British goods and making them theirselves. They also used teapots with a message on the side basically saying, "no more Stamp Act".

How did Britain act upon the colonists' protests against the Stamp Act?

They repealed the Stamp Act, but also passed the Declaratory Act, which stated that Britain could do whatever they wanted to the colonists ("no matter what, we're in charge" mindset).

Why did the British pass the Townshend Act (1767)?

- To increase revenue for the mother country
- This act was all about getting the money

How did the colonists respond to the Townshend Act?

Did all the same things from the Stamp Act: protested, boycotted British goods, etc
- They thought, "It worked for the Stamp Act, so why not try now."

How did Britain act upon the colonists' protests against the Townshend Act?

- They began strictly enforcing the laws
\---\> even began stationing soldiers in Boston to enforce the Acts
- In the end, they eventually repealed most of the taxes, except for the one on tea

Why did the British pass the Tea Act (1773)?

- To save the BEIC from bankruptcy
\----\> Many members of Parliament had a financial stake in the BEIC, so they didn't want it to fail

How did the colonists respond to the Tea Act?

- they dumped 15,000 lbs. of tea (that belonged to private property) into the sea
\---\> known as the Boston Tea Party

How did Britain act upon the colonists' protests against the Tea Act?

They passed the Coercive Acts (aka Intolerable Acts by the colonists)

Why did the British pass the Intolerable Acts (1774)?

To punish Boston, Massachusetts, for the Boston Tea Party

How did the colonists respond to the Intolerable Acts?

- They convened the First Continental Congress (in Philadelphia)
- began stockpiling weapons in Concord, MA
- through the committees of correspondence, they began to gather the support from other colonies (except Georgia)

How did Britain act upon the colonists' protests against the Intolerable Acts?

- Marched troops to the arsenal at Concord (knew weapons were there through spies)
- Met the colonists at Lexington ("the shot heard 'round the world", start of the revolution)

What are all the acts and protests in order (hint: there are seven)?

1. Stamp Act in 1765
2. Townshend Act in 1767
3. The Boston Massacre in 1770
4. Tea Act in 1773
5. Boston Tea Party in 1773
6. Intolerable Acts in 1774
7. Battle at Lexington and Concord in 1775

Why did Britain and France fight in the French and Indian War?

- for land (more specifically, the fertile lands of the Ohio River Valley)
- wanted to expand their empires
- they were already fighting in Europe, brought it to America

Why did the British colonies fight in the French and Indian War?

- wanted to expand their colonies into the Ohio River Valley because the land there was very fertile with natural resources that were VERY valuable
- their strong loyalty to Great Britain (at the time)

Why did the Native Americans fight in the French and Indian War?

The ones who fought for Great Britain: wanted military alliances
The ones who fought for France: if they won, the westward settlement of the English would stop or slow

What did Britain gain as a result of the French and Indian War?

- Canada and basically all of North America east of the Mississippi River
- World domination (which gave them a target on their back)

What did Britain lose as a result of the French and Indian War?

- lives
- respect from their American colonies
- lots and lots of MONEY (so they taxed the Americans :P)

What did the colonies gain as a result of the French and Indian War?

- supposed access to what had been the French's territory (ORV)
- unity among the colonies (sort of)
\---\> "Join or Die" picture wasn't the best, but it was the first step towards unity (Albany Plan of Union)

What did the colonies lose as a result of the French and Indian War?

- lives
- profits from trade
- some rights that were commonly held by British subjects (ex: representation in Parliament)

What did France lose as a result of the French and Indian War?

- lives
- All their American territories other than a few small islands and fishing locations in the Caribbean and Canada

What did the French and Indian War cost the Native Americans?

- lives
- the alliance friendship, and trade partnership with the French
- protection from Great Britain
- protection from westward expansion of the Americans

What did the 2nd Continental Congress do to bring about peace?

- sent the Olive Branch Petition to King George III
- pleads with the king to intervene with Parliament and bring CALM and PEACE to the colonies
- he rejects them and says it was an act of treason to come to him directly in the first place

What does the 2nd Continental Congress do to prepare for war (the revolution)?

- Establishes the Continental Army (appointed Washington to lead it)
- Authorizes the printing of paper money to pay soldiers with
- Creates a foreign relations committee (to secure foreign alliances)

What are the main ideas/ arguments of Common Sense? Who wrote it?

- American colonies must break away from the Crown and become independent
- The colonists have the natural right to rule themselves
- called KGIII a tyrant
Author: Thomas Paine

What is the purpose of a formal Declaration of Independence?

The colonists needed to explain to Britain and to the rest of the world the reasons for their actions.

What are the three parts of the Declaration of Independence?

1. Justification for colonial actions
2. Evidence of their grievances
3. putting their "lives, fortunes, and sacred honors to it"

What are the main ideas of the Declaration of Independence?

- people have inalienable rights (unable to be taken, given by the Creator, God): Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness
- government gets power to govern from the people it governs, and in return, it has to protect the people
\---\> social contract (people are able to kick someone out of the government if they aren't protecting the people)

Who was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson

Where did Jefferson get his ideas and philosophies from?

From John Locke and his belief in the protection of life, liberty, and property, and the social contract

What was edited out of the Declaration of Independence draft?

Jefferson's attack on the slave trade

What is a patriot?

someone who favors independence rather than Great Britain's authority

What is a loyalist?

someone who is still loyal to the Crown living in the colonies in America

What was the deadliest battle of the revolution?

The Battle of Bunker Hill

What was the whole point of the revolution? What were the colonists sick of?

Taxation without representation, not being apart of what the Parliament decides

What is the Proclamation of 1763?

It was a proclamation by the British government that didn't allow any of the 13 colonies to cross the Appalachian Mountains (it was for the Native Americans).
- The colonists did it anyway and this is the first time they've defied British authority

With which side did the Native Americans generally fight?

British
- Britain had already shown that they'd protect the natives' land with the Proclamation of 1763, so the natives were hoping they'd still gain protection if Britain won

What were the Committees of Correspondence?

Groups formed by colonists in an attempt to communicate what was happening throughout the colonies. These committees were formed by the Sons of Liberty. Committees were present in each of the 13 colonies and provided a network of communication.

Who was Baron von Steuben?

- a Prussian general who helped train Continental army
- he also reorganized the camp in Valley Forge to make the conditions there SLIGHTLY better

Who was Marquis de Lafayette?

- French aristocrat
- military officer who fought in the American Revolutionary War
- BRILLIANT strategist (formed the plan for Yorktown)

Who was George Washington and why was he such a great leader?

- He was the commander of the Continental Army
\---\> chosen unanimously
- He was such a great leader because he spent the winter at Valley Forge with his troops, and he always was in the front of his troops in the battlefield

What was so significant about crossing the Delaware River?

GW and his troops set off on Christmas night in their boats in the winter to surprise attack the Hessians. The Hessians were all drunk and not ready to fight, so they beat them. This boosted the morale for the colonists

What is the Battle of Saratoga?

- it was the turning point of the war because France becomes an official ally to the colonists
- Americans outnumber and surround General Burgoyne
- they defeat him

What is the significance of the winter at Valley Forge (1777-1778)?

- it had awful living conditions
- smallpox infected the army
- frostbite killed a lot of men
- the only good thing was that Steuben came to train the soldiers and turned them into "lean, mean, fighting machines"

What is the significance of York River/ Yorktown/ Chesapeake Bay?

- Charles Cornwallis surrenders his army to the colonists
- British troops couldn't flee across the Chesapeake Bay because of French troops, and they were blocked in by the Continental Army

What was the Treaty of Paris (1783)?

- ended the war
- recognized America's independence
- established nation borders
\---\> from the South to Florida, from the North to Canada, from the West to the Mississippi River
- French got the short end of the stick: Colonists wouldn't have won the war without them, yet they proceeded to get no land from it.

What was the role of women?

- some fought on the battlefield and in the camps
- boycotted British goods
- worked as cooks, nurses, care-givers, spies

What was the Boston Massacre a response to?

The Townshend Acts, a response to stationing soldiers all over the place
Crispus Attucks was killed (freed slave)

What were the four acts of the Intolerable Acts?

1. Boston Port Act: closed the Boston Harbor
2. Massachusetts Government Act: replaced the elective local government with an appointive one and increased the powers of the military governor
3. Administration of Justice Act: protected British officials charged with capital offenses during law enforcement by allowing them to go to England or another colony for trial
4. Quartering Act: gave colonial governors the right to requisition unoccupied buildings to house British troops

What was the colonists' reaction to the Boston Massacre?

- used it for propaganda
- picture of the "bloody massacre" by Paul Revere (convinced to do it by Samual Adams (?))

What were some American advantages to the war?

- they had French support
- Motivated because they were fighting for a cause
- they had Washington as their leader
- they knew the land so they can sneak attack

What were some British advantages to the war?

- better weapons
- larger army
- more skilled soldiers
- could make their own weapons instead of buying them
- Had Hessians (however, they fought for cash, not cause, so they could walk out anytime they were tired of fighting)

What were some American disadvantages to the war?

- not as skilled
- worse weapons
- had to buy the weapons instead of make them (uses up money)
- fewer men
- fewer military leaders (GW was the only really GOOD one)

What were some British disadvantages to the war?

- unfamiliar about the land (prone to sneak attacks)
- Had to go all the way across the Atlantic Ocean to fight and to send materials

Treaty of Paris 1763

Ended the French and Indian War

Treaty of Paris 1783

Ended the Revolutionary War, recognized the independence of the American colonies, and granted the colonies the territory from the southern border of Canada to the northern border of Florida, and from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River