Chapter 6 Study Guide Answers Road to the Revolution

1. What were and why did Parliament pass new laws governing the colonies after 1763? From 1754-1763 the British were involved in a war. Although fought other places, in today’s US it is known as the French & Indian war. (Who and when) Wars are expensive and Great Britain (GB) had huge debts. GB felt the colonies should help pay off the debt. (Why)

The Laws passed by Parliament (who. )(what’s Parliament The Laws passed by Parliament (who?)(what’s Parliament?) in order to govern the colonies after 1763 included: Proclamation of 1763: (when) Forbade (?) the colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. Proclamation Line.(What) Designed to maintain peace between the Colonies and Native Americans. (Why)

Quartering Act 1763: (when) required the colonists to house British soldiers and provide them with supplies. (What) too expensive for England to keep 10,000 soldiers in the colonies to protect the proclamation line. (why)

Sugar Act (1765) (when) tax on sugar and molasses shipped to the colonies. (What) What’s a tax? (why)

Stamp Act (1765): (when) tax on all legal and commercial documents. All documents had to have a royal stamp or seal. (why and what)

2) How did the colonists react to these new laws? Colonist (who) Reaction to British laws: protests to express their discontent(?) with the acts (How) Boycotts (?) were common for goods that were taxed. Speeches were made by Patrick Henry, and organizations were also created to help organize the protests and boycotts. Examples: the Stamp Act Congress, who drafted a petition to the king protesting the Stamp Act, and the Sons of Liberty who attacked custom officials. The tactics worked, especially the boycott of British goods, and the Stamp Act was repealed in 1766.  

3. What were the Declaratory Acts & Townshend Acts and how did the colonists react to these acts? Declaratory Act (1766): (when) replaced the repealed Stamp Act and stated Parliament (who) had supreme authority to govern and tax the colonies. (what) Parliament wanted to reassert its control over all colonial affairs (why) colonists reacted by ignoring the act (How)

Townshend Acts (1767) (when) acts passed by Parliament (who) to tax imports in the colonies, such as glass, lead, paper, paint, and tea (what) Acts viewed as yet another tax and the colonists believed that only their local governments should have the right to impose taxes. (how) Acts included the writs of assistance, allowed British officials to search and enter homes to look for smuggled goods, and this violated their natural rights as stated by philosopher John Locke.

4. Explain How the Boston Massacre and the Tea Act united the colonists against the British. News of the Boston Massacre spread throughout the colonies in anti- British propaganda in newspapers, pamphlets, and political posters (Paul Revere painting). Colonists reacted negatively towards the Tea Act, which was passed by Parliament in 1773 to break the boycott of British tea by the colonists. Parliament’s purpose was to allow the East India Company exclusive rights to sell tea in the colonies. They boycotted British tea and instead smuggled tea from Holland. Colonists became more politically active against the British. The Tea Act led to the Boston Tea Party and other forms of protests in South Carolina, New York, and Philadelphia. Colonial leaders began to communicate with each other through committees of correspondence on colonial affairs and resistance to British policy

5. What rights of the colonists were threatened by the Intolerable Acts? The rights of the colonists that were threatened by the Intolerable Acts were: The right to freely trade (Boston Harbor was closed) The right to freely meet/organize (Town meeting banned) The right to elect a council (council now appointed) The right to self-govern (increased power was granted to British Governor, Gen. Gage) The right of colonists to prosecute and judge British officials- trial by jury (British officials now sent back to England to be tried) The right to refuse quartering British troops (The Quartering Act allowed British officers to be housed in the homes of colonists)

6. Why was the First Continental Congress a key step in American history? Most delegates were not ready to call for independence, they were determined to uphold colonial rights. This meeting planted the seeds of a future independent government.

7. Why did fighting begin at Lexington and Concord? On the night of April 18, 1775, General Gage learned that the Massachusetts militia was storing weapons and ammunition in Concord. He ordered the supplies destroyed, and ordered Samuel Adams and John Hancock arrested in Lexington. The Sons of Liberty had prepared by having Paul Revere and William Dawes alert the colonists about the British troop movements – “one lantern by land and two if by sea” on their midnight ride on April 18. Joined in Lexington by Dr. Samuel Prescott, he broke away and spread the news to Concord when Dawes and Revere were stopped at Lexington. On the morning of April 19, the British troops found the colonial militia waiting at Lexington. The British commander ordered the colonists to drop their muskets, but the colonists refused and firing began. Eight militiamen died, and it was “the shot heard ‘round the world.”

8. Explain the three main points of Common Sense All men, not just land owners, should have the right to vote; Kings ruling by the will of God is ridiculous and all monarchies are corrupt The colonies can survive on their own and need not be economically tied to England.