U.S. History to Reconstruction

1
U.S. History to Reconstruction

• Unit 4 From Protest to Revolt (1763-1783)

2
Colonies in the 1760s

• 1760s was a very optimistic post-war period
• Striking ethnic and racial diversity amongst the
  colonial population
• Colonies held 2.5 million people
• 60 of population under twenty-one years old
• Relatively high per-capita GDP
• Wealth unevenly distributed
• South had richest individuals but also 90 of
  non-free colonial population
• Middle colonies also enjoyed considerable wealth
• New England lagged behind because of lack of
  export products

3
Britain in the 1760s

• In England, there were two main political parties
  during the 18th century Whigs and Tories
• Whigs
• They were a liberal party that wanted reforms
• They believed in the balance of power held by a
  constitutional monarchy
• If the power was held by one person or group,
  this led to corruption and tyranny
• Tories
• They were the conservative party
• They supported royal power

4
Britain in the 1760s

• George III (1760-1820)
• Despite limited ability, wanted to take more
  active role in government
• Whigs had controlled most of the policy for the
  previous two monarchs and were clearly upset
• There was high turnover among his top ministers
  which meant no clear long term policies
• When it came to the colonies both the king and
  Parliament were ignorant
• It was difficult for Parliament to get adequate
  information on colonies
• Responses to specific problems could take months

5
Britain in the 1760s

• One key issue in understanding colonial problems
  was the concept of Parliamentary sovereignty
• British officials assume that Parliament must
  have ultimate authority
• This did not leave much room for compromise with
  the colonies as Parliament did not want to share
  power
• Therefore there could not be two legislatures in
  one state (Parliament v. colonial assemblies)
• In 1764, Parliament announced that the colonist
  were virtually represented by it
• Colonists insisted that only colonial assemblies
  should represent Americans
• This was because only colonists knew what was
  best for themselves

6
Change in Colonial Political Ideology

• Loyalists were those who sided with the king and
  Parliament
• There was a growing demand for greater
  representation that the Loyalists nor Parliament
  could understand
• Basis was in Lockes Two Treaties of Government
  (1690)
• Guaranteed natural rights of mankind life,
  liberty, and property
• Government makes a contract with the people
• If it violates that contract, people have a right
  to overthrow it
• Commonwealthman Tradition
• Based on the writings of John Trenchard and
  Thomas Gordon
• Stated that power was dangerous and could destroy
  liberty
• Needed to be counterbalanced by virtue

7
Change in Colonial Political Ideology

• Virtue became the focus of colonial political
  ideology
• Bad government reflects sin and corruption
• Colonists see British officials as sinful and
  corrupt
• Connecticut farmer referred to the British as
  pimps and parasites in 1774
• Newspapers ensure wide dissemination of political
  confrontations
• Helped spread the information associated with
  various uprisings
• Also helped to create a sense of unity as they
  drew Americans together

8

• George III
• (1760-1820)

9
Eroding the Bonds of the Empire

• Seven Years War left Britain with a very large
  debt
• ½ annual budget went to pay the interest on it
• War also left a large army in the colonies
• Supposed to be a peacekeeping army to protect
  colonists from natives and keep French Canada in
  line
• Colonists doubt the armys value
• Thought it was too expensive
• Believed it was not large enough to be effective
  in the frontier
• Pontiacs Rebellion (1763-1764)
• Exposed the British armys weaknesses
• Revealed the desperate situation of Native
  Americans after withdrawal of French

10
Eroding the Bonds of the Empire

• Many tribes in the Great Lakes region were
  concerned about the British taking over the area
• Population increase was a major concern
• French had treaty the natives as allies while the
  British treated them like a conquered people
• British refused to give gifts to the native
  chiefs, which had been customary under the French
• Another source of tension was the reduction of
  guns and ammo being traded to the natives
• In May 1763, the Ottawa Chief Pontiac laid siege
  to Fort Detroit
• He was aided by a number of northern tribes who
  had sided with the French during the war

11
Eroding the Bonds of the Empire

• Tribes throughout the region laid siege and
  burned down eight other forts
• At the end of 1763, Pontiac sued for peace
• Mainly because a number of tribes left the
  alliance
• Showed the flaw in the British system
• British were unable to conquer the natives
• Thousands of colonists died during the rebellion
• British decided to change their imperial policies
• Ended all diplomatic gifts to the natives
• Huge restrictions were placed on trade
• Rise of racism against the natives

12
Eroding the Bonds of the Empire

• Many Americans wanted to have the opportunity to
  move west of the Appalachian Mountains
• British government believed this would increase
  tensions with the natives and lead to more wars
• Proclamation of 1763 (October 23, 1763)
• It was an attempt to separate colonists and
  Indians by declaring the Appalachians to be
  boundary
• Designed to prevent westward expansion and reduce
  tensions
• Everything to the west was reserved for the
  natives while whites who were there were told to
  withdraw
• The British could not enforce this and did not
  have the money to supply the line with a large
  enough garrison

13
Eroding the Bonds of the Empire

• Colonists were not happy with this policy
• It frustrated wealthy colonialists who had
  planned numerous land schemes
• Land speculators and settlers just privately
  purchased land from the tribes or simply moved in
• Saw the post-war army presence as a way of
  enforcing this policy
• Originally British had envisioned policy as
  temporary
• As time passed, seemed like a good way to
• Save money
• Prevent trouble with Indians
• Keep colonies closely tied to mother country

14

• Proclamation Line of 1763

15
Paying Off the National Debt

• George Grenville (1712-1770)
• Was Prime Minister from 1763-1765
• When he took office, the national debt had grown
  from 75 million to 145 million
• Grenville proposed new taxes in America so that
  colonists could share the burden of this debt
• Wanted to pay for 10,000 British troops left in
  colonies
• In 1764, Parliament passed a series of acts
  designed to increase money into Britain

16
Paying Off the National Debt

• Revenue (Sugar) Act of 1764
• Reduced the tax on imported French molasses
• Increased the list of items that could only be
  exported from the colonies via English ports per
  Navigation Acts
• Required American shippers to post bonds
  guaranteeing observance of trade rules
• Strengthened ability of vice-admiralty courts to
  prosecute violators of trade regulations
• Was a way to get the colonies to generate revenue
  for Britain
• This act drew no violent reactions from the
  colonists
• Merchants and gentry protested the act
• Saw it as unconstitutional as it deprived
  Americans of the right of assessing their own
  taxes
• Most colonists just ignore it

17
Paying Off the National Debt

• Currency Act of 1764
• Prevented any of the colonies from printing their
  own currency
• Stamp Act of 1765
• Imposed duties on stamped (embossed) paper
• This type of paper was used in a wide range of
  items within the colonies such as playing cards,
  legal documents, or college degrees
• Stamps were used to validate legal documents
• The money collected would be used to support
  British troops protecting American colonies
• It was hoped to raise 60,000 annually from the
  colonies

18
Paying Off the National Debt

• Previously, acts imposed on the colonies were
  seen with the intention of regulating commerce
• They were essentially instruments of foreign
  policy
• Most colonists were willing to concede to London
  (i.e. the Navigation Acts)
• However, these acts were seen by Americans as a
  way for the British to raise money a tax
• The Stamp Act was seen as a direct tax
• Colonists felt they were being taxed without
  representation

19
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• In May 1765, Virginias House of Burgesses were
  the first to object to the stamp tax
• Virginia Resolves
• Issued by Patrick Henry that stated only the
  Virginia legislature can tax the colony, not the
  Crown
• These resolutions were published in other
  colonial newspapers within a month
• They included two of the resolves that had not
  been passed by the House
• One called the Crown an enemy to this his
  majesty's colony
• The other stated that collection of the Stamp Tax
  was illegal, unconstitutional, and unjust, and
  has a manifest tendency to destroy British as
  well as American liberty

20
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• In Boston, rioters ruined the homes of a stamp
  collector and several British officials
• Were expressing unhappiness with the tax and the
  local elite
• It also caused the stamp collector to resign
• Stamp Act Congress (October 1765)
• Intercolonial congress met in New York
• Delegates passed 13 resolutions that accepted
  Parliaments right to legislate for the colonies
• It also denied Parliaments right to tax them
  directly
• Opposition to the Stamp Act moved to the streets
• Organized mass protests in major colonial ports

21
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• In the summer of 1765, the Sons of Liberty began
  to agitate against the act
• They were led by men of character and position
• They frequently resorted to violence
• Violence escalated by late 1765
• Crowds throughout the colonies were burning
  effigies of stamp collectors and convincing them
  to resign
• The stamps were often seized and destroyed
• The stamps were printed in England and shipped to
  America for the November 1 start date
• Most ports were forced to open on November 1
  without using the stamps

22
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• Sons of Liberty also organized boycotts against
  British goods
• Even though the colonists were heavily dependant
  on these goods, they still participated
• Save your money and you can save your country
• Even women participated in their own way
• Managed household consumption to promote
  frugality
• Began making their own cloth instead of depending
  on British wool
• Refused to buy imported goods
• Also helped to shape the political ideology of
  the family

23
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• Those who participated in these protests were not
  social revolutionaries
• Many of the poor resented the colonial elite who,
  in turn, viewed the poor as easy to corrupt and
  influence
• British were surprised at adamant reaction of
  Americans
• Main reasons why the colonists were upset
• Business was poor in 1765
• Taxes would hurt the business of lawyers,
  merchants, newspaper editors and tavern keepers
• Colonists were distressed by Britains rejection
  of no taxation without representation

24
Reaction to the Stamp Tax

• On March 18, 1766, Parliament repealed the Stamp
  Act
• That same day, it passed the Declaratory Act
• Stated colonists were subordinate to the Crown
  and Parliament in all cases whatsoever
• Parliament could enact any law it wished
• Any resolutions, acts, etc. made by the colonies
  denying Parliament this power were null and void
• Americans saw this as unconstitutional assertion
  of authority
• They saw this as a violation the Magna Carta
• Began to recognize that the British were
  trampling their rights
• People were becoming mobilized and political
  consciousness had been raised

25

• Cartoon of the Repeal of the Stamp Tax
• Coffin marked born 1765, died 1766

26
Gathering Storm Clouds

• In England, Parliament had little respect for
  George III
• This, along with ministerial instability,
  hampered George IIIs efforts to better control
  the empire
• Grenville was dismissed as Prime Minister in July
  1765
• He was replaced by Lord Rockingham who repealed
  the Stamp Act but only served as Prime Minister
  for one year
• William Pitt became Prime Minister in 1766
• The colonists liked him because he was against
  the Sugar Act and also believed that they should
  be treated as full British citizens
• He told Parliament that "Trade is your object
  with them and taxing was ill advised. If you do
  not make suitable laws for them, they will make
  laws for you, my Lords."

27
Gathering Storm Clouds

• Pitt worked alongside the First Lord of the
  Treasury, Augustus Henry FitzRoy, to manage the
  colonies more effectively
• Obtained new laws to reorganize the customs
  service
• Established a secretary of state for American
  affairs
• Installed three new vice-admiralty courts in the
  port cities
• Unfortunately, Britain was still hard-pressed for
  revenue
• In 1767, Pitt became ill and was not able to run
  the government
• During this time, the Chancellor of the
  Exchequer, Charles Townshend, was the effective
  head of government
• Townshend was not nearly as sympathetic towards
  the colonists

28
Townshend Acts

• Townshend Acts (June 29, 1767)
• A series of laws designed to strengthen the power
  of Parliament in the colonies
• Townshend Duty Act
• This main bill imposed an import tax (rather than
  direct tax) on paper, lead, glass, pigment and
  tea
• American Board of Customs Commissioners created
  to collect duties
• These duties would be used to pay provincial
  governors
• This way local assemblies could not influence
  them by refusing to pay them

29
Townshend Acts

• The Customs Services were reorganized
• A new Board of Customs Commissioners was created
  to be headquartered in Boston
• Writs of Assistance (general search warrant)
  could now be used by tax collectors to search
  ships for smuggled goods
• Three new admiralty courts were created in
  Boston, Philadelphia, and Charleston, as the
  nearest court had been in Halifax
• New York Restraining Act
• Suspended the New York Assembly after it refused
  to fund the housing and quartering of soldiers in
  the state
• New York claimed their were too many soldiers

30
Townshend Acts

• Unlike the Stamp Act, the Townshend Acts were not
  met with violence
• Instead they were met with economic boycott of
  British goods
• Boycott began in Massachusetts in October 1767
• Was followed shortly thereafter by the other
  colonies
• Only New Hampshire refused to participate
• Colonists pledged to neither import nor use
  British goods
• Impact
• Half of British shipping was engaged in colonial
  commerce
• One quarter of British exports were consumed
  there
• By 1768, British imports were down by half

31
Townshend Acts

• Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania (December
  1767)
• Written by Pennsylvania lawmaker John Dickinson
• Parliament had the right to govern the British
  Empire but the colonies had the right to take
  care of its own internal affairs
• Regulating trade was one thing, but passing laws
  to raise money was unconstitutional
• Samuel Adams Circular Letter (February 1768)
• Written to each of the colonies on behalf of the
  Massachusetts House of Representatives
• Objected to the new duties as being
  unconstitutional
• Was a list of ways to thwart the Acts
• Governor of Massachusetts, under orders from the
  Crown, suspended the House when it refused to
  rescind the letter

32

• British troops arriving in Boston (1768)

33
Liberty Incident and Riot

• Prior to the Townshend Acts, customs duties were
  traditionally only be paid on a portion of the
  goods
• After the Townshend Acts went into effect things
  changed
• In April 1768, two customs officials went to
  search John Hancocks boat, Lydia, in search of
  illegal cargo
• They were forced off the boat by the crew since
  the officials did not have Writs of Assistance
• On June 11, 1768, another customs official
  attempted to board another of Hancocks ships,
  the sloop Liberty
• They were attempted to force the captain of to
  pay duties on his entire cargo
• The captain fought and locked up the customs
  official in the ship until the entire cargo was
  unloaded

34
Liberty Incident and Riot

• On June 12, the captain then listed his cargo of
  Madeira wine in the customs house
• The customs official believed the entry was
  inaccurate
• He insisted that the ship be seized for a
  violation of trade regulations
• The next day, Bostonians attacked the customs
  official
• Led by the Sons of Liberty, they took his boat
  and burned it in the town common
• The customs official was forced to flee to Castle
  William in Boston harbor
• Britain sent four regiments to Boston in
  September 1768
• Bostonians protested against a standing army in
  peacetime
• However, the majority refused to use violence
  against the troops

35
Repeal of Townshend Acts

• It became increasingly clear that British efforts
  were failing
• They were forced to use troops to restore order
  which undermined their authority
• Governors and legislatures were increasingly at
  odds
• Customs officials met with increasing opposition
• Townshend duties yielded less than 21,000 by
  1770 yet cost 700,000 through non-importation
  movement
• In March 5, 1770, Parliament repealed all the
  Townshend duties except the one on tea

36
Boston Massacre

• With the movement of troops into Boston, many of
  the citizens were on edge
• On top of that, because the troops were paid so
  poorly, they began taking jobs in the city
• The citizens resented this because jobs were
  being taken away from Bostonians
• On the evening of March 5, 1770, a soldier got
  into a fight with a local merchant
• The soldier hit the merchant in the head with the
  butt of his musket
• A crowd formed throwing things at and mocking the
  soldier

37
Boston Massacre

• Troops were brought in to calm the crowd down
• The crowd continued to throw things and jeer
• Someone told the troops to fire and the troops
  did so
• Five people were killed and six others injured
  before Captain Thomas Preston was able to restore
  order
• Sons of Liberty used this massacre to their
  advantage
• They used it as propaganda for their cause
• A huge funeral was held for those killed which
  supposedly had over 10,000 in attendance
• However, it would take more actions by the
  British before the Bostonians would truly rise
  against the British

38

• Boston Massacre by Paul Revere

39
Gaspee Incident

• In 1772, the British sent ships to Narragansett
  Bay
• Purpose was to cut down on the smuggling
• On June 9, 1772, the H.M.S. Gaspee ran aground
  after pursuing a suspected ship
• Ship lured the Gaspee purposely into the shallow
  water
• That night, members of the Providence Sons of
  Liberty led a raiding party out to the ship
• They wore blackfaces and feathered headdresses to
  look like Indians
• They took the crew prisoners and set the ship on
  fire
• When investigating the incident, British
  officials could not find any reliable sources and
  were not able to prosecute anyone

40
Committees of Correspondence

• In June 1772, Britain announced that it would now
  pay the salaries of colonial governors and
  superior court judges
• Would no longer be in the hands of the colonial
  assemblies
• What this meant was that the governors and the
  judges could not be affected financially by the
  state assemblies
• This disturbed many colonists because that was
  the last stopgap measure to control royal
  governors
• On November 2, 1772, Bostons town meeting
  created a Committee of Correspondence
• Designed for the purposes of resisting all of
  these illegal acts on the part of the British
• It also was a way to keep other communities
  informed of the activities in their own area
  through letters and publications

41
Committees of Correspondence

• By January 1773, Massachusetts Governor Thomas
  Hutchinson said there were 80 such committees
  throughout the colonies
• He called them the foulest, subtlest and most
  venomous serpent ever issued from the egg of
  sedition
• The committees could be found in all but three
  colonies by this time

42

• Thomas Hutchinson
• Governor of Massachusetts (1771-1774)

43
The Tea Act of 1773

• In 1773, the East India Company was nearly
  bankrupt
• Sales of British tea to the colonies had declined
  by 70
• Due to the Townshend Duties
• Colonists got their tea instead from Dutch
  smugglers who sold the tea at lower prices and
  tax free
• On May 10, 1773, Parliament passed the Tea Act
  1773
• This allowed the East India Company to ship its
  tea directly to North America with colonists
  paying only a small tax
• Colonists were upset because smuggled Dutch tea
  would be undersold
• American merchants claimed it was a monopoly

44
The Tea Act of 1773

• Colonists also saw the Tea Tax as a ploy to gain
  acceptance of Parliaments taxing power
• In September 1773, colonists staged mass
  demonstrations
• Forced the resignation of East India Companys
  agents
• Some of the ships carrying tea were forced back
  to Britain
• Governor Hutchinson refused popular demands to
  send the tea back
• On December 16, 1773, after a Boston town
  meeting, a band of Bostonians dressed as Indians
  boarded boats in Boston Harbor
• They threw 342 chests of tea overboard
• This event was copied in other cities

45
The Tea Act of 1773

• The British Prime Minister Lord North said this
  changed the impact of the colonists actions
• It moved from a dispute about taxes to one about
  British authority in the colonies
• North told Parliament The Americans have tarred
  and feathered your subjects, plundered your
  merchants, burnt your ships, denied all obedience
  to your laws and authority yet so clement and so
  long forbearing has our conduct been that it is
  incumbent on us now to take a different course.
  Whatever may be the consequences, we must risk
  something if we do not, all is over

46

• Boston Tea Party (December 16, 1773)

47
The Intolerable Acts

• Parliament passed the Restraining Acts in 1774
• This was a series of five acts, four of which
  were in response to the Boston Tea Party
• They were known in Britain as the Coercive Acts
• In America, they were known as the Intolerable
  Acts
• Boston Port Act (March 31, 1774)
• This closed the port of Boston until destroyed
  tea was paid for
• It also forced the Massachusetts government to
  recognize that taxes on tea passed by Parliament
  were legal
• Massachusetts Government Act (May 20, 1774)
• Took most of the power away from the local
  governments and placed it in the hands of the
  governor
• Basically, it revoked most of the original
  colonial charter

48
The Intolerable Acts

• Administration of Justice Act (May 20, 1774)
• Allowed for a change of venue, including to
  England, if a person was arrested in the course
  of enforcing British law
• It was designed to prevent a prejudiced jury of
  local inhabitants
• Colonists called this the Murder Act as it
  allowed murderers to escape prosecution
• Quartering Act (June 2, 1774)
• This was similar to the Quartering Act of 1765
• Housing was to be provided to troops either in an
  inn or an unoccupied house
• This time, though, colonists would not have to
  pay for provisions for the soldiers

49
The Intolerable Acts

• Quebec Act (October 7, 1774)
• It expanded the province of Quebec in territory
• While it did not allow for a representative
  government, it allowed French Catholics to hold
  office
• This upset a lot of people
• On May 13 1774, General Thomas Gage was made
  Governor of Massachusetts to help enforce the
  acts there
• He had been commander of British forces in
  America
• He was placed as a martial law governor to
  replace the older civilian governor
• These acts were popular in England

50

• Thomas Gage
• Governor of Massachusetts (1774-1775)

51
First Continental Congress

• On May 23, 1774, the Committee of Fifty-One in
  New York called for the meeting of a Continental
  Congress
• This was in response to the Intolerable Acts and
  because Boston was "suffering in the defense of
  the rights of America"
• First Continental Congress
• Met in Philadelphias Carpenter Hall from
  September 5October 26, 1774
• There were a total of 55 delegates from 12
  colonies in attendance
• Georgia refused to attend as it was seeking help
  from England in its fight with natives

52
First Continental Congress

• Some delegates believed that it was time to
  create a new government and sever all ties with
  Britain
• Others supported reconciliation with Britain
• Wanted an American legislature that would have to
  approve of imperial demands
• Articles of Association (October 20, 1774)
• Included a boycott of British goods to start
  December 1, 1774
• If Intolerable Acts were not repealed by December
  1, 1774, all exports to Britain (with exception
  of certain Southern staples) would cease after
  September 10, 1775
• This was a total boycott of British goods by
  means of non-importation, non-exportation and
  non-consumption accords

53
First Continental Congress

• Declaration of Rights and Resolves
• Intolerable Acts were deemed impolitic, unjust,
  and cruel, as well as unconstitutional, and most
  dangerous and destructive of American rights
• Stated that American colonists deserved the same
  rights as British citizens
• If they could not have representation in
  Parliament, they should be guaranteed local
  assemblies
• The Congress also agreed to meet for a second
  time in May1775
• Included invitations to Quebec and a few other
  Canadian territories

54

• First Continental Congress (1774)

55
Revolutionary Republicanism

• Rise of Revolutionary Republicanism
• Gradually was embraced by the colonists
• It was based on English political thought, the
  theories of the Enlightenment, and aspects of
  their own unique experiences as colonists
• Many colonists agreed with the then British Whig
  view
• Stated that corrupt and power-hungry men were
  extinguishing liberty in England
• Saw actions in colonies as an extension of this
  attempt to extinguish liberty
• They also viewed these attacks on their
  constitutional rights as threats to their
  economic interests as well, especially the
  merchants

56
Revolutionary Republicanism

• As agitation increased, more people got involved
• Groups emerged whose goals were only loosely
  related to struggle with England and who scared
  the elite
• Although cities contained only 5 of the total
  colonial population, they were the core of
  revolutionary agitation
• Artisans were often the prime movers and
  increasingly wound up in positions of power
• Prosperous artisans and merchants were often more
  conservative
• Patriot women facilitated meaningful boycotts of
  English goods
• Success depended on substituting homespun cloth
  for English textiles
• After Tea Act, the interjection of politics into
  the household economy increased as patriotic
  women boycotted tea

57
Revolutionary Republicanism

• Colonial protests and petitions changed womens
  perception of their role
• Language of protest against England reminded many
  American women of that they too were badly
  treated
• Anger against England awakened slowly in rural
  areas
• Some areas did seethe with rebellion such as
  three western countries of North Carolina and in
  the Hudson River valley of New York
• In North Carolina, frustrated farmers formed
  associations called Regulators
• They forcibly closed courts, attacked the
  property of their enemies and whipped and
  publicly humiliated judges and lawyers
• Governor responded by sending troops against them

58

• Patrick Henry
• (1736-1799)

59
Setting the Stage

• By spring of 1775 relations between the colonies
  and England was at the breaking point
• Illegal committees and assemblies in all the
  colonies resisted the Intolerable Acts
• King and parliament prepared to crush rebellion
• Give me liberty or give me death (March 23,
  1775)
• Patrick Henry to the Virginia House of Burgesses
• Given during a debate over whether to mobilize
  the military
• Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be
  purchased at the price of chains and slavery?
  Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course
  others may take but as for me, Give me Liberty,
  or give me Death!

60
Setting the Stage

• Occupation of Boston (April 1775)
• 4,000 British troops were tasked with rounding up
  insurrectionists and revolutionary leaders
• Battle of Lexington and Concord (April 19, 1775)
• General Gage sent 700 redcoats to seize the arms
  depot in nearby Concord where the Americans were
  rumored to be storing ammo and powder
• Paul Revere and two other riders sent word to
  Lexington that the British were on their way
• When the British troops entered Lexington they
  were confronted by 70 Minutementownsmen
  available on a minutes notice
• Total 273 British and 95 American causalities

61
Setting the Stage

• Second Continental Congress (May 1775)
• Congress authorized a continental army of 20,000
  under the command of George Washington
• Declaration of Causes of Taking-up Arms -
  Americans were justified in arming themselves
  after petitioning Britain against
  unconstitutional acts
• Olive Branch Petition - Americans did not want
  independence but rather open negotiations over
  trade and taxes
• Made moves to secure the neutrality of the Native
  American tribes
• Issued paper money and approved plans for a
  military hospital

62
Setting the Stage

• Ethan Allen and Green Mountain Boys captured Fort
  Ticonderoga in May 1775
• Gained control of the Champlain Valley
• At end of 1775, King rejected the Olive Branch
  Petition
• Proclaimed that the colonies were in open and
  avowed rebellion
• Sent 20,000 additional troops to the colonies
• Revolutionary leaders understood there was no
  going back
• British action that makes compromise unlikely
• Prohibitory Act (December 22, 1775) Prohibited
  all British trade with the colonies
• German mercenaries hired to put down rebellion
• Virginia Governor Dunmore urges slaves to take up
  arms against their masters

63
Setting the Stage

• Thomas Paines Common Sense (January 9, 1776)
• Described the abuses of the English government in
  plain language that inflamed the masses
• He denied the legitimacy of monarchy and
  hereditary privilege
• Europe, not England, is the parent country of
  America
• Was extremely popular as it went through 25
  editions within the year and sold more copies
  than any printed piece in colonial history
• Upset Whig leaders with pungent rhetoric and
  egalitarian call for ending hereditary privilege
  and concentrated power
• Many who read it were radicalized by it and came
  to believe not only that independence could be
  won from England, but also that a new social and
  political order could be created in North America

64
Setting the Stage

• When England embargoed all trade to the colonies
  and seized American ships, Congress declared
  American ports open to all countries
• Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776)
• Written by a congressional committee chaired by
  Thomas Jefferson
• Drew heavily on the Congresss earlier
  justifications of American resistance
• Its theory of government had been set forth in
  pamphlets for over a decade

65

• Declaration of Independence
• July 4, 1776

66
War for Independence

• British confident of victory
• Larger population, more resources
• Naval supremacy
• Britains tasks
• Supply troops an ocean away in hostile territory
• Crush the popular spirit of independence
• British underestimate Americans commitment to
  their political ideology
• Washington rejects guerrilla warfare strategy
• Continental army to be a fighting force and
  symbol of the republican cause
• Militias role was to compel support for
  Revolution

67
War for Independence

• African Americans in the Revolution
• New England militias attract slaves with promises
  of emancipation
• Southern slaves more likely to side with British
• After 1775, the focus of the war shifted from
  Massachusetts to the middle states
• After 1779, the South became the primary theater
• Evacuation of Boston (March 7, 1776)
• Decided after Americans placed artillery on the
  strategic Dorchester Heights
• Ordered by British commander General William Howe
• Did not torch the city but did leave it in a
  shambles

68
War for Independence

• For half dozen years after evacuation, British
  ships prowled off New England coast confiscating
  supplies and attacking coastal towns
• British established their headquarters in New
  York City
• Central location, spacious harbor, control of
  Hudson River, access to grain and livestock of
  Middle Atlantic states, and deep Loyalist
  sentiment
• General Howe replaces General Gage for British
• In the summer 1776, the fighting shifts to New
  York

69
War for Independence

• In Summer of 1776, Washington tried to retake New
  York
• Defeated twice (Long Island and Manhattan)
• His troops were outmaneuvered and badly
  outnumbered in both battles
• New York City remained in British hands for the
  remainder of the war
• Washington forced to retreat through New Jersey
• British think rebels will soon capitulate
• In the fall of 1776, George III ordered an
  attempt at reconciliation
• Involved were General Howe and his brother
  Admiral Richard Howe

70
War for Independence

• General Howe issues pardon for all who swear
  loyalty to Britain
• Only 3,000 accept
• Attempt failed because the British insisted that
  the Declaration of Independence be revoked
• For next two years, war swept back and forth
  across New Jersey and Pennsylvania
• Reinforced by Hessians, British moved at will
• On December 25, 1776, Washington captures 900
  Hessians in Trenton
• On January 3, 1777, Washington captures Princeton
• These victories prevented American collapse

71
War for Independence

• Victories re-kindle wartime patriotism
• British consolidate forces leave much of New
  Jersey in patriot control
• British strategy
• Cut off New England from other colonies
• Lure Continental army into decisive battle
• The plan for cutting off New England
• Burgoynes army moves in from Canada
• Howes army moves up from New York
• They meet in Albany

72
War for Independence

• American efforts to bring Canada into the
  rebellion ended poorly
• Successful at taking Montréal but suffered heavy
  losses at Québec
• Washington realized that American troops were no
  match for British troops
• He decided to harass the British to make the war
  as costly for them as possible
• In September 1777, British took Philadelphia
• Forced the Congress to flee into the countryside
• The British did not press their advantage

73
War for Independence

• In October 1777, Americans won an important
  victory at Saratoga
• General Burgoyne surrendered with 5700 troops
• Effects of Saratoga
• Convinces France that colonists are serious
  enough to become formal allies
• French help colonists to get back at Britain for
  defeat in Seven Years War
• British sue for peace to prevent Franco-American
  alliance
• British offer repeal of all laws since 1763,
  respect for colonial taxation rights
• In February 1778, Benjamin Franklin negotiation a
  formal alliance with France

74

• Surrender at Saratoga

75
Articles of Confederation

• Continental Congress sought to create a more
  stable and lasting central government
• Prior to independence, the colonies quarreled
  over boundaries, control of the Native American
  trade, and commercial advantage with the Empire
• The crisis with England forced them to work
  together
• Articles of Confederation
• Represented a compromise between those who wanted
  a strong, consolidated government and those who
  wanted a loose confederation of sovereign states
  

76
Articles of Confederation

• Congress had the sole authority to
• Regulate foreign affairs
• Declare war
• Mediate boundary disputes between states
• Manage the post office
• Administer relations with Native Americans living
  outside state boundaries
• Citizens of each state were to enjoy the
  privileges and immunities of the citizens of
  every other state
• States remained in charge of their own destinies
• Congress could only rely on the generosity of the
  states for finances

77
Articles of Confederation

• Articles sharply limited what Congress could do
  and reserved broad governing powers to the states
• Congress could no raise troops or levy taxes.
• Articles could only be amended by unanimous
  consent of all 13 states
• They were sent to states in November 1777 but not
  ratified until March 1781
• Ratification required approval of all 13 states
  which was hard to obtain
• There was a bitter dispute over land west of the
  Appalachians
• It was not until 1780 that New York and Virginia
  agreed to cede their claims

78
Articles of Confederation

• During the war, Congress managed the war effort
  as best it could using the unratified Articles as
  a guide
• Often had to implore states for what it needed,
  and that was usually refused
• Disputes within delegations from states could
  paralyze Congress, which required 9 state
  majority for action
• Washington criticized Congress for failing to
  support the army, so it granted Washington
  extraordinary powers in 1778 to manage war on his
  own
• The main reason why the Congress survived was
  because its members realized that disaster would
  follow its collapse

79

• Articles of Confederation

80
War Moves South

• As North bogged down in stalemate, British
  decided on strategy of invading and pacifying the
  South
• Loyalist support was reported to be strong
• Coast and rivers offered maximum advantage to
  British navy.
• Hope that slaves could be lured to British side
• Savannah, Georgia, fell in December 1778
• On May 12, 1780, Charleston, South Carolina fell
  after a month long siege
• Captured 5,400 American troops
• Extended control north and south along coast
• In Camden, South Carolina, the British killed
  nearly 1,000 Americans and captured an equal
  number

81
War Moves South

• British pushed into North Carolina where
  encountered difficulties
• Large distances that made supply a headache
• Unreliable Loyalist troops
• Strong popular support for the Revolution
• October 1780, Washington sent Nathanael Greene to
  South the head forces
• Divided army into small, mobile bands that
  harassed the British and their Loyalist allies
• Led Gen. Cornwallis on a six month chase through
  the back woods of South Carolina into North
  Carolina into Virginia then back into North
  Carolina.
• Led to vast violence in interior that neither
  side could restrain

82
War Moves South

• U.S. won a decisive victory at Cowpens, South
  Carolina, in January 1781
• British victory in North Carolina in March was so
  costly they had to retreat to coast
• British commander General Cornwallis moved into
  Virginia with 7500 troops in April 1781
• After costly raids into the interior, returned to
  coast at Yorktown on August 1
• Part of the 1778 French alliance included naval
  forces
• On August 30, 1781, French admiral Comte de
  Grasse arrived at Yorktown
• With a second squadron from the north, he
  established naval superiority in Chesapeake Bay

83
War Moves South

• At the same time, Washingtons continentals,
  reinforced by French troops, marched south from
  Pennsylvania
• Cornwallis was forced to surrender on October 19,
  1781
• Nearly 7000 British troops laid down arms
• When Lord North heard the news a month later,
  declared Oh God! It is all over
• On February 27, 1781, the House of Commons cut
  off further support for the war
• North resigned in March
• Preliminary articles of peace were signed in
  November 1782

84

• Lord Frederick North
• Prime Minister of England
• (1770-1782)

85
Native Americans in the Revolution

• Intertwined with the fate of the colonists since
  first contact, the Indians could not help but be
  drawn into the war
• By time of war, coastal tribes had been decimated
  by disease and warfare, their villages displaced
  by white settlement
• Interior was still dominated by powerful tribes
• Iroquois Six Nations of 15,000 people in north
• In the SouthCherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw,
  Seminole and Creek (60,000 people)dominated the
  interior
• Originally both sides had urged neutrality
• By spring 1776 each side was seeking alliances

86
Native Americans in the Revolution

• Conflicts with the Cherokee
• Due to encroachment into their lands by the white
  settlers
• Led by Dragging Canoe, Cherokee attacked eastern
  Tennessee in July 1776
• Militias from Virginia and Carolina laid waste to
  a group of Cherokee towns
• Cherokee never mounted another sustained military
  effort during the war
• As a result of what happened to the Cherokee, the
  Creek stayed out of the battles

87
Native Americans in the Revolution

• In the Ohio country, war intensified existing
  conflicts between American settlers and Shawnee
  Indians
• In February 1778, George Rogers Clark and a band
  of Kentuckians captured Fort Vincennes from the
  British and their Native American allies
• Most tribes fought for the British
• Mainly because England provided them with trade
  goods and arms
• Also because they promised protection against
  colonial expansion
• The neutrality of the powerful Iroquois nation
  quickly dissolved as the war began
• Most Iroquois joined the British in the summer of
  1777

88
Native Americans in the Revolution

• Allied with the British, the tribe terrorized
  large areas of New York and Pennsylvania
  throughout the conflict
• In summer 1779, Americans launched a series of
  punishing raids into Iroquois country
• Americans burned villages, killing men, women,
  and children, and destroyed their crop fields
• By wars end, Iroquois had lost as many as
  one-third of their people and countless towns
• Domination of northeastern interior was shattered
• Not all the Iroquois fought with the British
• Oneida and Tuscarora fought with the Americans

89
Native Americans in the Revolution

• Other tribes fought for the Americans
• Mainly because they were dependent on the
  American trade
• In New England, the Stockbridge Indians
  contributed warriors and scouts
• In the south, the Catawba did as well
• Neither side did well after the war
• Indians who fought for the Americans received
  little protection for their lands after the war
• Indians who fought for the British were ignored
  by them during peace talks
• They also did not receive compensation for their
  losses nor guarantees for their lands

90

• Joseph Brant
• Leader of the Mohawk Indians

91
Negotiating Peace

• Peace negotiations began in September 1781
• Between British Commissioner Richard Oswald and
  Americans Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John
  Jay
• Negotiations were made more complicated by the
  participation of other European countries in the
  war
• European countries sought to weaken the British
• France had been main U.S. ally since 1778
• Spain had entered war against the British
  (without recognizing American independence) later
  in 1778
• Between 1780 and 1782, Russia, the Netherlands,
  and six other European nations formed the League
  of Armed Neutrality to protect their shipping
  from the British

92
Negotiating Peace

• Congress instructed the American commissioners to
  follow the advice of French foreign minister
  Charles Vergennes
• However, they learned he had his own agenda
• Vergennes wanted to
• Have the war to drag out in order to weaken
  Britain even more and make American more
  dependent on France
• Set Americas western boundary no further west
  than the Appalachian Mountains
• Have the British retain areas they controlled at
  wars end which included New York City
• Commissioners negotiated separate peace

93
Negotiating Peace

• The Treaty of Paris (September 1783)
• Signed at the palace at Versailles
• Acknowledged the independence of America
• Recognized the countrys western border at the
  Mississippi River
• U.S. fishermen would have the right to fish off
  coast of Newfoundland.
• British forces would evacuate American territory
  with all convenient speed
• U.S. Congress would recommend that states restore
  the rights and property of Loyalists
• Both sides agreed prewar debts remained valid

94

• Signing of the Treaty of Paris

95
Ingredients of Victory

• Only half of Britains New World colonies
  rebelled
• Total of 13 out of 26
• French Canadians did not like Americans
• West Indian planters depended on British military
  protection
• How did these disunited 13 colonies win the war?
• Dutch loans
• French military resources of 10,000 men and
  French fleet
• Indomitable will of the American people
• Effectiveness of the state militias
• Washingtons military expertise (including the
  fact that he was more flexible) and his guerrilla
  fighting tactics
• A series of inept blunders on the part of a
  larger and better equipped British army

96
Experience of War

• While the loss of life and destruction of
  property pales in comparison to modern wars, the
  Revolutionary War was terrifying to those living
  through it
• As many as 250,000 men may have borne arms in the
  Revolutionary War
• One out of every two or three adult white males
• Majority were native born but many came from
  immigrants who had arrived in middle of century
  seeking a better life
• Initially militias were not effective fighting
  forces thought they did serve as convenient
  recruiting systems
• Legitimated war among the people and secured
  their commitment to the revolutionary cause
• Helped separate Patriots from Loyalists

97
Experience of War

• War transformed into a poor mans fight
• The wealthy paid substitutes to fight for them
• Ranks were made up of criminals, out-of-work
  laborers, free and unfree blacks, and even
  British deserters
• Problems with the war
• Pay was slow
• Military discipline rose as desertion rates
  reached 25
• Some troops openly revolted as supplies dwindled
• Congress nor the state governments had the
  ability to effectively administer a war of such
  magnitude

98
Experience of War

• Camp followers further complicated military life
• Included wives, prostitutes, personal servants,
  and slaves
• They slowed the armys movement and threatened
  discipline
• Because muskets had an effective range of no more
  than 100 yards, death tended to be up close and
  personal
• Close line volleys were followed by hand to hand
  combat
• Partisan warfare in the South personalized war
  even more
• For Americans, it was also a civil war with as
  many as 50,000 Americans (Loyalists) fighting for
  the king
• Patriots believed the future of human liberty
  depended on their success
• Medical treatment often did more harm than good

99
Experience of War

• Costs of the war
• Americans suffered 25,000 fatalities, mainly due
  to disease rather than battle, and 8,500 to
  25,000 wounded
• British causalities included 19,700 dead, also
  due mainly to disease (scurvy)
• British financed 80 million for the cost of the
  war
• French financed 1.3 billion livres ( 56
  million)
• U.S. financed 151 million
• Devastation in the lives of city dwellers was
  profound
• Suffered dislocations
• British occupation often resulted in vandalism

100
Experience of War

• Along the entire coastal plain, British landing
  parties descended without warning, seizing
  supplies and terrorizing inhabitants
• Refugee traffic increased throughout the war as
  civilians struggled to escape the ravages of the
  armies
• During first years of the war, port cities lost
  nearly half their inhabitants
• Along the frontier, refugees fled eastward to
  escape Indians raids and Loyalist raiders
• Armies lived off the land taking what they needed
• Women were especially vulnerable

101
Experience of War

• Disease spread rapidly as the population moved
  from location to location,
• Smallpox alone killed some 130,000 people
• A crash program of inoculation protected the
  continental army (first large-scale immunization
  program in U.S. history)
• Most English troops carried an immunity from
  earlier exposure at home
• Was particularly devastating to Native Americans

102

• Reception of the American Loyalists by Great
  Britain in the Year 1783

103
Loyalists

• Many colonists who had remained loyal to the
  Crown emigrated to Canada, England or the
  Caribbean
• While some were successful, many never recovered
  from losses suffered during the war
• Tens of thousands of colonists evacuated with the
  British troops after the surrender
• Revolutionary assemblies deprived Loyalists of
  the vote
• Also, confiscated their property and banished