2. Inspired by Reason
Enlightenment thinkers were questioning and confronting absolute rule and divine right:
Locke: Natural rights (life, liberty, property)
Montesquieu: Separation of powers and checks and balances
Voltaire: Freedom of thought, expression, and religion

3. Enlightenment ideas become the inspiration for many revolutions… including the American Revolution.

4. Navigation Acts This ticked off the colonists!
Passed by Parliament in the 1660s – prevented colonists from selling their most valuable products to any country other than Britain
Mostly not enforced
England ran up a huge debt in fighting the French so in 1763 England decided to start enforcing these laws
This ticked off
the colonists!

5. The Stamp Act (1765)
Introduced by England to help pay for the debt acquired during the French and Indian War
Required all legal documents, permits, commercial contracts, newspapers, pamphlets, and playing cards to carry a tax stamp
Colonists said they could not be taxed with no representation in parliament
It was later repealed, but not forgotten by the colonists.

6. Man, you guys can rock out!
The Sons of Liberty
Man, you guys can rock out!
The Stamp Act angered many colonists
Spawned secret societies throughout the colonies - the most famous was Boston’s Sons of Liberty
These groups used propaganda, intimidation, and mob violence to prevent the enforcement of the Stamp Act.

7. The Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts taxed common goods coming into the colonies, such as glass, paint, lead, and tea
England later repealed most of these taxes except for the tax on tea

8. The Boston Tea Party
This lead to the Boston Tea Party -- colonists boarded a British merchant vessel loaded with tea and threw it overboard
This infuriated King George III -- he ordered that the harbor be closed and the city be occupied by British soldiers
“Party” on, dudes!

9. Quartering of Soldiers
OUCH!!!
Tensions began to mount – so more British soldiers arrived in the colonies
Citizens were ordered to house some of them

10. The Boston Massacre
With many British troops on the streets and tensions high, the mood was ripe for violence
On March 5, 1770 British soldiers fired on an angry mob made up of colonists in Boston

11. What Led Up to the First Battles
After the Boston Massacre the British army heard that militias throughout the Boston area were storing ammunition and other supplies.
So they decided it would be a good idea to go and recapture it.

12. The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
After catching wind of the British plan, patriot Paul Revere set out that night to alert the colonists that the British were on their way.

13. The Shot Heard ‘Round the World
The opening battles of the American Revolution
were fought in Massachusetts mainly in Lexington and Concord in 1775.

14. First and Second Continental Congress
1st Continental Congress -- American colonists met to discuss what to do about the British
2nd Continental Congress -- American colonists decide to raise an army under the command of George Washington

15. with that other George from across the pond!
George Washington
Don’t confuse me
with that other George from across the pond!
General of Continental Army and later became the 1st President of the USA

16. A Grievance to the Crown
The Declaration of Independence
Written by Thomas Jefferson and issued by the 2nd Continental Congress
The Declaration of Independence was inspired by:
the Magna Carta
the English Bill of Rights
John Locke who said -- people have natural rights and the right to rebel against an unjust ruler
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”

17. The Declaration of Independence

18. The Declaration of Independence was written to…
let King George III know what the colonists’ grievances were
explain why they wanted separation from the crown
let the world know why they were fighting the revolution
The date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence was July 4, 1776.

19. Some of these grievances were the quartering of soldiers, imposing taxes without consent, and deprivation of trial by jury

20. War for Independence Odds heavily stacked against colonists
Why did the Americans win?
Motivation
British mistakes
Very expensive war for the British
Help from France

21. Yorktown
Washington, with the aid of the French fleet pinned the British Army on the Yorktown Peninsula causing Cornwallis to surrender

22. Articles of Confederation
First plan of gov. in the USA
Established after America won independence
Allowed the colonies to govern themselves with a weak central government -- led to many problems
Why do you think the colonists wanted to create a weak central government?

23. At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, the Articles of Confederation were revised -- incorporating many Enlightenment ideas such as separation of powers, checks & balances, & natural rights.
This new and improved plan of government becomes known as the Constitution.

24. The Constitution stated…
the federal government would be stronger & checks and balances would make sure that no one person or group had too much power like a king.

25. **Hmmmm…. I wonder which Enlightenment philosopher’s idea that was???
The Constitution
Eventually a federal system was agreed upon
Power is divided between the state and national government
Established a system of checks and balances and three separate branches of government:
Executive -- President
Legislative -- Congress
Judicial -- Supreme Court
**Hmmmm…. I wonder which Enlightenment philosopher’s idea that was???

26. Rights Protected
The Constitution addressed many of the grievances in the Declaration of Independence.
In order to get 9 of the 13 states to ratify (agree to) the new constitution a Bill of Rights had to be added.
The Bill of Rights were adopted and are the first 10 amendments to the Constitution & protect our basic civil liberties.