Unit 2
The Struggle for Independence
Chapter 5: The Road to Revolution
I. Rivalry in North America
A. Competing Claims - By the mid 1700s, the nations of Europe were locked in a
worldwide struggle for empire.
1. Spanish claims- Spain posed a threat to the English in the West Indies and
along the border between Georgia and Spanish Florida.
a) Other claims were present-day New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona.
2. French claims - The threat from France was more serious.
a) French land claims stretched from west of the Saint Lawrence River
all the way to the Great Lakes and south to the Gulf of Mexico.
3. Conflict in the Ohio Valley - By the 1740s, traders from New York and
Pennsylvania, were crossing the Appalachian Mountains in search of furs.
a) They tried to take over the profitable French trade with the Indians.
b) The French were determined to stop the English from intruding on
their territory. They built a system of forts.
c) The Ohio River was a vital link between French lands in Canada and
the Mississippi River.
B. Native Americans Choose Sides - Native Americans did not want to give up their
land to the French or the English. Some Native Americans decided that the only way
to protect their way of life was to take sides in the struggle.
1. Competing for allies - Both France and England tried to make Indians allies
because the Indians controlled the fur trade.
a) Most French were trappers and traders; many married Native
Americans and adopted their ways.
b) The English were mostly farmers who destroyed hunting grounds by
clearing forests for farms. They ignored Indian rights.
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2. Algonquins, Hurons, and Iroquois- Eventually, both France and England
found Indian allies.
a) The French gained support of the Algonquins and the Hurons.
b) Eventually the English won over the Iroquios who were enemies of the
Algonquins. An English trader and official, William Johnson helped gain
Iroquios support.
c) The English also charged lower prices for goods than the French did.
d) Many Indians started to buy more goods from the English. This
angered the French.
II. The French and Indian War.
A. Opening Shots - Scuffles between France and Britain in the Ohio River valley
triggered the opening shots of the French and Indian War.
1. Major Washington
a) He grew up on a plantation in Virginia.
b) At 15, he took work as a surveyor.
c) He offered to deliver a message to the French from Lieutenant
Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia. He was promoted when he returned.
d) He was ordered to take 150 men and build a fort where the
Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers meet.
2. Trapped at Fort Necessity - Unfortunately the French beat them there
and had already built Fort Duquesne.
a) Washington and his men heard that the French were already there,
and that they were planning an attack against their troop.
b) They quickly built Fort Necessity.
c) A huge force of French and Indians surrounded them, and they were
forced to surrender.
d) Soon after, the French released Washington.
B. The Albany Congress
1. Delegates from 7 colonies gathered in Albany, New York.
a) They wanted to persuade the Iroquois to help them against the
French -The Indians left the meeting without agreeing to help.
b) They wanted to plan a united defense.
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c) Ben Franklin (Penn) proposed the Albany Plan of Union - a grand
council, made up of representatives from each colony, would make laws,
raise taxes, and set up the defense of the colonies.
d) None of the colonies wanted to give up its powers to a central
government.
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C. Early Years of the war.
1. French Advantages.
a) French had a single government in North America - English had 13
separate colonies.
b) French had more support from the Indians.
2. British Advantages.
a) Location - English colonies were clustered along the coast- easier to
defend.
b) French colonies were scattered.
c) English population in America was 15 times greater than the French.
d) British navy ruled the seas.
3. Bulldog Braddock - In 1755, General Edward Braddock led the British troops
in an attack against Fort Duquesne.
a) Stubborn man- knew little about how to fight in the North American
wilderness. He ignored the advice of Indian scouts.
4. Disaster for the British - The French and Indians launched a surprise
attack.
a) Sharpshooters hid in the forest and picked off British soldiers.
Braddock was killed.
b) Almost half of the British troop was killed or wounded.
c) Washington and other survivors returned to Virginia with news of
their defeat.
d) Washington was put in command of a small force of men to guard the
Virginia frontier.
5. During the next 2 years the war continued to go badly for the British.
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D. A Bold leader Takes Charge
1. In 1757, William Pitt became the head of the British Government.
a) He sent his best generals to North America.
b) He promised large payments to the colonists for military services and
supplies.
2. Tide of the Battle Turns
a) Major General Jeffrey Amherst captured Louisbourg, the most
important fort in French Canada.
b) British also obtained more support from the Indians.
c) British seized Fort Duquesne, renamed it Fort Pitt.
E. The Fall of New France- By the Summer of 1759, they had pushed the French
from Fort Niagara, Crown Point, and Fort Ticonderoga.
1. Battle for Quebec
a) General Wolfe ordered British Troops to quietly storm Quebec in the
middle of the night.
b) French General Marquis de Montcalm woke up to 4,000 British troops
drawn upon The Plains of Abraham, a grassy field outside of the city.
c) Montcalm marched out his troops.
d) During the fierce battled both generals were killed.
e) The British won.
2. Treaty of Paris of 1763- In 1760, the British took Montreal - the war
ended in North America.
a) Fighting continued in Britain and France until the Treaty was signed in
1763.
b) Under the treaty, Britain gained Canada and all of the French
territory east of the Mississippi River except for New Orleans.
c) French kept a few islands in the West Indies.
d) Spain, which had entered the war on the French side in 1762, gave up
Florida to Britain. In return, Spain received French land west of the
Mississippi, as well as New Orleans.
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III. A Storm Over Taxes
A. New Troubles on the Frontier - With the French gone, English colonists eagerly
headed west to farm the former French lands.
1. Relations with Indians worsened - As British settlers moved into the valley,
they often clashed with Native Americans. Many Native American Nations
lived in the Ohio Valley.
a) Senecas, Delewares, Shawnees, Ottawas, Miamis, and Hurons.
2. In 1762, the British sent Lord Jeffrey Amherst to the Frontier to keep
order.
a) He raised the price of British goods.
b) Allowed English settlers to build forts on Indian lands.
3. Pontiac’s War-Angry Native Americans found a leader in Pontiac, an Ottawa
chief who had fought with the French.
a) Pontiac led an attack on British troops at Fort Detroit.
b) Other Indians joined the fight.
c) Within a few months they captured most British Forts on the
Frontier. However, the British and colonial troops struck back and
regained much of what they had lost.
B. Proclamation of 1763
1. Pontiac's War convinced the British to close western lands to settlers.
a) Proclamation of 1763 - drew an imaginary line along the crest of the
Appalachian Mountains.
b) Colonists were forbidden to settle west of the line.
c) All settlers already west of the line were removed at once.
d) British sent 10,000 troops to the colonies to enforce the law.
e) Few troops went to the frontier- most stayed in cities along the
coast.
2. The Proclamation angered colonists.
a) Colonists had to pay for the British troops.
b) Many colonists ignored the law and moved west anyway.
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C. Stamp Act Crisis
1. The French and Indian War had plunged Britain deeply into debt.
a) Taxes in Britain were raised sharply.
b) Prime Minister George Grenville decided colonists should help share
the burden.
2. Parliament passed two new laws.
a) The Sugar Act of 1764- placed a new tax on molasses.
b) The Stamp Act of 1765 - put a tax on legal documents such as wills,
diplomas, and marriage papers. It also taxed newspapers, almanacs,
playing cards, and even dice.
3. When British officials tried to enforce the Stamp Act they met with
stormy protest.
a) Riots broke out
b) Tarred and feather some agents
4. No taxation without representation - Colonists insisted that only their
elected representatives had the right to pass taxes. Since the colonists did
not elect representatives to Parliament, Parliament had no right to tax them.
a) Colonists would only pay taxes passed by their own colonial legislature.
b) The fury of the colonists shocked Britain. After all, they had spent a
great deal of money to protect the colonists against the French.
5. A call for unity - The Stamp Act crisis brought a sense of unity to the
colonies.
a) Stamp Act Congress - In October, 1765, nine colonies sent delegates
to New York to consider actions they could take against the Stamp Act.
b) They wrote petitions to King George III and to Parliament. - They
paid little attention.
6. The colonies then joined together to boycott British goods.
a) Boycott - to refuse to buy certain goods and services.
b) British trade fell off by 14% - British merchants and workers
suffered.
c) In 1766, Parliament repealed, or canceled, the Stamp Act.
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D. More Taxes
1. In May 1767, Parliament continued to debate over taxing the colonies. The
next month, parliament passed the Townshend Acts.
a) Townshend Acts - taxed goods such as glass, paper, paint, lead, and
tea.
b) These taxes were low, but the colonists still objected.
c) These acts set up new ways of collecting taxes.
d) Using legal documents called Writs of Assistance, customs officers
could inspect a ship's cargo without giving a reason - the colonists
protested.
E. Colonists Fight Back
1. From north to south, merchants and planters signed non-importation
agreements.
a) They promised to stop importing goods taxed by the Townshend Acts.
b) Colonists hoped that the new boycott would win the repeal of the
Townshend Acts.
2. Some angry colonists joined the Sons of Liberty.
a) This group was first formed during the Stamp Act crisis to protest
British policies.
b) Women set up Daughters of Liberty.
F. Leaders in the Struggle
1. In Massachusetts, Samuel Adams of Boston stood firmly against Britain. His
greatest talent was organizing people. Adams knew how to work behind the
scenes, arranging protests, and stirring public opinion.
a) He organized a committee of correspondence, which wrote letters
and pamphlets reporting on events in Massachusetts.
b) The idea spread and soon there were committees in every colony.
2. Sam's cousin, John Adams, was another important leader in Mass.
a) He was a skilled lawyer.
b) His knowledge of British law earned him much respect.
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3. Mercy Otis Warren also aided the colonial cause.
a) She published plays that made fun of British officials.
b) She was a close friend of Abigail Adams, who was married to John
Adams.
4. In Virginia, George Washington joined other Virginians to protest the
Townshend Acts.
5. Patrick Henry - gave speeches that moved listeners to both tears and anger.
G. Centers for Protest
1. Port cities such as New York and Boston were centers of protest.
a) In New York, a dispute arose over the Quartering Act - colonists had
to provide housing, candles, bedding, and beverages to British soldiers
stationed in the colonies.
b) New York Assembly refused to obey the law - Britain dismissed them.
2. Britain also sent 2 regiments of soldiers to Boston to protect customs
officers from local citizens.
a) Soldier's tents in the Boston commons were a daily reminder that
Britain was trying to bully them.
b) British officers were insulted and even attacked when they walked
down the street in Boston.
H. The Boston Massacre
1. On March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered outside a Boston customs house.
Colonists shouted insults at the British who guarded the building.
a) Colonists began to throw snowballs, oyster shells, and ice at the
soldiers.
b) The crowd grew large and rowdy.
c) Soldiers panicked - they fired into the crowd.
d) Five colonists lay dead or dying - Among them was Crispus Attucks, a
black sailor who was active in the Sons of Liberty.
2. Sam Adams quickly wrote other colonists about the shooting, which he called
the Boston Massacre. Paul Revere made an engraving of the event that
appeared in the newspaper.
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a) As the news spread, outrage grew.
b) Soldiers were arrested and tried in court.
c) John Adams agreed to defend them - they deserved a fair trial.
d) He wanted to show the world that the colonists believed in justice,
even if the British government did not.
e) He convinced the jurors that the crowd provoked the soldiers - they
received a very light sentence.
I. Repeal of the Townshend Acts
1. By chance, on the day of the “massacre”, parliament voted to
repeal most of the Townshend acts.
a) British merchants, hurt by the non-importation agreements, had
pressured Parliament to repeal the taxes.
b) King George asked Parliament to keep one tax - a tax o tea.
c) News of the repeal delighted colonists. Most ended their boycotts.
d) Calm returned for a few years.
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IV. To Arms!
A. Uproar over Tea - by 1770, at least one million Americans brewed tea twice a day.
1. Parliament passes the Tea Act - Most of the tea was brought to the colony
by the British East India Company.
a) They sold the tea to merchants who in turn sold the tea to colonists.
b) In the 1770s - British East India Company found itself in deep
financial trouble.
c) Colonists refused to buy English Tea because of the tax.
2. Parliament tried to help the British East India Company by passing the Tea
Act of 1773.
a) Tea Act of 1773 - let the company bypass the tea merchants and sell
directly to the colonies. Although the colonist would still have to pay the
tax, the tea would cost less than it did before.
b) Colonists protested - colonial merchants had been cut out of the tea
trade.
c) They believed it was a British trick to make them accept Parliament's
right to tax the colonies.
3. Colonists responded with a boycott led by the Daughters of Liberty.
a) They served coffee or served "liberty tea" made from Raspberry
leaves.
b) Sons of Liberty kept the British East India Company from unloading
its cargo.
B. The Boston Tea Party - In late November1773, three ships carrying tea arrived
in Boston Harbor. The Governor ordered the captain to pay the required taxes,
unload, and sell the tea as usual.
1. A demand for the tea ships to leave - Sam Adams led a meeting, at the old
south meetinghouse, with thousands of colonists there.
a) Colonists voted that the tea ships should leave Boston.
b) The message was sent to the governor.
c) The governor responded - He would not let the ships sail.
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2. "Boston Harbor a teapot tonight"
a) About 50 or 60 colonists disguised as Indians boarded the ships, split
open the chests, and dumped the tea into the harbor. (Only tea was
destroyed. No other cargo was touched.)
b) On shore, a crowd watched silently.
C. Britain Strikes Back -Not all of the colonists cheered the action. Even those who
condemned the action were shocked at Britain's response.
1. Punishment for Massachusetts - Britain outraged!!
a) First Parliament shut down the port of Boston. The port would remain
closed until the colonists paid for the tea.
b) Second - forbade colonists to hold town meetings more than once a
year without the permission of the governor.
c) Third - customs officers and other officials charged with major
crimes to be tried in Britain instead of Massachusetts.
d) Fourth - Parliament passed a new quartering Act. British commanders
could force citizens to house troops.
2. The colonists called these laws the Intolerable Acts because they were so
harsh.
a) Committees of Correspondence quickly spread the news to the other
colonies.
b) People from other colonies responded quickly, bringing food to
Massachusetts.
c) In Virginia, a young Lawyer named Thomas Jefferson suggested a day
be set aside to mark the shame of the Intolerable Acts. Merchants
closed their shops. People prayed and fasted.
D. The First Continental Congress - In September 1774, delegates from 12 colonies
gather in Philadelphia.
1. They agreed to boycott all British goods, and to stop exporting goods to
Britain, until the Intolerable acts were repealed.
a) Delegates urged each colony to set up and train its own militia, an
army of citizens who serve as soldiers during an emergency.
b) Delegates agreed to meet again in May 1775.
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E. The Shot Heard 'Round the World
1. In Massachusetts, volunteers known as minuteman (they would be prepared
to fight at a minutes notice) trained regularly.
a) Britain increased the number of troops in Boston to 4,000.
b) General Thomas Gage, the British commander, learned the minutemen
had a large store of arms in concord, just 18 miles away from Boston. He
planned a surprise attack.
2. On April 18, about 700 redcoats left Boston at night.
a) The Sons of Liberty were watching - As soon as the troops set out
they hung 2 lamps from the Old North Church in Boston as a signal.
3. Sounding the alarm- Colonists who were waiting across the Charles River saw
the signal.
a) Messengers rode towards Concord.
b) Paul Revere was one of the messengers. He shouted
"The British are coming! The British are coming!" as he passed through
each sleepy village along the way.
4. When the redcoats reached Lexington on the morning of April 19, there were
70 minutemen waiting for them.
a) The British ordered the colonists to go home. Outnumbered, they
started to leave.
b) A shot suddenly rang out. No one knows who fired it.
c) A brief struggle followed and eight minutemen were killed. The
Redcoats continued on to Concord. When they didn't find any arms, they
turned back to Boston.
d) On a bridge outside Concord 300 minutemen were waiting. This time
the British were forced to retreat.
5. A turning Point - News of the battles of Lexington and Concord spread
quickly.
a) To many colonists, the fighting ended all hope of reaching an
agreement with Britain.
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