1. Uniting for Independence
Chapter 2 Section 2
Uniting for Independence

2. The Colonies on Their Own
Colonists owed allegiance to the monarch and British government
Colonies served as a source of raw materials
Colonist became accustomed to governing themselves
Colonists remained loyal in return for self-rule and protection from the French

3. Britain Tightens Control
French and Indian War ( )
Tightened Britain’s hold on the continent
Started as land struggle between France and Britain
Great Britain won the war

4. Causes of Independence Movement
The British were left with a large war debt – expected the colonies to help repay
George III had different ideas about how the colonies should be governed

5. Taxing the Colonies
To help pay for the war, taxes were levied on tea, sugar, glass, paper, other products
Stamp Act of 1765
First direct tax
Tax on legal documents, pamphlets, newspapers, playing cards, etc.—things printed on paper had to show a “stamp” indicating a tax had been paid.

6. Stamp Act

7. Britain’s revenue increased Colonial resentment grew
Protests
Refusal to buy British goods (boycott)
Boston Tea Party – British tea dumped into Boston Harbor

8. British response to Colonial protests
Intolerable Acts (1774)
(Referred to as the Coercive Acts in Great Britain)
Closed the Boston Harbor
Withdrew the right of MA to govern itself

9. Colonial Unity Albany Plan of Union (1754) Benjamin Franklin
Plan for uniting the colonies
Colonies rejected it
Gave too much power to an assembly made up of representatives from all 13 colonies

10. British policies spurred an American sense of community
Colonist began to think of themselves as Americans

11. Taking Action Stamp Act Congress (1765) New York Delegates sent
First meeting to protest King George’s Action
Petition sent to king

12. Committees of Correspondence
Colonial committees urging resistance to the British and keeping in touch with one another as events unfolded
Samuel Adams established first committee in Boston (1773)

13. The First Continental Congress
Delegates from all the colonies except Georgia met in Philadelphia in 1774
Key Leaders
Patrick Henry
Samuel Adams
Richard Henry Lee
George Washington

14. Embargo – an agreement prohibiting grade, on Britain, and agreed not to use British goods
April 19, 1775
British arrive – Lexington and Concord
“Shot heard ‘round the world”

15. The Second Continental Congress
Assumed the powers of a central government
President – John Hancock
Voted to organize an army and navy and to issue money
George Washington – commander of the Continental Army

16. Served as the acting government of the colonies throughout the war
Purchased supplies, negotiated treaties, rallied support for the colonists’ cause

17. Independence Common Sense
Thomas Paine
Argued that monarchy was a corrupt form of government; George III was an enemy to liberty
Samuel Adams declared that America was already independent

18. The Declaration of Independence
Committee
John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman
Prepare a written declaration of independence. Jefferson was author.
June 28, 1776 – edited draft to Congress
July 4, 1776 – Congress approves final draft

19. John Hancock first to sign
56 delegate signatures
“The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America”

20. Key Parts of the Declaration
Ideas from thinkers such as Locke and Rousseau
Set out the colonists reasons for proclaiming their freedom
Justify the revolution and to put for the founding principles of the new nation

21. Three Parts of Dec. of Ind.
No government at that time had been founded on the principles of human liberty and consent of the governed.
1) Begins with a statement of purpose and basic human rights.
2) The middle section lists specific complaints against George III
3) The conclusion states the colonists’ determination to separate from Great Britain

22. The First State Constitutions
Transformation of the colonies into states subject to no higher authority
By the end of 1776, 10 states had adopted written constitution

23. Most contained a Bill of Rights
All recognized the people as the sole source of authority in a limited government with only those powers given by the people