Week 4

Day 1

• Bellwork– Why was the Battle of Bunker Hill a significant battle during the

revolution?• King declared colonies in rebellion• Blockade of ships to America

The Ideas Behind the Revolution

• Reasons colonists shifted opinion regarding independence– Enlightenment thinkers

• John Locke– Natural rights– Social contract

» People consent to be ruled as long as their natural rights are protected

» People have the right to resist if the government does not protect

• Religious traditions support cause of liberty– John Mayhew

• Preacher• Scriptures say that wise, brave, and virtuous men

were always friends of liberty

• Limited government and civil rights– Basic to English law since 1215 A.D.

• Magna Carta• Great Charter• English Bill of Rights

• Limited government continued…• Colonists felt Parliament violated their

rights– Due process– Speedy trial– Trial by a jury of peers– Taxation without representation– Presumption of innocence– No standing army during peacetime– No quartering troops in homes– Freedom of travel in peacetime– Regular legislative sessions

CFU

• Why might the ideas of the Enlightenment appeal to the colonists?– American colonists seeking independence found support for

their views in Locke’s assertion that people have a right to resist and overthrow an unfair government

Thomas Paine’s Common Sense

• Attacked King George and monarchy• Independence would allow American to trade more freely• Independence would create a better society

– Free of tyranny– Equal social opportunities– Equal economic opportunities

• 500k copies sold in 1776• George Washington read it and promoted it

CFU

• How did Paine’s Common Sense seek to persuade colonists to support the cause of independence?– His pamphlet helped to overcome many colonists’ doubts about

separating from England

Declaring Independence

• Summer of 1776– Continental Congress urging colonies to form own governments– Congress appointed a committee to prepare a formal

Declaration of Independence• Thomas Jefferson (Virginian lawyer) chosen to prepare the final draft

– Natural rights are Unalienable– Consent of governed– Right to abolish government

• Reasons for declaring independence– Violations committed by the king and

Parliament against the colonists’ unalienable rights

• Declaration states– All men are created equal

• Common belief that free citizens were political equals

• Not meant to embrace women, Native Americans, or African American slaves

– Words become important to freedom later on

• Originally Thomas Jefferson attacked slavery in the Declaration of Independence– This draft was rejected by Georgia and South

Carolina– Jefferson took slavery part out in order to get

their votes– July 2, 1776, delegates voted unanimously

that American colonies were free– Adopted Declaration of Independence

• Declared their freedom

CFU

• For what reasons did the colonists declare their independence from Great Britain?– Britain failed to protect the natural rights of the colonists

Student Activity

• Cause and effect essay– Road to Revolution– Describe the cause and effect of 3 main events that lead to the

American colonies declaring independence from Britain– 2 paragraph essay

Day 2 Bellwork

• Quiz

• Define words found under “Terms and Names” on page 58

The War for Independence

• Loyalist– Loyal to King– Against independence– Felt British would win– Avoid punishment– King protect rights better

• Patriot– Support independence– Political opportunities– Economic opp.

• African Americans– Patriot side– Loyalist side

• Britain promised freedom

– Opened doors for African Americans

• Native Americans– Loyalist side

• Felt colonialism greater threat to their lands

• German mercenaries– Hired by British

• French secretly supporting patriots

• British surrender at Saratoga– Bolstered French belief that patriots could win– French signed alliance with Americans

• Openly joined in fight

Life During Revolution

• Problems– Hard to pay troops– Paper money caused inflation– Paper money called Continentals– Hard to equip soldiers– Borrowed money from personal credit– Wives had to take over role of men– Some wives followed men to battle

• Washed clothes• Fought on battle field

Winning the War

• Prussian captain trained troops

• Help from military leaders increased chances of winning

• French navy beat British navy– Blocked sea routes in to bay

• British troops surrounded by American and French troops– Bombarded them day and night

• British surrendered October 19, 1782• World shocked• Peace talks in Paris, 1782• Negotiators

– John Adams– John Jay– Benjamin Franklin

• Signed Treaty of Paris, Sept. 1783– Confirmed American independence– Set boundaries of new nation

• Atlantic Ocean to Mississippi River, and Canada to Florida border

War Becomes Symbol of Liberty

• Changes– Social distinctions blurred

• Wealthy wore ragged clothes• Equal respect by military leaders

– Stimulated rise of egalitarianism• Belief in equality of all people

– Created new attitude• Ability, effort, and virtue defined person’s worth

– Not wealth or family background– Not for women or African American

• Slavery still in use

• Couple states took steps to outlaw slavery

• Native Americans still uncertain with future– People and lands unprotected

• Quote used on Great Seal of the United States– Novus Ordo Seclorum– “a new order of the ages”– Resolving problem in a new order would be challenging for a

new nation.

Student Activity

• Create a crossword puzzle using the vocabulary words defined in the bellwork

• Example of crossword puzzle >>>>>>>>>>

Day 4 Bellwork

• What were two things that came out of the Treaty of Paris?

The Articles of Confederation

• New plan of gov’t

• Set of laws

• Establish a confederation (alliance) among 13 states

• Each state had one vote no matter the population

• Powers divided among state and national gov’t

• National gov’t

– Declare war

– Make peace

– Sign treaties

– Borrow money

– Establish postal service

Issue to deal with

Governing Northwest Territory– Land Ordinance of 1785

• Help deal with northwest territory• Plan to survey land

– Northwest Ordinance of 1787• Divided land• Rules for admission of states

• Confederation problem– States functioning independently

• Pursuing own interests• Not thinking of nation as a whole

– No way to raise money– No way to enforce laws– No national court to settle disputes– Weak central gov’t – No unity between states

Shay’s Rebellion

• Need strong central gov’t

• Farmers in western Massachusetts– Against increased state taxes– Protested– Daniel Shay, farmer, led 1200 farmers toward Springville– State officials called the militia for protection

• Killed 4 rebels

• Caused panic and dismay

• States restricted in solving problems– To keep away abuse of power

• Convention called in May 1787– Need to strengthen central gov’t– Decided to get rid of Articles of Confederation– Create new gov’t

• Issues– Fair representation to large and small states– Virginia Plan proposed bicameral (2 house) legislature

• Based on population

• Great Compromise– 2 house Congress

• Senate – equal representation• Representatives – based on population

– Debate on whether or not to count slaves as population• Three-fifths Compromise

– 3/5 of slave population counted

Day 4

• Bellwork: Define the term triangle trade and explain it’s significance

After the Articles of Confederation

• Federalists– Pro strong central gov’t– Pro Constitution the way it was

written– Wrote “Federalist Papers” to

convince other side that strong central gov’t was good

• Antifederalist– Pro strong state’s right– Against strong central gov’t– Feared personal liberties were

not protected in Constitution– Demanded a Bill of Rights

Bill of Rights

• Delegates added a Bill of Rights– A.k.a. the first ten amendments

• Amendments = change = ratification

• Bill of Rights made Antifederalist side happy

• Rest of states signed U.S. Constitution

Preamble

• “We the people”– A statement from the people– Letting everybody else know that the people are the ones who

give the gov’t permission to govern– All derives from the consent of the people, not anybody else