WAR OF INDEPENDENCE
• War of Independence started from that day when first person landed on American land from Europe
• The time period between 1775-1783 was known as Revolutionary War
• This war was between former 13 British colonies and Great Britain
• American inhabitants rejected the orders and boycott all products from Europe
• These inhabitants who were against GB were known as Whigs or Rebels or Patriots
• While those who were with GB were called as Loyalists or Tories
• France and Spain supported colonies for their independence
Role of France
• France came in this war in 1778
• They trained militia forces of these colonies and provided them weapons
Role of Blacks
• 70% population of Blacks were with Americans
• George Washington and Franklin Benjamin told Blacks that if they support America then they would be freed
School of Thoughts
1. Jacob Viner (American) ___ He said that Mercantilism was the supreme cause of War of Independence
2. Robert B. Eklend (British) _____ He said that Mercantilism was not the main cause of war and other causes are also important which provides fuel to this war.
Causes of War of Independence
1. Mercantilism
• It is an economic philosophy which states that colonial people are slaves and they exist for the benefit of mother country. It is basically a discriminatory approach of mother countries towards their captured colonies.
• British passed a number of acts against colonies that’s why Americans became irritated due to these acts
a) Navigational Act
• Passed in 1651
• It states that all goods entering England must be carried in ships owned or manned by British subjects
• Ships of other countries were not allowed
b) Enumerated Commodities Act
• Passed in 1660
• It provided that English colonies shall not export certain commodities like sugar, tobacco, indigo and dyes to any country except England
c) The Staple Act
• Passed in 1663
• It states that all European exports in American colonies must be brought first into English ports and then be re-shipped after the payment of duty towards their destination
d) Duty Act
• Passed in 1673
• It states that all earlier acts were enforced on colonial people through custom collectors
e) Enforcement Act
• Passed in 1696
• It states that strong measures would be taken to check smuggling
• All colonial ships should be registered otherwise they can not carry on their business
f) Molasses Act
• Passed in 1733
• It was designed to stop the importation of French-west Indian molasses into the English colonies
g) Sugar Act
• Passed in 1764
• In this act, the duty on foreign molasses was slightly reduced but the duty on refined sugar was increased
• New taxes were also imposed on wine, silk, indigo, coffee and all other luxury items
2. Restrictions on British Manufacturers
• Things on which no act was imposed then they imposed some restrictions to stop manufacturing process of these in colonies
a) The woolen act
b) Iron act
c) Hat act
3. The Albany Congress
• Held in 1754
• All 13 colonies participated
• Franklin Benjamin gave the concept that the following should be controlled by colonies themselves. British were not allowed to do so.
a) Defence
b) Expansion
c) Indian Affairs
4. The Great Awakening
• Initiated by Jonathan Edward
• 1730-1740
• Great Religious Movement
• Peoples were motivated in Churches for their independence
• The main purpose is to unite people for independence
5. French-Indian War
• War between France and Red Indians (1754-1763)
• France also trained militia forces of British colonies
a) Seven Years’ War
• War started in 1756 in European hemisphere
• Britain and Prussia fought France and Austria. Spain joined France in 1762
• In America situation also became tensed between France and British colonies.
b) Treaty of Paris
• In 1763 France ceded to England most of the land east of the Mississippi
• England gained Florida and restored Cuba to Spain
6. Royal Proclamation
• Passed in 1763 by British King George III
• It prohibited American Expansion to west of Appalachian Mountains
7. The Currency Act
• Passed in 1764
• It prohibited the colonies from issuing paper money
• The main purpose was to keep colonial debtors from trying to pay their English creditors in paper currency, which was worthless than silver
• It discouraged business in the colonies, since there were always short of coin and needed paper money to carry on business
8. The Stamp Act
• Passed in 1765
• Tax was imposed on legal documents and on newspapers, almanacs and other items
• Each of these had to bear a stamp to show that the tax has been paid
9. Sons of Liberty
• Group, with Samuel Adams of Massachusetts and Patrick Henry of Virginia among the leaders, were formed to organize the resistance to the law
• Their slogan was :Liberty, Property and no Stamp”
10. Physical Growth of Colonies
• In 1770 there was more than 1.5 million population in these colonies
• Youth population was more which were more active in anti-British activities
11. Boston Massacre
• 2nd March, 1770
• People of Boston came in streets against these acts
• Also known as Battle of Ding Dong
• On 5th March British opened fire which killed 5 civilians
• The aftermath of this helped spark the rebellion in some colonies. They realized that British were not with them
12. Letters of Samuel Adam
• Samuel Adam was a political leader
• He wrote letters to churches and other prominent leaders in all 13 colonies
• His letters influence the people and they stood against British
13. First Continental Conference
• Held in Sep 5th, 1774 at Philadelphia
• 9 colonies attended the conference
14. Second Continental Conference
• British used military forces in Massachusetts which angered the people
• On May, 1775 2nd conference was held and 12 colonies attended
• The objective was “All Acts which were not bearable were rejected. If any Act was passed against us then there will be a war with British”
15. Declaration of Independence
• A committee was appointed in June 1776 to draft the Declaration of Independence
• It includes Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson
• Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence
• He wrote: “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”
• Congress passed a resolution on July 2, 1776 and dissolve all political connections between colonies and Britain
• On July 4, 1776 the Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence to emphasize this resolution
• The united colonies were named as United States
16. War of Independence
• In 1775, US started the war against British which ended on October 19, 1781 when Lord Cornwallis surrendered
• King George III wanted to continue war but other Government Leaders were ready to consider peace
• On September 3, 1783, in Paris, Britain and US signed a final treaty
•
Britain recognized the independence of United States