 All colonies except Georgia met in Sept 1774 in response to the Intolerable Acts  No intentions or desire for independence at this time  Just wanted to protest British taxes and go back to the way things were prior to the French and Indian War  Delegates included: Patrick Henry, John Adams, George Washington, & John Jay

 Created the Suffolk Resolves which called for immediate repeal of the Intolerable Acts, makes military preparations, and boycotts British goods  Issued Declaration of Rights and Grievances to the King and Parliament  Formed “The Association”, urged creation of committees to enforce boycotts  If Britain didn’t make changes, they promised to meet again

 King George III angrily dismisses the petition of FCC  Declared Massachusetts in a state of rebellion  Sent additional troops to deal with the unruly colonists  Fighting will soon erupt

 General Gage and his British soldiers go to Concord to seize colonial supplies  Paul Revere and William Dawes warn the militia that the British are on their way  In Lexington, the militia is forced to retreat and the British continue their march to Concord  In Concord, they destroy some colonial military supplies

 While returning to Boston, the British soldiers were attacked by militiamen and suffered 250 casualties  Very humiliating for the British  Unclear which side actually fired the first shots

 Actual battle, not a scuffle like Lexington and Concord  Occurred on the outskirts of Boston  British managed to capture the hill from the militia but suffered heavy losses  British had about 1,000 casualties

 Met in Philadelphia in May 1775  Some delegates wanted to declare independence, some still wanted to make peace with Britain  Congress adopted plan to establish an army, led by George Washington  Sent the “Olive Branch Petition” to King George III as a last attempt at peace

 King George III rejected the petition and declared the colonies in a state of rebellion  Thomas Paine published his essay, Common Sense which persuaded many colonies to push for independence  He said it went against common sense for a tiny country (England) to rule a large country (America)

 Lee Resolution was adopted on July 2, 1776, formally declared independence  Committee was formed to write a statement to support the resolution  Thomas Jefferson drafted the declaration which included a list of grievances against the king and other reasons for revolution  Declaration was adopted on July 4, 1776

 Most were from New England and Virginia  Continental Army was made up of farmers that would fight for a while then leave to go home and work  Washington only had about 20,000 troops at one time  Short on supplies, poorly equipped, and rarely paid

 African Americans participated in most of the military actions of the war  5,000 would fight on the side of the Patriots  Most were freemen from the North  Some fought in units of mixed race, some fought in all African units  Peter Salem was an African recognized for his bravery

 Tories: Americans who maintained their support of the King  Tories fought alongside the British and provided food, supplies, and information  About 520, ,000 Tories during the war  Most from Georgia, New York, and New Jersey  Most Tories were wealthy government officials or Anglican clergymen

 Tried to stay out of the war at first  Attacks by Americans led most Native Americans to side with the British  British promised to limit colonial settlement in the west

 went badly for Washington’s troops  By the end of 1777, the British controlled New York and Philadelphia  After losing Philadelphia, Washington and his troops suffer through the winter at Valley Forge (2,000 die from exposure)  Trade was difficult, supplies were scarce, and inflation was rampant  American paper money was considered worthless

 Turning point for Americans was the Battle of Saratoga in Oct 1777  Diplomatic result was most important  The American win persuaded France to join their side against the British  Marquis de Lafayette and Benjamin Franklin both worked as ambassadors to secure this alliance  French provide money, supplies, and troops

 British started to concentrate their efforts in the South were there were more Tories  1781 the last major battle will occur at Yorktown, VA  British General Cornwallis was trapped between Washington and the French navy and forced to surrender

 After Yorktown, the war lost support in England because the toll it was taking on the economy  Treaty stated: › Britain would recognize American independence › Mississippi River would be the west boundary › Americans would have fishing rights off Canada › Americans would pay debts owed to British merchants and return Loyalists property

 By the end of the war, most colonies had a written constitution  Each constitution had the following: › List of rights and freedoms (basic) › Separation of powers (executive, legislative, judicial) › Voting (property holders) › Office-holding (property holders)

 Created by John Dickinson and submitted to the states in 1777 for “ratification”  Finally ratified in March 1781  Created a central government with a unicameral Congress  Each state got one representative  9 out of 13 states had to agree to pass a law  To amend the articles, all 13 states had to agree

 Congress could wage war, make treaties, borrow money, and deal with foreign nations  Congress was NOT given the powers of regulating trade, collecting taxes, or enforcing its own laws  There was no president, executive branch, or federal courts

 The Articles, although weak, accomplished the following: › Winning the war and negotiating a favorable treaty with Great Britain › Land Ordinance of 1785: surveyed western lands and set aside land in each for public education › Northwest Ordinance of 1787: set rules for creating new states in the west

 Financial: Congress could not tax to raise money  Foreign: Other nations did not repect the US because the national government was weak and it couldn’t pay off debts  Domestic: Shay’s Rebellion highlighted problems of debt and worthless currency. Made national government weaknesses obvious

 US would not grant titles of nobility  States adopted the policy of separation of Church and State  Women still treated as second class citizens even though they had kept the farms and businesses running during war. Some even fought in battles  Many called for end to slavery but Southern states thought it was essential to their economy