APUSH Period 3

1754 - Ben Franklin publishes “Join or Die” cartoon & Albany Congress

• Cartoon helped convey importance of colonial unity

• proposed the creation of a unified colonial government with a president-general appointed by the Crown and a grand council elected by the colonial assemblies. The plan aimed to promote colonial unity and cooperation in matters of defense and trade.

• not fully adopted or implemented 

1754 - 1763 - Seven Years War

• Dispute over Ohio River Valley & French building forts like Ft. Duquesne

• George Washington was sent to secure land but ran into French troops

• Resulted in Treaty of Paris which allowed British to displace French on the continent → Natives were left to deal with the more hostile British 

  • Pontiac's Rebellion as a result of English encroachment

• War debts increased control on colonies

• Colonists unimpressed with British military & British unimpressed with lack of colonial unity

1763 - Proclamation of 1763

• Response to Pontiac's Rebellion: forbid settlement west of appalachian mts to prevent conflicts with Natives but colonists settled anyway

1764 - Sugar Act

• First law passed by parliament to raise tax revenue for Britain

• Increased duties on foreign sugar from West Indies

• Indirect tax – levied on goods at the point of importation, rather than directly on the colonists themselves. 

1765 - The Stamp Act (and Stamp Act Congress)

• Purpose was to raise revenues to support new military force in Britain

• Mandated the use of stamped paper that certified payment of tax

• Stamps were required on bills of sale, commercial and legal documents

• Stamp Act Congress included 27 delegates from colonies was a step towards intercolonial unity

  • Nonimportation agreements against British goods

  • "Declaration of Rights and Grievances"  protested taxation without representation → Parliament argued colonists had “Virtual representation”

• Stamp Act repealed

1766 - Declaratory Act

• Purpose was to support British tax policies after the repeal of the Stamp Act → Stated that British authority to to tax was same in America as in Britain

1767 - Townshend Acts

• “Champagne Charley” Townshend  (British Chancellor of the Exchequer) promised to “pluck feathers from colonial goose” and persuaded Parliament to pass Townshend Acts

• Import duty on glass, lead, paper, paint, and tea

• Indirect customs duty payable at American ports

• Non importation agreements revived

• Smuggled tea at cheap prices in response

• In response to the colonial protests and the economic impact of the boycotts, Parliament repealed most of the duties imposed by the Townshend Acts in 1770, except for the tax on tea.

1770 - Boston Massacre

• British officials landed to regiments of troops in Boston

• Crowd threw snowballs as squad of Redcoats → soldiers fired into the crowd, killing five colonists (incl. Crispus Attucks) and wounding several others. 

• The massacre served as a rallying cry for the Patriot cause and galvanized opposition to British rule → image by Paul Revere

1774 - Boston Tea Party and Intolerable Acts

• Nonimportation was weakening because taxed tea was now cheaper than smuggled tea

• British East India company burdened with pounds of unsold tea, fear of bankruptcy

  • Assisted with award of complete monopoly of American tea business

• American principle more important than price

• In Philadelphia and New York, demonstrations forced tea bearing ships to return to England

• Hundred bostonians dressed as Indians smashed 342 chests of tea and dumped it into Boston Harbor

• Intolerable Acts in response to tea party

  • Boston Port Act- closed harbor until damages were paid

  • Restrictions placed on town meetings

  • New Quartering Act- gave local authorities power to lodge British soldiers anywhere 

  • Quebec Act- old boundaries of province of Quebec extended southward to Ohio River

1774 - First Continental Congress

• In response to Intolerable Acts

• Each colony except Georgia sent representatives including Samuel Adams, John Adams, George Washington, Patrick Henry

• More of a convention rather than legislative meeting

• Created The Association which called for complete boycott of British goods → Violators of association were tarred and feathered

1775 - Shot Heard Round the World 

• At Lexington, colonial “minutemen” refused to disperse and shots were fired → Redcoats pushed into Concord but forced to retreat

• Second Continental Congress wrote “Olive Branch Petition” but King George III rejected it & claimed the colonies were in a state of rebellion

1776 - Thomas Paine’s Common Sense

• Argued for independence from Britain and creation of democratic republic

• Influenced support for American Revolution

• Used Enlightenment ideas such as natural rights & republicanism 

• Written in simple vocabulary to appeal to all people

1776 - Declaration of Independence

• Second Continental Congress appointed a committee to prepare a more formal statement of separation to justify rebellion to the world & rally support of the people

• First section: general principles – “unalienable rights:” life, liberty & pursuit of happiness. “All men are created equal,” consent of the governed, and right to overthrow a tyrannical government.

• Second section: list of grievances against Britain

  • taxed by a parliament in which they had no representation

  • military occupation – threat to their liberty

  • suspension of trial by jury, the quartering of troops in private homes, and the obstruction of trade

1776-7 - Victories at Trenton and Princeton

• Battle of Trenton - Washington crossed the icy Delaware River on Christmas  → surprised and captured 1000 Hessians

• Battle of Princeton - defeated British forces under Cornwallis

• Boosted American morale

1777 - Battle of Saratoga

• Turning point in war → French aid after this battle (saw America had a chance to win)

• British wanted to capture Hudson River Valley

  • Burgoyne's campaign began well, with his forces capturing Fort Ticonderoga in July 1777. However, his progress was slowed by difficult terrain, supply shortages, and stiffening American resistance.

  • Burgoyne was surrounded & forced to surrender to Horatio Gates

1777 - Articles of Confederation

• Fear of repeating British tyranny → overcorrection & too weak central government

  • Congress (only branch)  could not tax

  • No executive branch

  • Each state has a single vote

  • All bills required support of 9 states

  • Amendment required unanimous ratification

  • No power to regulate commerce

  • States free to establish different laws regarding commerce

1777-78 - Winter at Valley Forge

• Severe winter → 11,000 soldiers stationed to Valley Forge and many died of disease; Washington began smallpox inoculation

• Despite the difficult conditions, the soldiers received training and discipline under the guidance of Baron von Steuben, a Prussian military officer who helped to improve the army's organization and tactics.

1781 - Battle of Yorktown

• British General Cornwallis established a base at Yorktown, Virginia, where he believed he could secure reinforcements and supplies and launch raids against the southern colonies.

• Washington, with the support of French forces under Rochambeau, devised a plan to trap Cornwallis at Yorktown and force his surrender.

• The British, cut off from reinforcements and supplies, were unable to break the siege and were gradually worn down by the bombardment 

• Last decisive victory → Treaty of Paris (1783)

1787 - Northwest Ordinance

• Under Articles of Confederation: Forbid slavery in Old Northwest

• With Land Ordinance, est. a method by which territories would be admitted to union

1787 - Shays’ Rebellion 

• Poor farmers were losing farms through mortgage foreclosures and tax delinquencies → demanded that the state issue paper money, lighten taxes and suspend property takeovers

• No national military to quell rebellion → private militia raised by wealthy citizens fearing anarchy

• Boosted Hamilton and Federalist cause for stronger federal government

1787-8- Federalist Papers published

• Collection of essays written by Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay

• Urged ratification of Constitution by addressing concerns of anti-Federalists and highlighting the need for a stronger national framework to maintain order and protect individual rights.

1788 - Ratification of the Constitution 

• Creates a stronger government with three branches to avoid tyranny & promised to add a Bill of Rights because Anti-Federalists demanded it

• Great Compromise: Senate equal representation (Small State/New Jersey Plan) and House based on population (Large State/Virginia Plan) 

• ⅗ Compromise: 3 of 5 enslaved people counted for purposes of taxation & representation

1790 - Hamilton’s Economic Plan

• Funding at par - assume debts incurred by the states during the war

  • Wanted to build national credit

• Customs duties from a tariff – 8% duty on imports

• Whiskey excise tax → hurt farmers

• National bank - powerful private institution

  • Government would be major stockholder

  • Federal funds would stimulate business

  • Bank would provide stable national currency

1792 - 2-Party System begins 

• Started with James Madison and Thomas Jefferson in disagreement with Hamilton's ideas and programs

• Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans vs. Hamiltonian Federalists

1794 - Whiskey Rebellion

• Challenged new national government over Hamilton’s high excise tax 

• Slogan: “Liberty and no excise” → tarring and feathering of excise officers

• Washington personally led the militia into western Pennsylvania, where they faced little resistance from the rebels, who dispersed before the militia's arrival. → successful suppression of the rebellion helped to establish its authority and legitimacy.

1795- Jay’s Treaty

• required British forces to withdraw from forts they still occupied in the Northwest Territory

• established favorable trade relations between the United States and Great Britain, granting American ships the right to trade with British colonies in the Caribbean & to compensate American merchants for seized ships

• Critics, including Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, argued that it was too favorable to Great Britain and did not go far enough in addressing American grievances.

1796 - Washington’s Farewell Address

• Advised avoidance of “permanent alliances” & supported neutrality

• Warned against political parties

• Set precedent for 2 term presidency

1797 - The Adams Presidency 

• XYZ Affair - French began to seize defenseless American merchant vessels

  • Adams tried to reach an agreement with French → Secretly approached by 3 go agents who asked for a bribe as a condition for opening negotiations

  • Americans enraged → “Millions for defense; not a cent for tribute”

• Alien and Sedition Acts - laws targeted at pro-Jeffersonian “aliens”

  • Alien Act: Congress raised residence requirements for aliens who desired to be citizens

    • Violated open door hospitality and assimilation → could deport “dangerous” foreigners

  • Sedition Act:  limited freedom of speech and press → Anyone who impeded policy of gov or falsely defamed officials could be punished-fines or imprisonment

    • Jefferson & Madison wrote Virginia & Kentucky Resolutions