Unit 2 Chapter 2
Notes
French and Indian War
 French and British both want the Ohio Valley
 French could travel Ohio River and Mississippi River from St. Lawrence to
Louisiana
 British fur trades and land speculators, also wanted the valley
 French built forts from Lake Ontario to the Ohio Valley. The British wanted
the French out so the governor of VA asked George Washington to expel the
French.
 1754 Washington built a stockade named Fort Necessity, in a month French
forces arrived and forced Washington to surrender.
The Albany Conference
 Britain forged an alliance with the Iroquois. Iroquois controlled Western New
York.
 Iroquois refused an alliance with the British but did offer support.
 Albany Plan of Union: proposal developed by a committee led by Ben
Franklin. Proposed colonies form a federal government.
 Colonies rejected the plan.
The British Triumph
 General Edward Braddock linked up with 450 VA militia troops and
appointed George Washington as his aide.
 Braddock was eventually killed and Washington took charge, raging the war
on the frontier.
 British cut off supplies of the French
 Native Americans started backing out of the French side making the British
stronger and with more numbers.
 British seized Quebec and took control of New France.
 War end in 1763 with the Treaty of Paris: eliminated French power in North
America.
 Country is now in debt. Pay for the war and new territories.
The Proclamation of 1763
 1763 Pontiac, chief of the Ottawa People, went to war with British
 Several Native American groups united and burned down several towns.
 King George III issued the Proclamation of 1763: drew a North South line
along the Appalachian Mountains. Colonists cannot settle West of that line
without permission. Farmers are enraged.
Customs Reform
 George Greenville prim minister and 1st Lord of Treasury. Had to find a way
to reduce Britain’s debt. Pay for the 10,000 British troops.
 Smuggling goods: without paying customs duties: taxes on imports and
exports.
 Naval officers show no mercy.
The Sugar Act and the Currency Act
 American Revenue Act of 1764 (Sugar Act)
 Raised tax rates on imports of raw sugar and molasses. Also placed taxes on
silk, wine, coffee pimento, and indigo.
 Violated traditional English rights, hurt trade.
 Let officials seize goods without due process and prevented lawsuits.
 NO TAXATION without REPRESENTATION!!
 Currency Act of 1764: passed by parliament to slow inflation
 Banned the use of paper money: Angered those who replaced loans.
 Since money lost value after being borrowed loans are easier to pay back.
The Stamp Act Crisis
 Taxed most printed materials
 1st direct tax levied on the colonies
 Sons of Liberty were organized and demonstrating and intimidating stamp
distributors.
 Stamp Act Congress: 9 colonies represented issued a declaration, which
argued that because taxation depended upon representation only the
colonists political representatives and not Parliament had the right to tax
them.
 Colonists ignored the Stamp Act
 Boycotts British goods
 New York 200 merchants signed a non-importation agreement, pledging not
to buy any British goods until Parliament repealed the Stamp Act.
 Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in 1766.
The Townshend Acts
 1767 Charles Townshend issued new regulations and taxes. Townshend Act .
 Revenue Act of 1767: new customs duties on glass, lead, paper, paint, and tea
imported by the colonies.
 Violators face trail.
 Legalized the use of writs of assistance.
 Sam Adams organized boycotts against the Townshend Acts.
Boston Massacre
 Boston riots sparked and custom officials wanted additional protection.
 4 additional British regiments sent to the colonies (1768)
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Lobster backs
March 5, 1770 a crowd of colonists began taunting and throwing snowballs
at the British soldier guarding a customhouse. Troops fired into a crowd 1st
colonist to die was an African American Crispus Attucks (Micheal Johnson).
Three people laid dead, 2 die later, and 6 wounded.
Newspapers said “British tyrants” who were willing to kill people most of the
Townshend Acts.
Parliament kept tax on tea.
Lesson 2 Chapter 2
The Gaspee Affair
 Trade and smuggling resume
 British sent custom ships to patrol North American waters. (Gaspee)
 June 1772 Gaspee ran aground and 150 colonists seized and burned the ship.
 Suspects would go to trial in Britain. Colonists thought this violated their
right to a trail by a jury of their peers.
 Thomas Jefferson suggested that the colonies come up with a committee of
correspondence to communicate with each other about the British. This
committee helped the colonist to communicate and the leaders to coordinate
their plans.
Boston Tea Party
 May 1773 Britain’s Parliament helped the British East India Company out of
debt by passing the Tea Act of 1773.
 British East India Company had 17 plus million pounds of tea it had to sell.
 Smuggling decreased.
 Look on page 45 : Why did this anger the colonist?
 December 16, 1773 150 plus men gathered on the docks. They dumped 342
chest of tea into the Boston Harbor.
 Sam Adams and John Hancock suspected to be a part of the Boston Tea Party
Coercive Acts
 Boston Tea Party last straw for British
 1774 Parliament passed 4 new laws (Coercive Acts) to punish Mass. And put
an end to colonial challenges.
 1) Boston Port Act: shut down Boston’s port until the city paid for the tea.
 2) Mass. Government Act: required all council members, judges, and sheriffs
in Mass. To be appointed by the governor instead of being elected.
 3) Administration of Justice Act: allowed the governor to transfer trails of
British soldiers and officials to Britain to protect them from American juries.
 4) Quartering Act: required local officials to proved for lodging for British
troops. More troops send to enforce this Act. General Thomas Gage new
Governor of Mass.
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Quebec Act: governor and council appointed by King and would run Quebec:
Extended Quebec’s boundaries to include much of Ohio, Illinois, Michigan,
Indiana, and Wisconsin.
If moved West, live in territory, no elected assembly. (but you had to have
permission to go west)
Coercive Act and Quebec Act become known as the Intolerable Acts.
First Continental Congress
 May 1774 day of fasting called by the VA House of Burgesses to protect the
arrival of British troops in Boston.
 Sept 5, 1774 Colonial delegates met in Philadelphia for the 1st Continental
Congress. 12 of the colonies represented (Florida, Georgia, Nova Scotia, and
Quebec did not attend)
 Issued a Declaration of Rights and Grievances.: Loyalty to the King but
condemned the Coercive Acts.
 Enforce a Committee to boycott British goods.
Revolution Begins
 Oct. 1774 Mass. Provincial Congress is organized.
 Committee of Safety and John Hancock is the Leader of it, giving him the
power to call a militia.
 In Concord a special militia was on call to be ready in a minutes notice
“Minute Men.”
 Throughout the summer and fall British control weakened, created
provincial congress, and militias raided military depots for ammunition.
Loyalist and Patriots
 Loyalist where American’s who supported the British side (Tories)
 Many Loyalist government officials, Anglican ministers, merchants, and
landowners. Some farmers were loyal because they thought the King could
help them and protect them.
 Patriots (Whigs) believed the British were tyrants. Artisans, farmers,
merchants, planters, lawyers, and urban workers.
 Patriots strong in New England and VA, most Loyalist lived in Georgia,
Carolina’s and New York.
 Patriots would boycott British goods by tarring and feathering Loyalist.
Lexington and Concord
 April 18, about 700 British troops set out for Concord on a road through
Lexington.
 Patriot leaders sent Paul Revere and William Dawes to sound the alarm.
 The 2 raced to Lexington and warned the “regulars” are coming.
 Dr. Samuel Prescott joined them as they headed to Concord.
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April 19 British troops arrived in Lexington and saw 70 minute men lined up.
British push forward and minutemen begin to back away when a shot was
fired.
British soldiers fired killing 8 and wounding 10.
British headed to Concord to find most supplies had been taken
400 colonial men met the British troops. The British retreat.
British troops head back to Boston only to meet militia and farmers who fire
on them from all sides. By the time they get to Boston 73 men dead, 174
wounded, 26 missing. Colonial men had lost 49 men, 41 wounded, and 5
missing.
May 1775 militias had surrounded Boston.
2nd Continental Congress
 3 weeks after Lexington and Concord
 Meet in Philadelphia
 Defense
 Continental Army: June 15, 1775 George Washington commands the Army.
 Britain’s landed reinforcements in Boston, they wanted to seize the hills
North of the city.
 Militia acted first. June 16, 1775 Breed’s Hill near Bunker Kill and built a fort
at the top.
 Militia’s stopped 2 British attacks and were forced to retreat after running
out of ammunition.
 Battle of Bunker Hill helped build American confidence.
 British suffered 1,000 causalities
 British General Gage resigned and was replaced by General Howe.
Efforts at Peace
 Olive Branch Petition was sent to King George III in July of 1775.
 Written by John Dickerson, the petition stated that colonist were loyal to the
King and asked him to call off hostilities and negotiate peacefully
 King refused to look at the petition. He issues Proclamation for suppressing
Rebellion and Sedition declaring colonists were now in open rebellion. All
loyal British subjects in the colony to “bring the traitors to justice.”
 Continental Congress authorities attack on British troops based in Quebec.
 Continental government starts to act like an independent government.
 Peace with Native Americans, postal system, continental Navy (which raided
the Bahamas and seized British ships.)
Fighting Spreads
 Gov. Dunmore of VA organized 2 loyalist armies to assist British troops.
One white loyalist, one enslaved African. (Free if they fought for the
Revolution)
 Patriots take control of VA
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Patriots dispersed loyalist at the Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge in Feb.
1776.
Patriots in control of Boston
Parliament passed the Prohibitory Act: shutting down trade with the
colonies and ordering a naval blockade.
British also recruited mercenaries and soldiers for hire from Germany.
Common Sense and Independence
 Written by Thomas Paine
 Pamphlet
 Paine attacks King George III
 Parliament does nothing without the support of the King
 King George was a tyrant and it was time for INDEPENDENCE
 In 3 months it sold 100,0000 copies
 On July 4, 1776 the continental congress issued the Declaration of
Independence drafted by Thomas Jefferson
 Colonies had now become the United States of America