Creating A Nation

Creating A Nation Unit Two

I. Causes of the American Revolution • For 150 years, the English citizens in the 13 colonies “had it made” • Being 3,000 miles away, they enjoyed a lot of self-governing freedom • They paid very little tax to England • England offered protection from other nations

Two events played a key role in laying the foundation for the Am. Revolution. (They did not cause the Revolution but did move the people in that direction):

1) The Enlightenment: a time that featured new ideas in philosophy and political thought using science and reason • John Locke believed that people were born with certain “natural rights” that no gov’t could take away (“life, liberty, and property”) • Locke believed that if the gov’t failed to protect these rights it was the duty of the citizens to overthrow the gov’t • His views were used later to justify the Am. Revolution

2) The Great Awakening: a religious movement beginning in the 1740s • Ministers like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield taught that people could/should have a personal relationship with God rather than obeying religious traditions/rules • Many colonists began believing that if they could decide how to worship God, they could also decide how to govern themselves

Both the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening influenced the Am. Revolution. • The Enlightenment led to new ideas about the role of gov’t • The Great Awakening inspired the common people

So, what changed? What turned this peaceful relationship upside down? What caused the American Revolution? 1) French and Indian War (1754-1763) • British and Colonists vs. French and Indians • The final struggle for control of eastern North Am. • British won the war with the capture of Quebec • Problem: the war doubled Eng.’s debt and Parliament wanted the colonies to pay new taxes to help the empire

2) Proclamation of 1763 • Eng. prohibited the colonists from settling the lands west of the Appalachian Mts. • This angered many of the colonists.

3) New Taxes Imposed by the British • Sugar Act (1764): a tax on imported sugar and other goods from Eng. • Stamp Act (1765): taxed all legal documents in the colonies – colonists formed the Sons of Liberty and the Daughters of Liberty to organize protest – act eventually repealed • Townshend Acts (1767): taxed a number of imported items, including tea – colonists boycotted (refused to buy) those goods and others – repealed after five colonists were killed in the Boston Massacre in 1770

However, Parliament did not repeal the tax on tea – resulted in the Boston Tea Party in 1773 • Intolerable Acts (1774): passed in response to the Tea Party to punish the colonists – closed the Boston Harbor and placed a military governor over Mass.

II. The American Revolution • 1774: In response to the Intolerable Acts, representatives from every colony except Georgia gathered for the First Continental Congress 1. Wrote to the King stating the colonies had a right to be represented in their gov’t 2. Also, called for the people to arm themselves and form militias (civilian armies)

Eng. responded by sending even more troops (esp. to Boston) • April 1775: 700 British troops marched toward Concord, MA (20 miles from Boston) to seize a stockpile of weapons • In Lexington (5 miles from Concord), they met 60 protesting and armed colonists and ordered them to give up their guns (many refused)

No one knows who fired the first shot (“the shot heard around the world”) – 8 Americans died and 9 others injured • The British moved on to Concord to seize the weapons, but they had been moved • As the British were returning back to Boston, 4,000 Patriots had gathered along the road and ambushed the British troops • This event is known as the Battles of Lexington and Concord • The Revolution had begun!

Delegates met again less than a month later for the Second Continental Congress to discuss what to do next • Some called for a war for independence – Patriots • Others wanted to compromise with the British to prevent war – Loyalists

The Congress decided to do 2 things… 1) Create a Continental Army – led by George Washington 2) Offer an “Olive Branch” Petition to King George III to convince him to compromise • King George refused to compromise!

Jan. 1776: Thomas Paine: published Common Sense in an effort to convince people to support independence • Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) – drafted by Thomas Jefferson • Listed all the wrongs committed by Eng. and King George III • Remember, this was an act of treason against the “Crown”

Jefferson was influenced by John Locke in stating that all men are created equal and have certain “inalienable rights” (natural rights that gov’t can’t take away) • “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” were among those rights • Over time, this document served as a model for other nations seeking independence

King George III and Eng. did not expect a long war • British troops were better trained and better equipped • However, the colonists had some advantages the British did not have • The war would be fought on their turf • They were fighting for their independence, which made them fight with determination

The British made several military mistakes during the course of the war because they underestimated the Patriots • 1777: The colonists won a major victory at Saratoga, NY • This victory convinced the French to ally themselves with the colonists

After years fighting, victories and defeats for the colonists, the war came to an end at Yorktown, VA • British General Lord Cornwallis had retreated to the coastline to wait for British supply ships • Yorktown is on a peninsula • French ships blocked off the British supply ships • Washington moved in on Yorktown and trapped the British Army • Cornwallis was forced to surrender and the war basically came to an end

Treaty of Paris (1783): officially ended the American Revolution • The US became an independent nation • The border between the US and Canada was outlined

III. Establishing a Government • Articles of Confederation (adopted in 1781): the first federal (national) constitution • Failed because it did not give enough power to the federal government

Weaknesses of the Articles… • No President or national leader • Congress had no power to tax • Congress had no power to control trade among the states • No national army • No uniform currency • Congress had little power to pass laws • No national court system • No national law enforcement officials

Shays’ Rebellion (1786): Daniel Shays led a number of farmers in rebellion against taxes imposed by the state of Mass. • Mass. was forced to deal with the situation on their own because the national gov’t had no power to do anything • Rebellion was crushed but showed the weaknesses of the Articles

Constitutional Convention (1787): delegates met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles • George Washington chosen as President of the Convention • Delegates decided to throw out the Articles altogether and write a new set of laws • The result was the United States Constitution • James Madison referred to as the “Father of the Constitution” because of the role he played in writing the final document

How the national government should be reorganized caused a lot of debate • This led to a number of compromises between the states…”Bundle of Compromises” • The Great Compromise: solved the issue of representation in Congress • Large states wanted the number of representatives to be only based on population (Virginia Plan) • Small states wanted an equal number of representatives (New Jersey Plan)

Delegates compromised by creating two houses (bicameral legislature): one house based on population, one house would have equal representation

The Three-Fifths Compromise: solved the issue of counting slaves or not for representation purposes • Northerners argued that slaves should not be counted as part of the pop. since they were not voting citizens

Southerners had far more slaves and wanted to count them (would equal more representatives) • Delegates agreed that all whites plus three-fifths of the slave pop. would be counted for rep.

Federalists: those who favored a strong federal gov’t and the Constitution • Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay • Anti-Federalists: those who opposed ratifying (approving) the Constitution • Thomas Jefferson

Federalists Papers: a series of essays written to rally support for the passage of the Constitution • signed by “Publius”…Hamilton, Madison, Jay • A number of states refused to ratify the Constitution until a Bill of Rights was added to the document • Enough delegates agreed to ratify the document in exchange for a guarantee that the Bill of Rights would be added later on

Creating A Nation