Download America Secedes

The Revolutionary War breaks out – Ch. 7-8 of The American Pageant, “The Road to Revolution” –
“America Secedes from the Empire,” pp. 133-143
Overall main idea: Despite disadvantages and no desire for independence, American resistance to
British policies turned into warfare in 1775-1776 with early victories for the Americans.
Bloodshed
Main idea: Americans responded to the Intolerable Acts by organizing a Continental Congress, a boycott and military
troops, which led to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War at Lexington and Concord.
Though the Intolerable Acts were directed at Massachusetts, the rest of the colonies responded with sympathy and
sent supplies
First Continental Congress, 1774 – 12 of the 13 colonies sent delegates to Philadelphia to discuss ways to address
the Intolerable Acts and colonial complaints against Britain; included Samuel Adams, John Adams, George Washington,
Patrick Henry; results:
Issued a Declaration of Rights and appeals to other British subjects for help
Created The Association – a complete boycott of British goods
Agreed to meet again in 1775 if problems weren’t fixed
Did not even discuss independence from Britain yet
Parliament rejected the petitions of the Congress; the boycott and general harassment of British sympathizers
continued; colonial militia and troops were drilled and prepared in case of fighting
“Minutemen” – colonial American troops who could be ready “at a minute’s notice”
1775 – British troops were sent from Boston to Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts; they were to arrest Samuel
Adams and John Hancock, leaders of the resistance, and confiscate military supplies there
Battle of Lexington and Concord, 1775 – at Lexington, the British dispersed colonial minutemen and killed some
before marching on to Concord; at Concord the minutemen surrounded them and fired at all sides, then continued to fire on
them as the British retreated back to Boston, killing and wounding some 370 men; American victory and the outbreak of
the Revolutionary War
Emerson called Concord “the shot heard round the world,” as it started the American Revolution, which
influenced many other revolutions for freedom afterwards
Imperial Strength and Weakness
Main idea: The British had many advantages over the Americans but also some handicaps.
Advantages:
Population of Britain: 7.5 million; population of America: 2.5 million
Britain had great advantages in monetary wealth, naval power and military strength: 50,000 of the best
soldiers in the world, plus 30,000 German mercenaries (a.k.a. “Hessians”), plus 50,000 American loyalists, plus some
Indians
Handicaps:
It was also preoccupied with continued problems in Ireland and against France
Confused and incompetent British government in London
Political divisions in British government: Whigs vs. Tories; Whigs supported many of the Americans
ideas
British generals were not very competent overall; soldiers were brutally treated; supplies were scarce or
bad; 3,000 miles from home country
British had to conquer the colonists in a huge expanse of land with no major capital city to concentrate on
American Pluses and Minuses
Main idea: The Americans had many handicaps against the British but also many advantages.
Advantages:
Outstanding leadership:
George Washington – military and moral leader, with experience
Benjamin Franklin – excellent diplomat with foreign countries
Marquis de Lafayette – wealthy French military commander, teenager, who fought with the
Americans and donated money
Other foreign military officers fought with the Americans
Defensive war; just had to keep from being conquered and subdued
Self-sustaining colonies with little “supply line” compared to the British
Morale in a strong cause of liberty
Handicaps:
Badly organized and lacking unity; divided by colonies and even among the people themselves
Little national government beyond the Continental Congress; the Articles of Confederation weren’t
established until the end of the war
Economic problems – little coinage, no taxation, near worthless paper money, inflation
Military supply shortage
A Thin Line of Heroes
Main idea: Those who fought on the American side in the Revolutionary War were a small amount of ill-supplied,
unreliable militiamen, well-trained regulars, and African-Americans.
The cost of defending America increased due to the war at the same time that the major source of supply ended,
since they were fighting those from whom they were normally supplied, the British
Valley Forge, 1777-1778 – Americans suffered miserably cold conditions in Pennsylvania winter with few
supplies; manufactured goods were hard to come by in agricultural America
Militiamen were poorly trained, especially compared to the professional British regulars
American regular troops were finally organized and trained well by the end of the war
Baron von Steuben – German organizer and drillmaster who helped train American troops into better soldiers
More than 5,000 blacks served in American forces, especially from northern free black populations; many were
soldiers; others were cooks, guides, spies, drivers, manual labor
British offered black slaves freedom in exchange for escaping their masters and fighting for the British side; as
many as 14,000 former slaves were evacuated by the end of the war
Many Americans did not support either side and merely made profit off of it
There were never a large amount of American soldiers; only a minority of colonists fought in the Revolutionary
War
Chapter 8: America Secedes from the Empire
Second Continental Congress began meeting in 1775 – sent more petitions to Britain asking to redress grievances;
began to raise money and troops and a navy; choose George Washington as military commander
Congress Drafts George Washington
Main idea: The Second Continental Congress made a wise choice in George Washington as military commander.
George Washington – Virginia planter, slaveholder, 43 years old, tall, with some military experience, though not a
military genius at all
Washington was chosen as military commander of the Continental Army largely for political reasons: the majority
of the fighting and problems had come from New England, so they wanted a southerner, especially from the wealthy and
populous Virginia colony, to balance
It was a good choice; he had strong powers of leadership, charisma, character, courage, discipline and justice; he
was like a symbol and rallying point; he was trusted and prepared
Bunker Hill and Hessian Hirelings
Main idea: The war and tensions escalated after the Battle of Bunker Hill, the rejection of the Olive Branch Petition and the
hiring of Hessian soldiers to the British side.
Before 1776, Americans were in a tough spot; they did not want independence, they wanted to be loyal to Britain,
but they were fighting violently against British troops to defend their rights
1775 – Fort Ticonderoga, New York – Americans under Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen captured a British fort
and seized military supplies needed for the war
1775 – Battle of Bunker Hill (actually Breed’s Hill) – British troops in Boston directly attacked Americans who
were dug in on top of Breed’s Hill, losing a lot of casualties; the Americans eventually retreated when they ran out of
ammo, but it was at a large cost to the British; considered an American victory; “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their
eyes”
Olive Branch Petition - After the battle, the Second Continental Congress sent a peaceful petition to the King,
pledging their continued loyalty and asking him to stop the fighting and help solve their problems; but King George III
refused to even read it and declared the colonies in a state of rebellion, a treasonous crime
The King also hired German troops to fight for the British, known as “Hessians” because most of them came from
the province of Hesse in Germany; the Americans were outraged; most Hessians came for money, though, and many
deserted and later became respected American citizens
The Abortive Conquest of Canada
Main idea: American attacks to gain Canada were unsuccessful but the British were defeated in Boston and the Carolinas.
In late 1775, Benedict Arnold and Richard Montgomery attacked Canada, hoping to bring the French Canadians
onto the American rebels’ side; they captured Montreal but were defeated at Quebec and were forced to retreat; after the
generous Quebec Act, the French had little desire to help the rebellious anti-Catholic colonists
The British were forced to evacuate from Boston in early 1776; the Americans won other small victories in North
and South Carolina
Overall main idea: Despite disadvantages and no desire for independence, American resistance to
British policies turned into warfare in 1775-1776 with early victories for the Americans.
Revolutionary ideas, Patriots vs. Loyalists – Ch. 8 of The American Pageant, “Toward Independence,”
pp. 143-151
Overall main idea: In 1776, Americans turned to ideas of independence and republicanism, which led
to divisions between “patriots” and “loyalists.”
Thomas Paine Preaches Common Sense
Main idea: Americans continued to pledge allegiance to the King until the burning of American towns, the hiring of the
Hessians, and the publication of the popular pamphlet “Common Sense.”
As late as early 1776, American soldiers continued to pledge allegiance to the King of England
Events pushing Americans away from the King and toward independence:
The burning of American towns in Falmouth and Norfolk
The rejection of the Olive Branch Petition by the King
The declaration that the colonies were in a treasonous “state of rebellion” by the King
The hiring of Hessian mercenary soldiers
The publication of Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense”
Paine said that independence for American was “common sense,” that it was ridiculous for a tiny island (England)
to rule an entire continent (America), and that the King was a “royal brute”
Paine and the Idea of “Republicanism”
Main idea: Thomas Paine’s call for republicanism was well received by Americans, whose previous experience made them
more receptive of it.
Paine called for independence and a new republic in America
Republic – a form of government where power flows from the common people, usually to elected representatives,
instead of a monarch
Republican ideas had been around since ancient Greece and Rome and were promoted by the English in the 1600s,
leading to their “mixed government” of monarch and Parliament
American experiences prepared them for republican ideas – they had years of self-government experience, no
hereditary aristocracy, relatively few social classes
Republicans believed that citizens must be virtuous and sacrifice their private self-interests for the public good
Some Republicans believed that the “natural aristocracy,” but not hereditary, should still have the most power in
the Republic, to prevent the wild and ignorant lower classes from ruining it
Jefferson’s “Explanation” of Independence
Main idea: Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence to explain the rationale and reasons for America’s
breaking away from Great Britain.
June 7, 1776 – In the 2nd Continental Congress, Richard Henry Lee of VA proposed the resolution to break free
from Great Britain; it was approved and adopted after much debate, on July 2, 1776; John Adams predicted July 2 would be
a major holiday later
July 4, 1776 – the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Congress; it would later be signed, mostly on
August 2, 1776
Jefferson, John Adams, and Franklin were assigned with two others to a committee to write the Declaration, to
explain the reasons and ideas behind American independence, to inspire other Americans and to inform other countries;
Jefferson was known as a great writer and was given the task
Thomas Jefferson – Virginia planter, lawyer, slaveholder, only 33 at the time, writer and “renaissance man”; wrote
the Declaration of Independence
Jefferson used John Locke’s ideas of “natural rights” and contract theory of government (see notes on Declaration
of Independence)
The Declaration would become a source of inspiration for many other people, countries, and years later
Patriots and Loyalists
Main idea: The Revolutionary War was also a civil war as many people sided with the patriots and many with the loyalists.
Patriots – those who supported the revolution; a.k.a. “Whigs,” in reference to the opposition party in British
government
Loyalists – those who supported the King and were against the revolution; a.k.a. “Tories,” in reference to the
dominant party in British government
Patriots were a minority of Americans, just as loyalists were; many Americans were neutral or indifferent
Patriot militiamen were excellent at propaganda and convincing their countrymen to support the revolution
Likely to be loyalists: the educated, the wealthy, those with lots to lose, the older generations, royal officials and
beneficiaries of the crown, Anglican clergy and congregations, New York, Charleston
Likely to be patriots: young, New Englanders, Virginians, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, non-English
Americans
Makers of America: The Loyalists
Main idea: Loyalists came from many parts of society, were subject to harassment and confiscation of property, escaped to
other British colonies and stayed at home to become future U.S. citizens.
The Loyalist Exodus
Main idea: While some loyalists were violently harassed and had their property confiscated by patriots, many escaped to
British lines or joined the British military.
Harassment of loyalists grew after the Declaration of Independence; they were imprisoned, tarred and feathered,
beaten, and some hanged; yet they were not nearly as brutalized or killed like would later occur in French or Russian
revolutions
Many loyalists were driven out or fled to the British, but more stayed home; their property was often confiscated
and sold to pay for the war effort
Other loyalists aided the British war effort as spies, by inciting Indians, and joining the British military
Overall main idea: In 1776, Americans turned to ideas of independence and republicanism, which led
to divisions between “patriots” and “loyalists.”