Road to Revolution

A. Mercantilism

1. Economic belief that wealth could be accumulated if a country had more exports than imports.

2. Exports would exceed imports if raw materials to make exports were cheap and markets existed to buy up the finished goods.

3. Therefore colonies benefitted the mother country by • supplying raw materials (tobacco, sugar, ships’ masts) • NOT competing with British made goods (hats, wool)• Buying exported manufactured goods exclusively from GB• Not even thinking about economic self-sufficiency or self-

government

4. Navigation Lawsa. First passed in 1650

to ensure all trade between colonies was done on British vessels.

b. Later laws made all goods stop in GB first so tariffs could be taken by middlemen.

c. Even later, certain “enumerated” products like tobacco sold only be sold to GB, even if there was a better price offered elsewhere.

5. Benefits of Mercantilism

a. Navigation Laws loosely enforced.

b. Many colonial industries had exclusive buyer in GB (VA tobacco held monopoly in GB)

c. Colonists had protection of world’s strongest armed and naval forces without paying for it.

6. Bummers of Mercantilism

a. Stifled economic initiative

b. Dependency on British creditors.

c. Felt like a perpetual state of economic adolescence

d. GB Navy started to strictly enforce Navigation Acts in 1763 a la PM George Grenville.

B. Stamp Tax Uproar1. French and Indian War expensive

a. GB in £140 debtb. Half of this defending colonies

2. Prime Minister George Grenvillea. Thought it would b a good idea to

charge the colonists for their own defense

b. GB felt military presence necessary to prevent another Pontiac’s Rebellion.

c. Colonists already mad about Navigation Laws and Proclamation of 1763

d. Here Come the Taxesi. SUGAR TAX – 1764ii. QUARTERING ACT – 1765 (had to

provide food and quarters to GB troops)

iii. But these were nothing compared to…

3. Stamp Tax – 1765a. Meant to raise revenue

for new military forceb. Stamps required on

i. Bills of saleii. Legal documentsiii. Playing cardsiv. Newspapersv. Marriages licenses

c. Tax actually less than that charged in GB

d. Colonist Reactioni. Saw these as an affront to libertyii. Especially hated that violators

would be tried in admiralty courts• No trial by jury• Guilty until proven innocent

iii. Felt that British “protection” was a front – really there only to spy on colonists

iv. Cried “no taxation without representation”• Did not argue Parliament’s power

to pass laws, but to tax• Ok with local gov’ts taxing them.• Did not really want representation

in Parliament as they would be outvoted every time…. But it sounded good though

v. Grenville asserted that all British subjects were represented in Parliament through “virtual representation”

4. Stamp Act Repeala. Stamp Act Congress b. 1765 – 27 delegates from 9

coloniesc. Drew up petition to have tax

repealedd. Ignored, but another step toward

colonial unitye. Non-importation Agreements

i. Common colonial actionii. Stopped buying British made goods

(boycott)iii. New opportunity for men and

women to participate by making homemade cloth, manufactured goods

iv. Boycott hit GB hard • ¼ GBs good bought by colonists• ½ of GB shipping for American trade

John Singleton Copley, Paul Revere (1768)

e. Sons of Libertyi. Used violence (

tar and feathers, hanging in effigy, etc) against violators of non-importation agreements and tax collectors

ii. Tax agents had all resigned by the day tax was to go into effect

f. Parliament relented and repealed Stamp Tax in 1766

“Public Punishment for the Excise Man”, 1774

C. Townsend Tea Tax and the Boston Massacre and Tea Party

1. Grenville out as GB PM and Charlie Townsend in.

a. Passed “Townsend Acts” in 1767b. Light tax on lead, glass, paper, paint

and tea. i. Indirect tax ii. Tax $$ to go towards paying salaries

of royal govs and judges.

c. 1 million colonists drank tea daily.d. Smuggling revived - esp in

Massachusettse. GB responds with sending troops to

Boston in 1768.f. March 5, 1770 – Boston Massacre

i. 60 townspeople taunting 10 GB soldiers

ii. GB opened fire killing 5 – including Crispus Attucks, first casualty of the Revolution.

2. Grenville, Townsend and now Lord North

a. Townsend Taxes generating no $ (£295 in one yr when military costs in colonies were £170,000)

b. Townsend taxes repealed but kept tax on tea

c. Committees of Correspondence

i. Formed by Samuel Adams of Massachusetts

ii. Purpose was to spread the spirit of resistance among the colonists to keep opposition alive.

iii. Favored united action – another step toward intercolonial unity

iv. precursor to the first congresses.

3. Boston Tea Party – 1773

a. British East India Co.i. looking at going bankruptii. had 17 million lbs. of

unsold tea.iii. GB stood to lose tax $iv. GB gave Dutch EIC

monopoly in coloniesv. Tea would now be sold

even cheaper then before even with tax added on

b. Colonists felt it was a trick to get colonists to buy tea

c. Ships of tea burned, forced to return or harrassed in several colonial cities.

d. Boston – GB official refused to cower.

i. Mass Gov Tom Hutchinson ordered tea to be unloaded.

ii. Didn’t agree with tax, but believed in law and order.

e. Dec. 16, 1773i. 100 Bostonians (disguised as

natives) boarded ships in harbor and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor.

ii. Colonists reaction split between support and disappointment with destruction of private property.

iii. Tom Hutchinson disgusted – left for GB never to return.

1. Intolerable Acts 1774a. GB wanted to punish

Boston in particularb. Boston Port Act – closed

port of Boston until damages paid

c. Town meetings restrictedd. New Quartering Act

imposede. Coincided with Quebec

Act imposed.i. Allowed Catholicism to

continueii. Granted Quebec land all

the way south to Ohio River – more than doubled their size.

2. First Continental Congress – 1774a. Denounced Intolerable

Actsb. Urged colonies to

organize a militia for defense purposes

c. Urged colonies not to trade with GB

d. Urged colonists not to pay taxes

e. Still swore allegiance to the King

D. British Strengths and Weaknesses

• 1. Strengthsa. Larger populationb. Strong currencyc. Superior navyd. 20k slaves joined British

9promise of freedom)e. 50,000 man professional

armyf. Hired 30,000 Hessian

soldiersg. Enlisted 50,000 colonial

“Loyalists” or “Tories”

• 2. Weaknessesa. 3000 mi awayb. Colonies too large to

occupyc. British generals were poord. British had to win outrighte. Many British soldiers

unwilling to fight their “American cousins”

f. GB Gov’t ineffectiveg. France waiting to jump in

and exact revenge on GB

• 1. Strengthsa. Outstanding leadership

(Washington, Franklin)b. Economic aid from

France at outset, military aid later

c. Home field advantaged. Agriculturally seld-

sustaininge. Excellent marksmenf. Moral advantage in belief

in a just cause

E. Colonial Strengths and Weaknesses

• 2. Weaknessesa. Badly organized and b. Jealously among coloniesc. Little metal money – led

to paper $ and inflationd. Military supplies

inadequatee. Morale undermined by

greedy profiteers.f. Maybe 1/3 of colonists

were truly committed to the cause.

F. “Shot Heard around the World”• 1. Lexington and Concord –

April 1775a. British sent to L & C to seize

gunpowder and arrest Sam Adams and John Hancock.

b. Colonial minutemen refused to disperse on Lex Green – someone fired first shot(?)

c. Brits moved on to Concord but forced to retreat

d. By days end, 273 British casualties, 95 American – war had started

• 2. 2nd Continental Congress meets in May 1775 and selects Geo. Washington as commander of colonial militia.

• 3. “Common Sense”a. Radical Thomas Paine

writes best selling pamphletb. Derides colonists for not

declaring independence and urges them to do so and create a republic

c. Catalyst many need to envision complete break with GB

• 4. Declaration of Independencea. Originally drafted by Richard

Henry Lee of Va. On June 7 and adopted by Congress on July 2

b. “these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states.”

c. Congress appointed a committee of 5 to rewrite the resolution – actual task fell to Jefferson.

d. Provided purpose to military engagement and a boost in morale to troops

e. Signers now officially seen as traitors – certain death sentence if revolution failed.

f. Liberty! Episode 2: Blows Must Decide 37:15