The Road to Revolution

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Chapter 7

• The Road to Revolution

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Roots of the Revolution

• The American Revolution began when the first
  colonists set foot on America.
• Distance Weakens authority great distance
  weakens authority greatly.
• Sailing across the Atlantic in took 6 to 8 weeks
• Colonists felt physically and spiritually
  separated from Europe.

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1607 First Voyage to Jamestown
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The Mercantile Theory

• A countrys economic wealth could be measured by
  the amount of gold or silver in its treasury.
• To amass gold and silver, a country had to export
  more than it imported.
• If the mother country lacked natural resources,
  she must colonize in order to get them.
• Colonies could supply natural resources and
  provide a guaranteed market for exports

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Navigation Acts

• Passed to help enforce mercantilism
• The Navigation Laws restricted commerce to and
  from the colonies to English vessels.
• European goods consigned to America had to land
  first in England, where custom duties could be
  collected.
• Gold and silver was constantly draining out of
  America because they had no currency

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The Merits of Mercantilism

• London Paid liberal bounties to those colonials
  who produced ships parts and ships stores.
• Tobacco planters could only ship to Britain but
  they maintained a strong monopoly.
• Enjoyed rights of an Englishman and unusual
  opportunities of self-government.
• They were protected by the strongest army and
  navy in the world
• Because of salutary neglect the Navigation Acts
  were rarely enforced.

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The Menace of Mercantilism

• Britain began to enforce its mercantilist
  policies vigorously after 1763. (end of salutary
  neglect)
• Americans couldnt buy, sell, ship, or
  manufacture under the favorable conditions to
  them.
• Colonist felt their economic initiative was
  stifled.

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Sugar Act

• First law ever passed by Parliament for raising
  tax revenue in the colonies.
• 1764 Act that put a three-cent tax on foreign
  refined sugar and increased taxes on coffee,
  indigo, and certain kinds of wine. It banned
  importation of rum and French wines.

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Stamp Act

• After the French and Indian War Great Britain had
  a huge debt.
• Planned to ask the colonist to defray one-third
  the cost of maintaining a garrison of 10,000
  redcoats in America.
• The Stamp Act mandated the use of stamped paper
  of the affixing of stamps, certifying payment of
  tax.
• Stamps were required on bills of sale for about
  50 trade items as well as on certain types of
  commercial and legal documents.

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George Grenville

• He became notorious as First Lord of the Treasury
  when he established colonial trade regulations
  and taxation policies which alienated the
  colonists. He set up these policies through two
  sets of legislation, the Revenue Act of 1764 and
  the Stamp Act of 1765, as well as supplementary
  reinforcement of regulations to increase the
  effectiveness of revenue collection. His view of
  colonial taxation was in line with government
  discussions from 1762, which indicated Britain's
  belief that the colonists should bear part of the
  expense for the defense forces that would need to
  be maintained in the Americas after the French
  and Indian War.

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This engraving, Resistance to the Stamp Act,
depicts an angry Boston crowd burning a pile of
stamps in resistance of the Stamp Act of 1765. It
is noteworthy that the artist included women and
an African-American among the protesters.
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Uproar Created from Stamp Act

• Anger because it was an internal tax tax on
  goods made within America
• No taxation without representation.
• Creation of the Sons and Daughters of Liberty
• Stamp Act Congress

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No Taxation without Representation

• Americans held to the view of actual
  representation, meaning that in order to be taxed
  by Parliament, the Americans rightly should have
  actual legislators seated and voting in London.
• The British, on the other hand, supported the
  concept of virtual representation, which was
  based on the belief that a Member of Parliament
  virtually represented every person in the empire.

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Sons and Daughters of Liberty

• Samuel Adams and Paul Revere headed the Sons of
  Liberty in Massachusetts. The Sons there also
  organized demonstrations, enforced boycotts and
  occasionally resorted to violence to advance
  their agenda. Similar groups were later formed in
  the Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia.
• Membership in the Sons was largely middle class
  with more upper-class representation than lower.

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Stamp Act Congress

• 27 delegates from 9 different colonies attended a
  meeting in New York.
• First official colonial unity
• The delegates approved a 14-point Declaration of
  Rights and Grievances, formulated largely by John
  Dickinson of Pennsylvania.
• Organized boycotts and non-importation agreements
  and hurt the British so much that they repealed
  the Stamp Act.
• Passed the Declaratory Act in its place

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Declaratory Act

• an act passed by the British Parliament after
  repeal of the Stamp Act. The act stated that the
  king and Parliament had the right and power to
  make laws that were binding on the colonies "in
  all cases whatsoever," even though American
  colonists were unrepresented in Parliament.

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Quartering Act

• In March 1765, Parliament passed the Quartering
  Act to address the practical concerns of such a
  troop deployment. Under the terms of this
  legislation, each colonial assembly was directed
  to provide for the basic needs of soldiers
  stationed within its borders. Specified items
  included bedding, cooking utensils, firewood,
  beer or cider and candles. This law was expanded
  in 1766 and required the assemblies to billet
  soldiers in taverns and unoccupied houses.
• New York refused and Great Britain suspended
  their colonial assembly

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The Townshend Acts

• Parliament passed a tax law that was clearly
  external in nature, on paint, paper, glass, lead
  and tea imported into the colonies.

Charles Townshend, Chancellor of the Exchequer
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Currency Act

• The Currency Act of 1764 was one of the many ways
  in which the British Parliament tried to control
  the American colonies. This act prohibited the
  colonies from printing their own currency bills,
  and required them to use the system of the pound
  sterling instead.

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Boston Massacre

• On the evening of March 5, 1770, a crowd of about
  60 townspeople in Boston were harassing some ten
  Redcoats
• Without orders but heavily provoked, they opened
  fire, wounding or killing eleven innocent
  citizens, including Crispus Attucks, the leader
  of the mob.

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Paul Reveres Engraving

• Paul Revere's famous engraving of the Boston
  Massacre. Interestingly, Crispus Atticus, the
  black man who provoked the riot, is not
  portrayed.

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Crispus Attucks
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Tea Act

• The Tea Act, passed by Parliament in May of 1773,
  would launch the final spark to the revolutionary
  movement in Boston.
• The act was not intended to raise revenue in the
  American colonies, and in fact imposed no new
  taxes
• It was designed to prop up the East India Company
  which was floundering financially and burdened
• This tea was to be shipped directly to the
  colonies, and sold at a bargain price.
• The direct sale of tea, via British agents, would
  also have undercut the business of local
  merchants.

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Boston Tea Party

• On the evening of December 16th,1773 thousands of
  Bostonians and farmers from the surrounding
  countryside packed into the Old South Meeting
  house to hear Samuel Adams. Adams denounced the
  Governor for denying clearance for vessels
  wishing to leave with tea still on board. After
  his speech the crowd headed for the waterfront.
  From the crowd, 50 individuals emerged dressed as
  Indians. They boarded three vessels docked in the
  harbor and threw 90,000 pounds of tea overboard.

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Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party by Nathaniel Currier
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Committees of Correspondence

• The colonies, in order to spread propaganda and
  keep the rebellious moods, set up committees of
  correspondence the first was started by Samuel
  Adams.

Samuel Adams
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Intolerable Acts

• Punishment for the Boston Tea Party
• Known as the Coercive Acts in Great Britain
• The Boston Port Act
• The charter of Massachusetts was revoked
• Restrictions put on town meetings
• British officials accused of crimes would be
  charged in Great Britain

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The Quebec Act

• The administrative boundaries of Quebec were
  extended south to the Ohio and west to the
  Mississippi river.
• Recognition was also given to the Roman Catholic
  Church in Quebec
• The Quebec Act was not part of Lord Norths
  punitive program, but many Americans missed the
  distinction and regarded the law as simply
  another "Intolerable Act."

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1st Continental Congress

• Most memorable response to the Intolerable Acts
• 55 delegates from 12 colonies (all except
  Georgia) attended a meeting in Philadelphia to
  consider ways of redressing colonial grievances.
• Deliberated for seven weeks, from September to
  October of 1774

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Accomplishments of 1st Continental Congress

• Drew up a Declaration of Rights and Grievances to
  King George III
• Created The Association, a complete boycott of
  British goods
• Non importation
• Non exportation
• Non consumption

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Carpenters Hall, Philadelphia
Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia
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Lexington and Concord

• In April 1775, the British commander in Boston
  sent a detachment of troops 16 miles to nearby
  Lexington and Concord to seize supplies and to
  capture Sam Adams and John Hancock.
• Word of the British departure from Boston was
  quickly spread by Paul Revere in his famous ride,
  and by the time the British reached the village
  green at Lexington

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The Shot Heard Round the World

• At Lexington, the British found 70 Minutemen
  waiting for them under the command of Capt. John
  Parker .
• A Shot was fired and the American Revolution was
  begun. The British then fired upon the Minutemen,
  killing 8 and wounding 10. The British suffered 1
  wounded.
• The British continued on to Concord and were
  defeated by the Minutemen.

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Ready in a Minutes NoticeMinutemen
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British Advantages

• Britain had a population advantage 7.5 million
  people to Americas 2 million,
• Superior naval power
• Great wealth.
• 30,000 German mercenary soldiers (Hessians)
• Americas lack of unity

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American Advantages

• Need only hold off the British to win war
• Home field advantage
• Britain had to control a vast amount of territory
  to win
• Americans had great leaders like George
  Washington and Ben Franklin.
• French aid
• The Americans enjoyed the moral advantage in
  fighting for a just cause.