Chapter 6 From Empire to Independence

1. Chapter 6From Empire to Independence AP United States History Mr. Logan Greene West Blocton High School

2. Chapter Objectives • How did Great Britain deal with its growing empire at the conclusion of the French and Indian War? • How did conflicts such as the Cherokee War and Pontiac’s Rebellion affect relations between Native Americans and colonists? • What effect did the Sugar and Stamp Acts have on colonists’ views of Great Britain? • Who were the Regulators, and what were the Regulator movements? • Who made up the first Continental Congress, and what was its purpose?

3. The “New” British Empire • The victory in the French and Indian War brought England large amounts of land and expanded the Empire • However, this caused several problems such as how to administer the new territories, disloyalty among former French subjects, and many new Natives to govern • As well the Empire had a large debt of over 130 million pounds

5. New Territories • After the French and Indian War the British kept a substantial military presence in the colonies • To help maintain peaceful relations with the Natives the British enacted the Proclamation Line of 1763 • This set a boundary of white settlement West of the Appalachian Mountains • Not only was this designed to keep peaceful relations with the Natives but also to keep the Colonists closer to the coast and therefore easier to control • As well, the British passed the Quartering Act requiring colonists to house troops • All of these actions unnerved the colonists

7. Natives • Two Native conflicts strained relations in the 1750’s and 1760’s • The Cherokee War: • Fought in Southern Appalachian Highlands • Treaty in 1761 surrendered land to colonists in Carolinas and Virginia • Pontiac’s Rebellion: • Native leader Neolin who wished to revitalize traditional Native culture • Eight major tribes attacked from the Great Lakes to Virginia • Defined by horrible tactics including germ warfare giving natives smallpox blankets

8. Curbing Assemblies • By the 1750’s the British wanted to curb the Colonial Assemblies • Whenever an opportunity arose the crown took power from the assemblies • Parsons Cause: • Issue from 1758 – 1763 when Anglican clergyman sued over reduction of their salaries. The crown responded by taking powers away from the Virginia legislature

9. ACTS • Currency Act (1764) • Act passed disallowing the printing of paper money in the colonies • Sugar Act (1764) • “To improve revenue of the kingdom” Imposed new duties on imports and also increased enumerated products. Navy and royal agents enforced • Stamp Act (1765) • Required a stamp and tax on all printed documents in the colonies, first internal tax on the colonies

11. Legal or Not to be Legal? • Colonists felt the taxes were unfair; however, they could not prove that the British did not have the legal right to impose them • Writs of Assistance increased the legal issues of the colonies • Legal papers which allowed customs officials to search virtually any building they “suspected” of holding smuggled goods

12. The Tax Culture • Taxation was the fundamental issue between Britain and the Colonists • British subjects had grown accustomed to Parliamentary taxes • Colonists, emboldened by the Enlightenment and John Locke, believed only their own representatives could tax them

13. Protests • Overall, protests of the Sugar Act were mild because it affected few people • Legislatures declared it unconstitutional and New York merchants began a non-importation movement • The Stamp Act caused MASS resistance as the tax effected virtually all colonists • Newspapers wrote editorials and fiery speakers such as Patrick Henry railed about the evil tax • The Sons of Liberty (loosely organized groups of protesters) harassed stamp distributors • However, colonial leaders preached patience and tried to quell riotous behavior

15. The Stamp Act Congress • Colonial leaders met in October of 1765 to discuss the growing unrest in what would be known as the Stamp Act Congress • The Congress published the Declaration of Rights and Grievances petitioning the Crown to remove the Stamp and Sugar Acts • The Stamp Act was revoked in March 1766 after continued protest

16. Continued Problems • Included with the repeal of the Stamp Act was the Declaratory Act which reaffirmed Parliaments right to tax the colonies • Unfortunately the colonies took this the wrong way and continued to protest and distrust the crown

17. Regulators • In the aftermath of the Stamp Act crisis a group of vigilante colonists sprang up known as the Regulators • Regulators tried to put down lawlessness and corruption in the Carolinas, particularly in the backcountry • Regulators wanted assemblies in these frontier areas but the crown refused and violence erupted • This showed that Colonial leaders wanted to respond to issues in the colonies but the British were inflexible to growing concerns

18. The Townshend Acts • The Townshend Acts were external taxes passed in 1767 on regularly imported items like tea, paper, paint, lead and glass • In addition, the crown installed several new customs officials in Boston to control smugglers like John Hancock

19. Boycott • The Crown kept anything like the Stamp Act from occurring • However, mass boycotts ensued as colonists refused to buy the imported and newly taxed goods instead pushing for people to buy colonial goods • By 1770 the crown repealed the Townshend Acts, EXCPET the tax on tea

20. The Boston Massacre • On the same day the repeal of the Townshend Acts was brought before Parliament, March 5, 1770, the Boston Massacre occurred • Popularly seen as a Massacre the incident was actually a tragic conclusion to scared and angry British soldiers fired upon colonists who had hit them, thrown rocks, and insulted them • 5 colonists died, including Crispus Attucks

22. The “Quiet Period” & The Gaspee Incident • After the Massacre overall the colonies were quiet • The Gaspee was a British anti-smuggling ship patrolling the Rhode Island coast • When it ran aground the colonists got even by shooting the captain and burning the ship • The British were not amused

23. Committees of Correspondence • In response to the Gaspee Incident and the obvious chances of issues colonial leaders created Committees of Correspondence • These were groups of colonists with the sole purpose of keeping each other informed about British movements and issues

24. The Boston tea Party • During the “Quiet Period” colonists drank smuggled tea • The Tea Act of 1773 helped the Dutch East India Company sell their oversupply of tea by cutting the price of the duty • This angered the colonists as they did not appreciate the trick to try and make them pay the tax • Eventually, this broke out in the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773 in which the Sons of Liberty snuck onto DEIC ships and threw the tea into the harbor

26. Intolerable Acts • The destruction of the Tea Party alarmed both the colonists and the British • In response Parliament passed the Coercive Acts • Closed the Port of Boston • Any British official who broke the law would be tried in England • Closed colonial legislatures in Massachusetts • As well they passed the Quebec Act which expanded the boundaries of Quebec removing trials by jury and expanding the Catholic Church’s influence • Collectively these were known as the Intolerable Acts

27. First Continental Congress • Delegates from all colonies, except Georgia, met at Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia from September 5 – October 26, 1774 • Approved the Suffolk Resolves which were militant documents attacking the Coercive Acts • Continental Association was passed with organized the colonies to help enforce sanctions against the British • Sectional stubbornness prevented a singular outcome as each colony and region protected its own interest

28. Divisions • As the crisis depended the colonists were forced to take sides • Whigs: Colonists who favored breaking with Britain and fought for colonial rights • Tories: Colonists who believed what the British were doing was legal and did not want to break

29. Chapter Objectives • How did Great Britain deal with its growing empire at the conclusion of the French and Indian War? • How did conflicts such as the Cherokee War and Pontiac’s Rebellion affect relations between Native Americans and colonists? • What effect did the Sugar and Stamp Acts have on colonists’ views of Great Britain? • Who were the Regulators, and what were the Regulator movements? • Who made up the first Continental Congress, and what was its purpose?