Olive Branch Petition

Green Mountain Boys

Continental Army

Patriots

Loyalist

The Battle of Bunker Hill

Blockade

Mercenaries

KEY TERMS FOR CHAPTER 6 SEC. 1

Click icon to add picture

Carpenter's Hall: In 1774, 56 deputies representing almost every American colony

convened at Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia to address their many grievances against the British. This First Continental Congress included George Washington and John Adams. (Photo Credit: Dave

G. Houser/Corbis

FIRST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS

Click icon to add picture

Here at Independence Hall In Philadelphia, the Second Continental Congress still had hopes of a peaceful resolution. The delegates passed

the Olive Branch Petition, in hopes of repealing the Intolerable Act .

SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS

Click icon to add picture

Olive Branch Petition: When King George learned of the petition he was enraged. He blamed the colonist for

trying to begin a war “for the purpose of establishing an independent

empire.” He vowed to bring the rebels to justice, and ordered 20,000 troops to

be deployed.

KING GEORGE III

Prev

Many Patriots not only owned rifles, but were also

good shots.

George Washington, a brilliant and experienced

Commander, was named the leader of the forces.

Patriots were determined to defend THEIR homes and

property.

Highly trained and experience troops.

The world’s strongest Navy.

Heavily supplied with weapons and ammunition.

The British Army had the advantage in numbers by

leaps and bounds.

Colonial Forces British Forces

ADVANTAGES OF THE OPPOSING SIDES

They were poorly organized and untrained.

They had very little gun powder, few cannons, and

no NAVY.

Many colonist were unwilling to enlist in the federal army, choosing to

defend their home

British armies were now 3000 miles away from home.

It could take months for supplies to reach.

The British Troops were unfamiliar with the terrain.

Colonial Forces British Forces

DISADVANTAGES OF OPPOSING SIDES

In may of 1775, Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys at Fort

Ticonderoga demanding that the British commander surrender.

REBELS TAKE FORT TICONDEROGA

Click icon to add picture

Who in fact are the Green Mountain Boys? Just a group of back country Vermont boys raising havoc. In fact the Green Mountain

Boys were a group of a few hundred American patriots in the early American Revolutionary years that would later be

considered the founding fathers of the state of Vermont.

GREEN MOUNTAIN BOYS

.

The first major battle of the Revolution, which proved the American’s could fight

bravely. Although the British eventually took Bunker Hill there losses were costly. Over

1000 casualties to the US forces 400.

BATTLE OF BUNKER HILL

Click icon to add picture

Prior to the attack on Bunker Hill, Gen. Washington reached Boston to discover

16,000 Troops camped out along the City’s edge.

GENERAL GEORGE WASHINGTON

In January of 1776, Washington had a stroke of good luck. After the Green Mountain Boys had taken Fort Ticonderoga

they had dragged the cannons they captured over the Mountains. Washington then placed them on Dorchester

Heights overlooking the Harbor.

Once General Howe saw the cannons he knew that they could not hold Boston.

WASHINGTON’S GOOD FORTUNE

Although the British left New England, they did not give up. King George III ordered a blockade (the shutting of a port

to keep people or supplies from moving in or out).

The King also used mercenaries (hired troops) from Germany to help fight the colonist.

THE KINGS RESPONSE

The Colonies Independence: In this section we will describe the impact of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, list steps that congress took to declare

independence, and summarize the main ideas of the Declaration.

Common Sense, by Thomas Paine

Traitor

Declaration of Independence

Preamble

Natural Rights

KEY TERMS FOR CHAPTER 6 SEC. 2

“In England a King Hath little more to do than to make war and give away;

which in plain terms, is to impoverish the nation.” Common Sense 1776.

THOMAS PAINE

Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” was a one of the most influential pamphlets of the era. Although most printers were reluctant to put such an unflattering portrait of the King, it non the less sold over 500,000 copies and became

the rallying cry many supporters of Independence. “Common Sense” also sold many colonist who were unsure

on the idea of Independence.

A CALL FOR INDEPENDENCE

“Resolved, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and

independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and

that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.” Lee’s Resolution at

the Second Continental Congress

RICHARD HENRY LEE, VA

The Delegates were faced with a momentous decision. Once a declaration was signed there was no turning back.

The members of the Continental Congress knew that if they were ever to fall into British hands they would be hanged as

a “traitor”.

Traitor- is a person who betrays his or her country.

MAKING THE BREAK

Click icon to add picture

Thomas Jefferson was tapped as the main author of the Declaration of Independence along with Benjamin Franklin. Jefferson would

also serve as the third President of the United States .

THOMAS JEFFERSON

Click icon to add picture

Declaration of Independence, by John Trumbull : On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress approved the

Declaration of Independence. (Photo Credit: Mayer/CORBIS)

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

“There”, he said, “I guess the King will be able to read that.”

“SHOW ME YOU JOHN HANCOCK”

“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.”

The first part of the Declaration was to establish natural right, or rights that belong to all people from birth.

Preamble- Introduction

“WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS……PREAMBLE”

The second part of the Declaration list the wrongs that led the Americans to break away from Britain.

Jefferson condemned King George III for disbanding colonial legislature and for sending troops to the colonies

during peacetime. See page 178.

Classwork: On the index cards, write, in your words, what the particular wrong written by Jefferson means. Each

Paragraph is a particular wrong. Your # indicates which one to do. Example 1 is first paragraph, 2 is second, etc…

ADDRESSING BRITISH WRONGS

In this section we will list and discuss the battles fought in New York and New Jersey, Discuss the turning points of the War, and describe the

conditions at Valley Forge.

Key Terms

Battle of Long Island

Nathan Hale

Battle of Trenton

General John Burgoyne

Battle of Saratoga

Marquis de Lafayette

Thaddeus Kosciusko

Valley Forge

Ally

Cavalry

Deserter

STRUGGLES IN THE MIDDLE STATES

This illustration show the vast majority of British troops. They

outnumbered the Continental Army by 2 to 1.

BATTLE OF LONG ISLAND

Nathan Hale was captured and hanged for his role in helping

Washington learn more about his enemies army.

AMERICAN HERO

JERSEY STRONG

After Washington was forced out of New York and crossed the frozen Delaware, the Continental Army of New Jersey

saw great strides in the advancement of the Colonial cause

Times were bleak, and the morale was low after multiple defeats at the hands of the Redcoats.

BUT NEW JERSEY WOULD PREVAIL!

BATTLE OF TRENTON

The campaign of December 1776 tested the will of the great leader. Gen. Washington unsure if his men were up to the

challenges ahead of them. Washington stated that his soldiers were “so thinly clad, they were unfit for service.”

Washington also had a major issue dealing with deserters(soldiers who leave their ranks without

permission). He even wrote in a letter to his brother, “I am wearied to death. I think the game is pretty near up.”

WASHINGTON’S DOUBTS

In a bold, and possible desperate move, Washington lead troops on an early morning

raid the day after Christmas in 1776.

The Battle of Trenton was won with little resistance by the Hessians, German

mercenaries (hired soldiers) and took most of them prisoner.

The iconic picture of Washington crossing the Delaware

TRENTON

“At last we have run down the old fox and we will bag him in the morning”

Speaking of George Washington

GENERAL CHARLES CORNWALLIS

BRITISH GENERAL JOHN BURGOYNE

General Burgoyne’s plan- cut off New England from the other colonies by controlling the Hudson river and end the

war for the Americans

Burgoyne wanted three armies to march on Albany, but the King wanted to retake Philadelphia first.

Although Howe was successful in Philadelphia at the battles of Brandywine and Germantown, he had decided to stay there for the winter which would prove costly to not only

Burgoyne’s plan but the British effort overall

BURGOYNE’S PLAN

Click icon to add picture

Burgoyne Surrenders to Gates: At the Battle of Saratoga (1777), British

general John Burgoyne (1722-1792, on the left) surrendered to American

general Horatio Gates (1728-1806). The battle is often considered a turning point

in the war. (Photo Credit: PoodlesRock/CORBIS

SURRENDER AT SARATOGA

TURNING POINTThe victory at Saratoga

1. Colonial Forces cut down trees and damned up streams to slow the already slowly moving British Forces.

2. The Redcoats and Burgoyne were able to re-capture Fort Ticonderoga, but at a cost. With no reinforcements, Burgoyne was forced to send troops to Vermont for horses and supplies. There, his soldiers were defeated in the Battle of Bennington.

3. With the British already low on troops, the Green Mountain Boys came to the aid of the Colonial forces in New York and trapped Burgoyne who was forced to surrender his army to the Americans.

KEYS TO VICTORY

The Victory at Saratoga proved to the world that the

Americans could win.

EUROPEAN AID

The King did not want to send troops to the US until he was sure

they could win.

KING LOUIS XVI

Lafayette had brought trained soldiers from France to fight and also help train. He became one of

Washington’s most trusted advisors and friend.

MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE

Von Steuben was a Prussian army officer, considered to be the best

army in the world, he train soldiers how to drill and march.

FRIEDRICH VON STEUBEN

Along with Casimir Pulaski, these Polish soldiers and engineers help

train CAVALRY(troops on horseback)

THADDEUS KOSCIUSKO