Discovering History
History with Ms. Sabatos
American Revolution
Colonies Before the Revolution
13 Colonies
Written by the "Separatists," the Mayflower Compact was the first document in lymouth colony to establish a sort of government. To learn more about the Compact and the Mayflower, click on the title of this box. (A transcript of the Mayflower Compact can also be found at this link!)
Events Leading to the Revolution
A Timeline of Events
Acts & Taxes & Tariffs...Oh my!
The Beginning of the French and Indian War
1754
1763
End of the French and Indian War - Treaty of Paris
The 4 minute video below explains the important effects and consequences of the French and Indian War.m
The Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended the French and Indian War!
1764
1765
1766
1767
1770
1773
1774
Sugar Act
The first of many acts put forth by Parliament, the Sugar Act collected taxes to pay for the French and Indian War
Stamp Act & Quartering Act
While the Stamp Act was repealed (taken away) soon after its enactment, it caused a lot of unhappiness among the colonists. The act taxed various forms of paper. The Quartering Act required colonists to house British Soldiers.
Townshend Acts
Townshend Acts, named after Charles Townshend, placed a tax on glass, papers, and tea
Boston Massacre
Coercive Acts / Intolerable Acts
Boston Tea Party
Was the Boston Massacre really a massacre? You can decide! Read more here
Frustrated with the Tea Act, members of the Sons of Liberty dressed as Native Americans and threw tea from a merchant ship into the Boston Harbor
Upset with the colonists, especially Massachusetts, King George III and Parliament put forth the Coercive Acts, punishing Boston for their misbehavior. These Acts were coined as "Intolerable Acts" by the colonists, who found them to be unfair.
The Beginning of the Revolutoin
In 1774, a group of colonists met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The meeting was known as the First Continental Congress. Those at the Congress kindly asked King George III to take away the Intolerable Acts. If the acts were not taken away, the group of men would meet again in May of 1775
The King said NO to the colonists' request and declared the colony of Massachusetts in a state of rebellion. He then ordered all of their arms, or weapons, to be taken away. British Troops were sent to Lexington and Concord, where the armories were kept in Massachusetts.
They meet again...The Second Continental Congress
Frustrated that King George III did not accept their peace, the Congress meets again in May 1775 and sent the Olive Branch Petition, asking for peace between the colonies and Britain once more. However, the King does not accept this either and declares ALL of the colonies in a state of rebellion!
Thomas Paine and some Common Sense
Before January of 1776, most colonists did not want to be independence from Great Britain. It was simply too dangerous! Thomas Paine wrote a pamphlet named Common Sense and changed colonists' feelings about independence. You can read T. Paine's pamphlet on Constitution Society!
Declaring Independence
After reading Common Sense, the Second Continental Congress decided to create the Declaration of Independnce, listing the grievances they had with Britain.
Too Late to Apologize - A Declaration
Redcoats vs. American Minutement
British Redcoats
American Minutemen
VS.
Key Battles
Valley Forge
The video above is from the National Park Services at Valley Forge!
Art and Architecture in America
Virginia State House
The Virginia Statehouse was designed by Thomas Jefferson in the late 18th century. The building recalls old Greek and Roman temples, connecting American to its Western, European heritage but avoiding a connection to Great Britain.
George Washington Statue
Created by Jean Antione Houdon in the late 18th century, this statue can be found in the Virginia State House. It is the most accurate depiction of George Washington because Houdon took a mold of Washinton's face to create it!
Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity From the Sky
This painting was created by Benjamin West around 1816. The painting recalls Roman and Greek art (like the statehouse) through the cherubs and the flowing cape. The Founding Father is depicted as heroic!
American's Influence on the World
The events in America in the late 18th century was something that had not been seen before. Colonists declared independence from a great and powerful empire and then defeated them! This gave unhappy citizens of other countries hope and inspiration to create change in their governments. One of the best examples is France, whose revolution started in 1789, only a few years after America's ended.
French citizens created the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, a document that can be easily compared to the Declaration of Independence. While the French Revolution did not end in a democrtaic republic (it ended with France having a new emperor), the events of the Revolution in France were clearly influenced by the American's Revolution.
Articles of Confederation
As a new nation, The United States of America needed a system of government. Becuase of their bad experience with Britian, they created a government with a weak national government (that could not directly tax) and strong state governments. However, this government led to many issues...
Shays' Rebellion
Since the Articles of Confederation did not allow the national government to tax citizens correctly, there was a debt that accumulated causing an economic crisis to occur. Daniel Shays of Massachusetts led a rebellion in western MA in protest of the debt farmers were experiencing. To discover more about Shays' Rebellion, explore Shays' Rebellion & the Making of a Nation.