THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Because of the American Revolution, the thirteen colonies eventually won their independence from Great Britain. In the 1760s, the colonists became unhappy with King George III when he started to tax the colonies to raise money to pay for a recent war against the French and to help with the costs of ruling Britian's empire. The colonists did not like being taxed when they did not have a say in how the government was run. They protested peacefully at first, but in 1775 after King George III and the Parliament started to punish them for rebelling war broke out. The colonists won the war and gained independence.
Where did the Revolutionary War take place?
The Road to Revolution
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was fought in the American Colonies from 1754-1763. It started when the colonists expanded westward and started conflicting with the French. With help of Native Americans and the British, the colonists won. As a result, the British gained a lot of land that used to be controlled by France. Unfortunately, the British had to borrow a large amount of money to pay for the war and had many British troops that were still in the colonies to provide protection. King George III and Parliament did not think that they should be the only ones to pay for the war and the continuing protection. |
Sugar and Stamp Acts
Since the British owed such a large amount of money, they felt that the colonists needed to pay taxes to help them pay off the debt. In 1764, King George III imposed a tax on sugar and molasses that was imported (brought in) to the colonies. In 1765, he imposed the Stamp Act. This act put a tax on newspapers, legal documents and playing cards. The colonists were furious and felt that the King had no right to tax them unless they had representatives in Parliament to speak for them. They protested by refusing to pay the taxes. Tax collectors were threatened and forced to quit their jobs. Stamped paper was burned in the streets, and colonists boycotted products that came from Britain. The colonists were so upset by the Stamp Act that they called a meeting of all of the colonies, called the Stamp Act Congress. Representatives from each colony got together in New York and planned a unified protest. A group of patriots called the Sons of Liberty formed around this time as well. The Sons of Liberty used intimidation to convince tax collectors to resign from their jobs. The Stamp Act hurt British businesses so much that it was repealed on March 18, 1766. To send a message, the British Parliament also passed an act on the same day that said they had the right to tax and make laws in the colonies. |
The Townshend Acts
The colonies were still part of Britain, and King George and the Parliament wanted to make sure they paid for themselves. In 1767, they passed the Townshend Acts. These acts took away some of the freedoms the colonists were accustomed to and included taxes that were specifically to pay the salaries of officials like governors and judges. These acts were named after George Townshend, who introduced them to Parliament. The Townshend Acts added new taxes on paper, paint, lead, glass and tea. They established and American Customs Board in Boston to collect taxes and set up new courts in the colonies to prosecute smugglers without using a jury of colonists. The acts also gave British officials rights to search colonists' houses and business. Colonists were not happy. They still weren't allowed representatives in Parliament, and they did not think it was fair to be taxed without being represented. They weren't against the taxes, but were against not having a vote and where the taxes went. They felt the money from the taxes should go to their local governments and not to Britain. In response, many merchants organized boycotts against British goods and began to smuggle in goods to avoid taxes. Protests also occurred, and sometimes turned violent. A protest in Boston led to the Boston Massacre. Most of the taxes were repealed in 1770, except the tax on tea. |
The Boston Massacre
After the Townshend Acts, the colonists were angry and began to protest. Britain sent in more soldiers to keep order. On March 5, 1770, there was a small argument outside of the Custom House in Boston, located on King Street, between a few colonists and British Private Hugh White. More and more colonists gathered and harassed Private White. They threw sticks and snowballs. Captain Thomas Preston, who was the British officer on watch, sent over more soldiers to the Custom House to help keep order but it had the opposite effect. The soldiers had bayonets and the crowd taunted them to fire. Preston arrived and tried to get the crowd to go away, but it didn't work. A British soldier was hit by an object thrown from the crowd. It knocked him down and he fired into the crowd. There were a few seconds of silence, followed by other soldiers firing into the crowd as well. As a result, three colonists died immediately. Two died later from wounds. The crowd was eventually dispersed by the governor of Boston, Thomas Hutchinson. Thirteen people were arrested and charged with murder: eight British soldiers, one officer, and four civilians. All were put in jail to wait for their trial. British troops were removed from the city. |
The Boston Tea Party
The British Parliament passed the Tea Act, which limited colonists to purchasing tea from only one company: The East India Trading Company. It also put a high tax on tea that colonists would have to pay. Tea as a favorite drink for colonists and the British, so this was another thing that made them very unhappy. The colonists were still upset that they weren't represented in Parliament and refused to pay taxes on the tea. They also asked for the tea send from the East India Trading Company to be returned to Britain. When it wasn't they decided to protest. On December 16, 1773, three British trade ships were in Boston Harbor: the Dartmouth, the Eleanor and the Beaver. Patriots boarded the ships, some dressed as Mohawk Indians, and threw 342 chests of tea into the ocean. The chests held roughly 90,000 pounds of tea, which today would cost around a million dollars. The British weren't fooled by the costumes and knew exactly who had ruined the tea, which prompted the Intolerable Acts. |
The Intolerable Acts
In response to the Boston Tea Party, the British government passed four acts. These acts were collectively called the Coercive Acts by Britain and the Intolerable Acts by the colonists. The first act, The Boston Port Act, closed the port in Boston until the East India Company was compensated for the tea that was thrown in the harbor. Only British ships could come in and out of Boston. This was crippling for the Massachusetts colony because they could not get any goods out or in. Consequently, the colonists in Massachusetts asked the other colonies to stop trading with England until the port was reopened. Other colonies also provided Massachusetts with needed goods. The second act, The Massachusetts Government Act, replaced elected counselors with officials and judges chosen by the British appointed governor. The colonists were also forbidden from having more than one town meeting each year. so they could not plan any more acts of rebellion. The third act, The Administration of Justice Act, state that British soldiers who committed crimes in the colonies could be tried in England. This essentially meant that soldiers were able to get away with anything. Some colonists even called this the "Murder Act." The final act, The Quartering Act, required colonists to provide housing for British soldiers. If barracks weren't available, soldiers were allowed to stay in hotels, barns, or the homes of colonists. Colonists were furious. These acts took away their freedoms. They pushed many colonists to support the side of the patriots instead of the British. |
The First Continental Congress
In response to the Intolerable Acts, delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from September 5 to October 26, 1774. Members included John Adams, Patrick Henry and George Washington. They discussed what had been happening with Britain and decided to take action. The delegates sent a letter to King George III explaining how the colonies felt about the treatment they were receiving. They also demanded that he stop the Intolerable Acts and threatened to boycott English goods if he didn't. King George III ignored them, and the colonies began the boycott. They also planned to meet again in May, 1775 if Britain did not meet their demands. |
Major Events
Paul Revere's Ride
The British army was stationed in Boston in April, 1775. It was expected that they would make some sort of move against the Patriots, so the Sons of Liberty were keeping a close watch. They wanted to have enough time to warn the colonists of any pending attack. The plan was for two riders to take two different routes to Lexington to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock. Paul Revere was supposed to go across the Charles River to Charlestown and William Dawes would take a longer, different route. There were other riders along the way that the men would also warn so that they could carry the warning to others. Paul Revere also set up another system just in case. There would be lanterns hung in the steeple of the Old North Church to warn the colonists in Charleston. One lantern would be hung if the British were arriving by land, two if they were coming by sea. On the night of April 19, 1775, the British began to move towards Lexington over the Charles River. Paul Revere and William Dawes were warned and set off on their ride. Revere arrived first with Dawes getting there thirty minutes later. John Hancock and Samuel Adams were notified, and the men decided to continue on to Concord to warn the militia. Unfortunately they were detained by the British. A third rider, Samuel Prescott, made it to Concord to warn the militia. Revere escaped and walked back to Lexington to help John Hancock and his family escape to safety. The ride of Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Samuel Prescott gave the colonists enough warning to allow them to prepare to fight off the British militia. |
Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord marked the start of the Revolutionary War. On April 19, 1775, the British Army set out to destroy the colonist's stockpile of weapons and ammunition in Concord and to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock in Lexington. Since the colonists were warned by Paul Revere and William Dawes, Adams and Hancock were able to escape and the militia was able to hide most the weapons and ammunition. The Battle of Lexington was very small. There were about 80 American militiamen led by Captain John Parker up against a larger British force led by Major John Pitcairn. No one was expecting to fight, but a gunshot went off, forcing the British to attack. Some colonists were killed and the rest fled. No one is sure if it was an American or British soldier who fired the shot. It was the first of the Revolution and the start of the war, called the "shot heard round the world." The British marched to Concord after the Americans fled. When they got there, they searched for the hidden stash of weapons and ammunition. There were few colonists present to resist; they had retreated just outside of Concord to watch the British from the other side of the North Bridge. While they watched and waited, more and more militiamen arrived, which made the American forces stronger. The Americans crossed back into Concord and defeated the British and the North Bridge. The British commander recognized that it was time to retreat--the American forces were growing. The march back to Boston wasn't easy for the British. The Americans continued to attack the British as they walked with more and more militiamen joining. The British lost 73 men and 174 were wounded; the Americans lost 49 men and 41 were wounded. |
The Second Continental Congress
On May 10, 1775 the Second Continental Congress began to meet in different sessions until March, 1781. The first meeting was at the Philadelphia State House, but other meetings were held in different locations over time. All thirteen colonies were represented. The Second Continental Congress was led by John Hancock and included new members Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. It completed tasks similar to those of a government: sending ambassadors to foreign countries, getting loans, and printing money. On June 14, 1775 the Second Continental Congress established the Continental Army and made George Washington the General. Later, they tried to send the Olive Branch Petition to King George III to attempt to keep peace. That didn't work, and on July 4, 1776 the Declaration of Independence was issued. This document declared the United States to be an independent country from Britain. |
Battle of Bunker Hill
The British wanted to keep control of the city of Boston to keep charge of the harbor. There were two hills the British wanted control of to gain a tactical advantage: Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill. The Battle of Bunker Hill actually took place mostly on Breed's Hill, but the army thought they were on Bunker so it was named as such. The American forces found out that the British planned to take over the hills. They secretly moved their troops onto Bunker and Breed's Hill in Charlestown. During the night they prepared for battle. When the British realized what happened, they attacked the next day. The British commander led three charges up Breed's Hill. The colonists fought back the first two charges but started to run out of ammunition. Since they were low, they were told "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!" Unfortunately, the colonists had to retreat at the third charge and the British ultimately gained the hill. Approximately 226 British were killed and 800 wounded. The Americans were in much better shape and did not have nearly as many deaths. This gave the Americans the courage to know that they were able to stand up to the British in battle, and many more colonists joined the army. |
Declaration of Independence
After about a year at war with Britain, the Continental Congress decided that it was finally time to break away from British rule. On June 11, 1776, five leaders were appointed to write a document explaining why they were declaring independence. The Committee of Five was made up of Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Robert Livingston, Roger Sherman and Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson took a few weeks to write the first draft, and changes were made by the rest of the committee. The document not only stated that the colonists wanted their freedom, but also listed what they felt King George III had done wrong. It explained why they wanted their freedoms and that the colonies had rights that they felt they should fight for. The Declaration of Independence was presented to Congress on June 28, 1776. At first, not everyone agreed on declaring independence. In the first round of voting, New York and Delaware didn't vote and South Carolina and Pennsylvania voted no. The Congress wanted a unanimous vote, so discussions continued. On July 2, 1776, the agreement passed with 12 yes votes since New York decided not to vote. On July 4, 1776, Congress officially adopted the final version of the Declaration of Independence. |
Battle of Saratoga
The Battles of Saratoga were the turning point of the American Revolution. They were a series of battles that ended with the surrender of a British General John Burgoyne. General Burgoyne planned to split the colonies in two along the Hudson River, convinces that divided they wouldn't last. While he led his army south from Lake Champlain to Albany, New York, another general was to go north along the Hudson River and meet Burgoyne in Albany. Burgoyne advanced south, recapturing Fort Ticonderoga from the Americans on the way. Howe changed the plans and went east to Philadelphia, leaving Burgoyne on his own. Burgoyne and his troops continued south but were harrassed by Americans along the way. Progress was slow and they began to run out of food. Burgoyne sent some of his soldiers to find food and horses in Bennington, Vermont, but Bennington was well-guarded. The British troops were surrounded and approximately 500 were captured. The first battle of Saratoga took place on the farm of John Freeman, a British loyalist. 500 American sharpshooters were led to the field where they saw the British advancing, taking out a number of officers before the British began to attach. The British suffered 600 casualties but managed to gain control of the field. The Americans suffered half of that. After the Battle of Freeman's Farm, the Americans set up at Bemis Heights. The American forces grew as more militia arrived. The British attacked and failed miserably. General Burgoyne was forced to retreat and nearly 600 British lives were lost. The Americans followed the British army and surrounded them within days. On October 17, 1777 Burgoyne surrendered. |
Valley Forge
During the winter of 1777-1778, George Washington and the American Continental Army made camp in Valley Forge, about 25 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Washington decided on Valley Forge because of it's location. It was close to Philadelphia where the British were camping for the winter so he could keep an eye on them and protect the people of Philadelphia, but it was far enough away that he would have warning if the British decided to attack. There were high areas to make fortifications and the Schuykill River was to the north, serving as a barrier. The conditions at Valley Forge were miserable. It was a cold, wet, snowy winter, and many didn't have warm clothing, blankets or even shoes. There wasn't enough food and soldiers were often hungry. They lived in cold, damp, crowded cabins, Disease and sickness spread quickly. Typhoid fever, pneumonia, and smallpox resulted in the death of many soldiers. 2,500 of the 10,000 men died before spring. In spite of the conditions, at Valley Forge the American forces became a true fighting unit. General George Washington, General Friedrich von Steuben of Prussia, and General Marquis de Lafayette of France trained and built the army. Von Steuben ran daily drills that taught soldiers the tactics and discipline they needed, and Lafayette worked for no pay and didn't request special treatment. Because of this winter training, the army grew stronger and better equipped tfor future battles. |
Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown was the final battle of the American Revolution. It lasted twenty days before the British Army finally surrendered. In the South, General Nathaniel Green took command of the Continental Army. He put in some new tactics that led to American victories and forced the British Army to retreat to the East Coast. While the British Army was retreating to Yorktown under General Cornwallis, General George Washington was also marching his army down from the north. The French Navy started to move towards the coast near Yorktown shortly after they defeated the British Navy. The British Army of roughly 8,000 troops was surrounded by the 18,000 American and French troops. General Cornwallis had been expecting to get more support from the British Navy, but after they were defeated that was clearly not going to happen. The British were outnumbered and bombarded by the American forces for eleven days. Cornwallis sent out the white flag to surrender and made a number of demands to George Washington. Washington did not give in to his demands and started to prepare his troops for another attack. Before the attack, Cornwallis finally agreed to Washington's terms and the battle was over. On October 19, 1781 General Cornwallis signed the British surrender. Losing this battle made the British start to realize it wasn't worth the cost of the war to keep the colonies. |
Treaty of Paris
It took a long time for an agreement between Britain and the United States to be drafted and signed after Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown. The Treaty of Paris, the official peace treaty ending the Revolutionary War, was signed on September 3, 1783. The Congress of the Confederation ratified the treaty on January 14, 1783, and King George II ratified the treaty on April 9, 1784. It was roughly a year and a half after Yorktown! The Treaty of Paris got its name since it was negotiated in Paris, France. David Hartley, a Parliament member, represented the British and King George III. John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and John Jay represented the United States. Most importantly to the Americans, the treaty stated that Britain recognized the Thirteen Colonies as free and independent states that the British no longer had any claim to. Another major point was that the boundaries of the United States allowed for the colonists to expand westward, which was important later as the United States grew. Other parts of the treaty had to do with fishing rights, debts, war prisoners, access to the Mississippi River and the property of the Loyalists. It was important to both sides that the rights and possessions of their citizens were protected. |
After the Revolution
Articles of Confederation
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Shay's Rebellion
After the Revolution ended in 1783, the country started to experience some economic challenges. People had trouble paying their bills and taxes. Since they were in debt, these people began losing their possessions and could even be sent to debtors' prison. People started to protest the taxes and other conditions that led to the economic challenges. The protests continued to grow until men in Western Massachusetts revolted. In August 1786, protestors closed down the courts in Northampton to prevent debtors from being tried and sent to prison. In September, Daniel Shays, an army officer during the war, led several hundred men to Springfield along with other leaders. They broke up the state's Supreme Court meeting. In January 1787, Shays led roughly 1,200 men in an attack on a Springfield arsenal which was stopped. The next month, the group was again defeated and fled to Vermont ending the rebellion in February 1787. There were several other disturbances in different states around the same time, which contributed to the argument for a strong central government. In May of 1787, representatives from separate states gathered for the Constitutional Convention and began to write the United States Constitution to do just that. |