Unit 1
Colonial Era
and American Beginnings
CHAPTER 4
The War for
Independence
(Part A)
The Stirrings of Rebellion
 At the end of the French and Indian War,
Parliament turned to the colonies to help pay off
the war debts.
 Stamp Act-1765. This was the first tax levied
directly on the colonist’s goods and services.
 The Stamp Act required colonists to purchase
special stamped paper for every legal document,
license, newspaper, pamphlet, almanac, and even
cards and dice.
 Those who disobeyed the Stamp Act were
usually tried in the vice-admiralty court.
 Several Stamp Act protests took place.
 The Sons of Liberty became the leading group of
protestors against the Stamp Act. This group was
led by Samuel Adams.
 Many colonies adopted resolutions stating that
only the colonial governments could levy taxes.
 Daughters of Liberty-participated in boycotts of
tea and manufactured goods from England, made
homespun clothing, helped the war effort, etc.
 The Stamp Act Congress passed a resolution
stating that the colonies could not be taxed unless
they were represented in Parliament. (This is the
first time that the colonies acted as a body)
 Merchants started a boycott against British
goods. It was so successful that Parliament was
forced to repeal the Stamp Act in 1766.
 Mostly all of the colonial citizens joined in
a boycott of British goods. This boycott
was started by Samuel Adams.
 After a riot in Boston over the merchant
ship, Liberty, 4000 British troops were
placed in Boston.
 The Boston Massacre……
 The Boston Massacre occurred because of
tension over jobs in Boston. Fist fights sprang up
often between civilians and off-duty soldiers who
were looking for extra work.
 One such confrontation led to gunfire, killing a
local dockworker, Crispus Attucks.
 This led Parliament to repeal most of the
Townshend duties, except for that on tea.
 Committees of Correspondence were
created as a way to communicate between
the colonies.
 The East India Company was hit hard by
the boycotts. They had millions of pounds
of tea stored in Boston, but no where to sell
it and no one to buy it.
 Parliament passed the Tea Act, which
allowed the East India Co to sell tea to the
colonists with no tax. This forced the
colonists to buy their tea (because it was
cheaper) instead of other teas.
 A group of rebels dressed as Indians took
charge of some ships and dumped 15,000
pounds of tea into the Boston harbor.

King George III of England was infuriated with
the colonists and had Parliament pass the
Intolerable Acts.
 These acts did several different things:
1. Shut down Boston harbor until the tea was paid
for by the colonists.
2. Passed the Quartering Act which said the
British could take over any house they wished
and quarter (or house) their troops there.
3. Boston was placed under martial law.
 Colonists were greatly upset and threatened by
these new Intolerable Acts.
 They started to stock-pile weapons and
ammunition.
 General Gage sent a British detachment to collect
all guns from Concord.
 Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Samuel
Prescott rode throughout the countryside warning
people of the approaching British Army.
 http://www.earlyamerica.com/paul_revere.htm
Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventyfive;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal
light,-One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and
farm,
For the country folk to be up and to
arm."
 The British met 70 minutemen at
Lexington and ordered them to leave the
area. As the militia marched away, a shot
rang out…
 The British Army opened fire at the
retreating militia, killing and wounding
several men.
 At Concord, the British found the local
munitions arsenal empty and came under
attack of the constantly growing militia.
 The American Revolution had begun.
 http://www.earlyamerica.com/shot_heard.htm
Test tomorrow:
 You are responsible for all info contained
in the guided notes, as well as the
vocabulary, and anything that is found in
the chapters in the book. (READ!)
 The test will be Multiple Choice and short
answer that will be from your
review/vocab sheet.
Unit 2
American Revolution,
Articles of Confederation,
& US Constitution
CHAPTER 4
The War for
Independence
(Part B)
Ideas Start a Revolution
 In 1775, colonial leaders held a Second
Continental Congress in Philadelphia to debate
their next move.
 Many of the members, however, were divided in
their loyalties.
 Some members wanted open revolution against
England, while others were more moderate and
wanted reconciliation.
 John Adams suggested making the militia
surrounding Boston into the Continental Army,
which would be led by George Washington.
 The Continental Congress acted as an
independent government and printed its own
paper money, called continentals, in order to pay
the local troops.
 The battle at Bunker Hill or Breed’s Hill led the
CC to send a petition to King George III urging a
return to “former harmony.” This was called the
Olive Branch Petition.
 George III rejected the petition and
declared the colonies to be in rebellion and
called for further military action.
 Colonist, Thomas Paine stated that the
colonies must be independent to carry out
their own governments and trade with
other countries.
 Paine’s very influential pamphlet was titled
Common Sense.
 Paine argued that independence would
allow Americans to create a better society.
“IN the following pages I
offer nothing more than
simple facts,
plain arguments,
and common sense”
Common Sense
Thomas Paine, 1776
Published in 1776, Common Sense
challenged the authority of the British
government and the royal monarchy. The
plain language that Paine used spoke to the
common people of America and was the first
work to openly ask for independence from
Great Britain.
 After reading Common Sense many CC
members argued for independence.
 Thomas Jefferson was chosen by the CC
to draft a Declaration of Independence.
 Jefferson drew heavily from the ideas of
John Locke.
 The Declaration included the colonies
complaints or grievances against King
George III.
 Locke believed in natural rights:
1. People enjoyed natural rights to life, liberty, and
property. (or life, liberty, and pursuit of
happiness)
2. People are under a social contract-an agreement
in which the people consent to obey the
government so long as the gov’t safeguards their
natural rights.
3. People have a right to overthrow tyrannical
governments.
 At first, Jefferson condemned slavery in the
Declaration, but withdrew the statements in order
to get GA and SC to approve the document.
 The delegates of the CC voted unanimously in
favor of the Declaration on July 2, 1776.
 The Declaration was officially adopted on July 4,
1776.
 Shortly after the signing Benjamin
Franklin was sent to Paris, France to
convince the French to form an open
alliance with the US.
 America was now divided between those in favor
of independence, Patriots, those who remained
loyal to England, Loyalists, and those who
remained neutral.
 Patriots usually included people that would
benefit economically from independence and
Loyalists included gov’t officials or those who
believed England who win the war.
 http://www.earlyamerica.com/independence.htm
Struggling towards Saratoga
 In March of 1776 the British had retreated,
moving the war toward the Middle states, in
order to isolate New England.
 General William Howe and Admiral Richard
Howe joined forces to invade New York.
 The Howe brothers led 32,000 soldiers-British
and German Hessians (mercenaries).
 George Washington gathered 23,000 men, but
most were untrained and had poor equipment.
 Washington’s men were forced back to PA and
only 8000 remained.
 In order to gain a victory and to inspire his men
to re-enlist, Washington made a bold move.
 On Christmas night, 1776, Washington and 2400
men attacked a Hessian-guarded fort in Trenton,
New Jersey after crossing the freezing Delaware
River.
 Because the Hessians were “celebrating”
Christmas, the majority of them were too drunk
to realize what had happened.
Crossing the Delaware
 The British soon captured the nation’s capital at
Philadelphia while the CC was forced to flee.
 General John Burgoyne moved his men down
from Canada to NY. Burgoyne was supposed to
meet up with General Howe, but Howe was in
Philadelphia.
 Burgoyne’s forces were surrounded at Saratoga
and defeated.
 The battle at Saratoga was the turning
point of the war because:
1. It lowered British confidence
2. It made the French realize the colonists
could win the war
3. It caused the French to help colonial
efforts
John Burgoyne “Gentleman
Johnny” and his surrender at
Saratoga
 The French agreed not to make peace with
England until they recognized American
independence and to support the American cause.
 However, it would take months for French forces
to arrive and winter was setting in as the colonial
forces waited at Valley Forge.
 Soldiers at Valley Forge lacked warm clothes and
food.
 Of the 10,000 who started the winter more than
2000 died!
 Those who survived remained at their posts due
to Washington’s encouragement.
Washington at Valley Forge
Homework
 Chapter 4b terms due
tomorrow!!!
Winning the War
 While the Continental Army was waiting
out the winter at Valley Forge, Friedrich
von Steuben, a Prussian captain and
drillmaster, arrived to train the troops.
 Help also came with the arrival of the
Marquis de Lafayette, a French aristocrat.
He joined Washington’s staff and helped
gain supplies and reinforcements.
Friedrich von Steuben and
the Marquis de Lafayette
 During 1778-79 the British, led by Charles
Cornwallis, were able to move South and
capture the city of Savannah. (many
Loyalists lived in the South)
 In 1780 they captured Charleston and took
5500 colonial forces as prisoners.
 As the British advanced they were joined
by thousands of escaped slaves.
 In order to gain ground and hoping to
capture Lafayette’s forces, Cornwallis
made a fateful decision to move to
Yorktown, Virginia.
 The Continental Army and the French
surrounded them by land and the French
Navy surrounded them by sea.
 After several days of fighting Cornwallis
finally surrendered.
 Peace talks began in Paris in 1782. The
Treaty of Paris 1783 was signed,
confirming America’s independence and
setting the boundaries for the new nation.
 The US now stretched from the Atlantic
Ocean to the Mississippi River and from
Canada to the Florida border.