The Great Awakening

Great Awakening

• A series of religious revivals occurred roughly from the early to late 1700s, concurrent with the Enlightenment.
• Many historians and theologians consider it America's first truly national event, affecting all the English colonists in North America.
• The movement arose from a decline in religious zeal in the early 1700s.
• Key figures included the Tennant family who used a more emotional style of preaching.
• Jonathan Edwards was known for his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God".
• George Whitefield further popularized a more accessible and emotional style, emphasizing a personal relationship with God.
• The Great Awakening led to a split within denominations between New Lights, who embraced the revival, and Old Lights, who were more critical.
• It fostered communication networks between colonies.
• It encouraged ordinary people to take charge of their own salvation.
• It contributed to a challenge of traditional authorities.

Enlightenment

• An intellectual movement, also known as the Age of Enlightenment or the Age of Reason, spanned from the late 1600s through the late 1700s.
• It originated in Europe and spread to the English colonies.
• It was a follow-up to the Renaissance, appealing more to the educated elites.
• The Enlightenment represented a new way of thinking about the universe and humanity's place in it, with rationalism and reason as guiding philosophies.
• Key Enlightenment ideas included the concept of natural rights.
• It introduced the principle that any government failing to protect these rights is illegitimate.
• A government should be replaced by a government based on the consent of the governed, also known as the social compact.
• This movement contributed to a new age of reason and influenced political philosophy, leading to the rise of republicanism.
• Figures like Voltaire and John Locke were influential thinkers.
• It contributed to challenging traditional sources of authority.

Pluralism

• In the context of these sources, pluralism refers to religious toleration and a broad acceptance of different faiths.
• The rise of numerous denominations during the Great Awakening, coupled with Enlightenment ideals, led to a situation where no single church could be universally supported by tax money.
• This ultimately contributed to the idea of peaceful coexistence between different religious groups.

Disestablishment

• This refers to the separation of church and state.
• The religious diversity resulting from the Great Awakening and the emphasis on individual choice and reason from the Enlightenment made the idea of government-supported churches untenable.
• The logical solution became to support none of them, leading to greater freedom of worship.
• This separation did not originate with the Puritans.

Social Compact

• This is the idea that a government's legitimacy and just powers are derived from the consent of the governed.
• People voluntarily give up some freedoms to the government in exchange for the protection of their natural rights.
• If a government fails to uphold these rights, the social compact is broken.
• This concept was central to Enlightenment thought.
• It was used to justify the American Revolution.

Mercantilism

• This was the economic theory guiding England's relationship with its colonies.
• Under mercantilism, the colonies were expected to exist primarily to benefit the mother country.
• Colonies were not supposed to compete directly with England or trade directly with foreign countries.
• England aimed to build a global empire, necessitating a new management organisation based on these principles.
• This system aimed to keep trade within the Empire.

Navigation Acts

• These were a series of laws passed by the English Parliament, beginning in 1650.
• They were designed to make commerce and trade conform to the rules of mercantilism.
• Some acts prohibited certain types of colonial manufacturing.
• They stipulated that certain products could only be shipped on English vessels, originating and arriving at English ports with majority English crews.
• While on the books, these acts were not always strictly enforced initially.

Molasses Act 1733

• This was an act of the English Parliament aimed at prohibiting colonial trade with the French Caribbean islands.
• It imposed a tax (tariff) on molasses imported from French colonies.
• It intended to make molasses more expensive.
• It was intended to encourage colonists to buy from English colonies instead, thus keeping trade within the British Empire.

New Lights & Old Lights

• These terms describe the two main factions that emerged during the Great Awakening.
• New Lights were those who embraced the emotional and revivalistic aspects of the movement.
• They often formed new churches and challenging traditional authority.
• Old Lights were more conservative, often from established churches.
• They viewed the emotionalism of the awakening with suspicion.
• They preferred a more traditional and intellectual approach to religion.

Evangelicalism

• This is a religious movement that emerged from the New Light churches during the Great Awakening in the 1740s and 1750s.
• It developed four key characteristics that came to define American Protestantism.
• These included biblical inerrancy (the Bible is never wrong).
• A literal interpretation of the Bible, sola scriptura (only the scriptures as the ultimate authority).
• The priesthood of the believers democratized religion by giving religious authority to the common person.

Rationalism

• The guiding philosophy of the Enlightenment.
• Also known as the new age of reason.
• It emphasised reason and logic as the primary sources of knowledge and explanations for events.
• Individuals who adopted these ideas were known as rationalists.

Proclamation of 1763

• Issued by the British Parliament after the French and Indian War.
• It drew a line down the middle of the Allegheny and Appalachian Mountains.
• It prohibited any further English settlement on the western side.
• This was intended to appease Native American tribes who had allied with the British.
• It prevented further encroachment on their lands, and was unpopular with colonists eager for land.
• Merchants hoped to engage in the fur trade in the west.
• This act was also listed as a grievance in the Declaration of Independence.

Internal/Direct Tax

• This type of tax was levied directly on goods, services, or people within the colonies.
• Its primary purpose was to raise revenue for the British government.
• The Stamp Act of 1765 is a prime example of an internal or direct tax.
• Colonists generally objected to Parliament imposing such taxes.
• They argued that only their local legislatures had the right to directly tax them.

External/Indirect Tax

• This type of tax was typically levied on goods imported into the colonies.
• It was often intended to regulate trade rather than solely to raise revenue.
• The Sugar Act of 1764 (initially) and the Townshend Duties of 1767 are examples of external or indirect taxes.
• Colonists sometimes acknowledged Parliament's right to regulate trade through such taxes.
• They objected when these measures were clearly aimed at raising revenue without their consent.
• The Townshend Duties, being on English-made goods, were also seen by some as having an internal effect.

Sons of Liberty

• This was a protest organisation that emerged in the colonies, particularly in Boston, in response to the Stamp Act of 1765.
• Led by figures like Samuel Adams.
• They used various methods to intimidate tax collectors.
• They organised resistance against British policies, and later evolved into the Committees of Correspondence.

Boston Massacre

• This event occurred on March 5th, 1770, in Boston.
• British troops stationed in the city were confronted by a crowd.
• In the ensuing chaos, several colonists were killed.
• The event was widely publicised and sensationalised by Patriots like Paul Revere through propaganda.
• Propaganda often misrepresented what actually happened.
• It heightened tensions between the colonists and British authorities.
• News of the repeal of most of the Townshend Duties had not yet reached the colonies at the time of the massacre.

Boston Tea Party

• This was a significant act of protest against the Tea Act of 1773.
• The Tea Act of 1773 lowered the price of British tea, maintained a tax on it and granted a monopoly on colonial tea sales to the East India Company.
• On the night of December 16, 1773, a group of colonists, including members of the Sons of Liberty disguised as Indians, boarded British ships in Boston Harbor and dumped 342 chests of tea into the water.
• This act was a deliberate destruction of private property and a direct challenge to British authority.
• It led to the passage of the Coercive Acts by the British Parliament.

1st Continental Congress

• This assembly of delegates from all the colonies (except Georgia) met in Philadelphia in September 1774 in response to the Coercive Acts.
• The Congress issued the Suffolk Resolves, which declared the Coercive Acts illegal.
• They advocated for non-importation, non-consumption of British goods, and the formation of colonial militias.
• While they aimed to resist British policies.
• There was no widespread support for rebellion or war at this point.
• They sought to find a solution short of war.

Non-Importation

• This was an economic tactic used by the colonists to protest British policies.
• It involved the boycott of goods imported from Britain.
• It was employed in response to measures like the Stamp Act and the Townshend Duties.
• It was reinstated by the First Continental Congress.
• The goal was to put economic pressure on British merchants.
• British merchants would then lobby Parliament to repeal the unpopular acts.

Mobilization

• This refers to the process of the colonies preparing for potential conflict with Great Britain.
• It involved the formation of local militias and the stockpiling of weapons.
• It involved the development of communication networks between the colonies, facilitated by groups like the Committees of Correspondence.
• The Great Awakening had earlier contributed to establishing such communication networks.

Hell Fire & Brimstone

• This describes a style of preaching popular during the Great Awakening.
• It was characterised by vivid and emotional descriptions of the horrors of hell and the joys of heaven.
• Preachers like the Tennant family employed this style to evoke strong emotional responses and encourage religious conversion.

Committees of Correspondence

• These were communication networks established between the colonies.
• They evolved from the Sons of Liberty.
• They facilitated the exchange of information.
• They helped to organise protests against British policies.
• They fostered a sense of colonial unity.
• They played a crucial role in coordinating colonial responses to British actions leading up to the Revolution.

2nd Continental Congress

• This assembly convened in Philadelphia in May 1775, after the Battles of Lexington & Concord.
• The mood was more confrontational than the First Congress.
• The Congress took steps towards war, including the creation of the Continental Army with George Washington as commander, and the Continental Navy.
• They also issued the Olive Branch Petition as a final attempt at reconciliation, which was rejected by King George III.
• The Congress eventually moved towards declaring independence.
• Thomas Jefferson was assigned to write the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence, which was signed on July 4th, 1776.

Loyalists

• These were American colonists who remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolution.
• They believed that remaining part of the British Empire was in their best interest.
• Support for the loyalist cause varied regionally.
• The British mistakenly overestimated the extent of loyalist support in the Southern colonies.
• After the war, loyalists often faced persecution.
• Many emigrated

Patriots

• These were American colonists who supported independence from Great Britain.
• They believed that their rights were being violated by the British government and that separation was necessary.
• The Patriot cause gained momentum through events like the Stamp Act, Boston Massacre, and the publication of Common Sense.

Virtual Representation

• This was the British argument that the colonists were virtually represented in Parliament.
• Every member of Parliament represented all subjects of the Crown, regardless of whether those subjects had directly elected them.
• The colonists vehemently rejected this idea.
• Without direct representation, Parliament had no right to tax them, leading to the cry of "no taxation without representation".

Battle of Saratoga

• This pivotal battle occurred in September and October 1777 in upstate New York.
• The American forces, under General Gates, decisively defeated the British forces led by General Burgoyne.
• This victory was crucial because it convinced France to openly ally with the Americans.
• France provided much-needed military and financial support.
• The French had sought revenge against England since their defeat in the French and Indian War.

Militias

• These were part-time armies made up of ordinary citizens.
• They were called upon for military service in times of need.
• Colonial militias played a significant role in the French and Indian War.
• They were the primary fighting force for the Americans at the beginning of the Revolutionary War.
• They participated in battles like Lexington & Concord and Bunker Hill.

Continental Army

• This was the regular, professional army established by the Second Continental Congress in June 1775 to fight the British.
• George Washington was appointed as its commander.
• The creation of a unified Continental Army was a significant step towards a coordinated colonial war effort.

Common Sense

• This highly influential pamphlet was written by Thomas Paine and published in January 1776.
• Written in plain, accessible language.
• It forcefully argued for the necessity and rightness of American independence from Great Britain.
• Paine attacked the monarchy.
• He argued that King George III had forfeited his right to rule.
• He urged colonists to embrace a republican form of government.
• Common Sense was widely read and distributed.
• It played a crucial role in shifting public opinion in favour of independence.

Consent of the Governed

• This is a fundamental principle of democracy derived from the social compact theory.
• It asserts that the authority of a government should depend on the agreement of the people it governs.
• If a government acts without the consent of the governed or violates their rights.
• Then the people have the right to alter or abolish it.
• This idea was a cornerstone of the American revolutionary ideology.
• It is prominently featured in the Declaration of Independence.

Salutary Neglect

• This term refers to the period in the early to mid-18th century when the British government adopted a relatively hands-off policy towards the American colonies.
• This was particularly regarding trade regulations.
• This period of relaxed enforcement allowed the colonies to develop their own economic and political institutions.
• It fostered a spirit of autonomy and independence.
• This long period of self-governance contributed to the colonists' resentment when Britain began to impose stricter control and taxation after the French and Indian War.

Townshend Duties 1767

• These were a series of acts passed by the British Parliament in 1767.
• They imposed duties on various goods imported into the American colonies, such as lead, paint, tea, and glass.
• Unlike the Stamp Act, these were external taxes, levied on goods before they reached the colonies.
• Colonists saw them as another attempt to raise revenue without their consent and as a threat to their local self-government.
• Colonial resistance included boycotts of British goods and the issuance of circular letters.
• Most of the Townshend Duties were repealed in 1770, except for the tax on tea.

Declaration of Independence 1776

• This formal statement, adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4th, 1776, declared that the thirteen American colonies were now independent of Great Britain.
• Primarily written by Thomas Jefferson.
• It outlined the philosophical principles justifying independence, drawing heavily on Enlightenment ideas like natural rights and the social compact.
• The Declaration also included a long list of grievances against King George III and the British government.
• It detailed actions that the colonists believed violated their rights.
• The document asserted that the colonies had the right to self-governance and were now the "United States".

Suffolk Resolves

• These were a set of resolutions adopted by Suffolk County in Massachusetts in September 1774.
• They were later endorsed by the First Continental Congress.
• The Resolves declared the Coercive Acts to be unconstitutional.
• They called for the colonies to refuse to obey them.
• Withhold taxes from British officials.
• Raise their own militias.
• Engage in economic sanctions against Britain through non-importation and non-consumption.
• They were a strong statement of colonial resistance and defiance.

Declaratory Act 1766

• This act was passed by the British Parliament in 1766.
• It was passed at the same time as the repeal of the Stamp Act.
• The Declaratory Act asserted that Parliament had the full power and authority to make laws and statutes to bind the colonies "in all cases whatsoever".
• This act was intended to reassert British authority over the colonies despite the repeal of the Stamp Act.
• It indicated that Parliament did not concede the colonial arguments against direct taxation.

Stamp Act 1765

• This act, passed by the British Parliament in 1765, imposed a direct tax on all printed materials in the American colonies.
• It required that they be printed on stamped paper produced in London and carrying an embossed revenue stamp.
• This included legal documents, newspapers, pamphlets, and playing cards.
• The Stamp Act was met with widespread and fierce opposition in the colonies, based on the principle of "no taxation without representation".
• The protests included boycotts.
• The formation of groups like the Sons of Liberty.
• Violence against stamp distributors.
• The act was eventually repealed by Parliament in 1766 due to the intense colonial resistance and pressure from British merchants.

Sugar Act 1764

• Passed by the British Parliament in 1764.
• This act revised earlier trade regulations and aimed to increase revenue from the colonies.
• While it actually lowered the tax on foreign (primarily French) molasses from the Molasses Act of 1733.
• It increased enforcement measures to curb widespread smuggling.
• It included new duties on other imported goods like sugar, coffee, and wine.
• The act also established vice-admiralty courts to try smuggling cases without juries.
• Although the tax on molasses was reduced, the stricter enforcement and the aim to raise revenue without colonial consent were met with opposition.

French & Indian War (Seven Years' War)

• This global conflict between Great Britain and France, lasting from 1754 to 1763 (in North America).
• It involved battles for control of territory in North America, Europe, and Asia.
• In North America, the English and their colonists fought against the French and their Native American allies.
• The war began in the Ohio River Valley due to competing land claims.
• The British ultimately won the war.
• They gained control of French territories in Canada and east of the Mississippi River.
• However, the war was costly for Britain.
• It led to a large national debt that Parliament sought to recoup by imposing new taxes and regulations on the American colonies.
• It contributed significantly to the tensions that led to the American Revolution.

Lexington & Concord 1775

• These were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War, occurring on April 19, 1775.
• British troops were dispatched from Boston to Concord to seize colonial military supplies and arrest rebel leaders.
• They were met by local colonial militias in Lexington, where the first shots of the war were fired.
• The British then proceeded to Concord, where they encountered further resistance.
• As the British forces retreated back to Boston, they were repeatedly ambushed by colonial militias.
• These events marked the beginning of armed conflict between the colonies and Britain.

Communication Networks

• Systems of communication developed among the American colonies.
• They were crucial for sharing information, coordinating protests, and fostering a sense of unity in the lead-up to the Revolution.
• The Great Awakening contributed to establishing intercolonial connections.
• The Committees of Correspondence, evolving from the Sons of Liberty, played a vital role in this.
• Letters and information about British actions and colonial responses were exchanged between different towns and colonies.

Coercive Acts/Intolerable Acts 1774

• These were a series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 in response to the Boston Tea Party.
• The colonists referred to them as the Intolerable Acts because they viewed them as a severe violation of their rights and liberties.
• The acts included the Boston Port Act, which closed the port of Boston until the tea was paid for.
• The Massachusetts Government Act, which altered the Massachusetts charter and curtailed colonial self-government.
• The Administration of Justice Act, which allowed British officials accused of crimes in the colonies to be tried in England.
• The Quartering Act, which required colonists to provide housing for British troops.
• These acts further inflamed colonial tensions.
• It led to the convening of the First Continental Congress.

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”/Jonathan Edwards

• This is the title of a famous sermon preached by Jonathan Edwards, a Congregationalist minister, during the Great Awakening in 1741.
• The sermon is a powerful and vivid depiction of the precariousness of human existence and the terrors of divine wrath.
• It emphasises the idea of predestination but also urging listeners to seek salvation.
• It is considered a key text of the Great Awakening.
• It reflects the movement's emphasis on personal piety and the emotional experience of faith.

George Whitefield

• He was a prominent Anglican evangelist who played a significant role in the Great Awakening.
• Known for his dramatic and powerful preaching style.
• He travelled extensively throughout the American colonies.
• He attracted large crowds.
• He spread the message of personal salvation and a direct relationship with God.
• His ministry transcended denominational boundaries.
• His emphasis on the "priesthood of the believers" contributed to a sense of religious equality.

Self-Sufficiency

• The concept of self-sufficiency is evident in the colonists' responses to British policies.
• This is evident in the boycotts of British goods where they aimed to "make do with what you've got".
• Products were created at home such as homespun clothing instead of buying from British tailors.
• This reflected a degree of colonial economic independence and a willingness to forgo British goods as a form of protest.

French Alliance

• The alliance between the American colonies and France was a crucial turning point in the Revolutionary War.
• It was formalised in 1778 after the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga.
• France, motivated by a desire to avenge its defeat in the French and Indian War and weaken its rival England.
• France provided the Americans with vital military support, including troops, naval forces, and financial aid.
• The French alliance significantly complicated the war for Britain, turning it into a global conflict.

Slaves in the Revolution

• The British offered freedom to slaves who would run away and fight for them.
• An estimated 20,000 slaves did so.
• After the war, the British evacuated many of these now free blacks.
• Slavery continued in the Southern colonies after the war.
• This demonstrates the complex and often contradictory roles of different groups during the Revolution.

Middle Colonies

• These colonies (typically New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware) are mentioned as the region where the Great Awakening is considered by most historians to have begun.

Glorious Revolution of 1689

• This was a significant event in English history where King James II was deposed and replaced by William and Mary.
• The sources briefly mention it in the timeline leading up to the American Revolution.

Battle of Yorktown

• This decisive battle of the American Revolutionary War took place in Yorktown, Virginia, in the autumn of 1781.
• A combined American and French force, led by George Washington, besieged the British army under Lord Cornwallis.
• Crucially, the French Navy under Admiral De Grasse blockaded the Chesapeake Bay, preventing British reinforcements or evacuation by sea.
• Faced with overwhelming forces and no means of escape, Cornwallis was forced to surrender on October 19, 1781.
• This major American victory effectively ended the Revolutionary War, although a formal peace treaty was not signed until 1783.