1. The American Revolution, 1763–1783 Norton Media Library Chapter 5
Eric Foner

2. I. Thomas Hutchinson

3. II. The Crisis Begins Consolidating the Empire
Prior to the Seven Years’ War, London had loosely tried to regulate some of the colony’s economy
After the Seven Years’ War, London insisted that the colonists play a subordinate role to the mother country and help pay for the protection the British provided
Members of the British Parliament had virtual representation
Colonists argued London could not tax them because they were underrepresented in Parliament

4. II. The Crisis Begins (con’t)
The Stamp Act Crisis
The Stamp Act of 1765 was a direct tax on all sorts of printed materials
The Act was wide reaching and offended virtually every free colonist
Opposition to the Stamp Act was the first great drama of the Revolutionary era and the first major split between colonists and Great Britain over the meaning of freedom
American leaders viewed the empire as an association of equals in which free settlers overseas enjoyed the same rights as Britons at home
Stamp Act Congress met in 1765 to endorse Virginia’s House of Burgesses’ resolutions
Patrick Henry

5. II. The Crisis Begins (con’t)
Liberty and Resistance
No word was more frequently invoked by critics of the Stamp Act than liberty
Liberty Tree
Liberty Hall
Liberty Pole
A Committee of Correspondence was created in Boston and other colonies to exchange ideas about resistance
The Sons of Liberty were organized to resist the Stamp Act and enforce a boycott of British goods
London repealed the Stamp Act, but issued the Declaratory Act

6. II. The Crisis Begins (con’t)
Land and Liberty
Settlers also cried “liberty” in regard to land disputes
The “Regulators” in the Carolinas used liberty to promote their cause
Land disputes were behind the creation of Vermont
Ethan Allen

7. III. The Road to Revolution
The Townshend Crisis
The 1767 Townshend Act imposed taxes on imported goods
By 1768 colonies were again boycotting British goods
Use of American goods came to be seen as a symbol of American resistance
Urban artisans strongly supported the boycott

8. III. The Road to Revolution (con’t)
The Boston Massacre
The March 1770 conflict between Bostonians and British troops left five Bostonians dead
Crispus Attucks
The boycott ended after the Townshend duties were repealed, except for a tax on tea
The treatment of John Wilkes and the rumors of Anglican bishops being sent to America convinced many settlers that England was succumbing to the same pattern of political corruption and decline of liberty that afflicted other countries

9. III. The Road to Revolution (con’t)
The Tea and Intolerable Acts
The Tea Act was intended to bail out the East India Company and help to defray the costs of colonial government
On December 16, 1773, colonists threw over 300 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor
London’s response was swift and harsh with the Intolerable Acts
The Quebec Act granted religious toleration for Catholics in Canada

10. IV. The Coming of Independence
The Continental Association
To resist the Intolerable Acts, a Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia in 1774
The Congress adopted the Continental Association, which called for an almost complete halt to trade with Great Britain and the West Indies
Committees of Safety were established to enforce the boycotts
The Committees of Safety enlarged the “political nation”

11. IV. The Coming of Independence (con’t)
The Sweets of Liberty
By 1775 talk of liberty pervaded the colonies
As the crisis deepened, Americans increasingly based their claims not simply on the historical rights of Englishmen but on the more abstract language of natural rights and universal freedom
John Locke
Thomas Jefferson

12. IV. The Coming of Independence (con’t)
The Outbreak of War
In April 1775, war broke out at Lexington and Concord
The Battle of Bunker Hill was a British victory, but the colonists forced General Howe from Boston by March 1776
The Second Continental Congress raised an army and appointed George Washington its commander
Independence?
That the goal of this war was independence was not clear by the end of 1775
Opinions varied in the colonies as to the question of independence

13. IV. The Coming of Independence (con’t)
Common Sense
Thomas Paine penned Common Sense in January 1776
Called for a democratic system based on frequent elections and a written constitution
Paine tied the economic hopes of the new nation to the idea of commercial freedom
Paine dramatically expanded the public sphere where political discussion took place

14. IV. The Coming of Independence (con’t)
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence declared that Britain’s aim was to establish “absolute tyranny” over the colonies and, as such, Congress declared the United States an independent nation
Jefferson’s preamble gave the Declaration its enduring impact
The Declaration of Independence completed the shift from the rights of Englishmen to the rights of mankind as the object of American independence
The “pursuit of happiness” was unique

15. IV. The Coming of Independence (con’t)
An Asylum for Mankind
The idea of “American exceptionalism” was prevalent in the Revolution

16. V. Securing Independence
The Balance of Power
Britain had the advantage of a large, professional army and navy
Patriots had the advantage of fighting on their own soil and a passionate desire for freedom
British soldiers alienated Americans, while citizen-soldiers displayed great valor

17. V. Securing Independence (con’t)
The First Years of the War
The war went badly for George Washington
The Battle of Saratoga in October 1777 gave the patriots a victory and boost to morale
The victory convinced the French to aid the Americans in 1778
The War in the South
The focus of the war shifted to the South in 1778
British commanders were unable to consolidate their hold on the South

18. V. Securing Independence (con’t)
Victory at Last
Washington and French troops surrounded General Cornwallis at Yorktown, where he surrendered in October 1781
The Treaty of Paris was signed in September 1783
The American delegation consisted of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay

19. The Revolutionary War in the North, 1775–1781 • pg. 193

20. The Revolutionary War in the South, 1775–1781 • pg. 195

21. North America, 1783 • pg. 197
North America, 1783

22. fig05_03.jpg
Page 170: An engraving from a Massachusetts almanac published in 1774 depicts the lieutenant governor Thomas Hutchinson, whose house had been destroyed by a mob 9 years earlier. The devil carries a list of Hutchinson’s “crimes.”
Credit: By permission of the Houghton Library, Harvard University.

23. fig05_05.jpg
Page 173: A woodcut depicting a crowd attempting to intimidate a New Hampshire official charged with carrying out the Stamp Act. They throw stones at his effigy, while, to the left, a mock funeral begins.
Credit: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Charles Alen Munn, ( a) Photograph, all rights reserved, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

24. fig05_06.jpg
Page 174: A warning by the Sons of Liberty against using the stamps required by the Stamp Act, which are shown on the left.
Credit: Sons of Liberty.

25. fig05_07.jpg
Page 177: The Boston Massacre, a 1770 engraving by Paul Revere produced less than a month after the event in which five colonists died. Although quite inaccurate in depicting what was actually a disorganized brawl between residents of Boston and British soldiers, this image became one of the most influential pieces of propaganda in the revolutionary era, helping to stir up resentment against Great Britain.
Credit: Reproduced from the collections of the Library of Congress, LC-USZC

26. fig05_09.jpg
Page 182: An Attempt to land a Bishop in America, an engraving from a London magazine, published in A crowd of New Englanders prevents a ship carrying an Anglican bishop from landing. The crowd carries the works of political philosopher John Locke and a banner proclaiming "Liberty and Freedom of Conscience," and hurls the writings of Protestant theologian John Calvin at the bishop.
Credit: Reproduced from the collections of the Library of Congress, LC-USZ61-78.

27. fig05_13.jpg
Page 184: Thomas Paine, advocate of American independence.
Credit: Reproduced from the collections of the Library of Congress.

28. fig05_15.jpg
Page 188: An early draft, with corrections, of the Declaration of Independence, in Thomas Jefferson's handwriting. Note how the elimination of unnecessary words added to the document's power—"all men are created equal and independent" became "all men are crated equal," and "inherent and inalienable" rights became "inalienable" (in the final version, this would be changed to "unalienable").
Credit: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division.

29. fig05_20.jpg
Page 192: Triumphal Entry of the Royal Troops into New York, an engraving showing the army of Sir William Howe occupying the city in New York City would remain in British hands for the duration of the War of Independence.
Credit: Morristown National Historic Park.

30. fig05_21.jpg
Page 196: A 1781 French engraving showing the surrender of Lord Charles Cornwallis’s army at Yorktown, ending the War of Independence. The French fleet sits just offshore.
Credit: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.

31. Go to website

32. Give Me Liberty! An American History
End chap. 5
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This concludes the Norton Media Library
Slide Set for Chapter 5
Give Me Liberty!
An American History by
Eric Foner