Chapter 6

Vocabulary

• Minutemen • Siege• Unalienable Rights • Mercenaries • Guerrilla Warfare

Section 1

The First Continental Congress• September 1774 – the First Continental Congress met in

Philadelphia. • 56 colonial delegates from all colonies except Georgia

attended. • The delegates debated the best way to respond to the

crisis taking place in Boston. • John Dickinson said to make peace with Britain while

Patrick Henry said to fight. • In the end, they decided to continue boycotting British

goods, but prepare the colonial militia in case a war would occur.

• The delegates wrote a list of 10 resolutions to present to King George III.• The delegates decided to meet again in May 1775 if

the King did not agree with them.

The “Shot Heard Round The World” • Boston militia (military) called themselves minutemen because they

were ready to fight on a minute’s notice. • April 1775 – British General Thomas Gage took away the

minutemen’s weapons and stored them in Concord, a town about 20 miles west of Boston.

• April 18, 1775 – Paul Revere and William Dawes were made aware that the British troops were heading toward Concord.

• The two men raced on their horses through the countryside, warning minutemen that the British were coming!

• April 19, 1775 – less than 70 minutemen gathered at the Lexington Village Green, near Concord. • There they met a larger force of British troops. • The colonial commander shouted to his soldiers, “Don’t fire

unless fired upon. But if they mean to have a war, let it begin here!”

• Suddenly, a shot rang out, but no one knew who fired this “shot heard around the world.”

• The fighting began and ended in minutes with the British continuing on to Concord only to find the weapons were gone.

• In anger, the British set fire to some buildings and a colonist shouted, “Will you let them burn the town down?”

• The minutemen charged forward.

The “Shot Heard Round The World” (cont.) The British retreated to Boston.

The minutemen fired from begin trees and buildings. The British uniforms made easy targets and became known as the

Redcoats. When the British reached Boston they had suffered more than 250

casualties. Word of the fighting at Lexington and Concord spread quickly.

The Second Continental Congress May 1775 – representatives from 12 colonies met in

Philadelphia. The decided not to break away from Great Britain, but to raise

a Continental Army and chose Virginian George Washington as the commander.

July 5, 1775 – the delegates signed the Olive Branch Petition. The olive branch is a symbol of peace.

November 1775 – the colonists learned that King George III had angrily rejected the peace offer and fighting had spread throughout the colonies.

Early Battles While the Second Continental Congress was meeting, some

colonists were striking at the British. May 10 1775

Their target was Fort Ticonderoga in northern New York. This fort guarded access to Lake Champlain, a key waterway. Colonel Benedict Arnold joined Ethan Allen to lead the effort. They surprised the British by attacking during a storm and

took the fort and its large supply of weapons, including cannons.

In Massachusetts, minutemen held Boston under siege – a situation in which soldiers surround a city or fort.

Mid-June 1775 – the British prepared to take Charleston – north of Boston. The colonial troops heard of this and waited on Bunker and

Breed’s Hill. The British were surprised and the colonists were well

prepared minus having low gun-powder. The colonial commander ordered his troops not to fire on the

Redcoats “until you see the whites of their eyes.”

Early Battles (cont.) Most of the fighting took place on Breed’s Hill and the

colonists did well until they ran out of ammunition and were forced to retreat. The British suffered 1,000 casualties compared to the colonies

400. The Battle of Bunker Hill showed the colonists that they

could hold their own against the British. General Washington arrived in Boston to command the

siege and ordered the cannons from Fort Ticonderoga be brought to him.

March 1776 – Washington used the cannons to fire on the British from Dorchester Heights, a hill overlooking southern Boston. British General William Howe declared, “The rebels have done

more n one night than my whole army could do in months.” On March 7, Howe ordered a retreat from Boston. The birthplace of the rebellion was back in colonial hands.

Section 2

Paine’s Common Sense Thomas Paine authored a pamphlet called Common Sense.

He argued for breaking away from Great Britain. It sold more than 500,000 copies. Why did Common Sense become so popular?

Pamphlets were typically written by lawyers in wording that only educated people understood, but Paine’s pamphlet was written simply by a common man towards the common people.

He said that the people, not kings and queens, should make the laws. “A government of our own is our natural right.” Paine urged the colonies to demand their independence.

With a war underway, the idea of independence gained more and more supporters.

Declaring Independence June 1776 – the Second Continental Congress created a

committee to write a document declaring the colonies’ independence. The members were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas

Jefferson (main author of the document), Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman.

The Declaration of Independence expresses three main ideas. Unalienable Rights: the basic rights include “life, liberty, and the

pursuit of happiness.” King George III had violated these colonists’ rights.

He charged the king with passing unfair laws and interfering with colonial self-government.

He accused the king of taxing colonists without their consent.

Jefferson argued that the colonies had the right to break away from Great Britain. This was influenced by the Enlightenment idea of the social contract, which

states that rulers should protect the rights of their citizens in exchange for the people allowing themselves to be governed.

July 4, 1776 - the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. This act broke all ties to the British Crown. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WAS BORN!!!

Section 3

Comparing Strengths and Weaknesses Colonists who were for independence were known as

Patriots. The British seemed much stronger than the Patriots.

They had more money and resources than the colonies. Britain had a powerful military and its navy was the largest in

the world. The colonies had no nave at all and the colonial army was

made up of poorly trained local militias. However, many Americans did support the Revolution and

therefore, British troops often dealt with hostile citizens. The British also had to ship their supplies over the Atlantic

Ocean and this took time. Patriots were fighting for a cause in which they believed in

while some British soldiers were mercenaries, or hired foreign soldiers.

A Call To Arms General Washington had to move quickly and raise an

army. More than 230,000 soldiers served in the Continental Army

and another 145,000 Americans joined local militias. Many of these volunteers were teenagers. African-Americans were not allowed to serve in the army.

November , 1775 – Lord Dunmore, Virginia’s Governor, issued a proclamation promising freedom to any slave that fought for the British. In response, the Continental Army began allowing free African

Americans to enlist, and eventually some 5,000 joined.

Other Sources Of Help American Indians fought on both sides during the war. The British army had many Indian allies. The Patriots worked hard just to keep American Indians

neutral. This was very important for the frontier, but why?

Many women helped by running farms and businesses while men served in the army or raising money for supplies.

Some women served as messengers, nurses, or spies. A few women, such as Deborah Sampson disguised

themselves as men to fight in the war. Mary Ludwig Hays, became known as Molly Pitcher

because she would bring water to thirsty Patriot troops. When her husband was wounded in a 1778 battle, she quickly

took his place loading cannons.

Section 4

Victory in New Jersey November 1776 – British General Howe sent troops to take

new Jersey. Howe left New Jersey in the hands of Hessians – German

mercenaries. Howe allowed his troops to rest in New York for the winter and

this delay allowed Washington to gather reinforcements. Washington decided to attack the Hessians at Trenton.

On Christmas night 1776, Washington and 2,400 soldiers silently crossed the icy Delaware River and marched to Trenton when reaching land.

The Battle of Trenton lasted less than an hour where more than 900 Hessians were captured and only five American casualties.

On the night of January 2, 1777 the Patriots kept their campfires near Princeton. They left and circled behind the British troops in the darkness. The following morning they attacked. The Battle of Princeton ended in another victory for the Patriots.

As he watched the Redcoats flee, Washington cheered, “It is

a fine fox chase, my boys!”

Turning Point At Saratoga In the Spring of 1777, the British decided to strike back.

They planned to cut New England off from the rest of the colonies.

The British troops, led by General John Burgoyne, had to take back Fort Ticonderoga while a second force would march east from Lake Ontario and finally, Howe’s troops would move north.

All three groups would come together in Albany, New York. Burgoyne captured Ticonderoga in early July 1777. General Howe decided to attack Philadelphia before heading

to Albany and Washington’s troops raced to fight back. They met at the battle of Brandywine Creek. On September 11, 1777 Howe’s forces won.

Meanwhile, Burgoyne did not know that the troops coming from the west and south were late and he was outnumbered by Patriot troops when he reached Albany. Burgoyne suffered a major defeat at the Battle of Saratoga. On October 17, 1777 Burgoyne surrendered and his entire force

was captured. This victory gained more foreign support for the Patriots.

Foreign Allies France and Spain were secretly aiding the Patriots. The Battle of Saratoga convinced the French that the

Patriots would win the war. In May 1778 the Continental Congress approved an alliance

with France. Spain joined the war against Britain in 1779 (they helped on

the western frontier). Officers from Poland came to train cavalry units and others.

The Marquis de Lafayette was wealthy and gave about

$200,000 of his own money to the cause. The entry of France and Spain into the war cam at a critical

time for the Patriots because the Continental Army was running very low on supplies.

Winter at Valley Forge December 1777 – Washington settled his troops at Valley

Forge, Pennsylvania. They suffered shortages of food and clothing. More than one fifth (1/5 or 20%) died from disease or

malnutrition. February 1778 – a veteran Prussian army officer, Baron

Friedrich von Steuben, came to the aid. He taught the American troops basic military skills. He turned the Continental Army into a well-trained group of

soldiers.

The War at Sea In 1775, the Continental Congress had created the

Continental Navy and marines. February 1776 – the navy only had eight fighting ships. Instead of fighting large battles, the Patriots attacked one ship at

a time. During the war the British lost hundreds of ships to small

American raiding vessels. The Continental Navy used fewer than 100 ships during the

war. Yet the British navy lost almost 200 ships to the small, but effective American naval forces.

Section 5

The War in the West George Rogers Clark targeted the British trading village of

Kaskaskia, located along the Mississippi River. In June 1778 Clark and 175 soldiers se out toward

Kaskaskia and worked to surprise the enemy. On July 4, 1778 the leaders of Kaskaskia surrendered to

Clark without a fight. News of Clark’s achievement spread, and the town of

Vincennes on Wabash River also surrendered to the Patriots. He persuaded many American Indians to stay neutral. He was never able to capture Fort Detroit, Britain’s major

base on the frontier, but his efforts greatly weakened the British army in the West.

The War in the South After the Battle of Saratoga, the British focused more on their

efforts on the southern colonies. The British strategy of freeing slaves who joined them worked

well. In Georgia a lave named Quamino Dolly shoed the British a secret

trail to the port city of Savannah. The British used this to surprise the Patriots and capture the city. Then they captured the port city of Charleston, South Carolina. The British took more than 5,000 prisoners of war.

August 1780 – Patriots led by Horatio Gates tried to drive out the British. Gates’ plan backfired and the British won at Camden, South Carolina.

The Patriots had lost their southern army.

The southern Patriots did not stop fighting. They switched to guerrilla warfare – swift, hit-and-run attacks.

Francis Marion organized Marion’s Brigade. A group of guerrilla soldiers that used surprise attacks to destroy

British communications and supply lines. They could not catch him and his men.

Victory at Yorktown In early 1781 the war seemed to be going poorly for the Patriots.

They were low on money to pay soldiers and buy supplies. The army’s morale took a blow when Benedict Arnold, one of

America’s most gifted officers, turned traitor and sided with the British.

British General Charles Cornwallis moved his forces into Yorktown, Virginia – on a peninsula bounded by the Chesapeake Bay and the James and York Rivers. Here, he planned to attack a small Patriot force led by the Marquis de

Lafayette. Meanwhile, General Washington was in New York planning a strategy

with a French general, Comte de Rochambeau (roh shhn boh). A French fleet commanded by the naval officer Comte de Grasse

was sailing from the West Indies and it could prevent any British ships from entering Chesapeake Bay to bring reinforcements to Yorktown. Washington’s troops took Yorktown under siege with 16,000 soldiers

(more than the British there). In October the weak British were attacked and Cornwallis

surrendered on October 20, 1781.

The Treaty of Paris In the Treaty of Paris of 1783, Great Britain recognized the

independent United States. The treaty also se the new nation’s borders.

The Great Lakes bounded the North. The Mississippi River served as the western border. A line a 31 degrees North latitude formed the southern border.

George Washington said the following: “The citizens of

America are…acknowledged to be possessed of absolute freedom and independency.”