MR PORTERS APUSH POWER POINT FOR CHAPTER 7

MR. PORTER’S APUSH POWER POINT FOR CHAPTER 7 March towards Revolution 1763 -1775

Ø Victory in Seven Years’ War means Britain must send 10, 000 costly troops to keep on the frontier l Ø Britain tries to get America to help pay for the costs Revolution was not inevitable, but l colonies and England had grown together during the war but Disputes over economic policies would expose irreconcilable differences over political principles, leading to revolution

Colonial Life l l l No aristocracy Property ownership and political participation accessible to most Era of salutary neglect had Americans used to running their own affairs England looked vulnerable during 7 year war Smugglers proved that $ could be made despite England’s interference

Ø Under mercantilism colonies were supposed to do the following: l Furnish products needed in mother country l l l Not export certain products that would compete with British industry Buy imported manufactured goods exclusively from Britain Not work towards self-sufficiency or selfgovernment

Ø Colonies issued paper money in response to currency shortage l Money quickly depreciated and British merchants get Parliament to ban printing of money Ø Colonists complained their welfare was sacrificed for British merchants Ø Until 1763 – Navigation Laws were loosely enforced and American shippers smuggled or ignored some laws

Ø In 1763 the British navy ordered to strictly enforce Navigation Acts to make up war debts Ø 1764 - the Sugar Act l l l Ø Tax passed by Parliament to raise $ from colonies Increased duty on imported sugar (molasses) from West Indies Duties lowered after bitter colonial protests 1765 – Quartering Act l Required some colonies to provide food and living quarters for British troops

Ø 1765 – Stamp Act l Ø Required stamp on bills of sale and on certain commercial and legal documents • Playing cards, pamphlets, newspapers, diplomas, marriage licenses, bills of lading British viewed new laws as reasonable l For example, British citizens had paid a higher stamp tax for 2 generations

Tax Stamps

Ø Americans saw new laws as a strike against liberties and their basic rights as Englishmen Ø Americans saw presence of British army in America as threat, not a blessing l Now that French were removed and Indians were defeated (at Pontiac’s Rebellion), they believed the British army was no longer needed

Ø British ignored American protests l l The power of Parliament was supreme Americans were represented in Parliament through “virtual representation”… every member of Parliament represented all British subjects (even Americans who were not allowed to vote for members of Parliament)

Ø Americans and representation l Didn’t accept theory of Virtual Representation l l l Did not want direct representation If they had representation, Parliament could pass large taxes on the colonies and small American representation could not stop it Americans wanted a return to the policy of salutary neglect

Ø 1765 – Stamp Act Congress l Ø Delegates from 9 colonies meet in NYC and draw up statement of grievances seeking repeal of the Stamp Act Colonists agree to boycott British goods (economic pressure) l Homespun (homemade) garments became fashionable to avoid imported British wool • Mobilized commoners participation by signing petitions and boycotts

Ø Violent colonial protests against the Stamp Act l l Sons of Liberty groups formed to enforce non-importation, using tar and feathers on violators Mobs ransacked houses of British officials and hanged effigies of stamp agents

Tar and Feathers and the Threat of Hanging During a Stamp Act Protest

Paying the Excise (Tax) Man

Ø 1765 – on day the Stamp Act was to go into effect, all the stamp agents resigned & no one left to collect the tax Ø English were hard-hit by boycotts l Merchants, manufacturers, shippers, and laborers all suffered and demanded that Parliament repeal the Stamp Act l PARLIMENT REPEALS STAMP TAX ACT IN 1766 passes the Declaratory Act

Ø 1767 – Townshend Acts passed l l l Light import duties on many items Colonists had objected to Stamp Act because it was an internal (direct) tax (collected inside the colonies, paid directly by the colonists themselves) In contrast, the Townshend duties were external (indirect) taxes (paid by the shippers of the goods, not by the consumers)

Charles Townshend

Ø March 5, 1770: the Boston Massacre l 60 townspeople taunted and threw snowballs at 10 British redcoats • crowd angry over killing of boy 10 days earlier during protest • Also angry that part time work being done by British soldiers l Troops fired and killed 5 and wounded 6 • Acted without orders but were provoked • Crispus Attucks was first to die, a “mulatto” l After trial, only 2 soldiers were found guilty of manslaughter; they were branded on the hand released (Adams was their attorney)

l l l Parliament finally repealed Townshend Acts as a failure However, a tax on tea left to keep the principle of parliamentary taxation alive Committees of Correspondence between the colonies established to discuss ways to resist taxes. These would evolve into the meeting of the First Continental Congress

Ø 1773 – the British East India Company had 17 million pounds of unsold tea and was facing bankruptcy l l l If company failed, Britain would lose tax $ Britain awarded company a monopoly to sell tea in America which meant cheaper tea for America (even with the tax) Americans believed government was trying to tax them by trick, made them angrier

Ø Because of protests, not a single chest of tea shipped ever reached buyers in America l l l New York and Philadelphia – mass demonstrations forced ships to return to England Maryland – ship and cargo burned Massachusetts Governor Hutchinson orders tea, which had already arrived in Boston Port, not to leave without it being unloaded.

Ø December 16, 1773 – Bostonians, disguised as Indians, dumped 342 chests of tea into river Ø Reactions to the Boston Tea Party l l Radical colonists supported action Conservatives complained of the destruction of private property and anarchy Gov. Hutchinson returned to England disgusted British chose to punish the colonists

1774“Intolerable Acts” passed in response to “tea party” Ø Passed to punish Massachusetts - especially Boston l Known as the Coercive Acts in Britain l Boston Port Act closed Harbor until tea was paid for and order restored l New expanded Quartering Act l Restrictions on town meetings l Royal officials who killed colonist in line of duty would be tried in Britain, not America

Boston After the Coercive Acts

Ø 1774 – Quebec Act passed same time as Intolerable Acts l Incorrectly seen by Americans as part of the British reaction to Boston Tea Party l l Dealt with problem of 60, 000 French in Canada French in Quebec guaranteed the Catholic religion, to keep old customs, and the boundaries of Quebec were extended to the Ohio River

Quebec Before and After 1774

Ø September 1774 – First Continental Congress meets in Philadelphia as a response to the Intolerable Acts l l 12 of 13 colonies (Georgia absent) John Adams and Patrick Henry, among others, begin to argue that independence might be the only recourse

First Continental Congress 1774 Agree to meet again in May, 1775, if demands not met

Bloodshed in Massachusetts Ø April 1775 – first shots of the Revolution were fired l British troops in Boston were sent to Lexington and Concord to seize colonist weapons stores and capture rebel leaders and colonial militiamen refuse to disperse

Lexington and Concord, April 1775

British Empire Strong but it had Weaknesses Ø British army difficulties in America l Ø British had to conquer Americans l Ø Second-rate generals, soldiers brutally treated, and poorly provided for Restoring situation to pre-1763 (without Parliamentary taxes) would be victory for Americans British fought 3, 000 miles away from home l l Problems in supplying and running war America’s geography was enormous

Advantages of the Americans Ø Great leaders l Washington, Franklin, Adams Ø Aid – eventually from France Ø Foreign fighters l l Marquis de Lafayette and Baron von Steuben Fighting defensively Ø Agriculturally self-sustaining Ø Advantage of believing in a just cause

American Disadvantages Badly organized and disunited Ø Weak leadership from Continental Congress Ø No written constitution (Articles of Confederation) until almost the end of the war (1781) Ø Jealousy between states

Ø American Economic difficulties included: l l Metallic money drained by England (mercantilism) Congress was not willing to pass taxes, instead they printed paper money (“Continentals”) that quickly depreciated (“not worth a Continental”) States issued worthless paper money Inflation of currency led to higher prices, causing problems in the economy because it is hard to fight a war without money

1777 Continental, Front and Back

Depreciation of Continental Currency

OTHER AMERICAN PROBLEMS Ø Lack of food for soldiers led to starvation Ø Goods, clothing, shoes all in short supply • • • American farmers who were poorly trained soilders Only a minority of Americans actually fought on behalf of the colonists Baron Van Steuben from Germany and Marquis de Lafayette from France would eventually arrive to help train the men

Ø Blacks fighting for the British l l l Royal governor of Virginia promised freedom to enslaved blacks who fought for the British Thousands of blacks fled to British side for emancipation At the end of the war the British evacuated 14, 000 blacks to Nova Scotia, Jamaica and England

KEYS TO REMEMBER Ø 1. No taxation without representation (the issue of money is always important) Ø 2. Smarter course for England would have been to allow representation in Parliament and then just outvote the colonists on monetary issues Ø 3. Shots fired 1775 but war delayed until 1776 so opportunity existed to avoid war but egos and distance prevented opportunity from being exercised.