Independence and the Road to the Constitution Lesson 3

Historical Memories 1607- Great Britain establishes colony at Jamestown, Virginia Britain tightened control after King George III came to power in 1760 Great Britain slowly gained control of other areas in North America through the French and Indian Wars (1754-1763) Treaty of Paris, 1763 - Great Britain won all lands East of the Mississippi

History (cont.) Great Britain imposed taxes on tea, sugar, glass and paper Stamp Act of 1765 required colonists to pay tax on legal documents, pamphlets, newspapers and other daily goods Parliament passed strict trade laws that benefited Great Britain, 1765 1765 - Nine colonies met in Stamp Act Congress in New York to protest King George’s actions Political protests began in Colonies such as Boston Tea Party in 1773

History (cont.) Parliament responded with harsher control Great Britain passed a series of acts called Coercive Acts known to the colonists as Intolerable Acts, 1773 Closed Boston Harbor Withdrew self-governing rights 1774 delegates from all colonies except Georgia met at First Continental Congress and decided on a trade embargo

History (cont.) April 19, 1775- British troops clashed with colonists at Lexington and Concord - first shot of Revolutionary War known as “shot heard ‘round the world.” Three weeks later, delegates from all colonies met in Philadelphia at the Second Continental Congress John Hancock President Organized Army & Navy (George Washington is commander) Served as acting government throughout the war

Independence Colonists were ready for independence movement and agreed with a widespread pamphlet titled Common Sense written by Thomas Paine in 1776: “First, the owner of governing still remaining in the hands of the king, he will have a negative over the whole legislation on this continent. And as he has shown himself such an inveterate enemy to liberty and discovered such a thirst for arbitrary power, is he, or is he not , a proper person to say to these colonies, ‘You shall make no laws but what I please!’”-Thomas Paine

The Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson on the writing of the Declaration: Over a year after fighting began, Second Continental Congress created a committee to draft a declaration of independence “I did not consider it any part of my charge to invent new ideas, but to place before mankind the common sense of the subject in terms so plain and firm as to command their asset…It was intended to be an expression of the American mind.” Written by Thomas Jefferson Took ideas from other thinkers & documents Approved on July 4, 1776

The Structure of The Declaration of Independence Part 1 - A statement of the purpose and basic human rights Part 2 - Specific complaints against King Georg III Part 3 - Statement of determination to separate from Great Britain and declare their freedom