W HAT IS THIS SONG ABOUT ? We have an old Mother that peevish is grown, She snubs us like Children that scarce walk alone; She forgets we're grown up and have Sense of our own; Which nobody can deny, deny, Which no body can deny. If we don't obey Orders, whatever the Case; She frowns, and she chides, and she loses all Patience, and sometimes she hits us a Slap in the Face, Which nobody can deny, &c.; Her Orders so odd are, we often suspect That Age has impaired her sound Intellect: But still an old Mother should have due Respect, Which nobody can deny, &c.; Know too, ye bad Neighbours, who aim to divide The Sons from the Mother, that still she's our Pride; And if ye attack her we're all of her side, Which nobody can deny, &c.; We'll join in her Lawsuits, to baffle all those, Who, to get what she has, will be often her Foes: For we know it must all be our own, when she goes, Which nobody can deny, deny, Which nobody can deny. c. 1765

That was really about why we had an American Revolution It’s not the taxes, it’s the teenage colonies rebelling against an aging mother So pay attention to all the British actions that DON’T tax the colonies and still push the colonists away

W HAT DOES THIS FISH HAVE TO DO WITH US H ISTORY ?

It’s a cod, so... Cape Cod This is the Sacred Cod that still hangs in the Massachusetts House of Representatives

Notice difference in width of coastal plains + climate difference North/South + poor, rocky soil in Northeast = differences in kinds of agriculture

Different ethnicities, cultures + different Indian tribes on frontier = different cultures in different colonies

M ANY REASONS FOR FOUNDING COLONIES Virginia? Massachusetts? Maryland – same econ as VA, different religion CN, NH – expand from MA RI – run away from MA for religious tolerance PA – Quaker & relig toler, good soil, river, harbor NY – Dutch, fur trade, good harbor, river, soil, relig toler North Carolina = poor  like Virginia South Carolina = rich (harbor, sell to slave colonies in Caribbean) Georgia – buffer colony, “charity” colony

And finally, wide timespan in which colonies were established Virginia Georgia 1733 As times change, reasons for establishing colonies change

S O WHY COLONIES ? Religious – Economic – Defensive – Population growth – Friend of king –

T O SUM UP Rethink why colonies revolted in 1775 Wonder about how the colonies ever managed to unite into one country

H OMEWORK 1. Events often turned out differently from the way colonists planned. List 6 unexpected turns that colonists experienced: A) the event B) what was expected C) what actually happened 2. “The roots of revolution are laid far back.” Assuming this is correct, what are some signs that the colonies are becoming more independent?