THE AMERICAN
REVOLUTION
Define Revolution
An overthrow or replacement of an established government
by the people being governed.
I. Causes of the Revolution
A. French and Indian War (Seven Years War)
1. France, Spain, Indians VS England – England wins
2. Both Britons and Colonists, fought, died, and paid for
the war.
B. Treaty of Paris (1763)
1. The British gained control over the area west of the 13
British Colonies to the Mississippi River.
2. The French agreed to no longer support any colonies
in North America
3. Colonists are proud to be British subjects and thought
they would be able to expand to the west without
opposition
So we all lived happily ever after … RIGHT?
C. Proclamation of 1763
1. The proclamation, in
effect, closed off the
frontier to colonial
expansion
2. Colonists could not
settle west of the
Appalachian mountains
3.The King presented the proclamation as a measure to calm the
fears of the Indians, who felt that the colonists would drive them
from their lands as they expanded westward
4. Colonists felt that the object was to pen them in along the
Atlantic seaboard where they would be easier to regulate
Their Prize had been taken from them … SO what would you do??
B. Taxation Without Representation
1. The Sugar Act (1764)
a. England began enforcing a tax on molasses (used to m
b. Smugglers go to trial in England’s courts
2. Stamp Act (1765)
a. Tax on all printed material
3. Townsend Act (1767)
a. Tax on imported goods like coffee, tea, wine, glass, and pa
4. Tea Act (1773) – the last straw
a. Told colonists they could only buy tea from the
East India Tea Company – a British company
b. Colonists did not like being told where they could
buy tea, even though it made their tea cheaper.
WRITING ASSINGMENT – PUT IT RIGHT IN YOUR NOTES:
Imagine you are a colonist in the 1773, you are suddenly
confronted with a lot of extra rules and taxes. Create a
magazine ad that expresses how you feel about England and
their new rules. In your ad you will need to tell your fellow
colonists about these new laws, how they effect their lives, and
what they can do about it. Make them JUMP out a people, this
is an ad.
2. The Boston Tea Party (1773)
a. The Sons of Liberty – a group in Boston trying to stir
people to action against Britain – they often used violence
and intimidation to accomplish their goal.
b. Sons of Liberty dress up like Indians and throw 342
chests of tea into the Boston Harbor
WRITING ASSINGMENT:
You are a member of the
Sons of Liberty and you
have just participated in the
Boston Tea Party or the
Boston Massacre. Write a
letter to a friend in Georgia
telling them about what
happened and why it
happened and England’s
reaction. Include specific
details about the event – be
creative, make it fun to
read. AT LEAST ONE
PAGE!
D. Actions of the Colonists
1. The Boston Massacre
a. Frightened British soldiers fired into a crowd of angry
Boston citizens – 5 dead, 6 wounded.
Colonial Response to the British actions
Stamp Act (1765): a British tax on most
printed material- was the first direct tax
on the colonies.
Sons of Liberty(1765) organized protest
meetings and intimidated tax collectors led to the formation of the Stamp Act
Congress which sent a petition to King
George
Townshend Acts (1767): tax on certain
imported goods (indirect tax)
The Daughters of Liberty and the Sons
of Liberty both organize effective
boycotts of British goods
The British repeal the Stamp Act in 1766
England’s reaction – The Intolerable Acts
1. Boston Port Act
a. England closed the Boston port until the Tea was paid
for
2. Massachusetts Government Act
a. Massachusetts cannot elect officials or hold meetings
without approval of Royal Governor
3. The Quartering Act (1774)
a. All colonists are required to house and feed British
soldiers
Arguments against British laws
1. Consent of the governed
a. Governments can rule only as long as citizens
agree to be ruled.
2. Representative government
a. People have a right to elect people to represent
them and make decisions that effect their lives.
3. Limited government
a. People have natural rights government can’t take away
b. Such as life, liberty and property
Declaration of Independence
• The document’s ideas
can be traced to several
philosophies:
John Locke:
-believed people were born with
certain natural rights (life, liberty
and property)
-that the people and the
government have a “contract”
-people had the right to overthrow a
government if it did not uphold its
end of the contract
Declaration of Independence
• Montesquieu
-French philosopher
-Wrote of three types of political
power (executive, legislative, and
judicial)
-Separation of power and checks and
balances
Declaration of Independence
• Made up of 5 parts:
-The Preamble which explains -Resolution of Independence
the purpose of the document which declares that the colonies are
-Declaration of Natural Rights
free from Britain
which is taken almost directly
-Signers declared that they, as
from Locke (Life, Liberty, and
representatives of the colonies
the pursuit of Happiness)
approved the document
-List of Grievances which list the
colonists’ complaints against
Britain
WhyBenjamin
didn’t the
Franklin,
declaration
Thomas
say Jefferson,
anything about
& John
slavery?
Adams
Declaration of Independence
• The signing of the Declaration of
Independence signaled the beginning of
the American Revolutionary War
C. More on the declaration of independence
1. The declaration included the following ideas:
a. All men are created equal
b. Everyone is born with certain right, such as life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
c. Government gets its power from the people
d. The people can get rid of a government they no
longer approve of.
D. Where did these ideas come from?
Look back in your notes, match these ideas from the
Declaration of Independence with the arguments
against British rule as well as specific people and
their beliefs.
II. Revolution – time for action.
A. Battle of Lexington and Concord
1. British troops try to destroy patriot military supplies.
2. Colonial messengers alert minutemen who go to
Concord to fight the British Redcoats
3. First battle of War for Independence
a. Colonial victory
B. Second Continental Congress (May 1775)
1. Delegates from all colonies meet to decide what to do
a. Would it be war or peace?
2. July 4, 1776 – Declaration of Independence
Signing of the Declaration of Independence
III. Georgia in the Revolution
A. Whigs (patriots) vs. Tories (loyalists)
1. Most Whigs lived in the backcountry and had been in
Georgia longer
2. Most Tories lived on the coast and relied on England
for trade.
B. Savannah held by British troops for most of the war.
1. Whigs controlled Georgia from 1776 - 1778
2. British troops took Georgia in 1778 and held it until
the end of the war (1783)
3. Siege of Savannah
a. In 1779 a group of patriots and French soldiers
tried to retake Savannah
b. The siege failed after 3 weeks – British troops
lost 150 men, Americans and French lost 1,000
- Count Casmir Pulaski was killed in a cavalry charge.
IV. End of War
A. Treaty of Paris 1783
1. British General Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown
NOW … the newly freed STATES had to deal with a whole
new set of problems …