The American Revolution
1776-1783
Patriots and Loyalists
• At the beginning of 1776 most colonists
were not patriots or loyalists. Most were
conflicted and didn’t know what course of
action they should take.
Common Sense
• Written by Thomas Paine in 1776
• 50 page pamphlet giving reasons why the
colonies should be independent from
Britain.
• Sold 500,000 copies in six months.
• Ridiculed rule by kings.
• Persuaded many Americans to become
patriots.
Common Sense
Virginia’s Resolution
In May 1776, Virginia authorized it’s delegates to to
support independence.
Richard Henry Lee introduced the famous ‘Virginia
Resolution”
It proclaimed that “these United Colonies are, and of
right ought to be, free and independent states.”
The Declaration of Independence
• Before voting on the resolution a committee
Was formed to draw up a statement stating the
reasons for independence.
Members of the committee were Thomas
Jefferson, Ben Franklin, John Adams,
Roger Sherman, and Phillip Livingston.
Jefferson was the primary author.
The Declaration of Independence
• The Declaration has a preamble and three
main parts.
• The preamble is another word for
introduction.
• It starts “When in the course of human
events, it becomes necessary for one people
to dissolve the political bands that
connected them with another….”
Natural Rights
• This section states some general ideas about
society. It was based on the work of John Locke,
an Enlightenment philosopher.
• The idea is that all men were created with rights
given to them by the creator, not by a king.
• States that rights are unalienable- which means
they cannot be taken away.
• It states that all men are equal.
• It states that the government’s responsibility is to
protect these unalienable rights.
List of Grievances
• States all of the reasons why the colonies
want to be free. It states all the ways that the
king mistreated the colonists.
• This is the longest part of the Declaration.
• Page 176 and 177 in the book.
Dissolving the Bonds
• Declares that the colonies are free and
independent states.
• The document ends with a solemn pledge:
• “With a firm reliance on the protection of
Divine Providence, we mutually pledge our
Lives, Fortunes, and Sacred Honor.”
Impact of the Declaration
• The Declaration changed the nature of the
war. Colonists were now fighting for the
independence of their country and no longer
for better treatment.
• Ideas from the Declaration still inspires us
today. i.e. All men are created equal, and
the idea of natural rights.