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The American Revolution
6-4
King George III
• King of England– Owned the 13 colonies– Controlled them– The people living in the
colonies thought of him as a tyrant
13 Colonies• Colonies had grown by
an incredible amount between 1700 & 1770
• Economy- traded with Europe
• Own governments• Didn’t see themselves
as British, they were Virginians, or Pennsylvanians
Navigation Acts, 1651
• Colonies were only allowed to sell most valuable goods to England
• High taxes on products from other European nations– Despite the restrictions, colonial businesses
thrived– The colonists enjoyed relative freedom and
harmony on a daily basis
French and Indian War, 1754-1763
• England finally defeated the French and seized the French colonies in North America (mostly US)
• England- huge debt in war against France• Needed Money: wanted the colonies to help pay for the
war
Stamp Act
• 1765: Britain passed a new tax, the Stamp Act• Deeds, Wills, and other printed materials needed to have
this official stamp to be legal• Colonist had to pay for the stamp• Colonists were angry. They felt it was “taxation without
representation”
Boston Tea Party
• Import Tax on tea to colonists– Everyone drank tea
• Colonists “disguised as Native Americans”: raided 3 British ships & poured the tea in water
• British troops were sent to Boston
First and Second Continental Congresses
• 1st- protested treatment of Boston– Created a list of
complaints about the treatment of the colonies
– King George ignored the complaints
• 2nd-Raise a militia• April 19, 1775: the 2 sides
exchanged gun fire in Lexington
George Washington
• British trained officer• Chosen to lead the
militia established by 2nd Continental Congress
Declaration of Independence
• July, 1776• Written by Thomas Jefferson• Listed the abuses by king which
allowed the colonies to rebel– ENLIGHTENMENT idea – Heavily influenced by John Locke
American Success• On the surface, this war appeared a huge miss
match for the colonists:– The colonist were much more motivated to fight than
the British– The overconfident British generals made several
mistakes– Time was on the side of the colonists
• They didn’t need to defeat the British just outlast them
– The cost of the war was huge for Britain• After a few years the British citizens were tired of
war time taxes
American Success
Yorktown
• 1781• 9,500 colonists• 7,800 French• Trapped England and
Lord Cornwallis• Cornwallis surrendered
and America won its independence
Articles of Confederation• The first attempt at self
government• Weak national government• Did not want government to
be too powerful• 9 of 13 states had to
approve new federal laws• Each state had a lot of
leeway on how to rule
Shay’s Rebellion
• Daniel Shays• War veteran• High debt for the US• Wanted lower taxes• Refusal resulted in
attacks• Crushed• Proved need for a
change
The Constitution
National Government
Judicial Branch
Legislative Branch
Executive Branch
Checks and Balances
The Federal System• Power divided between national and state level
– Prevents national government from becoming too strong
Bill of Rights
• Rights added to the Constitution
• Amendments 1-10• Enlightenment had a HUGE
influence!!!!!!• Created a new idea about
government• People around the world would
take notice as revolutions began elsewhere