United States History Declaration and American Independence Revolutionary War | Concordia University Wisconsin

University:
Concordia University Wisconsin
Course:
HIST 1210 | American Civilization I
Academic year:

2021
Views:

291

Pages:

3
Author:

Mia Hobbs

Declaration and American Independence/ Revolutionary War ● French and Indian War ENDED 1763 o A war between the Americans and British against the French and Indians. The Americans and British won, but the war had a negative effect on their relationship. After 1763, the British abandoned their policy of salutary neglect. Since they felt that a lot of money was spent on the French and Indian War, the Americans should pay the costs. Thus, the British implemented new taxes on the Americans. (For example, the Stamp Act, the Sugar Act, and the Tea Act.) o The American colonists thought the new British taxes were unfair because they had no one to represent them in the British government (“No taxation without representation”). o The American colonists eventually were upset with the British taxes, so they began to protest. (Some examples: Stamp Act Congress, Boycott of British products, the Sons of Liberty, the Boston Tea Party, the First Continental Congress, the Second Continental Congress.) ● The Second Continental Congress decided that America should break away from England and become an independent country. They assigned Thomas Jefferson the job of writing a document describing the reasons for American independence (This document was called the Declaration of Independence.) ● Declaration of Independence o States the colonial grievances against British rule (a list of reasons for separating from Great Britain). o Written by Thomas Jefferson who was most influenced by the writers of the Enlightenment. o Described as a statement of democratic principles rather than a framework for government. o Takes ideas from John Locke’s theory of natural rights stating that the power to govern belongs to the people (“consent of the governed”). o Contributed to the political development of the U.S. by presenting a clear statement of the social contract ● Theory of government o The fundamental purpose of government is to secure the natural rights of the people. o If a government denies its people certain basic rights, that government can be overthrown. o Similar to the Bill of Rights because both documents support limitations on governmental power and stress the importance of individual liberty. ● NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION o Many colonists believed for British taxes to cease, because they had no representatives in the British government (meaning that the British did not have consent of the governed). ● Thomas Paine o Published Common Sense, which was influential in persuading American colonists to support colonial independence from Britain. o Convinced many Americans who had been undecided on declaring independence from Britain. ● Response to Mercantilist Policies o Committees of Correspondence/Non-importation Agreements/Boston Tea Party First Continental Congress ● Major Events Leading to Revolutionary War o Sugar and Stamp Acts ▪ tax foreign molasses and printed material. o Quartering Act ▪ required colonists to house and feed British soldiers. o Townshend Acts ▪ o taxed imported goods and tea. Boston Massacre ▪ five people were killed by British soldiers. ● Revolutionary War (1775-1783) o began shortly after the Declaration of Independence became official. o American Colonies won the war and independence with the help of foreign aid (France). o At the end of the Revolutionary War, the Mississippi became the western boundary of the U.S.