During the 1760s, why did the British government develop a new colonial policy? Why were colonists inclined to oppose the new policy? How did the new policy and the colonial reaction to it lead to the Revolution? Why did colonists divide into Patriots, Loyalists, and moderates?

p. 103-105 The Great War for the Empire

p. 106-107 Burdens of Empire

p. 107-108 The British and the Tribes

p. 108-111 The Colonial Response

p. 111-119 Stirrings of Revolt

p. 126-127 Defining American War Aims

p. 127 The Decision for Independence

I. Reasons for a new colonial policy

A. Vast empire to administer requiring more revenue

•Size: 7 Years War and Treaty of 1763

•Problems: Pontiac and Indian resistance B. Mercantilism

and Navigation Acts versus the

French

How was mercantilism used

to justify the existence of

England’s American colonies?

How did the Navigation Acts affect colonial

trade?

Navigation Acts leads to duties on

colonies

Sugar Act 1733: designed to create revenue following

French/Indian War; only creates tension

Sugar Act 1764: designed specifically to STOP colonies from trading with foreign

countries (not revenue based)

(mainly France and Spain

II. Reasons for

colonial distrust

A. Colonists had liked the way the imperial system worked

• 1. It worked like federalism

• 2. Tradition of how the system had worked – the British unwritten constitution

B. Country opposition thought

• 1. Power corrupts – continuous growth of wealth and power at the center

• 2. Conspiracy at the center to take from the country

C. Colonial indebtedness

III. British policy

A. Regulation

• 1. Proclamation Line

• 2. Sugar Act

• 3. Tea Act

B. Revenue

• 1. External taxes: Sugar Act, Townshend Duties

• 2. Internal Tax: Stamp Act

C. Law

• 1. Admirality Law

• 2. Coercive Acts

• 3. Quebec Act

IV. Colonial reaction escalates

A. Resolutions and petitions

•1. Patrick Henry’s Virginia Resolution vs. the Stamp Act

•2. Stamp Act Congress Resolutions

•3. Continental Congress, Resolutions vs. the Coercive Acts

B. Action taken in resistance

•1. Smuggling

•2. Boycotts (non-importation)

•3. Sons of Liberty

C. Pamphlets, propaganda

•John Dickinson, Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania

V. Division among

the colonists

A. Patriots

B. Loyalists

C. Moderates

VI. Rebellion or War of

Independence

A. George III’ s Declaration of

Rebellion

B. Patriots chose independence

• Thomas Paine, Common Sense

• 2. Congress votes for independence

• 3. Declaration of Independence

During the 1760s, why did the British government develop a new colonial policy? Why were colonists inclined to oppose the new policy? How did the new policy and the colonial reaction to it lead to the Revolution? Why did colonists divide into Patriots, Loyalists, and moderates?

French and Indian War – a timeline

1754 – 1763

1754 – Fort Necessity (British) lost to French and Indian forces;

Col. George Washington’s first defeat in battle (attack on French Fort

Duquesne)

1755 – Gen. Edward Braddock, KIA trying to retake Fort Necessity

1755 – colonial forces defend against Indian attacks along the Ohio Valley;

1756 – France and England declare war on each other in Europe

1757 – William Pitt takes over war effort in colonies; forced service

(impressment); farmers supplies seized, British troops quartered in colonial

homes with no compensation; violent protest by colonials (NY)

1758 – Pitt relaxes many of the policies; return war effort to colonial control;

Enlistments increase dramatically; Fort Duquesne falls to British regulars

1759 – Battle of Quebec; Gen. James Wolfe finds an unknown trail to take

the “impregnable” fort

1760 – fighting ends; atrocities carried out against natives; French/Indians

retaliate

1763 – Treaty signed

(movie reference: Last of the Mohicans; parts of The Patriot)

1763 Treaty of Paris signed

Colonists see newly acquired land as ripe

for the taking

Native Americans (in general) ie. Ottawa

tribe, led by Chief Pontiac, sees differently

Encroaching settlers attacked

To keep the peace Parliament passes the

Proclamation of 1763: designed to keep

settlers from moving west of the Appalachian

Mountains; it only angers the colonists.

Benefits to Proclamation (in Britain’s eyes):1. London controls western movement, not

colonies

2. Slowers western settlement means slower

eastern population decline which means

larger population for workforce in coastal

industries

Native Americans not happy with

Proclamation - - really? Cannot imagine

why…

1768 a new agreement is reached because

London cannot keep colonists from

moving west, but this time they

promised the western boundary of the

colonies would not change…

(La La La, whatever…)

The conflict/tension over the Navigation Acts and various duties attracted more public attention than any other 18th century affair

(Anglo)American were accustomed to broad powers of self-government Keys to self-government: Provincial assemblies

Colonial right to give or withhold power to those assemblies

Parliamentary actions such as overriding provincial assemblies, raising taxes on the public, providing salaries to royal officials in America were all attempts (in the colonists eyes) to control colonial political power Home rule was not something new the colonists were trying to

obtain, rather is was something old and familiar which they desired to keep!

Resistance of British policies was a movement to conserve liberties Americans believed they already possessed

Officials in England had contempt for the colonies

The believed the colonies did little to help themselves financially in the war; a war that was fought to preserve the colonies

Not only were colonists unwilling to pay taxes to England, they were unwilling to even tax themselves

Pressure in England from landlords and merchants about the ever rising taxes on already high rates

They argued the colonies should be paying more in taxes

Stationing of more troops in the colonies to prevent indian attacks raise additional gov’t. spending

England sees a system of taxation as the only alternative to force the colonies to raise the revenue paid to England

Established a line east of the

Appalachian Mountains as a

boundary in which no colonist

could cross

The Crown stated it was for the

colonist’s protection from

native American

The colonists felt as if the King

(George III) was trying to keep

them confined

•Assumed the throne in 1760 at age 22

•Changed the monarchy – active and

responsible

•Removed the Whig coalition (those who

managed the colonies since their

establishment)

• Replaced them with people he bribed

and gave patronage to

• Allowed him to gain control of

Parliament

•Psychological and intellectual limitations

• “bouts of insanity”

• Confined to the castle

• “painfully” immature

•Appointed George Greenville to Prime

Minister

• Does not share American point of view

(with William Pitt)

• Colonists should be “compelled” to obey

laws and pay a part of the cost of

defending the colonies

• Instantly began imposing a new system

of control on the colonies

An amendment to the Sugar (and Molasses)

Act of 1733

Lowered rate of tax on molasses

Increased the number of goods that will be

taxed, including sugar

Enforcement of this tax drastically reduced

the rum business, limited colonial trade

partners and reduced the amount of English

currency with which the colonies needed to

purchase English manufactured goods

England had thought this act would be the least controversial but rather it inflamed the revolutionary spirit of “no taxation without representation”

Act was not designed to raise money to pay the existing debt from the war; was designed to keep a failing company afloat (British East India Company)

18 million pounds of unsold tea; cannot sell it in England (no market demand)

Parliament gave special exemption to the Company to export the tea to the colonies and pay no navigation taxes (today, we call those tax breaks for government sponsored businesses)

Allowed the Company to undersell American tea merchants

The Company granted franchises to specific colonial merchants to sell their tea which resulted in resentment among businessmen

England hoped that the act would gain

support as it lowered the price of tea

The Act only increased resentment as the

colonists saw this as yet another way in

which parliament was using unconstitutional

means to control the colonies

Resulted in the largest boycott of the

colonies; connected the colonies in a

commonly shared experience; women

become leaders of the boycott as they were

the largest consumers of tea in the colonies

In a typical tar-and-feathers attack, the subject of a crowd's anger was stripped to his waist. Hot tar was either poured or painted onto the person while he was immobilized. Then the victim either had feathers thrown on him or was rolled around on a pile of feathers so that they stuck to the tar. Often the victim was then paraded around town on a cart or wooden rail. The aim was to inflict enough pain and humiliation on a person to make him either reform his behavior or leave town. The practice was never an official punishment in the United States, but rather a form of vigilante justice.

Taxes levied on all goods coming into (the

colonies)

Sugar

Molasses

Foreign goods (glass, paper, paint, lead, tea)

Although they (colonists) had no say in how

the tax revenue was spent, they generally

considered Parliament had the right to levy

this tax

Taxes levied on all good produced within (the

colonies)

Newspapers

Official documents (death notices, court papers)

Other goods and services

For the purpose of raising revenue

Colonists had no say in how this money (tax

revenue) was spent, as they had no

“representation” in Parliament

This causes the thought that the right to tax the

colonies should rest with the colonies

A distinct body of law which governs

maritime questions and offenses

Also covers many commercial activities which

could be land based or wholly occurring on land

that are “maritime” in nature

No trial by jury in these courts

Given jurisdiction (by Parliament) over cases

as they arose, as with the Stamp Act

No colonial trial jury would find a colonist guilty

of violating the Stamp Act, therefore Parliament

changed the jurisdiction…

Applied only against Massachusetts

Center of resistance movement

Resulted from the Boston Tea Party

1. closed the port of Boston (until East India

Tea was paid for)

2. Reduced power of self-government in the

colony

3. Allowed for royal officers to be tried in

other colonies or England when accused of

crimes

4. Quarter of English troops mandatory

Parliament follows up with the Quebec Act:

Objective was to provide a civil government for

French-Speaking Roman Catholic inhabitants of

Canada and the Illinois territory

Granted political rights to Roman Catholics

Recognized the legality of the Roman Catholic

church

Long overdue toleration for this practice the colonies

Worried colonists of an attempt to impose Anglican

rule over all religious sects

Convinced some that a plot existed in London to

subject the colonies to the tyranny of the Pope

“if this be treason, make the most of it”

Resolved:

1. Americans posfeff the same rightf as English, efcpecially in matters of taxation by their own representativef

2. Virginians should pay no taxef except those voted on by the Virginia Asfembly

3. Anyone advocating the right of Parliament to tax the colony is deemed an enemy to the colony

House of Burgess votes down the most extreme resolutions

Gives the appearance that Virginia was more militant than it actually was

New York

Delegates from nine colonies

Petition the King

Acceptance of colonial subordination to the King

(but) claim taxation should be carried out only

through the colonial assemblies

Acts based in MA. but menaced all colonies

Congress settles on five decisions:

1. Rejected a plan for colonial union (similar to the

Albany Plan of Union)

2. Called for a repeal of all oppressive legislation on the

colonies since 1763 (but still recognized the right of

Parliament to rule the colonies)

3. Colonies should make military preparations against

possible British attack (in Boston)

4. Complete boycott of all British goods (hence the reason for

military preparedness!!)

5. Established a time and date for a second meeting

indicating they considered the Continental Congress

to be a continuous organization

A protest unlike any other in the colonies

Involved large segments of the population

Helped link the colonies in a common

experience

Brought the colonies together which was vital in

the success of the (eventual) war

Women were particularly important

Largest consumers of tea (“is that a fat joke?”)

Mercy Otis Warren – writer of dissident

literature/satirical plays

Vigilante group

largest group existed in Boston (Sam Adams)

Encouraged/enforced boycotts and other

forms or resistance

Daughters of Liberty

Women’s form of male group

“rather than freedom, we will part with our tea”

Office holders in the English gov’t.

Merchants (business tied to the imperial

system)

Colonists who lived in isolation

Cultural and ethnic minorities – new colonial

gov’t. might not provide sufficient

protections

Colonists who feared social instability

Colonists who hoped to gain favor by staying

loyal (in the event of an English win)

Probably suffered the worst

(rock - *moderates* - hard place)

They did not pick a side and as a result were

persecuted by both Patriots and Loyalists

Ordered all subjects of the crown as loyal

British citizens to use everything in their

power to suppress the rebellion and to give

knowledge of anyone involved in the

rebellion against the crown

Wanted to expose the folly of the hope of

reconciliation with England

Wanted to focus American anger away from

taxes and acts of Parliament and more

toward the entire English constitution

Wanted Americans to blame the King not

Parliament or ministers

It was simple “common sense” for Americans

to break from such a corrupt government

“these are the times that try men’s souls”

Continental Congress was moving slowly

toward a final break with England

Entered into contracts with foreign countries

(violation of Navigation Acts)

Opened up ports to ships of all foreign

countries (again, violation)

Encouraged all colonies to establish

government bodies independent from the

British empire (most had already done this)

Appointed a committee to draft a

declaration of independence

1. What are Dickinson’s views on the relationship

between the colonies and Great Britain?

2. Why did the colonists view the Stamp Act as

unconstitutional?

3. What was the purpose of all acts passed by

Parliament (regarding the colonies) prior to the

Stamp Act?

4. What is the overall issue with the Townsend

Duties?

5. What will be the full (and intended) outcome

if the Townsend Duties are allowed to remain

unopposed?

1. What is the objection given to Dickinson’s

letter #2?

2. What is Dickinson’s reply to the “internal”

and “external” debate?

3. What is the reason Dickinson gives for the

opposition to the Townsend Duties (as in the

Stamp Act)?

1. There is a message in Letter 6. This

message was for the colonies in 1770. That

message has truth in it for all the

generations since then. See if you can pick it

out…

1. What is the overwhelming message in

Letter 7?

2. Outline the steps Dickinson says are

necessary for liberty to be preserved.

(Letter 12)