Unit 2 Ch. 6 – 8 Notes

1. Unit 2Ch. 6 – 8 Notes The Duel For North America

2. French Claims in the New World • Like England, France got involved in the exploration of America later than Spain due to its involvement in wars in Europe and internal conflict, primarily the dispute between Catholics and Huguenots (French Protestants). • The Edict of Nantes brought about religious peace in France in 1598 and France will begin developing as one of the most powerful nations of Europe.

3. French Explorers in America • 1534 – Jacques Cartier sailed down the St. Lawrence River and gave France its fist claims in America (Canada- known as New France). • 1603 – Samuel de Champlain settles Quebec, France’s first permanent settlement in America. • 1673 - Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet explore the upper MS River looking for the Northwest Passage. • 1683 – Robert la Salle sails down the MS River to the Gulf of Mexico, claiming the entire MS River Valley for France (named Louisiana after the French king, Louis 14th.

4. French Settlement • The French don’t look to settle the land as the Spanish and English did – instead they develop trade with the Native Americans, learning their languages and intermarrying with them in the process. • The French build forts to serve as trading posts and to protect their American holdings – Detroit, St. Louis and New Orleans.

5. Early Clashes Between the British and French • During the 1700’s, France and Great Britain develop as the two most powerful countries of Europe and they will be constantly at war with one another. • The early conflicts between the two countries don’t have much affect on their colonists in America because everyone is so spread out, there’s not much contact between the two – the biggest effect is the increased tension with the Native Americans. • Spain eventually allied with France and caused problems along the southern border of the British colonies.

6. The Early Wars • King William’s War (1689 – 1697) and Queen Ann’s War (1702 – 1713) were fought primarily in Europe. • During these wars, British and French fur trappers worked to gain Indian allies to fight each other and used guerrilla/forest warfare against each other. • There were no regular troops from either country in the colonies. • The British eventually won these wars and in America gained the French region of Acadia – today’s Nova Scotia. • During King George’s War (1744 – 1748) the British colonists captured Louisbourg, which protected the entrance to the St. Lawrence River, but later had to give it back as part of the treaty to end the war.

7. The Ohio River Valley • The main point of contention between the British and French colonists was the Ohio River Valley. • This region was important for British settlers who wanted to expand further westward, but it was protected by a series of French forts that were used as trading outposts. • In 1749, a group of Virginia land speculators sent George Washington into the Ohio River Valley to secure land claims.

8. The Start of the French and Indian War • Washington led a group of militiamen (around 150) into the Ohio River Valley. • Near Fort Duquesne (Pittsburg) they met a small French force and routed them. • The French returned with reinforcements and surrounded the Virginians at a make-shift fortification known as Fort Necessity. • The French defeated the Virginians but allowed them to leave. • The British retaliated by forcing the French Acadians out of Canada.

9. The French and Indian War • The French and Indian War was referred to as the Seven Years War in Europe. • It was fought not only in Europe and America, but also in the West Indies, Philippines and Africa. • The French concentrated most of their forces in Europe, so they were unable to send adequate forces to America.

10. French and Indian War in America

11. French and Indian War Abroad

12. The Albany Plan of Union • In the earlier conflicts, the colonies hadn’t cooperated very well. • In 1754 the British government called for an inter-colonial congress in Albany, New York. • Benjamin Franklin proposed a plan of union that would unite the colonies under a common government with Great Britain having the final say. • The colonies believed it would take away too much of their independence while Great Britain was afraid it gave the colonies too much independence.

13. The British Attack Fort Duquesne • British regulars, led by Edward Braddock, were sent to capture Ft. Duquesne. • The British troops (and Braddock) looked down on the colonial militia (buckskins) and their style of fighting. • The British troops were routed by French and Native Americans, who refused to fight in a conventional manner. • After the defeat, the Native Americans roamed the western frontier from Pennsylvania to North Carolina attacking British settlers.

14. The British attack Quebec • William Pitt takes over command in America. • He trains his troops in forest warfare and attacks and captures Ft. Duquesne. • He then decides to attack Canada. • The British recapture Louisbourg and turn their sites on Quebec. • Led by James Wolfe, the British troops scaled the cliff protecting Quebec and meet the French troops on the Plains of Abraham, where they defeated the French.

15. The Treaty of Paris (1763) • After the war, Great Britain controls all the land in North America east of the MS River – Spain, France’s ally, ceded Florida to Great Britain. • To compensate Spain for the loss of Florida, France gives its possessions west of the MS River to Spain, including the city of New Orleans. • France was allowed to keep several small, valuable islands in the West Indies.

16. The Treaty of Paris (1763)

17. The Effects of the War on the British Colonies • The French and Indian War gave the colonies valuable experience which will aid them when the Revolutionary War started. • It also gave the colonists more confidence and shattered this idea of British invulnerability military wise. • Even though the colonies didn’t support the war wholeheartedly, militia men from the different colonies found that they had a lot of similarities.

18. Pontiac’s Rebellion • Pontiac’s Rebellion occurred just before the Treaty of Paris was signed. • He was an Ottawa chief who organized the tribes of the Ohio River Valley in an attempt to drive all British settlers out. • The British responded harshly, even going so far as to give blankets infected with small pox to the tribes. • This rebellion convinced the British that they were going to have to keep British regulars in the colonies to keep the frontier stabalized.

19. The Proclamation of 1763 • The constant fighting in Europe and abroad had become very expensive for Great Britain – they were about to begin looking to the colonies to help foot the bill. • In 1763, in an effort to prevent further problems with their American colonists and the Native Americans of the Ohio River Valley, the British government prohibited any settlement west of the Appalachian mountains. • The colonists in America were infuriated with the proclamation and basically ignored it.

20. The Roots of Revolution • Republicanism was the idea that a just society was one in which all citizens willingly subordinated their private interests to the common good – the stability of society and the authority of the government depended on the citizenry. • The Whigs (the minority party in Great Britain’s government) feared the threat to liberty posed by the arbitrary power of the monarch and his ministers relative to the elected representatives of Parliament. • These two things had a powerful influence on the colonists in America as Great Britain tried to tighten their control of the colonies.

21. Mercantilism • G.B.’s economic policy towards the colonies revolved around controlling their exports and making sure that G.B. exported more to the colonies than they imported from the colonies (a favorable balance of trade). • This policy actually provided benefits for both the colonies and G.B. but it made the colonies feel dependent on and limited by G.B.

22. Great Britain Taxes the Colonies • In order to pay for the French and Indian War, G.B.’s Prime Minister, George Grenville, began enforcing the Navigation Actsin 1763. • In 1764 he had Parliament pass the Sugar Act, which was the first law ever passed for raising tax revenues in the colonies – it increased the duties on imported sugar. • The colonies protested and the duties were eventually lowered.

23. The Quartering and Stamp Act • In 1765, Grenville had Parliament pass the Quartering Act and the Stamp Act to support the British troops in the colonies. • The Quartering Act required the colonists to pay for the housing and feeding of the soldiers in the colonies while the Stamp Act required a tax on all printed materials. • The Sugar Act and Stamp Act both used admiralty courts for enforcement, which banned trial by jury and put the burden of proof on the defendant. • These laws were viewed by the colonists as an attempt to rob them of their civil liberties. • They also claimed it was “taxation without representation” but G.B. didn’t believe it was sincere.

24. The Stamp Act Congress • Nine colonies sent delegates to meet in New York City – they draft a series of resolutions as to why they oppose the Stamp Act (Parliament ignores them). • The colonies begin adopting nonimportation agreements, which calls for the boycott of British goods. • Groups known as Sons of Liberty begin forming – they believe in action instead of words. • As British merchants begin to lose money, they push Parliament for the repeal of the Stamp Act and in 1766 Parliament agrees.

25. The Declaratory Act • After the repeal of the Stamp Act, Parliament passes the Declaratory Act – it was a statement of power stating they control the colonies and could do what they wanted to them, including taxing them. • Since the Declaratory Act had no tax with it, the colonists ignore it.

26. The Townsend Acts • In 1767 Parliament passed the Townsend Acts. • They were a series of acts that put tariffs on almost all goods imported into the colonies. • The taxes weren’t high but corrupt collection officials often raised them. • Once again the colonists turned to their nonimportation agreements and smugglers began increasing their activities. • Troops were sent in to Boston to try to curb the smuggling and it eventually led to the Boston Massacre, which led to the repeal of the Townsend Acts (except for a tax on tea).

27. The Boston Massacrean engraving by Paul Revere

28. Sam Adams and the Committees of Correspondence • In 1772 Sam Adams (a member of the Sons of Liberty) organized the committee of correspondence in Boston – its job was to spread the spirit of resistance through the colony. • Later, other colonies created their own in an effort to exchange ideas and information with each other.

29. The Tea Act • The Tea Act was passed by Parliament in 1773 to grant the British East India Company a monopoly over the tea trade with the colonies – caused the price of tea to go down. • The problem was, if Parliament could grant a monopoly over trade with the colonies for tea, it could do so with any product and there was no guarantee the prices would be low or stay low. • They also was it as Parliament trying to get the colonies to accept the tax on tea. • This will eventually lead to the Boston Tea Party.

30. The Boston Tea Party

31. The Coercive or “Intolerable” Acts • In 1774, to punish Boston for the Tea Party, Parliament passed a series of acts known as the Coercive Acts. • They closed the port of Boston until the tea was paid for. • They required citizens of Boston to quarter troops in their homes. • They dissolved Massachusetts elected assembly and put limits on town meetings. • Their goal was to frighten the colonies into accepting British control and to entice the other colonies to take advantage of Massachusetts suffering.

32. The Colonies Respond • The other colonies rallied around Massachusetts. • In 1774 the First Continental Congress met in order to try to mend relations with Great Britain while maintaining the colonists rights as British citizens – Parliament rejected all their petitions. • They also called for a complete boycott of all British goods. • In the colonies, militias began forming and drilling and creating arsenals.

33. Lexington and Concord • In April, 1775, the British sent troops to the towns of Lexington and Concord to seize colonial arsenals. • They defeat the Minutemen and Lexington but are driven back from Concord and harassed all the way back to Boston.

34. The Second Continental Congress • The Second Continental Congress meets in May of 1775. • They choose George Washington as the leader of the Continental Army. • They also send write the Olive Branch Petition, which asked King George to intervene between the colonies and Parliament – he ignored it.

35. Battle of Bunker Hill • The Battle of Bunker Hill takes place before the Olive Branch Petition is even written. • The colonial army had the main British forces pinned down in Boston. • The British tried to storm the hill and suffered severe losses before the colonist ran out of power.

36. The Early War • King George, to supplement his army, hired German mercenaries known as Hessians to supplement his troops • The colonists tried to invade Canada but failed. • The British burned the town of Norfolk, VA. • The colonists won two battles against Loyalist troops in the southern colonies.

37. Thomas Paine and Common Sense • Thomas Paine authored a pamphlet known as Common Sense in which he urged the colonies to support the revolutionary effort. • His pamphlet went a long way towards convincing the colonists that their true cause was independence, not reconciliation. • The pamphlet not only called for independence but for the creation of a republic – where the power of the government came from the people.

38. The Declaration of Independence • On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to declare the colony’s independence from G.B. • Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence as a list of the reasons why the colonies were declaring their independence – it was officially adopted on July 4, 1776.

39. The Loyalists • The colonists who didn’t support the movement for independence were known as Loyalists or Tories. • Many fled the colonies or joined with the British troops to fight against the Continental Army. • Many that remained were mistreated and many had their land confiscated to help finance the war effort.

40. The War Continues • The British sent reinforcements to the colonies to face a Continental Army was outnumbered, ill-equipped and ill-trained. • The Continental Army was routed at the Battle of Long Island(Washington was trying to keep the British from taking New York City). • George Washington responded by crossing the Delaware River the day after Christmas and launching a surprise attack on Trenton, NJ. • Washington then defeated a smaller army at Princeton, NJ.

41. The Hudson River Valley • John Burgoyne decides to try to cut off the New England colonies from the rest by joining three separate armies in New York. • The plan fails though because one general (Howe) changes his plans without informing Burgoyne and the other (St. Leger) was defeated by Benedict Arnold. • Burgoyne will eventually surrender his army at Saratoga, NY, which was a huge turning point in the war. • This surrender gave the colonies a legitimacy that led to the French recognizing them as independent and coming to their aid – Benjamin Franklin will travel to France to negotiate the alliance.

42. Winter 1777 - 1778 • The Continental Army wintered at Valley Forge. • The winter was extremely harsh and the army had few supplies and many soldiers died from exposure. • While there, a German volunteer, Fredrick Von Steuben, trained the troops and prepared them for war.

43. The Southern Colonies • After the winter, the British decided to concentrate on the southern colonies (there are more Loyalists there). • The British also convince many Native American tribes to wage warfare along the frontier, offering bounties for the scalps of colonists. • The Benedict Arnold tries to turn over the fort at West Point, NY, to the British but the plan fails. • The colonists in the south, led by Francis Marionand Nathan Greene, uses hit and run tactics to keep the British army off balance.

44. The War At Sea • The Continental Navy was not very large but fought valiantly – its main success was in destroying British shipping, which will lead to many British merchants to call for Parliament to end the war. • Privateers were privately owned ships who also armed themselves and attacked British ships (for profit). • The main turning point in the war at sea occurred when the French navy entered the war.

45. The Battle of Yorktown • The British general Cornwallis had fallen back to Yorktown on the Chesapeake Bay to await for reinforcements. • George Washington took his troops from the New York area and surrounded Cornwallis at Yorktown. • The French fleet defeated the British beat back the British fleet and surrounded him from the sea. • Unable to get out, Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781.

46. The Peace of Paris • The colonies sent Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John Jay to negotiate a treaty with the British. • The British will agree to the Treaty of Paris in 1783. • Under the treaty, G.B. officially recognized the colonies as an independent nation, removed their troops from the colonies and ceded all of their lands east of the MS River to the colonies – they kept Canada and the Spanish regained Florida. • The colonists agreed not to further persecute the Loyalists and to “recommend” that the individual colonies return confiscated property.