Colonial History PDF

Colonial History Age of Exploration Early Colonial Settlement Establishment of English Political Traditions Build up to the American Revolution  Age of Exploration Results of the Crusades? ◆ Trade = Wealth & Ideas ◆ Renaissance The Age of Exploration is...

Colonial History Age of Exploration Early Colonial Settlement Establishment of English Political Traditions Build up to the American Revolution  Age of Exploration Results of the Crusades? ◆ Trade = Wealth & Ideas ◆ Renaissance The Age of Exploration is inspired when the Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople in 1453 and threaten to cut of Far Eastern trade. What are the goals of the Age of Exploration? ◆ Find a new all water route to the Far East. ◆ Find alternate sources for Far Eastern goods. ◆ Win converts to Christianity. Spain and Portugal Divide the World Portugal ◆ Prince Henry the Navigator ⧫ Organizes a school for sailors, mapmakers and shipbuilders in 1419. ⧫ Sailing advances come to Portugal: Caravels, Compass, Astrolabe, Jib sail. ⧫ Using advances from this school Portugal takes the early lead in exploration. ◆ Bouncing down the coast of Africa, Bartolomeu Dias reaches the tip of Africa (The Cape of Good Hope) in 1488. ◆ Sailing for Portugal, Vasco da Gama finally reaches India in 1498. ◆ Ferdinand Magellan’s crew successfully circumnavigates the globe from 1519-1522. Spain ◆ After 69 years, just as Portugal could see the possibility of fruit from their efforts, Spain with one successful voyage managed to threaten Portugal’s trade leadership. ◆ In 1492, Christopher Columbus, attempting to sail westward to the Far East, bumped into the New World. ◆ With the two Catholic countries nearly coming to blows, Pope Alexander VI offered to mediate a settlement. In 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas established a line of demarcation at 40 degrees west and 130 degrees east longitude. Between these lines, any new land “discovered” would be the possession of Portugal, outside the lines would be the possession of Spain. ◆ Spain took the early lead in building a New World empire.  Early Explorers Spain ◆ Vasco Nunez de Balboa, 1513 - First European to cross the isthmus to view the Pacific Ocean. ◆ Ponce de Leone, 1513 - First European to explore what becomes the continental U.S. (Florida) ◆ Hernando Cortes, 1521 - Conquers the Aztecs in Mexico. ◆ Francisco Pizzaro, 1532 - Conquers the Incas in Peru. France ◆ Giovanni Verrazano, 1524 - Explores the mouth of the Hudson River (New York Harbor) ◆ Jacques Cartier, 1534 - Explores the mouth of the St. Lawrence River giving access to Quebec. ◆ Samuel de Champlain, 1608 - Founder of the French Colony of Quebec. ◆ Jacques Marquette, S.J. & Louis Joliet, 1673 - Explores the Mississippi Watershed. ◆ Robert de La Salle, 1681 - Further Explores the Mississippi Watershed. Dutch ◆ Henry Hudson, 1609 - Sails up the Hudson all the way to Albany (Ft. Orange). ◆ Peter Minuet, 1626 - Purchases access to NYC from the Manhattan Indians for $24 in baubles. England ◆ John Cabot, 1497 - Searches the East Coast for England. ◆ Sebastian Cabot, 1507 - Further searches the East Coast for England. ◆ Sir Humphrey Gilbert, 1587 - Establishes 1st English Colony in the New World (Roanoke, N.C.). ◆ John Smith, 1607 - Founder of the English Colony of Jamestown.  England Challenges Spain 1. Explorers ◆ England sent explorers to the New World in spite of the Treaty of Tordesillas. 2. Religious/Alliance Differences ◆ In the late 1520’s, Henry VIII broke an alliance with powerful Spain when he attempted to have his marriage to Catherine of Aragon annulled. Catherine was the daughter of Spanish monarchs Ferdinand & Isabella. When the Pope, who was related to Spain’s royal family refuses to annul the marriage, Henry imprisoned Catherine in a convent so that he would not have to repay her dowry. ◆ In order to have his marriage annulled, Henry broke from the Catholic Church in Rome. He established his own religion (Anglicanism) with himself as head. 3. Sea Dogs ◆ During the reign of Henry’s daughter, Queen Elizabeth (1558-1603), the English Government gave refuge and financial support to raiders (Sea Dogs) attacking Spanish gold shipments from the New World to Europe. In an attempt to better defend these shipments, Spain built a fort in 1565 at St. Augustine, Florida. St. Augustine was the first European settlement in what becomes the United States. 4. Spanish Armada ◆ In 1588, after Sea Dog, Francis Drake had burnt St. Augustine, completed a circumnavigation of the world in a successful raid of Spanish gold and was knighted for service to the English crown, Spain had had enough. ◆ Spain launched a huge armada of ships to invade England. The huge galleons of the Spanish Armada were defeated by the smaller faster privateer fleet of England. The defeat of the Spanish Armada allowed other European powers to begin colonizing the New World. Spain’s New World Empire Spain’s New World empire was too large, too limited in self-rule, too far away and too costly to defend to remain strong. It included most of South America, Central America and Southwestern North America + Florida. Governed by an “absolute monarchy” Spanish Colonial Viceroys had little individual power and therefore had a hard time governing. Communication with Spain was slow and support from the King was limited. Few people were given the opportunity to own land therefore, native Spaniards did not chose to emigrate. Spaniards set up Presidios, which were Catholic missions where the Native Americans were treated as serfs. Even though many Franciscans argued for better treatment of the Native Americans, disease, warfare, and harsh labor took a serious toll on the population. Shortage of laborers in the colonies eventually inspired Spain to become involved in the trans-Atlantic African slave trade.  Reasons for English Emigration to New World 1. Spiritual Discontent (Catholics, Anglicans, Puritans, Pilgrims) Henry VIII breaks from Catholic Church Henry & Catherine’s daughter (Bloody Mary) restores Catholicism. Queen Elizabeth restores Anglicanism – Pope declares her a heretic. Restored Stewart Monarch, James II remarries to a Catholic and has a son. Glorious Revolution ousts James II. James II’s daughter (Mary) and Protestant husband William of Orange are invited to rule England in 1688. 2. Political Strife (Absolutism) English Civil War – Puritans v. Roundheads Absolutist King Charles I beheaded in 1649. English Commonwealth established by Oliver Cromwell. King Charles II restored to the throne 1660. King James II marries a Catholic women and has a son, Parliament calls James protestant daughter Mary and her protestant husband William to rule England. (Glorious Revolution, 1688) 3. Unregulated Struggle to Gain Wealth (End of Social Reciprocity) Rising Population Enclosure Movement Unemployment/Depression By 1760, the English colonies had 1.5 million colonists living in them. Jamestown, 1607 “I tell thee golde is more plentiful there than copper is with us. Why, man, all their dripping pans and chamber pottes are pure gold and for rubies and diamonds they goe forth on holydayes and gather ‘hem by the seashore, to hang on their children’s coates and sticke in their caps.” Written about Virginia in 1605 by someone never in America. Organized by the London Company ◆ Joint-Stock Company – a new form of business where investors could share in the profits of a venture, but more importantly, they could spread the risk also. Settlement located in Chesapeake Bay on a Peninsula between the York and James Rivers. At high tide the settlement became an island. At high tide salt water backed up into the fresh water rivers making the water undrinkable. The area was a humid swampy region which bred malaria carrying mosquitoes. Instructions to the colonists: ◆ Search for Gold ◆ Search for a Northwest Passage ◆ Convert Natives to Christianity A brief chronology of settlement: ◆ 12/1606 = 120 male colonists. ◆ 5/ 1607 = 105 colonists survive the trip. Jamestown, 1607 (01) ◆ Colonial leadership was lazy and indecisive. ⧫ Crops not planted & defenses not completed. ⧫ Only 38 survived the winter. ⧫ Colonist begin hoard supplies. ⧫ 5/1608 = 500 more settlers arrived. ◆ John Smith enforces Marshall law. ⧫ Work gangs are organized for food, shelter, defense & sanitation. ⧫ Success of Smith’s Marshall law, alliance with Powhatan Confederacy and a mild winter allowed most to survive (only 12 men lost). ⧫ Smith is injured in a powder explosion must return to England. ◆ “Starving Time” Winter of 1609-1610 ⧫ Discipline breaks down again. ⧫ Only 60 settlers survive. ⧫ Sir Thomas Gates and Sir George Sommers arrive with 150 more settlers and restore Marshall law. ⧫ 1618 = Each male settler who paid his way was given 50 acres. ⧫ 1619 = Tobacco became a profitable trade good (John Rolfe). ⧫ 1619 = 60 women settled in Jamestown. ⧫ 1619 = 1st Africans came to North America (Indentured Servants) ⧫ 1619 = House of Burgesses established (rights restored) ⧫ 1624 = Jamestown became a royal colony. English Political Traditions Established by the Colonies Magna Carta, 1215 ◆ New taxation only through representation. ◆ People are entitle to a trial by jury. ◆ The King must rule by law. House of Burgesses, Jamestown Virginia, 1619 ◆ 1st representative body in the colonies. Mayflower Compact, Plymouth Massachusetts, 1621 ◆ 1st government with all male participation. Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1639 (03) ◆ 1st written constitution in the colonies. Freedom of Religion, Rhode Island, 1644 ◆ Separation of Church and State – in order to keep faith pure. Maryland Toleration Act, 1649 ◆ Toleration v. Freedom = Established Church (funded by taxes) is still possible. “All Men Are Created Equal” , 1674 ◆ Quakers gain control of the Jerseys & Pennsylvania (1681). Social Contract, 1690 ◆ John Locke – Treatise on Civil Government ◆ The King (Government) must defend a citizen’s life, liberty & property. ◆ Citizens must follow laws, pay taxes, remain loyal & volunteer for common defense. The Original 13 Colonies (01) 1. Virginia Jamestown, 1607 (London Company) House of Burgesses, 1619 2. Massachusetts Plymouth Plantation, 1620 (Pilgrims) Mayflower Compact, 1621 Massachusetts Bay, 1630 (Puritans) “A City Upon the Hill” 3. New Hampshire, 1623 Breaks away from Massachusetts. 4. New York, 1626 (Dutch) New Amsterdam (New York) & Fort Orange (Albany) Captured by the Duke of York for England, 1664. 5. New Jersey, 1626 Originally granted to Lord Carteret & Lord Berkeley. Sold to Quaker interests in 1674 & 1680. “All men are created equal” 6. Maryland, 1634 Granted to Cecil Calvert, Lord Baltimore Established as a haven for Catholics. Maryland Toleration Act, 1649  The Original 13 Colonies (Cont.) 7. Rhode Island, 1644 Minister Roger Williams was exiled from Massachusetts Bay. He believed that their should be separation of Church and State. State business was bound to corrupt the Church. He also believed that the Native Americans should be compensated. He was taken in by the Narragansett Indians and survived. 8. Connecticut, 1662 Thomas Hooker breaks from Massachusetts. He led his followers to Connecticut in search of land ownership. Property ownership & not sainthood became the basis of citizenship Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1639 9. South Carolina, 1650 Originally granted to 8 supporters of King Charles I Attempted to recreate a feudal style economy with serfs. Few volunteered to become serfs. Slave labor replaced immigrant serfs with large plantation owners as lords. 10. North Carolina splits from South Carolina, 1729. North Carolina geographically different than South Carolina. Instead of a slave holding aristocracy they become a rough and ready democracy made up of squatters.  The Original 13 Colonies (Cont.) 11. Pennsylvania, 1681 Established through a land grant to the Penn family. William Penn creates a Quaker haven. “The Holy Experiment” Guarantees religious freedom, liberal land grants and political participation to all. 12. Delaware, 1703 Originally part of Pennsylvania in order to have access to the sea at the mouth of the Delaware River. Geographically isolated it actually has an independent legislature prior to becoming a separate colony. 13. Georgia, 1733 Established in an attempt to alleviate the overcrowding in England debtor’s prisons. It acted as a buffer between raids from Spanish Florida and South Carolina. Colonial Economy New England (MA., N.H., CT., R.I.) ◆ Subsistence farmers. ◆ Good natural ports and large continental shelf. ◆ Surplus of lumber for furniture, homes & tools. ◆ “Yankee Ingenuity” = Making something out of nothing. ⧫ Lumber use to build ships and manufacture naval stores. (i.e. pitch, turpentine) ⧫ Ship builders, merchants, fishers ⧫ Whales used for oil lamps, candles and perfume. Triangular Trade ⧫ New England merchants fill ships with lumber, whale products & salted fish. ⧫ Trade for meat and grain in the Middle colonies. ⧫ Trade in the Caribbean for sugar and molasses. ⧫ Trade in England for manufactured goods. ⧫ Return to New England with manufactured goods to sell for a profit. Middle Passage ⧫ Trade in the Caribbean for sugar and molasses. ⧫ Return to New England with molasses to be distilled into rum. ⧫ Trade in England for weapons. ⧫ Trade in Africa for people (slaves) ⧫ Trade in Caribbean for sugar and molasses. Colonial Economy Middle Colonies (N.Y, N.J., PA., DE) ◆ Commercial farmers. ◆ Mild climate with long growing seasons. ◆ They grew enough surplus of crops to sell to England and the other colonies. ◆ “The Bread Basket” of the colonies. They grew grains, wheat & corn. ◆ Navigable rivers (Hudson, Delaware & Susquehanna) served as transportation for inland farms and beaver trappers. Southern Colonies (VA., MD, N.C., S.C., GA.) ◆ Cash Crops farmers. ◆ Nearly sub-tropical climate with fertile soil. ◆ The South was England’s greatest raw material producer. ◆ They grew food stuffs and fruits, but the most profitable crops were tobacco, rice and indigo. Cotton did not become profitable until 1793. ◆ The South’s crops were land and labor intensive. Since the soil was exhausted of minerals bringing new land under cultivation was always a priority. ◆ Since there was a shortage of labor (because people’s goal was to own their own land) & indentures posed a threat, Southerners turned to slaves as their labor source. ◆ Though the social structure was dominated by large self-sufficient plantation owners, a majority of Southerners were small farmers. Mercantilism and the Colonies (01) Mercantilism – The economic theory which stated that in order to have a positive gold flow (expanding their economy) a country had to export more than it imported. ◆ Colonies were established to ensure that the mother country had a source of cheap raw materials and monopolied markets for their manufactured goods. Navigation Acts – Passed in 1650 and expanded in 1691, these acts were the legislation which established a mercantilistic relationship between England and its’ colonies. ◆ Raw materials from the colonies had to be sold to England. ◆ The colonies had to purchase all manufactured goods from England. ◆ Americans were forbidden to manufacture any goods on a large scale. ◆ Trade to & from America had to be on English ships. Salutary Neglect – Because manufactured goods were more expensive than raw materials, strictly enforced, the Navigation Acts would have bankrupted the colonies. English officials turning a somewhat blind eye to the colonial defiance of these acts through smuggling with the French, Dutch & Spanish was essential to the survival of the colonial economy. ◆ Since it was illegal to pay for colonial goods in gold, smuggling was also an important gold source for colonial currency. Labor Struggles A shortage of labor plagued the colonies from their very earliest days (Jamestown’s “Starving Time”). In Rhode Island laziness was made illegal. Most of the people who were motivated to emigrate to the New World had the hope of owning and working their own land not becoming laborers. The colonies attempted to combat their labor shortage by using artisan apprenticeships and indentured servants. Between 50 and 75% of all white settlers in the colonies prior to 1760 came as indentured servants. Indentured servants were be transported to the New World in return for their future labor from 3 to 7 years. Upon arrival, Merchants and Planters purchased an indenture contract. At the end of their term indentures received some sort of freedom dues. (Land, Money, Tools or Clothes) Prior to Nathaniel Bacon’s Rebellion (1676), indentured servants were the colonies’ largest labor force. However, fear of the growing number of unemployed, landless rabble running around demanding rights led Merchants and Planters to support the use of permanent slave labor instead of temporary & potentially dangerous, indentured labor. By 1760, indentures made up only 1/3 of the laborers in the colonies. Slavery vs. Social Mobility Social Mobility – The promise of the colonial New World was the ability to improve one’s social status through hard work and ingenuity. ◆ Middle Class Values – a distaste for idleness, a belief in reward for work and talent, the belief that law should not interfere with a person’s social mobility. ◆ In the colonies, as in Golden Age Athens, wealth not birth determined a family’s social status. ◆ Birthright titles of nobility are prohibited in the U.S. Constitution. ◆ Unfortunately, originally, free black people, women and slaves were restricted by law from social mobility. Slavery ◆ By the time of the American Revolution (1775), 500,000 African slaves had been brought into the English colonies. ◆ Though this was only 5% of the total slave population brought to the New World, African-Americans made up about 20% of the English colonial population. ◆ Between 1662-1680 laws were created (Slave Codes) which ensured the permanent servitude of African slaves and slavery became an inherited status. ◆ Most Northern states abolish or tax slavery out of existence between 1774-1804. ◆ The importation of Africans through the trans-Atlantic slave trade was made illegal in 1807 by agreement at the Constitutional Convention, 1787. ◆ Though the institution of slavery was dying out, the invention of the Cotton Gin (1793) restored the demand for slave labor. ◆ By the time of the Civil War (1861), 4 million African-American slaves live mostly in the southern colonies.  The French and Indian War, 1754-1763 The French and Indian War is the fourth and final war that England and France fought over “New World” empire. King William’s War (1688-1697), Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713), The War of Jenkin’s Ear w/ Spain (1739-1742), King George’s War (1744-1748) In 1747, a land speculation venture (Ohio Company) was formed and purchased land between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River from the colony of Virginia. The Ohio Company would then survey the land and sell it in small parcels at a profit for its investors. Aside from the lucrative fur trade in the area, both Northerners and Southerners were interested in developing western land. In New England, farms were becoming smaller and smaller as they were divided amongst many children (gavelkind). In the South, Tobacco farming depleted the soil and 2nd /3rd sons of planters who did not inherit plantations sought to establish themselves on new land (primogeniture). Both England and France claimed this land. English colonial charters granted lands between certain lines of latitude extending to the Mississippi River. French explorers, Marquette, Joliet and de La Salle claimed the Mississippi and its entire Watershed for France. When conflict arose over land claims, Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia sent George Washington, a Lieutenant in the Colonial Militia, a Land Surveyor and brother to two Ohio Company investors (Larry and Augustine Washington) to meet with the military leader of the occupying French army to lodge a protest against the French army warning English settlers out of the area. (03)  The French and Indian War, 1754-1763 Though George was well received by the French they told him to relay the message that they had no intention of leaving. However, during his trip, George located a geographic position that he believed commanded the entire trade of the region. The most successful trade route from the region was sailing down the Ohio River to the Mississippi and then out from New Orleans. Washington had found a high bluff overlooking the head waters of the Ohio River. He believed, if a Fort could be built were the three rivers met (Monongahela, Allegheny & Ohio) then the English could control the area. Unfortunately, when young George returned with 300 men to begin building a Fort. The French had already built Fort Duquesne on the exact location. George was then informed by local Indians that a French force had been sent out to ambush his troops. George readied his men and ambushed the French instead. Unfortunately, the French were just sent to warn him out of the region. The Commander of the French force (Jumonville) was killed. This was the brother of the new Commander of Fort Duquesne. In response, the entire force from Fort Duquesne was brought to bear on Washington’s 300 men. In total retreat, the English were about to be overtaken when they sought whatever shelter they could find and entrenched to defend themselves. The Battle of Fort Necessity was the first battle of the French and Indian war. Washington was captured, but later ransomed for some captured French soldiers. In 1756, this became a war for international empire called the Seven Years’ War. English Victory = Mixed Blessing Until 1758, it appeared that England would lose the war. When William Pitt became Prime Minister, he made the financial commitment that won the war. ◆ Major English Victories: ⧫ Capture of Fort Duquesne (1758), & Louisburg on Cape Breton Island ⧫ Quebec (1759), Montreal (1760) Results: The Treaty of Paris, 1763 ◆ France ousted from India & North America. ◆ England gained the largest empire since Roman times. ◆ England’s national debt sent soaring. Pontiac’s War, (1763) ◆ A confederation of Algonquin Indian tribes who were allied with the French, rose up to defend the Ohio Valley from English settlers. ◆ Led by Ottawa Indian Chief Pontiac, the Indians managed to capture 8 of the 11 forts in the region. When Pontiac himself could not capture Fort Detroit, the Indians agreed to a compromise settlement. Proclamation Line of 1763 ◆ England wanted to gain the wealth of the Ohio Valley fur trade without incurring the cost to defend the region. ◆ England agreed to prohibit settlers west of the Appalachian Mountains. ◆ The Native Americans agreed not to attack & to trade with the English forts. ◆ This sacrificed western expansion which was the reason colonists supported the war. England Attempts to Raise Revenue From the Colonies The English Treasury was exhausted by the French and Indian war. Yet, victory earned England an empire which was even more costly to defend. English citizens were willing to bear a high tax burden during the war however, with the end of the war citizens were calling for relief. English Viewpoint ◆ Chancellor of the Exchequer, Lord George Grenville initiated legislation in Parliament to attempt to raise funds from the colonies to alleviate the debt. He believed that the colonist were prosperous farmers benefiting from English protection without paying a penny toward their own defense. Colonial Viewpoint ◆ The colonists believed that England defended the colonies in her own best interest. They believed that by following a mercantilistic economic theory enforced by the Navigation Acts, that they were already at an economic disadvantage for the benefit of the mother country. In over 150 years of North American colonial settlement their was no precedent for Parliament’s direct taxation of the colonists and they did not believe that it should start now. Sugar Act, 1764 ◆ This marked a symbolic/realistic End to Salutary neglect. It lowered the import duty on molasses from 6 to 3 pence per gallon. Yet, it used this new source of revenue to fund people to truly enforce the Navigation Acts and to end smuggling. Privacy rights were ignored when customs agent were granted Writs of Assistance to aid them in catching smugglers. Colonial Response to the Stamp Act, 1765 Though merchants were angered over the Sugar Act it did not cause widespread indignation like the Stamp Act. Stamp Act, 1765 ◆ Stamps (sales tax) were a common way of raising taxes during the colonial era. Yet, colonists were only accustomed to seeing tax stamps which raised revenue for their local legislatures. ◆ Stamps were fixed to documents or they were printed on watermarked stamp paper. The following wide range of items were to receive stamps: ⧫ Legal Documents ⧫ Marriage Certificates ⧫ Newspapers ⧫ Playing Cards / Dice ◆ Colonial response to the Stamp Act was energetic on many levels: ⧫ People were inspired to riot, burning stamps and intimidating tax collectors. ⧫ Colonial Assemblies petitioned for the act to be repealed. ⧫ Stamp Act Congress, New York City 9 of the 13 colonies sent representatives. Declaration of Rights and Grievances declared colonial loyalty, but called for an end to Parliamentary taxation. Non-Importation of English goods established until repeal.  Virtual vs. Actual Representation Colonial Viewpoint (Actual Representation) ◆ The colonists believed that their rights as English citizens guaranteed them, “No Taxation Without Representation”. Nobody directly represented them in the House of Lords and they did not directly elect anyone to the House of Commons. Therefore, no one was well enough informed about colonial needs or directly accountable to the colonists enough to justly spend their tax money. English Viewpoint (Virtual Representation) ◆ The Crown and a majority of Parliament reasoned that because England had a representative body that represented the “common” interests of English citizens (House of Commons) that the colonial needs were virtually represented. Declaratory Act, (1766) – Repeal of the Stamp Act ◆ Colonial non-importation hurt English merchants enough for them to stand outside meetings of Parliament calling for a repeal of the Stamp Act. ◆ Part of the Crown’s tax revenue came from taxing the profits of English merchants. In combination with the Stamp Act raising little or no revenue, the Crown was also losing tax money they would normally earn from English merchants’ profit from the colonial trade. ◆ Though Parliament agreed to repeal the Stamp Act, they also passed the Declaratory Act in which they reaffirmed their belief that they had the right to, “legislate for the colonies in all cases whatsoever”, including taxation. Townshend Duties (1767) - Bring Violence Still in debt, the Crown appointed a new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Charles Townshend. He proposed a new means of raising revenue from the colonies. Townshend Duties, (1767) ◆ Reasoning that the colonists had rebelled against the untraditional direct taxation of Parliament, yet that they understood their mercantilistic role in the empire and followed the trade regulations established by the Navigation Acts. Townshend proposed a series of “trade regulating” import duties on the following goods being shipped to the colonies: Paper, Paint, Lead & Tea. ◆ It was believed that, since they were an “indirect” trade regulating measure and that since the colonists would not see a direct tax from Parliament, that the colonists would not be angered. ◆ English merchants trading with the colonies would pay the tax, pass the cost on to colonial merchants, who would raise the price of the goods, passing the costs on to the colonists. Representative Patrick Henry, addressing the Virginia House of Burgesses: ◆ “Are we such a doltish people? Are we so meek and pusillanimous as to accept this absurd distinction? I say nay! You know, Julius Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I had his Oliver Cromwell and George III… may well learn from their example.” ◆ Colonial response was similar to that of the Stamp Act: Protest, Petitions, Non-importation and Violence towards tax collectors. The Boston Massacre, 1770 England responded to the new outbreak of lawlessness by sending an army to Boston (the center of the worst disturbances) to restore order and to protect the civil servants that enforced the new laws. Tension in Boston ◆ English soldiers drilled daily on the Boston Common. This was a purposefully public show of force. It repeatedly reminded Bostonians that their city was enduring an occupation and that the Crown was using force to enforce laws against their will. ◆ Even in off hours the army’s presence was felt. Colonist ran into off-duty soldiers in their pubs, dating local girls and taking part-time jobs that the colonists were competing for. Violent affrays between colonists and off-duty soldiers were numerous. “Letters from a Pennsylvania Farmer” ◆ Still, at this point (1768), most people still agreed with John Dickinson when he wrote in his letters that, properly governed , the colonists would rather remain loyal to England, than be governed by any other country in the world. Yet, England should leave taxation of the colonists to the local Colonial Assemblies.  The Boston Massacre, 1770 Early in 1770 violent affrays became more numerous. It is evident that the long residence to the soldiers in the town had given more radical leaders a text for agitation. In February, a little boy was killed when the friend of a shopkeeper, who flouted non-importation, fired into a crowd of colonists when they interfered with his attempt to remove a derogatory image from over the shop’s door. At the boy’s funeral 500 children preceded and 1300 colonists followed the casket to the cemetery. March 5, 1770 came a more serious affair. Two British soldiers were attacked by colonists and an ugly spirit arose. Bells were rung, a large crowd gathered and the sentinel in front of the customs house was attacked. British officer of the day, Captain Preston, with 13 soldiers went to his defense. The mob was not intimidated and they began shouting and throwing snow at the troops. The troops behaved well until one soldier (accidentally?) discharged his weapon. When the crowd rushed to take the soldiers, several other shots were fired driving the crowd back. As the smoke cleared, 5 colonists lay dead and 6 wounded. Drums were beaten and the British army seized arms and prepared to repel a general attack. Several of the soldiers were indicted for murder, all were acquitted accept two, who pleaded benefit of clergy and escaped with a branding on the hand. The day after the shooting, Governor Hutchinson yielded to determined protests that the troops should be removed from the town. “Victims of the massacre”, were given a public funeral and for a dozen years the anniversary of their death was observed in Boston. The incident, described in a pamphlet as the culminating act of British tyranny, had a marked influence on all the colonists. It was the kind of argument the average citizen could understand.  The Boston Tea Party, 1773 (03) As a result of the Boston Massacre and colonial non-importation, the Townshend Duties were repealed. However, the duty on tea remained as a symbol showing that England had the right to tax the colonists. By 1772, both sides continued to harden their positions. The Crown began paying colonial governors and judges directly, freeing them from colonial legislatures, in order that they may enforce the Crown’s laws without fear for their salaries. The colonists organized Committees of Correspondence to keep informed on any new ways that the crown may be threatening their rights throughout the colonies. Tea Act, 1773 ◆ The British East India Company (B.E.I.C.) was in financial difficulty, in part, because of colonial non-importation. Many members of Parliament were invested in the B.E.I.C., also the company actually governed India for England. In order to help the company financially, Parliament granted the them a monopoly on the colonial tea trade. (01.02) Angered over the remaining Townshend Duty on tea and fearful of the crown’s granting of arbitrary monopolies on colonial trade, the colonists refused to receive B.E.I.C. tea shipments. When Governor Hutchinson, in Boston, refused to allow the tea ships to leave the harbor until the situation was resolved, the colonists showed their displeasure by boarding the ships and destroying the tea by dumping it into the water on December 16, 1773. The colonists dumped 374 crates or 92,000 pounds of Tea worth about $1.7 million in today’s dollars into Boston Harbor. This fresh outbreak of lawlessness changed England’s goals from raising revenue from the colonies to disciplining them. They passed a series of extreme measures meant to  Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts), 1774 The city of Boston was given an ultimatum, “Pay for the tea that was destroyed, including the Townshend Duty on that tea, or suffer the following as of June 1st.” The Coercive Acts: ◆ The port of Boston will be closed. ⧫ This would collapse the Boston economy. ◆ The Massachusetts Charter, (1691) will be repealed. ⧫ This would remove Representative government. ◆ Quarter British troops with food & housing in private homes if need be. ⧫ This would invade their right to privacy. ◆ Royal officials charged with crimes in Massachusetts will be tried in England. ⧫ This would allow colonists rights & possibly lives to be removed. ◆ Quebec Act, 1774 ⧫ Compounding colonial anger over the Coercive Acts, the Quebec Act permanently granted the Northwest Territory to the French Canadians. Further, it recognized French law and allowed for the establishment of the Catholic Church. Though this act was passed to aid in administration of the fur trade, the seaboard colonists saw it as a punitive action. Though the Bostonians seemed radical to most of the colonial leadership, so did the measures taken by the Crown. Most of the other colonies decided to support Massachusetts with food and money because if the Crown was capable of treating citizen’s rights in Massachusetts this way, then maybe it was just a matter of time before their rights were treated the same way 1st Continental Congress, 1774 On June 1st the Coercive Acts went into affect. In September, representatives from 12 of the 13 colonies met in Philadelphia to organize the colonial response to these extreme measures. ◆ A series of Declarations and Resolves were passed that stated that the colonies were not declaring open rebellion, but that Parliament no longer had the right to tax the colonies. ◆ Non-Importation Associations were established to enforce the most complete boycott of English good to date. ◆ The Congress advised Massachusetts to draft a State Constitution as a legal basis for governmental power since the Crown had repealed their Charter but only controlled the city of Boston. ◆ The Congress also passed the “Suffolk Resolves” which called on Massachusetts citizens to arm themselves in self-defense against any further attempts by the English army of occupation to control them.  The Battles of Lexington and Concord, 1775 With the Coercive Acts still in effect, tensions continued to mount with the dawn of Spring, 1775. In April, Military Governor of Boston, General Thomas Gage thought it wise to anticipate any possible violence by sending a column of 800 soldiers to take control of a Royal ammunition depot 18 miles inland at Concord, Massachusetts. Lexington: ◆ As the British soldiers marched toward Concord, 60 members of the Lexington Militia drilled in a show of defiance as the British began to march through their town. Refusing an order to disperse, tensions high, the British soldiers fired a volley into the Militia after a stray shot rang out. The Lexington Militia fled the field with 8 dead, 10 wounded while the British continued further inland. Concord: ◆ When the British arrived in Concord they destroyed what stores were not yet removed by the colonists. Seeing smoke coming from the town, 400 Colonial Militia drove into 3 companies of British light infantry to regain entry into the town over Concord’s Old North Bridge. It is from this 2 or 3 minute skirmish that it is said, “the shot heard round the world” was fired. The news of the British “invasion” and the death of Lexington and Concord Militiamen brought angry colonists out in droves. During the 18 mile march back to Boston, the British suffered a hail of fire from every farmhouse, rock and tree. General Gage sent out another column of 1200 soldiers to aid in his forces’ retreat. The result of the days events were 273 British and 93 Colonial casualties. The colonial forces that chased and fired on the British troops began the siege of the British troops in Boston so that they would not be able to march inland again.  nd 2 Continental Congress, 1775 At the end of the meeting of 1st Continental Congress, the representatives agreed to reconvene in six months in order to assess the success of the measures they had taken in regard to the Coercive Acts. The events at Lexington and Concord filled every heart with dismay and caused a new flurry of activity. When the 2nd Continental Congress met in May 1775, the colonies sought peace but prepared for war. ◆ Declaration of Causes and Necessity for Taking Up Arms. ◆ The Olive Branch Petition. ◆ George Washington was placed into command of the 20,000 Massachusetts volunteers who began the siege of Boston. These troops were taken under payment of the Continental Congress and became the backbone of the new Continental Army. ◆ Letters of Marquis were granted to merchant sailors commissioning them as Commanders of the U.S. Merchant Marine / Privateer Navy. The 2nd Continental Congress functioned as the governing body for the United States throughout the Revolutionary War. Unfortunately, within a month of the sending of the Olive Branch Petition there was a fresh outbreak of violence. In June 1775, at the Battle of Bunker Hill, both sides suffered a 40% casualty rate, with 1000 British and 440 American casualties. Though the Americans lost the tactical battle, they proved that they could and would stand in formation against British Regulars. News of Bunker Hill caused King George III of Britain to disregard the American Olive Branch and to, “let blows decided” the fate of the American Colonies. Parliament passed the American Prohibitory Act in the Fall 1775, which was basically England’s declaration of war against the colonies. From that point on, the British fleet began blockading American trade and treated American ships as the ships of an enemy. Build up to the Revolution 1763 – Proclamation Act 1764 – Sugar Act 1765 – Stamp Act 1766 – Repeal of Stamp Act / Passage of Declaratory Act 1767 – Townshend Duties 1768 – British Army sent to Boston / Letters from a Pa. Farmer 1770 – Boston Massacre / Repeal of Townshend Duties except on Tea 1772 – The Burning of the British Customs ship the Gaspee 1772 – Development of the Committees of Correspondence 1773 – Tea Act / Boston Tea Party 1774 – Coercive / Intolerable Acts & Quebec Act 1774 – Meeting of the 1st Continental Congress 1775 – Battles of Lexington and Concord 1775 – Meeting of the 2nd Continental Congress 1775 – Battle of Bunker Hill 1775 – American Prohibitory Act