H-3: Conflict in the Colonies

H-3: Conflict in the Colonies

• I. Ideas about Self Government– King Charles II was ruler of England and

enacted various acts to regulate trade within the colonies.

– One such act was the Navigation Acts.• Required the colonies to use British ships to

transport their goods.

– However for the most part the colonies took care of themselves without any assistance from Britain. • Salutary Neglect

• Soon England began to feel as though the Colonies were becoming too independent.

• Royal officials began looking for ways to take back control.

• In 1685 King Charles died and was succeeded by his brother James II.

• King James II began to strictly enforce the acts that England had passed for the colonies.

• These changes angered many colonies.

A. The Glorious Revolution• In 1689 Parliament, England’s legislative

body, kicked out King James and asked Mary, his daughter to take over, along with her husband William.

• This change of leadership became known as the Glorious Revolution.

• Before taking the crown, William and Mary accepted the English Bill of Rights.– This document limited the power that the

monarch had over the people and protected freedom of speech and gave Parliament control of the taxes.

– These things would later be used by America when it wrote its Constitution.

II. Conflict Grows • A. The French and Indian War

– Beginning in the late 1600’s France and England fought for dominance in Europe.

– The worst of these wars was the French and Indian War.

– The colonies called this war the Seven Years’ War.– While France and Britain were fighting for control of the

colonies and trading routes, the colonies once became more independent.

• The war ended with Britain winning and the two countries signing the Treaty of Paris 1763.

• Even though Britain won the war, it still faced many problems.– 1st: England had fallen deep into debt due

to the war and did not have the money to pay it off.

– 2nd: Since England and gained more territory in the New World, they now faced conflicts with the Native Americans.

Land Britain had before the French and Indian War

New land gained by Britain after the French and Indian War

• Due to this new land, Britain did not want the colonist settling it because the farther they traveled west, the harder it would be to control them.

• England passed the Proclamation of 1763, which stated that the colonist could not travel west of Appalachian Mountains.

Raising Revenue• In order to try to pay off their debt, England decided to

tax the colonies.• 1764 Parliament passed the Sugar Act.

This was the first attempt to raise money for the debt.• Another act called the Currency Act banned the

colonies from printing their own money.• During this same time Parliament cracked down on

colonial smugglers. Merchants had to provide British officials with lists of all trade goods on all ships before they ship could sail. This was attempt to keep the colonist from not paying taxes on some goods. This was also known as the Writ of Assistance.– Allowed British troops to search for smuggled goods.

• British ships also stopped colonial ships to search for smuggled goods and anyone thought to be a smuggler was guilty until proven innocent.

Taxation without Representation

• The actions of Parliament upset the colonist.• They had gotten used to being independent

and did not want to pay for the war.• They also were angered because no one had

asked the colonist whether or not they wanted to be taxed and the colonies had no representation in Parliament.

• Therefore, the colonist believed that these taxes were unjust and began to use the slogan, “No Taxation Without Representation.”

• Using the Committees of Correspondence, word was able to be spread throughout the colonies of the unjust taxes and this group helped unify the colonies together.

• In 1765 Parliament passed another tax on the colonies known as the Stamp Act.– This placed a tax on

legal documents and newspapers.

• To protest this tax Massachusetts organized the Stamp Act Congress. Delegates from 9 colonies met in NT to petition the King and Parliament to have the tax removed since they did not have representation in Parliament.

• In addition, a new secret group called the Sons of Liberty was formed to protest and boycott British goods. Women joined as the Daughters of Liberty.

• Parliament did eventually repeal, or take away, the Stamp Act, but still insisted it had the right to tax the colonies.

• Another unpopular law that was passed was known as the Quartering Act.– It said that colonist must find living

space for British soldiers stationed in America.

Townshend Act

• 1767 Parliament proposed the Townshend Act, a tax on imports of lead, paint, paper, glass and tea from Britain to the colonies.

• This angered the colonists even more.• This also brought back the Writs of

Assistance so that British troops could search for smuggled goods.

III. The Colonists Respond

• A. The Boston Massacre– March 5, 1770: a crowd

of colonist began to throw snowballs at a group of British troops.

– Accounts of what happened next vary, but someone shouted “Fire” and the British soldiers opened up fire on the crowd and killed several colonist.

The Tea Act and Intolerable Acts

• Even though there was a tax on tea, colonist managed to get it by smuggling.

• In 1773 Parliament passed the Tea Act.– This act granted the British East India Tea

Company a monopoly to sell tea to the colonists in America for very low prices. The goal was to end smuggling.

• Even though the prices were low the colonists hated paying the tax.

• So as a British ship arrived in Boston Harbor to deliver tea, a group of colonists dressed as Native Americans boarded the ship and dumped all the tea overboard. This became known as the Boston Tea Party.

• The loss of money infuriated Britain and they responded with the Coercive or Intolerable Acts.– Closed the port of Boston and placed

stricter control over Massachusetts.

The First Continental Congress

• First Continental Congress: September 1774: Philadelphia: 56 colonial delegates met in order to decide the best way to deal with Britain. All colonies were represented except Georgia.

• The delegates recommended that colonists continue to boycott British goods and that they would warn their colonial militia to be prepared for violence.

• They also assembled a list of 10 resolutions to present to King George III. This became known as the Declaration of Resolves.

• This spelled out what the colonists considered to be their rights: life, liberty and property. (John Locke)

• When King George receive the declaration, he refused to consider the demands and ordered the British troops to prepare to take the colonists weapons.

Lexington and Concord• Tensions were high in the colonies, especially around Boston.• In April of 1775, the British troops began to take the colonial

militia’s weapons. The colonists found out about it and began to prepare for defense.

• On the morning of April 19, 1775, less than 70 minutemen, name for colonial militia men, met British troops at the Lexington village green, near Concord. Shots were fired and the battle of was over in minutes.

• 8 colonists were dead and 10 wounded.• British soldiers kept on marching into Concord, MA.• They were looking for guns and when they did not find any, they

set buildings on fire. • However the minutemen attacked them again from behind and

this shot became known as the shot heard ‘round the world.– The shot that started the Revolutionary War

• The British retreated into Concord and by the time they had reached the city, 250 were dead, compared to the 100 colonists.

The Second Continental Congress

• As word of fighting spread, the colonists responded with shock and anger.

• NC passed the Mecklenburg Resolves: making all British offices null and void.

• In May, representatives from the colonies had met again in Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress.– They decided not to break away from

Britain, but made plans to organize an Army led by George Washington.

• Washington organized his troops, while the Colonial Congress created the Olive Branch Petition.– Requested peace with Britain.–When it arrived fighting was so bad in

the colonies that they King rejected the petition.

IV. Moving Toward Independence

• A. Revolutionary Ideas– By 1775 more Americans were supporting the idea

of independence from Britain.– The colonists they were entitled to all the rights

that British citizens had.– Those rights went as far back as the Magna Carta

signed in 1215.• Limited the power of the king

– Leaders in the colonies believed in the ideas of Enlightenments thinkers such as John Locke and his ideas of natural rights, or rights that could not be taken away.

– They believed in the idea of social contracts• Government and citizens have an agreement that

defines the rights and duties of each.

• The colonists believed that England was failing to protect their rights.

• This failing to protect their rights justified rebellion.

Common Sense

• Early in 1776, Thomas Paine published a pamphlet called “Common Sense”– He condemned the

monarchy and called for American Independence.

• Many colonist agreed with Paine, however some did not.

• NC issued the Halifax Resolves which officially made NC independent.

• On June 7, 1776 three resolutions were presented to the Continental Congress.– 1st: the colonies should be independent– 2nd: Americans needed to form foreign

alliances for support– 3rd: The colonies form a plan for unification

• The delegates named a committee to write a “declaration of independence”