What led to the writing of the Declaration Of Independence and the Revolutionary War?

2. What led to the writing of the Declaration Of Independence and the Revolutionary War?

3. French and Indian War • Britain helped colonists defeat French in war • Britain needed money to pay for war expenses • Taxed colonists, restricted settlements and limited self-govt.

4. Major Issues Leading to Revolution Proclamation of 1763- Forbid settlement west of the Appalachians Sugar Act of 1764- Tax on each gallon of molasses that entered the colonies from outside the British Empire Stamp Act of 1765- Required colonists to pay tax for newspapers and various legal documents

5. Sugar Act and Stamp Act • British taxed colonists on many of the goods coming into the colonies from other places • British imposed taxes upon all paper products and stamped the item once the tax had been paid.

6. Issues Leading to Revolution Townshend Acts of 1767- tax on imported goods including glass, lead, paint, and paper Tea Act of 1773- lowered the tea tax which allowed the East India Co. to sell tea lower than those who were smuggling it into the colonies

7. Patrick Henry’s speech • Sons and Daughters of Liberty • Benjamin Franklin’s visit to Parliament • Boston Massacre Various protests:

8. Colonistsreact… “No Taxation Without Representation!”

9. Boston Tea Party

10. Boston Tea Party Colonial boycotts left a British tea company with millions of pounds of unsold tea. On December 16, 1773, Samuel Adams led patriots, disguised as Indians, on a raid of British ships docked in Boston’s harbor. They dumped the cargoes of tea overboard. This was later called the Boston Tea Party.

11. King George III passes the“Intolerable Acts” • British response to the Boston Tea Party • The Royal Navy blockades the Boston Harbor so no colonial goods could be sent out until tea was paid for. • The King assigned British General Gage to be Massachusetts governor.

12. First Continental Congress meets in Philadelphia

13. First Continental Congress Met from September 5 – October 26, 1774 Met in Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia All colonies except Georgia attended Agreed to stop trade with Britain unless the acts were abolished and agreed to meet again in May 1775

14. Britain v. American Colonies British Militia American Colonies Strong military leadership Fighting on home territory Alliance with France Small, untrained military Shortages of resources Weak central government • Well trained militia • Ample resources • Alliances with loyalists • Fighting in unfamiliar territory • Fighting far from home • Known as “redcoats” to the colonists because of the red jackets of their uniform

16. British General Gage learns of hidden weapons in Concord • Paul Revere and William Dawes make midnight ride to warn Minutemen of approaching British soldiers Conflict at Lexington and Concord

18. Lexington and Concord 1775 At Lexington, minute men were waiting and “the shot heard round the world” was fired. No one knows who fired the first shot. The British continued toward Concord where they were again met with minutemen.

19. Second Continental Congress Representatives brought money to help establish… the Continental Army (i.e. pay soldiers, buy guns, bullets, food, and uniforms

20. Second Continental Congress Met in May 1775 At first few delegates wanted to break ties with Britain. The colonies were divided into three groups: Loyalists/Tories ; Neutral ; and Patriots June 14, 1775 Congress established the Continental Army and Virginia’s George Washington was made Commander in Chief

21. The Declaration of Independence The Continental Congress organized a committee to write a draft of a declaration of independence. Many documents influenced the writing of the declaration of independence including the following:

23. Who was involved? • Benjamin Franklin • John Adams • Robert R. Livingston • Roger Sherman • Thomas Jefferson

24. Where did it all take place? This is a replica of the Graff house where Jefferson wrote the majority of the 1st draft of the Declaration of Independence. The original building (at this location) was destroyed in 1888.

25. What did it look like? Who wrote the first draft?

27. Where is it now? The original Declaration is now exhibited in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom in Washington, DC. It has faded badly, largely because of poor preservation techniques during the 19th century. The document measures 29-3/4 inches by 24-1/2 inches.

28. Who signed it first?

29. Signers of the Declaration of Independence The first, largest, and most famous signature is that of John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress. The youngest signer was Edward Rutledge (age 26). Benjamin Franklin (age 70) was the oldest. Two future presidents signed: John Adams (second President) and Thomas Jefferson (third President).

30. Parts of the Declaration 1. Part One is The Preamble http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bXxQVg8el8 2 – Part Two is comprised of the second and third paragraphs, explains the theory of Government, and of man's relation thereto, on which the Fathers were operating 3 - The third part, by far the longest part of the document, is a long recital of the specific grievances that the Fathers believed justified their separation from the British Government. 4- The final paragraph and actual declaration of independence

32. What happened after it was signed and where is it now?

33. No, after the signing ceremony on August 2, 1776, the Declaration was most likely filed in Philadelphia in the office of Charles Thomson, who served as the Secretary of the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1789. The document probably accompanied the Continental Congress as the body traveled during the uncertain months and years of the Revolution. On December 13, 1952, the Declaration, along with the Constitution and Bill of Rights were formally delivered into the custody of Archivist of the United States Wayne Grover and enshrined at a ceremony on December 15, 1952, attended by President Harry S. Truman.

34. What happened to the men who risked their lives to sign? If you were a member of the Second Continental Congress in 1776, you were a rebel and considered a traitor by the King of England. You knew that a reward had been posted for the capture of certain prominent rebel leaders and signing your name to the Declaration meant that you pledged your life, your fortune, and your sacred honor to the cause of freedom. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence and member of the Committee of Five died on July 4, 1826. And John Adams, also a committee member, died on the same day

36. Siege of Boston After the battles at Lexington and Concord, British troops withdrew back into Boston. Several thousand British troops occupied the town. The Americans had a larger army of about 15,000 militia from all over New England.

37. Battle of Bunker Hill First major battle of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775 British General Gage was planning to occupy the hills overlooking Boston when his reinforcements arrived. Colonial force quickly built a fort on Breed’s Hill. Some 2,500 British troops stormed the hill twice. The colonists were short of ammunition; they waited until the enemy was a few yards away, then fired with deadly aim. On the third British attempt, the colonists ran out of gunpowder. They retreated to nearby Bunker Hill. The British won, but the defense at the Battle of Bunker Hill encouraged the colonists’ resistance.

38. George Washington Other Battles Winter 1775–1776, Benedict Arnold led an unsuccessful attack on the city of Quebec. February 1776, Scottish Loyalists attacked a colonial force at Moores Creek, North Carolina. Well-armed colonists were waiting, and their victory ended British control in North Carolina. In June, British ships attacked a fort near Charleston, South Carolina, but the fort’s commander held them off. • Commanded the Continental Army in Boston after the Battle of Bunker Hill. • By March 1776, he was ready to recapture Boston. • Forced the British to evacuate the city • British sailed for Halifax, Nova Scotia, along with about 1,100 Loyalists; colonists sided with the king and Britain.

39. Warfare in the North In European warfare, armies did not fight in the winter. Howe’s men were in Princeton while the Hessians were in Trenton. Washington did not follow European warfare. On Christmas night 1776 he and his men crossed the Delaware River to Trenton and took the Hessians, capturing weapons and ammunition. They drove the British out of Princeton.

40. More Revolutionary Battles Spring 1777—Britain’s plan was to cut New England off from the rest of the colonies. Howe attacked Philadelphia with an army of 15,000. In September he met Washington and his army of 11,000 in southeastern Pennsylvania. The British won the Battle of Brandywine Creek, but the Americans escaped without serious casualties. Howe captured Philadelphia, where he and his troops settled comfortably for the winter. The Continental Congress fled the city. Washington and his exhausted troops settled into quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, for the winter of 1777–1778.

41. Washington’s Leadership at Valley Forge The winter of 1777–1778 at Valley Forge was the low point of the Revolution for the Continental Army. Bitter winter weather with inadequate housing Food was scarce. Soldiers in worn, ragged uniforms Many of the men became ill, and hundreds died. The winter at Valley Forge was a tough test of Washington’s leadership.

42. British Campaign in the South • Because the British believed that Loyalist sympathies were strongest in the South, they planned a campaign there. • They discovered that Patriots were as strong and determined in Virginia as in New England. • Though many Loyalists lived in the Carolinas and Georgia, they were often reluctant to help. • The British also faced frequent surprise raids by small bands of Patriots. • In March 1781 colonial troops met British commander Charles Cornwallis and his army in a battle at Guilford Court House, North Carolina. Cornwallis won, but British losses were so great that he stopped the campaign.

43. Foreign Alliances Because of Saratoga victory and Franklin’s diplomacy, France signed two treaties. One formally recognized the United States as a nation. The other treaty promised military help. In 1780 the French government sent a 6,000-soldier army to help the Americans. They were led by a French general, the Count de Rochambeau.

44. Victory at Yorktown A siege at Yorktown Washington saw an opportunity to trap Cornwallis. French Admiral de Grasse established a blockade in Chesapeake Bay, preventing British ships from rescuing Cornwallis’s men. Lafayette kept Cornwallis’s army trapped on the peninsula. Washington and Rochambeau traveled south with a huge French and American army. Cornwallis, with 7,000 troops, faced a combined French and American army of more than 17,000. The Battle of Yorktown lasted about three weeks. Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781. The war for independence was over.

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46. Treaty of Paris The Americans negotiated a peace treaty with Britain; the Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay represented the U.S. It declared the Mississippi River the western boundary of the United States. Britain formally recognized the United States as an independent nation. Britain agreed to leave its forts in the West. Britain formally recognized the United States as an independent nation.

47. Resources http://www.ushistory.org/DECLARATION/revwartimeline.htm http://www.ushistory.org/DECLARATION/document/index.htm http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bXxQVg8el8&feature=fvw http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/index.htm