History of the United States Vol. 2 - FULL AudioBook - American Revolution - Independence

section 1 of the history of the United States part 2 this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 1 part 2 conflict and independence chapter 5 the new course in British Imperial policy on October 25th 1760 king george ii died and the british crown passed to his young grandson the first george the son of the elector of Hanover and Sophia the granddaughter of James the first was a thorough German who never even learned to speak the language of the land over which he reigned the second George never saw England until he was a man he spoke English with an accent and until his death preferred his German home during their reign the principle had become well established that the king did not govern but acted only through ministers representing the majority in parliament george the third and his system the character of the new king the third george rudely broke the german tradition of his family he resented the imputation that he was a foreigner and on all occasions made a display of his british sympathies to the draught of his first speech to Parliament he added the popular phrase born and educated in this country I glory in the name of Britain Macaulay the English historians certainly of no liking for high royal prerogative said of George the young King was a born Englishman all his tastes and habits good and bad were English no portion of his subjects had anything to reproach him with his age his appearance and all that was known of his character conciliated public favour he was in the bloom of youth his person and address were pleasing scandal imputed to him no vice and flattery might without glaring absurdity ascribed to him many princely virtues nevertheless George the third had been spoiled by his mother his tutors and his courtiers under their influence he developed high and mighty notions about the sacredness of royal authority and his duty to check the pretensions of Parliament and the minister's dependent upon it his mother had Dindin to his ears the slogan George be king Lord Butte his teacher and advisor had told him that his honor required him to take an active part in the shaping of public policy and the making of laws thus educated he surrounded himself with courtiers who encouraged him in the determination to rule as well as rein to subdue all parties and to place himself at the head of the nation and Empire political parties and George the third the state of the political parties favored the plans of the king to restore some of the ancient luster of the crown the Whigs who were composed mainly of the smaller freeholders merchants inhabitants of towns and Protestant nonconformists had grown haughty and overbearing through long continuance in power and had as a consequence raised up many enemies in their own ranks their opponents the Tories had by this time given up all hope of restoring to the throne the direct Stuart line but they still cherished their old notions about divine right with the accession of George the third the coveted opportunity came to them to rally around the throne again George received his Tory friends with open arms gave them offices and bought them seats in the House of Commons the British parliamentary system the peculiarities of the British Parliament at the time made smooth the way for the king and his allies with their designs for controlling the entire government in the first place the House of Lords was composed mainly of hereditary nobles whose number the king could increase by the appointment of his favorites as of old though the members of the House of Commons were elected by popular vote they did not speak for the mass of English people great towns like Leeds Manchester and Birmingham for example had no representatives at while there were about 8 million inhabitants in Great Britain there were in 1768 only about 160,000 voters that is to say only about one in every 10 adult males had a voice in the government many boroughs returned one or more members to the Commons although they had merely a handful of voters or in some instances no voters at all furthermore these tiny boroughs were often controlled by Lords who openly sold the right of representation to the highest bidder the rotten boroughs as they were called by reformers were a public scandal but George the third readily made use of them to get his friends into the House of Commons George the Third's ministers and their colonial policies Greenville and the war debt within a year after the accession of George the 3rd William Pitt was turned out of office the King treating him with gross incivility and the crowds shouting Pitt forever the direction of affairs was entrusted to men enjoying the Kings confidence leadership in the House of Commons fell to George Greenville a grave and laborious man who for years had groaned over the increasing cost of government the first task after the conclusion of peace in 1763 was the adjustment of the disordered finances of the kingdom the debt stood at the highest point in the history of the country more revenue was absolutely necessary and Greenville began to search for it turning his attention finally to the American colonies in this quest he had the aid of a zealous colleague Charles Townsend who had long been in public service and was familiar with the difficulties encountered by royal governors in America these two men with the support of the entire ministry inaugurated in February 1763 quote a new system of colonial government it was announced by Authority that there were to be no more requisitions from the King to the colonial assemblies for supplies but that the colonies were to be taxed instead by active part element colonial governors and judges were to be paid by the crown they were to be supported by a standing army of 20 regiments and all the expenses of this force were to be met by parliamentary taxation and quote restriction of paper money 1763 among the many complaints filed before the board of trade were vigorous protests against the issuance of paper money by the colonial legislatures the new ministry provided a remedy in the act of 1763 which declared void all colonial laws authorizing paper money or extending the life of outstanding bills this law was aimed at the cheap money which the Americans were fond of making when specie was scarce money which they tried to force on their English creditors in return for goods and payment of the interest and principle of debts thus the first chapter was written in the long battle over sound money on this continent limitation on Western land sales later in the same year 1763 George the third issued a Royal Proclamation providing among other things for the government of the territory recently acquired by the Treaty of Paris from the French one of the provisions in this royal decree touched frontiersmen to the quick the contests between the Kings officers and the colonists over the disposition of Western lands had been long and sharp the Americans chafed at restrictions on settlement the more adventurous were continually moving west and squatting on land purchase from the Indians or simply seized without authority to put an end to this the king for bad all further purchases from the Indians reserving to the crown the right to acquire such lands and dispose of them for settlement a second provision in the same proclamation vested the power of licensing trade with the Indians including the lucrative fur business in the hands of royal officers in the colonies these two limitations on American freedom and enterprise were declared to be in the interest of the crown and for the preservation of the rye of the Indians against fraud and abuses the Sugar Act of 1764 King George's ministers next turned their attention to measures of taxation and trade since the heavy debt under which England was laboring had been largely incurred in the defense of America nothing seemed more reasonable to them than the proposition that the colonies should help to bear the burden which fell so heavily upon the English taxpayer the Sugar Act of 1764 was the result of this reasoning there was no doubt about the purpose of this law for it was set forth clearly in the title quote an act for granting certain duties in the British colonies and plantations in America for applying the produce of such duties towards defraying the expenses of defending protecting and securing the said colonies and plantations and for more effectually preventing the clandestine conveyance of goods to and from the said colonies and plantations and improving and securing the trade between the same and Great Britain the old molasses Act had been prohibitive the Sugar Act of 1764 was clearly intended as a revenue measure specified duties were laid upon sugar indigo calico silks and many other commodities imported into the colonies the enforcement of the molasses Act had been utterly neglected but this sugar act had teeth in it special precautions as to bonds security and registration of ship masters accompanied by heavy penalties promised a vigorous execution of the new revenue law the strict terms of the Sugar Act were strengthened by administrative measures under a law of the previous year the commanders of armed vessels stationed along the American coast were authorized to stop search and on suspicion seized merchant ships approaching colonial ports by supplementary orders the entire British official force in America was instructed to be diligent in the execution of all trade and navigation laws revenue collectors officers of the army and navy and royal governor's were currently ordered to the front to do their full duty in the matter of law enforcement the ordinary motives for the discharge of official obligations were sharpened by an appeal to avarice for naval officers who seized offenders against the law were rewarded by large prizes out of the forfeitures and penalties the Stamp Act 1765 the Greenville Townsend combination moved steadily towards its goal while the Sugar Act was under consideration in Parliament Greenville announced a plan for a stamp bill the next year it went through both houses with the speed that must have astounded its authors the vote in the Commons stood 205 in favor to 49 against while in the Lord's it was not even necessary to go through the formality of a count as George the third was temporarily insane the measure received Royal Assent by a commission acting as a Board of Regency protests of colonial agents in London were futile we might as well have hindered the sun's progress exclaimed Franklin protests of a few opponents in the Commons were equally vain the ministry was firm in its course and from all appearances the Stamp Act hardly roused as much as a languid interest in the City of London in fact it is recorded that the faithful measure attracted less notice than a bill providing for a commission to act for the king when he was incapacitated the stamp act like the Sugar Act declared the purpose of the British government to raise revenue and America quote towards to fraying the expense of defending protecting and securing the British colonies and plantations in America it was a long measure of more than 50 sections carefully planned and skillfully drawn by its provisions duties were imposed on practically all papers used in legal transactions deeds mortgages inventories writs bail bonds on licences to practice law and sell liquor on college diplomas playing cards dyes pamphlets newspapers almanacs calendars and advertisements the dragnet was closely knit for scarcely anything escaped the quartering act 1765 The ministers were aware that the Stamp Act would rouse opposition in America how great they could not conjecture while the measure was being debated a friend of general wolf Colonel Bari who knew America well gave them an ominous warning in the Commons believe me remember I this day told you so he exclaimed the same spirit of freedom which actuated that people at first will accompany them still a people jealous of their liberties and who will vindicate them if ever they should be violated the answer of the ministry to a prophecy of force was a threat of force preparations were accordingly made to dispatch a larger number of soldiers than usual to the colonies and the ink was hardly dry on the Stamp Act when Parliament passed the quartering act ordering the colonists to provide accommodations for the soldiers who were to enforce the new laws we have the power to tax them said one of the ministry and we will tax them end of section 1 section 2 of history of the United States part 2 this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 2 colonial resistance forces repeal popular opposition the Stamp Act was greeted in America by an outburst of denunciation the merchants of the Seaboard cities took the lead in making a dignified but unmistakable protest agreeing not to import British goods while the hated law stood upon the books lawyers some of them incensed at the heavy taxes on their operations and others intimidated by Patriots who refused to permit them to use stamped papers joined with the merchants aristocratic colonial Whigs who had long grumbled at the administration of royal governors protested against taxation without their consent as the Whigs had done in Old England there were Tories however in the colonies as in England many of them of the official class who denounced the merchants lawyers and Whig aristocrats as seditious factious and Republican yet opposition to the Stamp Act and its accompanying measure the quartering act grew steadily all through the summer of 1765 in a little while that was taken up in the streets and along the countryside all through the north and in some of the southern colonies there sprang up as if by magic committees and societies pledged to resist the Stamp Act to the bitter end these popular societies were known as Sons of Liberty and daughters of Liberty the former including artisans merchants and laborers and the latter patriotic women both groups were alike in that they had as yet taken little part in public affairs many artisans as well as all the women were excluded from the right to vote for colonial assembly men while the merchants and wit gentlemen confined their efforts chiefly to drafting well phrase protest against British measures the Sons of Liberty operated in the streets and chose rougher measures they stirred up riots in Boston New York Philadelphia and Charleston when attempts were made to sell the stamps they sacked and burned the residences of high royal officers they organized committees of Inquisition who by threats and intimidation curtailed the sale of British goods and the use of stamped papers in fact the Sons of Liberty carried their operations to such excesses that many mild opponents of the Stamp Act were frightened and drew back in astonishment at the forces they had unloosed the daughters of Liberty in a quieter way were making a very effective resistance to the sale of the hated goods by spurring on domestic industries their own particular province being the manufacturer of clothing and devising substitutes for taxed foods they helped to feed and clothe their families without buying British goods legislative action against the Stamp Act leaders in the colonial assemblies accustomed to battle against British policies supported the popular protest the Stamp Act was signed on March 22nd 1765 on may 30th the Virginia House of Burgesses passed a set of resolutions declaring that the General Assembly of the colony alone had the right to lay taxes upon the inhabitants and that attempts to impose them otherwise were illegal unconstitutional and unjust it was in support of these resolutions that Patrick Henry uttered the immortal challenge Caesar had his Brutus Charles the first his Cromwell and George the third cries of treason were calmly met by the orator who finished George the third may profit by their example if that be treason make the most of it the Stamp Act Congress the Massachusetts assembly answered the call of Virginia by inviting the colonies to elect delegates to a Congress to be held in New York to discuss the situation nine colonies responded and representatives the delegates while professing the warmest affection for the king's person and government firmly spread on record a series of resolutions that admitted of no double meaning they declared that taxes could not be imposed without their consent given through their respective colonial assemblies that the Stamp Act showed a tendency to subvert their rights and liberties that the recent trade acts were burdensome and Grievous and that the right to petition the King and Parliament was their heritage they thereupon made humble supplication for the repeal of the Stamp Act the Stamp Act Congress was more than an assembly of protest it marked the rise of a new agency of government to express the will of America it was the germ of a government which in time was to supersede the government of George the third in the colonies it foreshadowed the Congress of the United States under the Constitution it was a successful attempt at Union there ought to be no New England men declared Christopher Gadsden in the Stamp Act Congress no New Yorkers known on the continent but all of us Americans the repeal of the Stamp Act and the sugar act the effect of American resistance on opinion in England was telling commerce with the colonies had been effectively boycotted by the Americans ships lay idly swinging at the wharves bankruptcy threatened hundreds of merchants in London Bristol and Liverpool working men in the manufacturing towns of England were thrown out of employment the government had sewn Fowley and was reaping in place of the coveted revenue Rebellion perplexed by the storm they had raised the ministers summoned to the bar of the House of Commons Benjamin Franklin the agent for Pennsylvania who was in London do you think it right asked Greenville that America should be protected by this country and pay no part of the expenses the answer was brief that is not the case the colonies raised clothed and paid during the last war 25,000 men and spent many millions then came an inquiry whether the colonists would accept a modified Stamp Act no never replied Franklin ever they will never submit to it it was next suggested that military force might compel obedience to law Franklin had a ready answer they cannot force a man to take stamps they may not find a rebellion they may indeed make one the repeal of the Stamp Act was moved in the House of Commons a few days later the sponsor for the repeal spoke of Commerce interrupted debts to British merchants placed in jeopardy Manchester industries closed working men unemployed oppression instituted and the loss of the colonies threatened Pitt and Edmund Burke that the former near the close of his career the latter just beginning his argued cogently in favor of retracing the steps taken the year before Greenville refused America must learn he wailed that prayers are not to be brought to Caesar through riot and Sedition his protests were idle the Commons agreed to repeal on February 22nd 1766 amid the cheers of the victorious majority it was carried through the Lord's in the face of strong opposition and on March 18th reluctantly signed by the king now restored to his right mind in rescinding the Stamp Act Parliament did not admit the contention of the Americans that it was without the power to tax them on the contrary it accompanied the repeal with a declaratory act it announced that the colonies were subordinate to the crown and Parliament of Great Britain that the King and Parliament therefore had undoubted authority to make laws binding the colonies in all cases whatsoever and that the resolutions and proceedings of the colonists denying such Authority were no and void the repeal was greeted by the colonists with great popular demonstration bells were rung toast to the king were drunk and trade resumed its normal course the declaratory act as a mere paper resolution did not disturb the good humor of those who again cheered the name of King George their confidence was soon strengthened by the news that even the Sugar Act had been repealed thus practically restoring the condition of affairs before Greenville and Townsend inaugurated their policy of thoroughness resumption of British Revenue and commercial policies the Townsend Acts 1767 the triumph of the colonists was brief though Pitt the friend of America was once more Prime Minister and seated in the House of Lords as the Earl of Chatham his severe illness gave to Townsend in the Tory party practical control over Parliament unconvinced by the experience with the Stamp Act Townsend brought forward and pushed through both houses of parliament three measures which to this day are associated with his name first among his restrictive laws was that of June 29th 1767 which placed the enforcement of the collection of duties and customs on colonial imports and exports in the hands of British commissioners appointed by the king resident in all the colonies paid from the British Treasury and independent of all control by the colonists the second measure of the same date imposed attacks on lead glass paint tea and a few other articles imported into the colonies the revenue derived from the duties to be applied toward the payment of the salaries and other expenses of royal colonial officials a third measure was the Tea Act of July 2nd 1767 aimed at the tea trade which the Americans carried on illegally with foreigners this law abolished the duty which the East India Company had to pay to England on tea exported to America for it was thought that English tea merchants might thus find it possible to undersell American tea smugglers writs of assistance legalized by Parliament had Parliament been content with laying duties just as a manifestation of power and right and neglected their collection perhaps little would have been heard of the Townsend Acts it provided however for the strict even the harsh enforcement of the law it ordered customs officers to remain at their posts and put an end to smuggling in the Revenue Act of June 29 1767 it expressly authorized the superior courts of the colonies to issue writs of assistance empowering customs off to enter any house warehouse shop cellar or other place in the British colonies or plantations in America to search foreign seas prohibited or smuggled goods the writ of assistance which was a general search warrant issued to revenue officers was an ancient device hateful to a people who cherish the spirit of personal independence and who had made actual gains in the practice of civil liberty to allow a minion of the law to enter a man's house and search his papers and premises was too much for the emotions of people who had fled to America in a quest for self-government and free homes who had braved such hardships to establish them and who wanted to trade without official interference the writ of assistance had been used in Massachusetts in 1755 to prevent illicit trade with Canada and had aroused a violent hostility at that time in 1761 it was again the subject of a bitter controversy which arose in connection with the application of a customs officer to a Massachusetts Court for writs of assistance as usual this application was vainly opposed by James Otis in a speech of five hours duration a speech of such fire and eloquence that it sent every man who heard it away ready to take up arms against writs of assistance Otis denounced the practice as an exercise of arbitrary power which had cost one King his head and another his throne a tyrants device which placed the liberty of every man in jeopardy enabling any petty officer to work possible malice on any innocent citizen on the merest suspicion and to spread terror and desolation through the land what a scene he exclaimed does this open everyman prompted by revenge ill humor or wantonness to inspect the inside of his neighbor's house may get a writ of assistance others will ask it from self-defense one arbitrary exertion will provoke another until society is involved a tumult and blood he did more than attack the rid itself he said that Parliament could not establish it because it was against the British Constitution this was an assertion resting on slender foundation but it was quickly echoed by the people then and there James Otis sounded the call to America to resist the exercise of arbitrary power by royal officials then in their wrote John Adams the child independence was born such was the hated writ that Townsend proposed to put into the hands of customs officers in his grim determination to enforce the law the New York Assembly suspended in the very month that Townsend's Acts were signed by the king Parliament took a still more drastic step the Assembly of New York protesting against the ruinous and insupportable expense involved had failed to make provision for the care of British troops in accordance with the terms of the quartering act Parliament therefore suspended the assembly until it promised to obey the law it was not until a third election was held that compliance with the quartering act was run from the reluctant province in the meantime all the colonies had learned on how frail a foundation their representative bodies rested end of section 2 section three of history of the United States part two this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 2 renewed resistance in America the Massachusetts circular 1768 Massachusetts under the leadership of Samuel Adams resolved to resist the policy of renewed intervention in America at his suggestion the assembly adopted a circular letter addressed to the assemblies of the other colonies informing them of the state of affairs in Massachusetts and roundly condemning the whole British program the circular letter declared that Parliament had no right to lay taxes on Americans without their consent and that the colonists could not from the nature of the case be represented in Parliament it went on shrewdly to submit to consideration the question as to whether any people could be called free who were subjected to governors and judges appointed by the crown and paid out of funds raised independently it invited the other colonies in the most temperate tones to take thought about the common predicament in which they were all placed the dissolution of assemblies the governor of Massachusetts hearing of the circular letter ordered the Assembly to rescind its appeal on meeting refusal he promptly resolved it the Maryland Georgia and South Carolina assemblies endorsed the circular letter and were also dissolved at once the Virginia House of Burgesses thoroughly aroused passed resolutions on May 16th 1769 declaring that the sole right of imposing taxes in Virginia was vested in its legislature asserting anew the right of petition to the crown condemning the transportation of persons accused of crimes or trial beyond the seas and beseeching the king for a redress of the general grievances the immediate dissolution of the Virginia assembly in its was the answer of the royal governor the Boston Massacre American opposition to the British authorities kept steadily rising as assemblies were dissolved the houses of citizens searched and troops distributed in increasing numbers among the centres of discontent merchants again agreed not to import British goods the Sons of Liberty renewed their agitation and women said about the patronage of home products still more loyally on the night of March 5th 1770 a crowd on the streets of Boston began to jostle and tease some British regulars stationed in the town things went from bad to worse until some boys and young fellows began to throw snowballs and stones then the exasperated soldiers fired into the crowd killing five and wounding half a dozen more the day after the massacre a mass meeting was held in the town and Samuel Adams was sent to demand the withdrawal of the soldiers the governor hesitated and tried to compromise finding Adams relentless the governor yielded and ordered the regulars away the Boston Massacre stirred the country from New Hampshire to Georgia popular passions ran high the guilty soldiers were charged with murder their defense was undertaken in spite of the wrath of the populace by John Adams and Josiah Quincy who as lawyers thought even the worst offenders entitled to their full rights in law in his speech to the jury however Adams warned the British government against its course saying that from the nature of things soldiers quartered in a populous town will always occasion to mobs where they will prevent 1/2 of the soldiers were convicted and lightly punished resistance in the South the year following the Boston Massacre some citizens of North Carolina goaded by the conduct of the royal governor openly resisted his authority many were killed as a result and seven who were taken prisoners were hanged as traitors a little later royal troops in the while militia met in a pitched battle near Alamance river called the Lexington of the south the Gatsby affair and the Virginia resolutions of 1773 on sea as well as on land friction between the Royal officers and the colonists broke out into overt acts while patrolling the garance at bay looking for smugglers one day in 1772 the armed ship Gatsby ran ashore and was caught fast during the night several men from Providence boarded the vessel and after seizing the cruise set it on fire a Royal Commission sent to Rhode Island to discover the offenders and bring them to account failed because it could not find a single Informer the very appointment of such a commission aroused the Patriots of Virginia to action and in March 1773 the House of Burgesses passed a resolution creating a Standing Committee of Correspondence to develop cooperation among the colonies in resistance to British measures the Boston Tea Party although the British government finding the t'ousand Revenue Act of failure repealed in 1770 all the duties except that on t it in no way relaxed its resolve to enforce the other commercial regulations it had imposed on the colonies moreover Parliament decided to relieve the British East India Company of the financial difficulties into which it had fallen partly by reason of the Tea Act and the colonial boycott that followed in 1773 it agreed to return to the company the regular import duties levied in England on all T transshipped to America a small impost of three pence to be collected in America was left as a reminder of the principle laid down in the declaratory act that Parliament had the right to tax the colonists this arrangement with the East India Company was obnoxious to the colonists for several reasons it was an act of favoritism for one thing in the interest of a great monopoly for another thing it promised to dump on the American market suddenly an immense amount of cheap tea and so cause heavy losses to American merchants who had large stocks on hand it threatened with ruin the business of all those who were engaged in clandestine trade with the Dutch it carried with it an irritating tax of 3 pence on imports in Charleston Annapolis New York and Boston captains of ships who brought tea under this act were roughly handled one night in December 1773 a band of Boston citizens disguised as Indians boarded the hated tea ships and dumped the cargo into the harbor this was serious business for it was open flagrant determined violation of the law as such the British government viewed it retaliation by the British government reception of the news of the tea riot the news of the tea riot in Boston confirmed King George in his conviction that there should be no soft policy in dealing with his American subjects the die is cast he stated with evident satisfaction the colonies must either triumph or submit if we take the resolute part they will undoubtedly be very meek Lord George Germain characterized the Tea Party as the Proceedings of a tumultuous and riotous rabble who ought if they had the least prudence to follow their mercantile employments and not trouble themselves with politics and government which they do not understand this expressed in concise form exactly the sentiments of Lord North who had then for three years been the Kings Chief Minister even Pitt Lord Chatham was prepared to support the government in upholding its authority the five Intolerable Acts Parliament beginning on March 31st 1774 passed 5 stringent measures known in American history as the five Intolerable Acts they were aimed at curing the unrest in America the first of them was a bill absolutely shutting the port of Boston to commerce with the outside world the second following closely revoked the Massachusetts charter of 1691 and provided furthermore that the counselors should be appointed by the king that all judges should be named by the royal governor and that town meetings accept to elect certain officers could not be held without the governor's consent a third measure after denouncing the utter subversion of all lawful government in the provinces authorized royal agents to transfer to Great Britain or to other colonies the trials of officers or other persons accused of murder in connection with the enforcement of the law the fourth act legalized the quartering of troops in Massachusetts towns the fifth of the measures was the Quebec Act which granted religious toleration to the Catholics in Canada extended the boundaries of Quebec southward to the Ohio River and established in this western region government by a viceroy the Intolerable Acts went through Parliament with extraordinary celerity there was an opposition alert and informed but it was ineffective Burke spoke eloquently against the Boston port bill condemning it roundly for punishing the innocent with the guilty and showing how likely it was to bring grave consequences in its Train he was heard with respect and his pleas were rejected the bill passed both houses without a division the entry unanimous being made upon their journals although it did not accurately represent the state of opinion the law destroying the charter of Massachusetts passed the Commons by a vote of three to one and the third intolerable act by a vote of four to one the triumph of the ministry was complete what passed in Boston exclaimed the great jurist Lord Mansfield is the overt act of high treason proceeding from hour over lenity and want a foresight the crown and Parliament were united in resorting to punitive measures in the colonies the laws were received with consternation to the American Protestants the Quebec tact was the most offensive that project they viewed not as an act of grace or mercy but as a direct attempt to enlist French can ian's on the side of Great Britain the British government did not grant religious toleration to Catholics either at home or in Ireland and the Americans could see no good motive in granting it in North America the act was also offensive because Massachusetts Connecticut and Virginia had under their charters large claims to the territory thus annex to Quebec to enforce these Intolerable Acts the military arm of the British government was brought in to play the commander-in-chief of the armed forces in America general gage was appointed governor of Massachusetts reinforcements were brought to the colonies for now King George was to give the rebels as he called them a taste of strong medicine the majesty of his law was to be vindicated by force from reform to revolution in America the doctrine of natural rights the dissolution of assemblies the destruction of charters and the use of troops produced in the colonies a new phase in the struggle in the early days of the contest with the British Ministry the Americans spoke of their rights as Englishmen and condemned the Acts of Parliament as unlawful as violating the principles of the English Constitution under which they all lived when they saw that such arguments had no effect on Parliament they turned for support to their natural rights the latter doctrine in the form in which it was employed by the colonists was as English as the constitutional argument John Locke had used it with good effect in defense of the English revolution in the 17th century American leaders familiar with the writings of Locke also took up his thesis in the hour of their distress they openly declared that their rights did not rest after all upon the English Constitution or a charter from the crown old Magna Carta was not the beginning of all things retorted Otis when the constitutional argument failed a time may come when Parliament shall declare every American charter void but the natural inherent and inseparable rights of the colonists as men and as citizens would remain and whatever became of charters can never be abolished until the general conflagration of the same opinion was the young and impetuous Alexander Hamilton the sacred rights of mankind he exclaimed are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records they are written as with a sunbeam in the whole volume of human destiny by the hand of divinity itself and can never be erased or obscured by mortal power firm as the American leaders were in the statement and defence of their rights there is every reason for believing that in the beginning they hope to confine the conflict to the realm of opinion they constantly avowed that they were loyal to the king when protesting in the strongest language against his policies even Otis regarded by the loyalists as a firebrand was in fact attempting to avert revolution by winning concessions from England I argue this cause with the greater pleasure he solemnly urged in his speech against the writs of assistance as it is in favor of British liberty and as it is in opposition to a kind of power the exercise of which in former periods cost one King of England his head and another his throne Burke offers the doctrine of conciliation the flooding tide of American sentiment was correctly measured by one Englishman at least Edmund Burke who quickly saw that attempts to restrain the rise of American democracy were efforts to reverse the processes of nature he saw how fixed and rooted in the nature of things was the American spirit how inevitable how irresistible he warned his countrymen that there were three ways of handling the delicate situation and only three one was to remove the cause of friction by changing the spirit of the colonists and utter impossibility because that spirit was grounded in the essential circumstances of American life the second was to prosecute American leaders as criminals of this he begged his countrymen to beware lest the colonists declare that a government against which a claim of Liberty is Ted amount to high treason is a government to which submission is equivalent to slavery the third and right way to meet the problem Burt concluded was to accept the American spirit repeal the obnoxious measures and receive the colonies into equal partnership events produce the great decision the right way indicated by Burke was equally impossible to George the third and the majority in parliament to their narrow minds American opinion was contemptible an American resistance unlawful riotous and treasonable the correct way in their view was to dispatch more troops to crush the rebels and that very act took the contest from the realm of opinion as John Adams said facts are stubborn things opinions were unseen but marching soldiers were visible to the various street urchin now said governor Morris the Sheep simple as they are cannot be gold as heretofore it was too late to talk about the excellence of the British constitution if anyone has been wildered by the controversies of modern historians as to why the crisis came at last he can clarify his understanding by reading again Edmund Burke's stately oration on conciliation with America references GLB r british colonial policy 1754 to 1763 a Channing history of the United States vol 3 our fotheringham rise of the Republic GE Howard preliminaries of the Revolution American nation series JK Hosmer Samuel Adams JT Morse Benjamin Franklin MC Tyler Patrick Henry J a Woodburn editor the American Revolution selections from the English work by leaky end of section three section four of the history of the United States part two this is the librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 4 the American Revolution resistance and retaliation the Continental Congress when the news of the Intolerable Acts reached America everyone knew what strong medicine Parliament was prepared to administer to all those who resisted its Authority the cause of Massachusetts became the cause of all the colonies opposition to British policy either to local and spasmodic now take on a national character to local committees and provincial conventions was added a Continental Congress appropriately called by Massachusetts on June 17th 1774 at the instigation of Samuel Adams the response to the summons was electric by hurried and irregular methods delegates were elected during the summer and on September 5th the Congress duly assembled in carpenters Hall in Philadelphia many of the greatest men in America were there George Washington and Patrick Henry from Virginia and John in Samuel Adams from Massachusetts every shade of opinion was represented some were impatient with mild devices the majority favored moderation the Congress drew up a declaration of American rights and stated in clear and dignified language the grievances of the colonists it approved the resistance to British measures offered by Massachusetts and promised the United support of all sections it prepared an address to King George and another to the people of England disavowing the idea of Independence but firmly attacking the policies pursued by the British government the non importation agreement the Congress was not content however with professions of faith in with petitions it took one revolutionary step it agreed to stop the importation of British goods into America and the enforcement of this agreement it placed in the hands of local Committees of safety and inspection to be elected by the qualified voters the significance of this action is obvious Congress threw itself a thwart British law it made a rule to bind American citizens and to be carried into effect by American officers it set up a state within the British state and laid down a test of allegiance to the new order the colonists who up to this moment had been wavering had to choose one Authority or the other they were for the enforcement of the non importation agreement or they were against it that either bought English goods or they did not in the spirit of the toast may Britain be wise and America be free the First Continental Congress adjourned in October having appointed the 10th of May following for the meeting of a second Congress should necessity require Lord North's olive branch when the news of the action of the American Congress reached Britain Pitt and Burke warmly urged a repeal of the obnoxious laws but in vain all they can wring from the Prime Minister Lord North was a set of conciliatory resolutions proposing to relieve from taxation any colony that would assume its share of imperial defense and made provision for supporting the local officers of the crown this Olive Branch was accompanied by resolution assuring the king of support at All Hazards and suppressing the rebellion and by the restraining act of March 30 1775 which in effect destroyed the commerce of New England bloodshed at Lexington and Concord April 19th 1775 meanwhile the British authorities of Massachusetts relax none of their efforts in upholding British sovereignty general gage hearing that military stores have been collected at Concord dispatched a small force to seize them by this act he precipitated the conflict he had sought to avoid at Lexington on the road to Concord occurred the little thing that produced the great event an unexpected collision beyond the thought or purpose of any man had transferred the contest from the forum to the battlefield the Second Continental Congress though blood had been shed and war was actually at hand the Second Continental Congress which met in Philadelphia in May 1775 was not yet convinced that conciliation was beyond human power it petitioned the king to interpose on behalf of the colonists in order that the Empire might avoid the calamities of Civil War on the last day of July and made a temperate but firm answer to Lord North's offer of conciliation stating that the proposal was unsatisfactory because it did not renounce the right to tax or repeal the offence of Acts of Parliament force the British answer just as the representatives of America were about to present the last petition of Congress to the king on August 23rd 1775 George the 3rd issued a proclamation of rebellion this announcement declared the colonists misled by dangerous and ill designing men were in a state of insurrection it called on the civil and military powers to bring the traitors to justice and it threatened with condign punishment the author's perpetrators and abetters of such trattoria signs it closed with usual prayer god save the king later in the year Parliament passed a sweeping act destroying all trade and intercourse with America Congress was silent at last force was also America's answer American independence drifting into war although the Congress had not given up all hope of reconciliation in the spring and summer of 1775 it had firmly resolved to defend American rights by arms if necessary it transformed the militiamen who had assembled near Boston after the Battle of Lexington into a Continental Army and selected Washington as calm during chief it assumed that powers of a government and prepared to raise money wage war and carry on diplomatic relations with foreign countries events followed thick and fast on June 17th the American militia by the stubborn defense of Bunker Hill showed that it could make British regulars pay dearly for all they got on July 3rd Washington took command of the army at Cambridge in January 1776 after bitter disappointments and drumming up recruits for its army in England Scotland and Ireland the British government concluded a treaty with the landgrave of hesse-kassel in Germany contracting and a handsome figure for thousands of soldiers and many pieces of cannon this was the crowning insult to America such was the view of all friends of the colonies on both sides of the water such was long afterwards the judgment of the conservative historian Leckie the conduct of England in hiring German mercenaries to subdue the essentially English population beyond the Atlantic made reconciliation hopeless and independence inevitable the news of this wretched transaction in German soldiers had hardly reached America before the ran all down the coast the thrilling story that Washington had taken Boston on March 17th 1776 compelling Lord Hal to sail with his entire army for Halifax the growth of public sentiment in favor of independence events were bearing the Americans away from their old position under the British constitution toward a final separation slowly and against their desires prudent and honorable men who cherished the ties that United them to the old order and dreaded with genuine horror all thoughts of revolution were drawn into the path that led to the great decision in all parts of the country and among all classes the question of the hour was being debated American independence as the historian Bancroft says was not an act of sudden passion nor the work of one man or one assembly it had been discussed in every part of the country by farmers and merchants by mechanics and planters by the fishermen along the coast in the backwoodsman of the West and town meetings and from the pulpit and social gatherings and around the campfires in country conventions and conferences or committees in colonial congresses and assemblies pains common sense in the midst of this firmament of American opinion a bolt-in eloquent pamphleteer broke in upon the hesitating public with a program for absolute independence without fears and without apologies in the early days of 1776 Thomas Paine issued the first of his famous tracts Common Sense a passionate attack upon the British monarchy and an equally passionate plea for American liberty casting aside the language of petition with which Americans and hitherto addressed George the third Paine went to the other extreme and assailed him with many a violent epithet he condemned monarchy itself as a system which had laid the world in blood and ashes instead of praising the British constitution under which colonists had been claiming their rights he brushed it aside as ridiculous protesting that it was owing to the constitution of the people not to the constitution of the government that the crown is not as oppressive in England as in Turkey having thus samara lee swept aside the grounds of allegiance to the old order Paine proceeded relentlessly to an argument for immediate separation from Great Britain there was nothing in the sphere of practical interest he insisted which would bind the colonies to the mother-country allegiance to her had been responsible for many wars in which they had been involved reasons of trade were not less weighty in behalf of independence our corn will fetch its price in any market in Europe and our imported goods must be paid for by them where we will as to matters of government it is not in the power of Britain to do this cotton injustice the business of it will soon be too weighty and intricate to be managed with any tolerable degree of convenience by a power so distant from us and so very ignorant of us there is accordingly no alternative to independence for America everything that is right or natural pleads for separation the blood of the slain the weeping voice of nature cries tis time to part arms the last resort must decide the contest the appeal was the choice of the king and the continent hath accepted the challenge the Sun never shone on a cause of Greater worth tis not the affair of a city a county a province or a kingdom but of a continent tis not the concern of a day a year or an age posterity is involved in the contest and will be more or less affected to the end of time by the proceedings now now is the sea time of continental union faith and honor o ye they love mankind either dare oppose not only the tyranny but the tyrant stand forced let the names of Whig and Tory be extinct let none other be heard among us than those of a good citizen an open and resolute friend and a virtuous supporter of the rights of mankind and of the free and independent states of america as more than 100,000 copies were scattered broadcast over the country patriots exclaimed with washington sound doctrine and unanswerable reason the drift of events towards independence official support for the idea of independence began to come from many quarters on the 10th of February 1776 Gadsden in the provincial convention of South Carolina advocated a new constitution for the colony and absolute independence for all America the convention balked at the ladder but went half way by establishing a system of royal administration and establishing a completes plan of self-government a month later on April 12th the neighboring state of North Carolina utter the daring phrase from which other shrank it empowered its representatives in the Congress to concur with the delegates of the other colonies in declaring independence Rhode Island Massachusetts in Virginia quickly responded to the challenge the convention of the Old Dominion on May 15th instructed its delegates at Philadelphia to propose the Independence of the United colonies and to give the assent of Virginia to the act of separation when the resolution was carried the British flag on the Statehouse was lowered for all time meanwhile the Continental Congress was alive to the course of events outside the subject of Independence was constantly being raised are we rebel x' exclaimed wyeth of virginia during a debate in February no we must declare ourselves a free people others hesitated and spoke of waiting for the arrival of Commissioners of conciliation is not America already independent as Sam Adams a few weeks later why not then declare it still there was uncertainty in delegates avoided the direct word a few more weeks elapsed at last on May 10th Congress declared that the authority of the British crown in America must be suppressed and advised the colonies to set up governments of their own independence declared the way was fully prepared therefore when on June 7th the Virginia delegation of the Congress moved that these United colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent states a committee was immediately appointed to draft a formal document setting forth the reasons for the act and on July 2nd all the states saved New York went on record in favor of severing their political connection with Great Britain two days later July 4th Jefferson's draft of the Declaration of Independence changed in some slight parameters was adopted the old Bell in Independence Hall as it is now known rang out the glad tidings couriers swiftly carried the news to the uttermost Hamlet in Farm a new nation announced its will to have a place among the powers of the world to some documents is given immortality the Declaration of Independence is one of them American patriotism is forever associated with it but patriotism alone does not make it immortal neither does the vigor of its language or the severity of its indictment give it a secure place in the records of time the secret of its greatness lies in the simple fact that it is one of the memorable landmarks in the history of a political ideal which for three centuries has been taken form and spreading throughout the earth challenging kings and potentates shaking down Thrones and aristocracies breaking the armies of irresponsible power on battlefields as far apart as Marston Moor and Chateau theory that ideal now so familiar then so novel is summed up in the simple sentence governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed written in a decent respect for the opinions of mankind to set forth the causes which impelled the American colonists to separate from Britain the Declaration contained a long list of abuses and usurpations which have induced them to throw off the government of King George that section of the Declaration has passed into ancient history in a seldom read it is the part laying down a new basis of for government and giving a new dignity to the common man that has become a household phrase in the old world as well as in the new in the more enduring passages there are four fundamental ideas which from the standpoint of the old system of government where the essence of revolution one all men are created equal and are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights including life liberty and the pursuit of happiness to the purpose of government is to secure these rights three governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed for whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it and institute new government laying its foundations on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness here was the prelude to the historic drama of democracy a challenge to every former government and every privilege not founded on popular assent end of section 4 section five of history the United States part two this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org recording by M L Cohen Cleveland Ohio July 2007 history the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 5 the establishment of government and the new allegiance the Committees of Correspondence as soon as debated passed into armed resistance the Patriots found it necessary to consolidate their forces by organizing civil government this was readily effected for the means were at hand in town meetings provincial legislatures and Committees of Correspondence the working tools of the revolution were in fact the Committees of Correspondence small local unofficial groups of Patriots formed to exchange views and create public sentiment as early as November 1772 such a committee had been created in Boston under the leadership of Samuel Adams it held regular meetings sent emissaries to neighboring towns and carried on a campaign of education into doctrines of Liberty upon local organizations similar in character to the Boston Committee were built County committees and then larger colonial committees congresses and conventions all unofficial in representing the revolutionary elements ordinarily the provincial convention was merely the olds legislative assembly free from all royalist sympathizers and controlled by Patriots finally upon these colonial assemblies was built the Continental Congress the precursor of Union under the Articles of Confederation and ultimately under the Constitution of the United States this was the Revolutionary government set up within the British Empire in a mirror state constitutions framed with the rise of these new Assemblies of the people the old colonial governments broke down from the Royal provinces the governor the judges and the high officers fled in haste and it became necessary to substitute Patriot authorities he appealed to the colonies advising them to adopt a new form of government for themselves issued by the Congress in May 1776 was quickly acted upon before the expiration of a year Virginia New Jersey Pennsylvania Delaware Maryland Georgia and New York had drafted new constitutions of states not as colonies uncertain of the destinies Connecticut and Rhode Island holding that their ancient charters were equal to their needs merely renounced their allegiance to the king and went on as before so far as the form of government was concerned South Carolina which had drafted a temporary plan early in 1776 drew up a new and more complete Constitution in 1778 two years later Massachusetts with much deliberation put into force its fundamental law which in most of its essential features remains unchanged today the new state constitutions and their broad outlines followed colonial models where the royal governor was substituted the governor or president chosen usually by the legislature but in two instances New York and Massachusetts by popular vote for the provincial council there was substituted except in Georgia a Senate while the lower house or Assembly was continued virtually without change the old property restriction on the suffrage though lowered slightly in some states was continued in full force to the great discontent of the mechanics thus deprived of the ballot the special qualifications laid down in several constitutions for governors Senators and Representatives indicated that the revolutionary leaders were not prepared for any radical experiments in democracy the protests of a few women like mrs. John Adams of Massachusetts and mrs. Henry Corbin of Virginia against the government which excluded them from political rights were treated as mild curiosities of no significance although in New Jersey women were allowed to vote for many years on the same terms as men by the new state constitutions the signs and symbols of royal power of authority derived from any source saved the people were swept aside and Republican governments on an imposing scale presented for the first time to the modern world copies of these remarkable documents prepared by plain citizens were translated into French and widely circulated in Europe there they were destined to serve as a guide and inspiration to a generation of constitution makers whose mission it was to begin the democratic revolution in the old world the Articles of Confederation the formation of state constitutions was an easy task for the revolutionary leaders they had only to build on foundations already laid the establishment of a national system of government was another matter there had always been it must be remembered a system of central control over the colonies but Americans had had little experience in its operation when the supervision of the crown of Great Britain was suddenly broken the Patriot leaders a custom merely to provincial statesmanship were poorly trained for action on a national stage many forces worked against those who like Franklin had a vision of national destiny there were differences in economic interest Commerce and Industry in north and the planting system of the south there were contests over the appointment of taxes and the quotas of troops for common defense to these practical difficulties were added local pride the vested rights of state and village politicians in the provincial dignity and the scarcity of men with a large outlook upon the common enterprise nevertheless City compelled them to consider some sort of Federation the Second Continental Congress had hardly opened its work before the most sagacious leaders began to urge the desirability of a permanent connection as early as July 1775 Congress resolved to go into a committee of the whole on the state and the Union and Franklin undaunted by the fate of his Albany plan of twenty years before again presented a draft of a constitution long and desultory debates followed and was not until late in 1777 that Congress presented to the states the Articles of Confederation provincial jealousies delayed ratification and it was the spring of 1781 a few months before the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown when Maryland the last of the states approved the Articles this plan of Union though was all that could be wrong from the reluctant states provided for neither a chief executive nor a system of federal courts it created simply a congress of Delegates in which each state had an equal voice and gave it the right to call upon the state legislatures for the sinews of government money and soldiers the application of tests of Allegiance as the successive steps were taken in the direction of independent government the Patriots devised an applied test designed to discover who were for and who were against the new nation and the process of making when the First Continental Congress agreed not to allow the importation of British goods it provided for the creation of local committees to enforce the rules such agencies were duly formed by the choice of men favouring the scheme all opponents being excluded from the elections before these bodies those who persisted in buying British goods were summoned and warned or punished according to circumstances as soon as the new state constitutions were put into effect local committees set to work in the same way to ferret out all who were not outspoken in the support of the new order of things these Patriot agencies barring different names in different sections where sometimes ruthless in their method they call upon all men to sign the test of loyalty frequently known as the quote association test those who refused were promptly branded as outlaws while some of the more dangerous were thrown into jail the prison camp in Connecticut at one time held the former governor of New Jersey and the mayor of New York thousands were blacklisted and subjected to espionage the blacklist of Pennsylvania contained the names of nearly 500 persons of prominence who were under suspicion loyalists or Tories who were bold enough to speak and write against the Revolution were suppressed and their pamphlets burned in many places particularly in the north the property of the loyalists was confiscated and the proceeds applied to the cause of the revolution the work of the official agencies for suppression of opposition was sometimes supplemented by mob violence a few Tories were hanged without trial and others were tarred and feathered one was placed upon a cake of ice and held there quote until his loyalty to King George might cool and whole families were driven out of their homes to find their way as best they could within the British lines or into Canada where the British government gave them lands such excesses were deployed by Washington but they were defended on the ground that in effect a civil war as well as a war for independence was being waged the Patriots and Tories thus by one process or another those who were to be citizens of the New Republic were separated from those who prefer to be subjects of King George Geoff what proportion of the Americans favored independence and what share remained loyal to the British monarchy there is no way of knowing the question of revolution was not submitted the popular vote and on the point of numbers we have conflicting evidence on the Patriot side there is a testimony of a careful and informed observer John Adams who asserted that two-thirds of the people were for the American cause and not more than one-third opposed a revolution at all stages on behalf of the loyalists or Tories as they were popularly known extravagant claims were made Joseph Galloway who had been a member of the First Continental Congress and had fled to England when he saw its temper testified before committee of Parliament in 1779 that not one-fifth of the American people supported the insurrection and that quote many more than four-fifths of the people prefer a union with Great Britain upon constitutional principles to independence end quote at the same time general Robertson who had lived in America 24 years declared that quote more than two-thirds of the people would prefer the Kings government that a Congress is tyranny end quote and it addressed to the king in that year a committee of American loyalists asserted that quote the number of Americans in his Majesty's army exceeded the number of troops and listed by Congress to oppose them and quote the character of the loyalists when General Howe evacuated Boston more than a thousand people fled with him this great company according to a careful historian quote formed the aristocracy of the province by virtue of their official rank of their dignified callings and professions of their hereditary wealth and of their culture end quote the act of banishment passed by Massachusetts in 1778 listing over 300 Tories quote reads like the Social Register of the oldest and noblest families of New England end quote more than one out of five being graduates of Harvard College the same was true of New York and Philadelphia namely that the leading loyalists were prominent officials of the old order clergymen and wealthy merchants with passion the loyalists fought against inevitable or with anguish of heart they left as refugees for a life of uncertainty in Canada or the mother country Tories assailed the Patriots the Tories who remained in America joined the British Army by the thousands or in other ways aided the Royal cause those who were skillful with the pen assailed the Patriots and editorials rhyme satires and political catechisms they declared that the members of Congress were quote obscure pettifogging attorneys bankruptcy pers outlawed smugglers etc end quote the people and their leaders that characterized as quote wretched ban D D the refuge and dregs of mankind end quote the generals in the army they sneered at his quote men of rank and honored nearly on a par with those of Congress and quote patriot writers aroused a national spirit stung by tory taunts patriot writers devoted themselves to creating and sustaining a public opinion favorable to the American cause moreover they had to combat the depression that grew out of the misfortunes in the early days of the war a terrible disaster befell generals Arnold and Montgomery in the winter of 1775 as they attempted to bring Canada into the revolution a disaster that cost five thousand men repeated calamities harassed Washington in 1776 as he was defeated on Long Island driven out of New York City and beaten at Harlem Heights and White Plains these reverses were almost too great for the stoutest Patriots pamphleteers preachers and publicist rose however to meet the needs of the hour John Witherspoon Provost of the College of New Jersey forsook the classroom for the field of political controversy the poet Philip Freneau flung taunts of cowardice at the Tories and celebrated the spirits of Liberty in many a stirring poem songs ballads plays and satires flowed from the press and an unending stream fast day's battle anniversaries celebration of important steps taken by Congress afforded to the patriotic clergyman abundant opportunities for their sermons quote does mr. will Byrd preach against oppression end quote anxiously inquired John Adams in a letter to his wife the answer was decisive quote the clergy of every denomination not excepting the Episcopalian Thunder enlightening every Sabbath they pray for Boston and Massachusetts they thank God most explicitly and fervently for our remarkable successes they pray for the American army in quote Thomas Paine never let his pen rest he had been with the forces of Washington when they retreated from Fort Lee and were harried from New Jersey into Pennsylvania he knew the effect of such reverses on the army as well as on the public in December 1776 he made a second great appeal to his countrymen in his pamphlet the crisis the first part of which he had written while defeat and gloom were all about him this tract was a cry for continued support of the revolution quote these are the times that try men's souls he opened the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis shrink from the service of his country but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of men and women end quote Paine late as last fiercely on the Tories branding everyone as a cowards grounded in quote servile slavish self-interested fear he deplored the inadequacy of the militia and called for a real army he refuted the charge that the retreat through New Jersey was a disaster and he promised victory soon quote by perseverance and fortitude he concluded we have the prospect of a glorious issue by cowardice and submission the sad choice of a ride of Evil's a ravaged country a depopulated City habitations without safety and slavery without hope look on this picture and weep over it his ringing call to arms was followed by another and another until the long contest was over and of section five Section six of history of the United States part two this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org reading by robin Cotter July 2007 history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 6 military affairs the two phases of war the war which opened with the Battle of Lexington on April 19th 1775 and closed with the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown on October 19th 1781 passed through two distinct phases the first lasting until the Treaty of alliance with France in 1778 and the second until the end of the struggle during the first phase the war was confined mainly to the north the outstanding features of the contest were the evacuation of Boston by the British the expulsion of American forces from New York and their retreat through New Jersey the Battle of Trenton the seizure of Philadelphia by the British September 1777 the invasion of New York by Burgoyne and his capture at Saratoga in October 1777 and the encampment of American forces at Valley Forge for the terrible winter of 1777 to 1778 the final phase of the war opening with the Treaty of alliance with France on February 6th 1778 was confined mainly to the Middle States the west and the south in the first sphere of action the chief events were the withdrawal of the British from Philadelphia the Battle of Monmouth and the enclosure of the British in New York by deploying American forces from Morristown New Jersey up to West Point in the West George Rogers Clark by his famous march into the Illinois country secured Kaskaskia and Vincennes and laid a firm grip on the country between the Ohio and the Great Lakes in the south the second period opened with successes for the British they captured Savannah conquered Georgia and restored the royal governor in 1780 they seized Charleston administered a crushing defeat to the American forces under gates at Camden Andover and South Carolina though meeting reverses at Cowpens and Kings Mountain then came the closing scenes Cornwallis began the last of his operations he pursued General Greene far into North Carolina clashed with him at Guilford Courthouse retired to the coast took charge of British forces engaged in plundering Virginia than fortified Yorktown where he was penned up by the French fleet from the sea and the combined French and American forces on land the geographical aspects of the war for the British the theater of the war offered many problems from first to last it extended from Massachusetts to Georgia a distance of almost a thousand miles it was nearly three thousand miles from the main base of supplies and the British Navy kept the channel open transports were constantly falling prey to daring privateers and fleet American War vessels the sea on the other hand offered an easy means of transportation between points along the coast and gave ready access to the American centers of wealth and population of this the British made good use though early forced to give up Boston they seized New York and kept it until the end of the war they took Philadelphia and retained it until threatened by the approach of the French fleet and they captured and held both Savannah and Charleston Wars however are seldom won by the conquest of cities particularly was this true in the case of the Revolution only a small portion of the American people lived in towns countrymen back from the coast were in no way dependent upon them for a livelihood they lived on the produce of the soil not upon the profits of trade this very fact gave strength to them in the contest whenever the British ventured far from the points of entry they encountered reverses Burgoyne was forced to surrender at Saratoga because he was surrounded and cut off from his base of supplies as soon as the British got away from Charleston they were harassed and worried by the guerrilla warriors of Marion Sumter and Pickens Cornwallis could technically defeat Greene at Guilford far in the interior but he could not hold the inland region he had invaded sustained by their own labor possessing the interior to which their armies could readily retreat supplied mainly from native resources the Americans could not be hemmed in penned up and destroyed at one fell blow the sea power the British made good use of their fleet in cutting off American trade but control of the sea did not seriously affect the United States as an agricultural country the ruin of its commerce was not such a vital matter all the materials for a comfortable though somewhat rude life were right at hand it made little difference to a nation fighting for existence if silks fine linens and chinaware were cut off this was an evil to which submission was necessary nor did the brilliant exploits of John Paul Jones and Captain John Berry materially changed the situation they demonstrated the scale of American seamen and their courage is fighting men they raised the rates of British marine insurance but they did not be thrown the mistress of the Seas less spectacular and more distinctive were the deeds of the hundreds of privateers and minor captains who overhauled British supply ships and kept British merchant men in constant anxiety not until the French fleet was thrown into the scale where the British compelled to reckon seriously with the enemy on the sea and make plans based upon the possibilities of a maritime disaster commanding officers on the score of military leadership it is difficult to compare the contending forces in the Revolutionary contest there is no doubt that all the British commanders were men of experience in the art of warfare Sir William Howe had served in America during the French war and was accounted an excellent officer a strict disciplinarian and a gallant gentleman nevertheless he loved ease society and good living and his expulsion from Boston his failure to overwhelm Washington by sally's from his comfortable bases at New York and Philadelphia destroyed every shred of his military reputation John Burgoyne to whom was given the task of penetrating New York from Canada had likewise seen service in the French war both in America and Europe he had however a touch of the theatrical in his nature and after the collapse of his plans and the surrender of his army in 1777 he devoted his time mainly to light literature Sir Henry Clinton who directed the movement which ended in the capture of Charleston in 1780 had quote learned his trade on the continent unquote and was regarded as a man of discretion and understanding in military matters Lord Cornwallis whose achievements at Camden and Guilford were blotted out by his surrender at Yorktown had seen service in the Seven Years War and had undoubted talents which he afterward displayed with great credit to himself in India though none of them perhaps were men of first-rate ability they all had training and experience to guide them the Americans had a host in Washington himself he had long been interested in military strategy and had tested his coolness under fire during the first clashes with the French nearly 20 years before he had no doubts about the Justice of his cause such as plagued some of the British generals he was a stern but reasonable disciplinarian he was reserved and patient little given to exultation at success or depression and reverses in the dark hour of the revolution quote what held the Patriot forces together unquote asks beverage in his life of John Marshall then he answers quote George Washington and he alone had he died or been seriously disabled the revolution would have ended Washington was the soul of the American cause Washington was the government Washington was the revolution unquote the weakness of Congress in furnishing men and supplies the indolence of civilians who lived at ease while the army starved the intrigues of army officers against him such as the Conway cabal the cowardice of Lee at Monmouth even the treason of Benedict Arnold while they stirred deep emotions in his breasts and aroused him to make passionate pleas to his countrymen did not shake his iron will or his firm determination to see the war through to the bitter end the weight of Washington's moral force was immeasurable of the generals who served under him none can really be said to have been experienced military men when the war opened Benedict Arnold the unhappy traitor but brave and daring soldier was a druggist bookseller and ship owner at New Haven when the news of Lexington called him to battle Horatio Gates was looked upon as a seasoned soldier because he had entered the British Army as a youth had wounded at Braddock's memorable defeat and had served with credit during the Seven Years War but he was the most conspicuous failure of the revolution the triumph over Burgoyne was the work of other men and his crushing defeat at Camden put an end to his military pretensions Nathaniel Greene was a Rhode Island farmer and Smith without military experience who when convinced that war was coming read Caesar's commentaries and took up the sword Francis Marion was a shy and modest planter of South Carolina whose sole passage at arms had been a brief but desperate brush with the Indians ten or twelve years earlier Daniel Morgan one of the heroes of Cowpens had been a teamster with Braddock's army and had seen some fighting during the French and Indian War but his military knowledge from the point of view of a trained British officer was negligible John Sullivan was a successful lawyer at Durham New Hampshire and a major in the local militia when duty summoned him to lay down his briefs and take up the sword Anthony Wayne was a Pennsylvania farmer and land surveyor who on hearing the clash of arms read a few books on war raised a regiment and offered himself for service such as the story of the chief American military leaders and it is typical of them all some had seen fighting with the French and Indians but none of them had seen warfare on a large scale with regular troops commanded according to the strategy evolved in European experience courage native ability quickness of mind and knowledge of the country they had in abundance and in battles such as were fought during the revolution all those qualities counted heavily in the balance foreign officers in American service to native genius was added military talent from beyond the seas Baron Steuben well-schooled in the iron regime of Frederick the Great came over from Prussia joined Washington at Valley Forge and day after day drilled and maneuvered the men laughing and cursing as he turned raw country men into regular soldiers from France came young Lafayette and the stern to cult from Poland came Pulu ski and coast cuzco all acquainted with the arts of war as waged in europe and fitted for leadership as well as teaching Lafayette came early in 1776 in a ship of his own accompanied by several officers of wide experience and remained loyally throughout the war sharing the hardships of American army life Palouse key fell at the siege of Savannah and DeKalb at Camden coast Cusco served the American war to defend in vain the independence of his native land to these distinguished foreigners who freely through in their lot with American revolutionary fortunes was do much of that spirit and discipline which fitted raw recruits and temperamental militiamen to cope with the military power of the first rank the soldiers as far as the British soldiers were concerned their annals are short and simple the regulars from the standing army who were sent over at the opening of the contest the recruits drummed up by special efforts at home and the thousands of Hessians bought outright by King George presented few problems of management to the British officers these common soldiers were far away from home and enlisted for the war nearly all of them were well disciplined and many of them experienced in actual campaigns the armies of King George fought bravely as the records of Bunker Hill Brandywine and Monmouth demonstrate many a man and subordinate officer and for that matter some of the high officers expressed a reluctance at fighting against their own kin but they obeyed orders the Americans on the other hand while they fought with grim determination as men fighting for their homes were lacking in discipline and in the experience of regular troops when the war broke in upon them there were no common preparations for it there was no Continental Army there were only local bands of militiamen many of them experienced in fighting but few of them regulars in the military sense moreover there were volunteers serving for a short time on accustomed to severe discipline and impatient at the restraints imposed on them by long and arduous campaigns they were continually leaving the service just at the most critical moments quote the militia lamented Washington come in you cannot tell how go you cannot tell where consumed your provisions exhaust your stores and leave you at last at a critical moment unquote again and again Washington begged Congress to provide for an army of regulars enlisted for the war thoroughly trained and paid according to some definite plan at last he was able to overcome in part at least the chronic fear of civilians in Congress and to wring from that reluctant body an agreement to grant half pay to all officers and a bonus to all privates who served until the end of the war even this scheme which Washington regarded is far short of justice to the soldiers did not produce quick results it was near the close of the conflict before he had an army of well disciplined veterans capable of meeting British regulars on equal terms though there were times when militiamen and frontiersman did valiant and effective work it is due to historical accuracy to deny the time-honored tradition that a few minute men overwhelmed more numerous forces of regulars in the seven years war for independence they did nothing of the sort for the victories of Bennington Trenton Saratoga and Yorktown there were the defeats of Bunker Hill Long Island White Plains Germantown and Camden not once did an army of militiamen overcome an equal number of British regulars in an open trial by battle quote to bring men to be well-acquainted with the duties of a soldier wrote Washington requires time to expect the same service for Marah and undisciplined recruits as from veteran soldiers is to expect what never did and perhaps never will happen unquote how the war was won then how did the American army win the war for one thing there were delays and blunders in the part of the British generals who in 1775 and 1776 dallied in Boston and New York with large bodies of regular troops when they might have been dealing paralyzing blows at the scattered bands that constituted the American army quote nothing but the supine Nisour folly of the enemy could have saved us unquote solemnly averred Washington in 1780 still it is fair to say that this apparent Sioux penis was not all due to the British generals The ministers behind them believed that a large part of the colonists were loyal and the compromise would be promoted by inaction rather than by a war vigorously prosecuted victory by masterly inactivity was obviously better than conquest and the slider' the wounds the quicker the healing later in the conflict when the seasoned forces of France were thrown into the scale the Americans themselves had learned many things about the practical conduct of campaigns all along the British were embarrassed by the problem of supplies their troops could not forage with the skill of militiamen as they were in unfamiliar territory the long oversea voyages were uncertain at best and doubly so when the warships of France joined the American privateers in preying on supply boats the British were in fact battered and worn down by a guerrilla war and outdone on two important occasions by superior forces at Saratoga and Yorktown Stern facts convinced them finally than an immense army which could be raised only by a supreme effort would be necessary to subdue the colonies if that hazardous enterprise could be accomplished at all they learned also that America would then be alienated fretful and the scene of endless uprisings calling for an Army of Occupation that was a price which staggered even Lord north and George the third moreover there were forces of opposition at home with which they had to reckon women and the war at no time were the women of America indifferent to the struggle for independence when it was confined to the realm of opinion they did their part in creating public sentiment mrs. Elizabeth Timothy for example founded in Charleston in 1773 a newspaper to espouse the cause of the province far to the north the sister of James Otis mrs. mercy Warren early begged her countrymen to rest their case upon their natural rights and in influential circles she urged the leaders to stand fast by their principles while John Adams was tossing about with uncertainty at the Continental Congress his wife was writing letters to him declaring her faith in independency when the war came down upon the country women helped in every field in sustaining public sentiment they were active mrs. Warren with the tireless pen combated loyalist propaganda and many a drama and satire almost every revolutionary leader had a wife or daughter who rendered service in the quote second line of defense unquote mrs. Washington managed the plantation while the general was at the front and went north to face the rigors of the awful winter at Valley Forge an inspiration to her husband and his men the daughter of Benjamin Franklin mrs. Sarah Bosch while her father was pleading the American cause and France sent the women of Pennsylvania to work sewing and collecting supplies even near the firing line women were to be found aiding the wounded hauling powder to the front and carrying dispatches at the peril of their lives in the economic sphere the work of women was invaluable their harvested crops without enjoying the picturesque title of farmerette and they canned and preserved for the wounded and the prisoners of war of their labor in spinning and weaving it is recorded quote immediately on being cut off from the use of English manufacturers the women engaged within their own families in manufacturing various kinds of cloth for domestic use they thus kept their households decently clad and the surplus of their labors they sold to such as chose to buy rather than make for themselves in this way the female part of families by their industry and strict economy frequently supported the whole domestic circle evincing the strength of their attachment and the value of their service unquote for their war work women were commended by high authorities on more than one occasion they were given medals and public testimonials even as in our own day Washington thank them for their labors and pay tribute to them for the inspiration and material aid which they had given to the cause of independence end of section 6 section seven of history of the United States part two this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit librivox.org reading by robin Cotter July 2007 history of the United States by Charles a beard and Mary Ritter beard part 2 section 7 the finances of the revolution when the revolution opened there were 13 little Treasuries in America but no common Treasury and from first to last the Congress was in the position of a beggar rather than a sovereign having no authority to lay and collect taxes directly and knowing the hatred of the provincials for taxation it resorted mainly to loans and paper money to finance the war quote do you think boldly inquired one of the delegates that I will consent to load my constituents with taxes when we can send to the printer and to get a wagon load of money one choir of which will pay for the whole unquote paper money and loans acting on this curious but appealing political economy Congress issued in June 1776 two million dollars in bills of credit to be redeemed by the states on the basis of their respective populations other issues followed in quick succession in all about two hundred and forty-one million dollars of continental paper was printed to which the several states added nearly two hundred and ten million dollars of their own notes then came interest bearing bonds in ever increasing quantities several millions were also borrowed from France and small sums from Holland and Spain in desperation a national lottery was held producing meager results the property of Tories was confiscated and sold bringing in about 16 million dollars begging letters were sent to the states asking them to raise revenues for the Continental Treasury but the state's burdened with her own affairs gave little heed inflation and depreciation as paper money flowed from the press it rapidly declined in purchasing power until in 1779 a dollar was worth only two or three cents in gold or silver attempts were made by Congress and the states to compel people to accept the notes at face value but these were like attempts to make water flow uphill speculators had collected at once to fatten on the calamities of the Republic fortunes were made and lost gambling in the prices of public securities while the Patriot Army half-clothed was freezing at Valley Forge quote speculation peculation engrossing for stalling exclaimed Washington afford to many melancholy proofs of the decay of public virtue nothing I am convinced but the depreciation of our currency aided by stock jobbing and party dissensions has fed the hopes of the enemy unquote the Patriot Finance ears to the efforts of Congress in financing the war were added the labors of private citizens hain Solomon a merchant of Philadelphia supplied members of Congress including Madison Jefferson and Monroe and army officers like Lee and Steuben with money for their daily needs altogether he contributed the huge sum of half a million dollars to the American cause and died broken in purse if not in spirit a British prisoner of war another Philadelphia merchant Robert Morris won for himself the name of Patriot financier because he labored night and day to find the money to meet the bills which poured in upon the bankrupt government when his own funds were exhausted he borrowed from his friends experienced in the handling of merchandise he created agencies at important points to distribute supplies to the Troops thus displaying administrative as well as financial talents women organized drives for money contributed their plate and their jewels and collected from door to door farmers took worthless paper in return for their produce and soldiers saw many a payday pass without yielding them a penny thus by the labors and sacrifices of citizens the issuance of paper money lotteries the floating of loans borrowings in Europe and the impressment of supplies the Congress staggered through the revolution like a popper who knows not how his next meal is to be secured but is continuously relieved at a crisis by a kindly fate the diplomacy of the revolution when the full measure of Honor is given to the soldiers and sailors and their commanding officers the civilians who managed finances and supplies the writers who sustain the American spirit and the women who did well their part there yet remains the duty of recognizing the achievements of diplomacy the importance of this field of activity was keenly appreciated by the leaders in the Continental Congress they were fairly well versed in European history they knew of the balance of power and the sympathies interests and prejudices of Nations and their rulers all this information they turned to good account in opening relations with continental countries and seeking money supplies and even military assistance for the transaction of this delicate business they created a secret committee on foreign correspondents as early as 1775 and prepared to send agents abroad American agents sent abroad having heard that France was inclining a friendly ear to the American cause the Congress in March 1776 sent a commissioner to Paris Silas Dean of Connecticut often styled as the first American diplomat later in the year a form of treaty to be presented to foreign powers was drawn up and Franklin Arthur Lee and Dean were selected as American representatives at the court of his most Christian Majesty the King of France johnjay of New York was chosen minister to Spain in 1779 John Adams was sent to Holland the same year and other agents were dispatched to Florence Vienna and Berlin the representative selected for st. Petersburg spent two fruitless years there quote ignored by the court living in obscurity and experiencing nothing but humiliation and failure unquote Frederick the Great King of Prussia expressed a desire to find in America a market for Silesian linens and woolens but fearing England's command of the sea he refused to give direct aid to the revolutionary cause early French interest the great diplomatic triumph of the revolution was won at Paris and Benjamin Franklin was the hero of the occasion although many circumstances prepared the way for his success louis xvi foreign minister count diversion before the arrival of any American representative had brought to the attention of the king the opportunity offered by the outbreak of the war between England and her colonies he showed him how France could redress her grievances and quote reduced the power and greatness of England unquote the Empire then in 1763 had forced upon her a humiliating peace quote at the price of our possessions of our Commerce and our credit in the Indies at the price of Canada Louisiana Isle Royale Acadia and Senegal on equally successful in gaining the Kings interest was a curious French adventurer beaumarchais a man of wealth a lover of music and the author of two popular plays Figaro and The Barber of Seville these two men had already urged upon the King secret aid for America before Dean appeared on the scene shortly after his arrival they made confidential arrangements to furnish money clothing powder and other supplies to the struggling colonies although official requests for them were officially refused by the French government Franklin at Paris when Franklin reached Paris he was received only in private by the Kings Minister version the French people however made manifest their affection for the plain republican in his full dress suit of spotted manchester velvet he was known among men of letters as an author a scientist and a philosopher of extraordinary ability his poor Richard had to thrice been translated into French and was scattered in numerous editions throughout the kingdom people of all ranks ministers ladies at court philosophers peasants and stableboys knew a Franklin and wished him success in his mission the Queen marie-antoinette faded to lose her head in a revolution soon to follow played with fire by encouraging our dear Republican for the King of France however this was more serious business England resented the presence of this traitor in Paris and lui had to be cautious about plunging into another war that might also end disastrously moreover the early period of Franklin's sojourn in Paris was a dark hour for the American Revolution Washington's brilliant exploit at Trenton on Christmas night 1776 in the battle with Cornwallis at Princeton had been followed by the disaster at Brandywine the loss of Philadelphia the defeat at Germantown and the retirement to Valley Forge for the winter of 1777 to 1778 New York City and Philadelphia two strategic ports were in British hands the Hudson and Delaware rivers were blocked and General Burgoyne with his British troops was on his way down through the heart of northern New York cutting New England off from the rest of the colonies no wonder the king was cautious then the unexpected happened Burgoyne hemmed in from all sides by the American forces his flanks harried his foraging parties beaten back his supplies cut off surrendered on October 17th 1777 to General Gates who had superseded general Schuler in time to receive the honor treaties of alliance and commerce 1778 news of this victory placed by historians among the 15 decisive battles of the world reached Franklin one night early in December while he and some friends sat gloomily at dinner Beaumarchais who was with him grasped at once the meaning of the situation and set off to the court at Versailles with such haste that he upset his coach and dislocated his arm the king and his ministers were at last convinced that the hour had come to aid the revolution treatise of Commerce and Alliance were drawn up and signed in February 1778 the Independence of the United States was recognized by France and an alliance was formed to guarantee that independence combined military action was agreed upon and lui then formally declared war on England men who had a few short years before fought one another in the wilderness of Pennsylvania or on the plains of Abraham were now ranged side-by-side in a war on the empire that Pitt had erected and that George the third was pulling down Spain and Holland involved within a few months Spain remembering the steady decline of Hirsi power since the days of the Armada and hoping to drive the British out of Gibraltar once more joined the concert of Nations against England Holland a member of a League of armed neutrals formed in protest against British searches on the high seas sent her fleet to unite with the forces of Spain France and America to prey upon British commerce to all this trouble for England was added the danger of a possible revolt in Ireland where the spirit of Independence was flaming up the British offer terms to America seeing the colonists about to be joined by France in a common war in the English Empire Lord North proposed in February 1778 a renewal of negotiations by solemn enactment Parliament declared its intention not to exercise the right of imposing taxes within the colonies at the same time it authorized the opening of negotiations through commissioners to be sent to America a truce was to be established pardons granted objectionable laws suspended and the old Imperial Constitution as it stood before the opening of hostilities restored to full vigour it was too late events had taken the affairs of America out of the hands of British commissioners and diplomats Effects of French aid the French alliance brought ships of war large sums of gold and silver loads of supplies and a considerable body of trained soldiers to the aid of the Americans timely as was this help it meant no sudden change in the fortunes of war the British evacuated Philadelphia in the summer following the alliance and Washington's troops were encouraged to come out of Valley Forge they inflicted a heavy blow on the British at Monmouth but the treasonable conduct of General Charles Lee prevented a triumph the recovery of Philadelphia was offset by the treason of Benedict Arnold the loss of Savannah and Charleston 1780 and the defeat of gates at Camden the full effect of the French alliance was not felt until 1781 when Cornwallis went into Virginia and settled at Yorktown accompanied by French troops Washington swept rapidly southward and penned the British to the shore while a powerful French fleet shot off their escape by sea it was this movement which certainly could not have been executed without French aid that put an end to all chance of restoring British Dominion in America it was the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown that caused Lord North to pace the floor and cry out quote it is all over it is all over unquote what might have been done without the French alliance lies hidden from mankind what was accomplished with the help of French soldiers sailors officers money and supplies is known to all the earth quote all the world degree excellently wrote Franklin from Paris to General Washington that no expedition was ever better planned or better executed it brightens the glory that must accompany your name to the latest posterity unquote diplomacy as well as martial valor had its reward end of section seven section 8 of history the United States part 2 by Charles and Mary beard this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to learn how you can volunteer please visit librivox.org read by M L Cowan Cleveland Ohio June 2007 a history of the United States part to section 8 peace at last and summary of the American Revolution peace at last British opposition to the war in measuring the forces that led to the final discomfiture of King George and Lord North it is necessary to remember that from the beginning to the end the British ministry at home faced a powerful informed and relentless opposition there were vigorous protests first against the obnoxious acts was precipitated the unhappy quarrel then against the way in which the war was waged and finally against the feudal struggle to retain a hold upon the American dominions among the members of parliament who thundered against the government where the first statesman and orator of the land William Pitt Earl of Chatham though he deplored the idea of American independence denounced the government as the aggressor and rejoiced in American resistance Edmund Burke leveled his heavy batteries against every measure of coercion and at last strove for a peace which while giving independence to America would work for reconciliation rather than a strange meant Charles James Fox gave the colonies as generous sympathy and warmly championed their rights outside of the circle of statesmen there were stout friends of the American cause like David Hume the philosopher and historian and Catherine McAuley an author of wide Fame and Republican bold enough to encourage Washington and seeing it through against this powerful opposition the government enlisted a whole army of scribes and journalists to pour out criticism on the Americans and their friends dr. Samuel Johnson who men employed in this business was so savage that even the ministers had to tone down his pamphlets before printing them far more weight he was Edward Gibbon who was in time to win fame as the historian of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire he had at first opposed to government but on being given a lucrative post he used his sharp pen in its support causing his friends to ridicule him in these lines King George and the frightless Gibbon should write the story of England's disgrace though no way so sure his pen to secure as to give the historian a place lord north yields as time wore on the vents pour heavily on the side of the opponents of the government's measures they had predicted the conquest was impossible and they had heard the advantages of a peace which would in some measure restore the affections of the Americans every day's news confirm their predictions and let's support to their arguments moreover the war which sprang out of an effort to relieve English burdens made those burdens heavier than ever military expenses were daily increasing trade with the colonies the greatest single outlet for British goods and capitals was paralyzed the heavy debts to British merchants in America were not only unpaid but postponed into an indefinite future Ireland was on the verge of revolution the French had a dangerous fleet on the high seas in vain did a king a certain December 1781 that no difficulties would ever make him consent to a peace that meant American independence Parliament knew better and on February 27th 1782 in the House of Commons was carried and addressed to the throne against continuing in the war Burke Foxx the younger Pitts beret and other friends of the colonies voted in the affirmative Lord North gave notice then that his ministry was at an end the King moaned necessity made me yield in April 1782 Franklin received word from the English government that it was prepared to enter into negotiations leading to a settlement this was embarrassing in the Treaty of alliance with France the United States had promised the peach should be a joint affair agreed to by both nations an open conference finding France however opposed to some of their claims respecting boundaries and Fisheries the American commissioners conferred with the British agents at Paris without consulting the French Minister they actually signed a preliminary peace trap before they informed him of their operations when Vergennes reproached him Franklin replied that they quote had been guilty of neglecting by sales good manners but hoped that the great work would not be ruined by a single indiscretion end quote the terms of peace 1783 the general settlement in Paris in 1783 was a triumph for America England recognized the independence of the United States naming each state specifically and agreed to boundaries extending from the Atlantic to the Mississippi and from the Great Lakes to the Florida's England held Canada Newfoundland and the West Indies intact made gains in India and maintained her supremacy on the seas Spain won Florida and menorca but not the coveted Gibraltar France gained nothing important save the satisfaction of seeing England humbled in the colonies independent the generous term secured by the American Commission to Paris called for surprise and gratitude in the United States and smooth the way for renewal of commercial relations with the mother country at the same time they gave genuine anxiety to European diplomats quote this Federal Republic is born a pygmy and quote worked the Spanish ambassador to his royal master quote a day will come when it will be a giant even a colossus formidable to these countries liberty of conscience and a facility for establishing a new population on immense lands as well as the advantages of the new government will draw the farmers and artisans from all the nations in a few years we shall watch with grief the tyrannical existence of the same colossus end quote summary of the Revolutionary period the independence of the American colonies was foreseen by many European statesmen as they watched the growth of their population wealth and power but no one can fix the hour of the great event until 1763 the American colonists lived fairly happily under British Dominion there were collisions from time to time of course royal governors clashed with stiff-necked colonial legislatures there were protests against the exercise of the Kings veto power in specific cases nevertheless on the whole the relations between America and the mother country were more amicable in 1763 then and any period under the Stuart regime which closed in 1688 the crash when it came was not deliberately willed by anyone it was the product of a number of forces that happen to converge about 1763 three years before there had come to the throne George the third a young proud inexperienced and stubborn King for nearly fifty years his predecessors Germans as they were in language and interest had allowed things to drift in England in America George the third decided that he would be king in fact as well as a name about the same time England brought to a closed a long and costly French and Indian War and was staggering under a heavy burden of debt and taxes the war had been fought partly in defense of the American colonies and nothing seemed more reasonable to English statesman than the idea that the colonies should bear part of the cost of their own defense at this juncture they came into prominence in royal councils two men bent on taxing America and controlling their trade Greenville and Townsend the king was willing the English taxpayers were thankful for any promise of release and statesmen were found to undertake the experiment England therefore set out upon a new course she imposed taxes upon the colonists regulated their trade and set royal officers upon them to enforce the law this action evoke protests from the colonists they held a Stamp Act Congress to declare their rights and petition for a redress of grievances some of the more restless spirits rioted in the streets sacked the houses of the Kings officers and tore up the stamped paper frightened by the uprising the English government drew back and repealed the Stamp Act then it feared again and renewed its policies of interference interference again called forth american protests protests aroused showery retaliation more british regulars were sent in to keep order more irritating laws were passed by Parliament rioting again appeared tea was dumped in the harbor of Boston and seized in the harbor of Charleston the British answer was more force the response of the colonists was a Continental Congress for defense an unexpected and unintended clash of arms at Lexington and Concord in the spring of 1775 bought forth the king from England the proclamation quote the Americans are rebels end quote the die was cast the American Revolution had begun Washington was made commander-in-chief armies were raised money was borrowed a huge volume of paper currency was issued and foreign aid was summoned Franklin plied his diplomatic Arts at Paris until in 1778 he induced France to throw her sword into the balance three years later Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown in 1783 by the formal Treaty of Peace George the third acknowledged the independence of the United States the new nation endowed with an imperial domain stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River began its career among the sovereign powers of the earth in the sphere of civil government the results of the revolution were equally remarkable royal officers and royal authorities were driven from the former dominions all power was declared to be in the people all the colonies became States each with its own constitution or plan of government the thirteen states were united in common bonds under the Articles of Confederation a republic on a large scale was instituted thus there was begun an adventure in popular government such as the world had never seen could it succeed or was it destined to break down and be supplanted by a monarchy the fate of whole continents hung upon the answer references J Fisk the American Revolution two volumes H Lodge life of Washington two volumes W Sumner the financier and the finances of the American Revolution o Trevelyan the American Revolution four volumes a sympathetic account by an English historian MC Tyler literary history of the American Revolution two volumes CH van tine the American Revolution friends American nation series and friends and the loyalists in the American Revolution questions what was the non importation agreement by what body was it adopted why was it revolutionary in character to contrast the work of the First and Second Continental Congress's three why did efforts at conciliation fail for trace the growth of the American independence from opinion to the sphere of action 5 why is the Declaration of Independence an immortal document 6 what was the effect of the revolution on colonial governments on national union 7 describe the contest between quote Patriots and quote Tories 8 what topics are considered under quote military affairs discuss each in detail 9 contrast the American forces with the British forces and show how the war was won 10 compare the work of women in the revolutionary war with their labors in the world war 1917 to 1811 how was the revolution financed 12 why is diplomacy important in war described the diplomatic triumph at the revolution 13 what was the nature of the Opposition in England to the war 14 if the events connected with the peace settlement in terms of peace research topics the spirit of America Woodrow Wilson history of the American people vol 2 pages 98 to 126 American rights draw up a table showing all the principles laid down by American leaders in one the resolves of the First Continental Congress McDonald documentary sourcebook page 162 to 166 and to Declaration of causes and the necessity of taking up arms MacDonald page 176 to 183 and three the Declaration of Independence the Declaration of Independence Fiske the American Revolution volume 1 page 147 to 197 Ellison history the United States pages to 52 to 54 diplomacy in the French alliance heart American history told by contemporaries volume 2 pages 574 to 590 this volume 2 pages 1 to 24 Calendar economic history United States page 159 to 168 else in pages 275 to 280 biographical studies Washington Franklin Samuel Adams Patrick Henry Thomas Jefferson emphasizing the peculiar services of each the Tories Hart contemporaries volume two pages 472 480 Valley Forge Fisk vol 2 pages 25 to 49 the battles of the revolution Elson pages 235 to 317 an English view of the revolution green short history of England chapter 10 section 2 and finally English opinion and the revolution heavily on the American Revolution vol 3 or part 2 vol 2 chapters 24 through 27 and section 8 history of the United States part 2 and history of United States part 2 by Charles a and Mary beard you

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Published: Mon Dec 10 2012