American Revolution Era,
1775 - 1783
Taxation without Representation
Boston Massacre
Boston Tea Party
Unalienable Rights
Battles of Lexington and Concord,
Saratoga, and Yorktown
Declaration of Independence
Articles of Confederation
1776
*Adoption of the Declaration of
Independence
*Main Author: Thomas Jefferson
*Committee Included: Ben Franklin,
John Adams, Roger Livingston
*“Common Sense”
Written by: Thomas Paine
Causes of the American
Revolution
Proclamation of 1763
Stamp Act
Intolerable Acts
Mercantilism
Lack of representation in Congress
British economic policies following the French and Indian War
Proclamation of 1763
*British Parliament law; colonists were
forbidden to settle west of the
Appalachian Mountains, *Britain
wanted a buffer zone between the
colonists and the Native Americans,
but the colonists wanted to settle the
fertile Ohio River Valley
Stamp Act, 1765
Required all legal documents and
papers have an official stamp showing
that a tax had been paid.
British used this to generate revenue
to help cover the cost of the French
and Indian War;
colonists reacted by rioting through
groups such as the Sons of Liberty;
Stamp Act Congress meets in October,
1765, to take action and ask
Parliament to repeal the act
Coercive / Intolerable
Acts, 1774
Closed the port of Boston until tea was
paid for
Restructured Massachusetts
government by taking away local
control
Troops were quartered in Boston and
British officials accused of crimes
were sent to England or Canada for
trial
Colonists reacted by boycotting British
goods
First Continental Congress is formed,
September, 1774
Mercantilism
A system by which a nation increases
its wealth and power by obtaining
from its colonies gold, silver, and other
raw materials.
It includes a favorable balance of
trade.
The colonies became a source of raw
materials for the mother country
(England.)
The colonies are expected to be the
purchasers of manufactured goods
from the mother country.
Belief that a colony exists for the
economic benefit of the mother
country.
Taxation without
Representation
Since the formation of the colonies,
the colonists had set up their own
legislative assemblies.
Colonists were unhappy about
Britain’s insistence on the supremacy
of Parliament (taxation).
The debate turned into one regarding
representation in Britain’s law-making
body (Parliament).
Britain argued that the colonies had
“virtual representation.”
Abigail Adams
Wife of John Adams
Served as John Adams’ confidant and
support while he served in the
Continental Congress, when John and
others were considering a declaration
of independence.
Abigail reminded him to “remember
the ladies”; take care of the women
who could not hold themselves bound
by laws in which they had no voice.
Advocate for women’s rights.
John Adams
Lawyer and politician
Defended the British soldiers after the
Boston Massacre
A member of the Continental
Congress (representing
Massachusetts)
Strong supporter of independence
Member of the committee that wrote
the Declaration of Independence
Wentworth Cheswell
African American Patriot
Like Paul Revere, he made an all-night
ride back from Boston to warn his
community tof the impending British
invasion
Served in the Continental Army
Fought at the Battle of Saratoga
Sam Adams
American Patriot
Played a role in many of the events
which contributed to the Revolution
Including: Sons of Liberty, organized
opposition to the Stamp Act and the
Boston Massacre
Member of the Continental Congress
(representing Massachusetts)
Cousin to John Adams
Mercy Otis Warren
Wife of a Massachusetts Patriot
Anonymously wrote several
propaganda pieces supporting the
Patriot cause
James Armistead
*Slave in Virginia
*Marquis de Lafayette recruited him as
a spy for the Continental Army.
*Posed as a double agent, forger and
servant at British headquarters.
*He moved freely between the lines
with vital information on British troop
movements for Lafayette
*Contributed to the American victory
at Yorktown.
Benjamin Franklin
*Spent most of the time during the
American Revolution in France.
*He represented the colonies as the
American envoy starting in 1776 and
returned in 1785 member of the
committee that wrote the Declaration
of Independence.
.
*He negotiated the alliance with
France for support after the victory at
Saratoga.
*Member of the committee that
negotiated the terms for the Treaty of
Paris in 1783 that ended the war.
Bernardo de’ Galvez
*Spanish nobleman
*Became governor of the Spanish
province of Louisiana ( January 1777)
*protected American ships in the port
of New Orleans
*helped transport war supplies
*took up arms to fight the British and
protect Louisiana
Crispus Attucks
African American male
Unemployed dockworker in Boston,
MA
Became the first casualty (first to die)
of the American Revolution
Shot and killed in what became
known as the Boston Massacre, March
5, 1770
King George III
*King of England during the
Revolutionary Era
*Feared the loss of one group of
colonies would lead to the loss of
others and the eventual decline of the
empire.
*To prevent this, the Crown
maintained an aggressive policy
against colonial resistance.
George III struggled to enforce royal
authority throughout his reign.
Haym Solomon
Polish-born Jewish immigrant to
America
Played an important role in financing
the American Revolution
Arrested by the British as a spy
Used by the British as an interpreter
with their German troops
Helped British prisoners escape and
encouraged German soldiers to desert
the British Army
Became a broker to the French consul
and paymaster to French troops in the
American Revolution
Patrick Henry
Member of the Virginia House of
Burgesses
Spoke against the Stamp Act
Famous quote, “Give me liberty, or
give me death!”
During the American Revolution he
served in the Continental Army
Thomas Jefferson
Virginian
Early leader in the American
Revolution
Delegate to the Constinental Congress
in Philadelphia in 1776
Member of the committee that wrote
the Declaration of Independence
Chief author of the Declaration of
Independence
Marquis de Lafayette
*French aristocrat who joined
Washington and his troops at Valley
Forge, PA
*Played a leading role in both the
American and French Revolutions
*Respected the concepts of liberty and
freedom and a constitutional
government
*Commanded forces under George
Washington as a major-general in the
Continental Army
Thomas Paine
Propagandist
Journalist
In January, 1776, published a
pamphlet, “Common Sense”
Persuaded many Americans to join the
Patriot cause.
George Washington
*Virginian
*surveyor, planter
*a soldier in the French and Indian
War
*a delegate to the First and Second
Continental Congresses
*commander-in-chief of the
Continental Army during the
American Revolution
Issues Surrounding
Important Events of the
American Revolution
Declaring Independence
Writing the Articles of Confederation
Battles of Lexington and Concord
Battle of Saratoga
Battle of Yorktown
Enduring the winter at Valley Forge
Signing the Treaty of Paris 1783
Declaration of
Independence
Reaction to King George III’s refusal to
acknowledge the colonial
requests/demands, “dissolve the
political bands” with Britain, provided
philosophy for the establishment of
the new nation
“…all men are created equal and
endowed by their creator with
unalienable rights, that among these
are life, liberty, and pursuit of
happiness”
Listed grievances against the King of
England
Written by Thomas Jefferson
July 4, 1776
Second Continental Congress;
Philadelphia
Writing of the Articles of
Confederation
Occurred at the Second Continental Congress
Created a new form of government for the independent colonies
Included one branch – a Congress
Each state had one vote
Created a very weak government with no executive
Major Battles of the American
Revolution
Lexington and Concord: Shot ‘heard round the world; first
battles of the American Revolution; April 19, 1775
Saratoga: turning point of the war; France joined the
colonists after this victory, tipping the scales in their favor
Yorktown: surrender of Cornwallis to the British
Enduring the Winter at
Valley Forge
After suffering several defeats,
Washington took his army to Valley
Forge for the winter of 1777
Outbreak of small pox
Martha Washington came to help care
for the men
The men were trained by Frederick
von Steuben to become a more
professional army rather than militias
Thomas Paine wrote “American
Crisis” to encourage the men to stay
the course and follow through with
the revolution to the end
Treaty of Paris, 1783
Peace treaty that ended the American
Revolutionary War and recognized
American independence
Great Britain gave up almost all of its
land claims in North America
Boundaries extended to Canada in the
north, the Mississippi River in the
west, and Florida in the South
Unalienable Rights
Fundamental rights, or natural rights,
guaranteed to people naturally instead
of by the law.
In the Declaration of Independence,
Thomas Jefferson said these are the
right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness.”
Civil Disobedience
*The concept of refusing to follow
laws within a community or ignoring
the policies and government of a state
or a nation when a person considers
the laws unjust.
*Refusing to follow laws considered to
be unlawful and/or unconstitutional.
*Examples include boycotts, protests,
refusal to pay taxes
*Boston Tea Party is an example of
civil disobedience.
Different Points of View of
Interest Groups During the
American Revolution
Loyalists – these were colonists who
remained loyal to the British
monarchy and did not feel taxation
was a reason to declare independence
or break away from the mother
country.
Different Points of View of
Interest Groups During the
American Revolution
Patriots were colonists who favored
breaking away from Great Britain and
becoming an independent country
John Paul Jones
Founder of the United States Navy
Led raids on British vessels during the
American Revolution
During a fight with a British vessel he
was told to surrender. Instead, Jones
said, “I have not yet begun to fight”
and was able to defeat the attacking
British ship.
Boston Massacre
Engraving of the Boston Massacre by
Paul Revere
March 5, 1770
Event in which British soldiers fired
into a crowd of unarmed citizens of
Boston
Killed five
This engraving was used as
propaganda to encourage patriotic
sympathies and support for American
Independence
Paul Revere, a silversmith and
engraver, was also a member of the
Boston Sons of Liberty
Yankee Doodle
*Song sung by British military to mock
the unorganized colonial “Yankees”
who served in the French and Indian
War with British soldiers.
*The meaning of the song implies that
the Americans are so “simple” they
think simply sticking a feather in a cap
would make them fashion leaders.
French and Indian War
*Fighting between the British and the
French for control of North America.
*Allies of the French were the Native
Americans, or Indians.
*Broke out in the Ohio River Valley in
1756. Throughout the world it was
known as the Seven Years’ War
*Ben Franklin suggested that the
colonies join together to fight against
the French in the Albany Plan of
Union.
*This was the first attempt to unify the
colonies
*French and Indians were defeated.
* British became in debt because of the
war and taxed the colonists as a result.