Maya Chandler: The Empire In Transition Notes
Pg. 107
● Consequences Of The Seven Year War
↳ The Seven Year War was intense and different for American Colonists
↳ Forced Americans to act civil and in harmony against an enemy
↳ Conflict from 1756-1757: British claim, and impressment policies
(taking men into military without notifying them) had established an important
role in the minds of colonists because “​it seemed to confirm the illegitimacy of
English interference in local affairs.”
↳ If you served in the war, you had an amazing ​“socializing experience.”
↳ British army viewed themselves as important
↳ Soldiers believed their army was collective (like a community) rather
than distributed by certain traits in which that difference helped cast the American
response to British imperial policies
↳ Indians didn’t find British victory to be looked at in a positive way, it
was rather a “​disastrous” ​thing
↳ ​Iroquois Confederacy: ​American-Indian confederacy in which the
French were allies of their enemies. They were an alliance of 5-7
American-Indian tribes.
↳ British saw Iroquois Confederacy avoiding the French as double-dealing
(duplicity) in which things started to fall apart and the Iroquois Confederacy
continued to vote for the English to take control of Ohio Valley
● The New Imperialism
↳​1763 Treaty: ​Seven year war ended, treaty​ ​signed on February 10th
↳ England found themselves at peace after fifty years though they
struggled with debt and ruined land. Though this didn’t stop “​England from expanding its
involvement in its colonies”
Pg. 108
● Burdens Of Empire
↳ Reviewing map: Most settlement was reached by the time of the ​Proclamation
of 1763
↳ Experience of French and Indian War: Colonists were resistant to British control
and Britain's needs were slowly met
↳ Britain wasn’t taxed by Parliament due to the amount of debt they were in (due
to the seven year war) and tasks they needed to get done before being able to actually pay
taxes
↳ Resistance to trade regulations and British demands continued and had
increased throughout the last years of the war
Pg. 109
● Commercial versus Territorial Imperialists
↳ Managing the empire in Britain became more difficult after the Seven Year War due to
the shift in Britain's royal design
↳ Prior to the war, the English had viewed their empire in terms of trade which meant that
they had opposed possession of territory for their own good though people later argued that, that
land had value to the empire
↳ People had argued against the Mercantilists (people who argued state power at the
expense of rival national powers) that England shouldn’t return Canada to France. Though
England didn't because many people pointed out that American people would need spaces like
Canada to accommodate their vast and limitless population growth.
↳ Britain grew twice as much due to territorial annexations (taking land) which had
caused governing it to be much more difficult than it had originally been
↳ Allowing Europeans to move into the new land too quickly could cause conflict with
the Indians
↳ Depriving settlement could keep the land for hunting and trapping
↳ Some colonists wanted to have territory open for rapid development though they had a
hard time agreeing on who would control the western lands
↳ Colonial governments displayed a passionate intensity, and conflicting claims of
authority while ​“others argued that control should remain in England” ​and that territories
should be considered new colonies which would be unlinked to the existing settlements
● Britain's staggering war debt
↳ ​London was having a hard time dealing with debt that the war put them in
↳ English couldn’t rely on activity from the colonial governments
↳ Only taxation by London would meet England's needs
↳ Imperial system → ​New King ​→ ​George II​I (1760) → Unfortunate qualities →
Determined to be an active and responsible monarch and created a new alliance and gained
uneasy control of Parliament. These changes were unstable and lasted about two years.
● George III’s Shortcomings
↳ King suffered from rare disease
↳ King was immature and insecure and also made decisions for himself (selfish)
↳ ​George grenville​ (prime minister, 1763)
↳ Grenville thought that colonists should be pressured to obey laws and to pay some of
the cost for defending the empire
↳ Grenville tried to force a new system of control
Pg. 110
● The British and the Tribes
↳ French started moving up into Ohio Valley which the Indians didn’t approve of
↳ Indians struck back
↳ Proclamation of 1763 was created: Forbidding settlers to advance beyond a line drawn
along the Appalachian Mountains, westward expansion would proceed in an orderly manner and
would slow the population
↳ British and Western relations slightly improved after the Proclamation
↳ ​Sir William​ and ​John Stuart​ were in charge of Indian affairs in the West and North
↳ Proclamation failed to meet Native Americans expectations → White settlers continued
to cross boundaries
↳ British troops were permanently stationed in america
↳ ​Mutiny​ ​Act of 1765​: colonists were required to assist in maintaining the army
↳ Royal officials were ordered to take up their colonial posts in person instead of sending
substitutes
↳ Colonial manufacturing was restricted so it would not compete with the industry of
Great Britain
↳ ​The Sugar Act of 1764​: designed to eliminate illegal sugar trade between the
continental colonies and the French and Spanish West Indies in which there were pros and cons
to this act
Pg. 111
↳ ​The Currency Act of 1764​: required colonial assemblies to stop issuing paper money
and to retire all money that was already in circulation
↳​ The Stamp Act of 1765​: a tax but forced on printed documents in the colonies
↳ Imperial Program goals: to apply the old principles of mercantilism (theory that trade
generates wealth) to the colonies. There were both pros and cons to this.
Pg. 112
●
Paxton Boys
↳ Band of people, the Paxton Boys, in 1763 demanded relief from colonial taxes (NOT
BRITISH) for money to help defend themselves against the Indians
● Regulator Movement
↳ ​Regulator Movement​: North Carolina (​1771​), civil war broke out
↳ Regulators were farmers who resisted high taxes that local sheriff's collected, though
they failed to win their argument over
↳ Armed themselves and began resisting tax by force
↳​ Governor William Tryon​ raised an army and had them defeat 2,000 regulators in the ​Battle
Of Alamance
Pg. 113
● Postwar Depression
↳ ​After 7163, there were new policies which amounted to colonists having common grievances
↳ People had a hard time living with new policies in which there was an economic depression
● Political Consequences of the Grenville Program
↳ Colonists were determined to keep praising self-government
↳ Keys to self government: Have a movement that will never die, and provincial assemblies
(right to give or withhold money for the colonial governments)
● Stirrings of Revolt
↳ ​Mid 1760’s​, events rapidly shattered the English Empire in America
● The Stamp Act Crisis
↳ Prime Minister Grenville came up with the Stamp Act but there were many effects, for
example, high maintenance people had to buy stamps
↳ Virginia House of Burgesses - “Trumpet of Sedition” -​ wanted to challenge power of
tidewater planters
Pg. 114
↳ ​Patrick Henry​: made speech in 1765 with​ prediction that if policies were not revised,
George II might lose his head​ -​ “If this be treason, make the most of it”
↳​ James Otis​: calls for intercolonial congress against new tax
↳ October 1765: congress met about stamp act in which they petitioned the king and two houses
of parliament. They concluded saying that Americans owed tax but that idea had failed
● Sons of Liberty
↳ Summer Of 1765 riots broke out due to Stamp Act crisis
↳ Men who belonged to the Sons of Liberty killed stamp agents
↳ ​Thomas Hutchinson’s​ (who was apart of Stamp Act) house had been destroyed by protestors
↳ Colonies vs British government
↳ Became less intense when England backed down due to economic pressure
↳ ​Marquis of Rockingham:​ convinced the king to kill the Stamp Act on ​March 18, 1766
Pg. 115
● The Townshend Program
↳​ England feared that backing down from taxing colonies would lead to government taxes
on them compared to Americans
↳ ​William Pitt​ (critic of Stamp Act) formed a government replacing the Rockingham ministry
↳ ​Charles Townshend: ​chancellor who replaced Pitt (due to his illness)
↳ ​Quartering Act of 1765​: colonists had to provide quarters and supplies for British troops in
America
● Internal and External Taxes
↳ Townshend taxed colonists in a way that they could not resist
↳ Benjamin Franklin ​denounced the stamp duties as internal taxation
↳ Internal Taxation: ​Taxes on most goods which were decided and collected by the provinces
of the nation
↳​ External Taxation:​ Taxes on importation and deportation
Pg. 116
↳ Massachusetts assembly sent letter to government urging them to stand up to all the taxes,
internal or external that were forced by Parliament
↳ Many people rallied with Massachussetts
↳ Smuggling stopped in Boston due to Townshend
● Colonial Boycotts
↳ ​Navigation Act:​ restricted use of no foreign ships for trade between Britain and its
colonies
↳ Colonial merchants wanted to loose the enforcement of the act, soon there was another
boycott
↳ Lord North took Townshend's place after his death in late 1767
↳ All Townshend's Taxes and series of laws were back and in order which angered
everybody
● Competition for Scarce Employment
↳ Red Coats are soldiers of the British Army
● Boston Massacre
↳ Graphic symbol of British oppression and brutality
↳ ​Paul Revere
↳ Samuel Adams: ​Leading figure that provoked outrage over the Boston Massacre
↳ Adams messages had attracted a big audience and lots of support
Pg.117
● The Philosophy of Revolt
↳ After the Massacre many people still felt as if things weren’t right
● England's Balanced Constitution
↳​ ​English Constitution was the best system to most people because power was
distributed among the three elements: The Monarchy, The Aristocracy, and The Common People
↳ Constitution was in danger around the mid 1600’s
↳ The king was so powerful that everything started to seem corrupt
↳ Americans wanted to be taxed with consent, communities were entitled to their
own representative
Pg.118
● Virtual versus Actual Representation
↳ England and America had disagreements about where the power was held
↳ English government of king and Parliament
● The Tea Excitement
↳ Commissioners who remained in the colonies were mostly clumsy and arrogant.
They harassed colonial merchants and had made very petty restrictions but remembered to wrap
themselves in wealth.
● Revolutionary Discourse
↳ There were occasion acts of rebellion due to Townshend’s acts
↳ New act of Parliament in 1760’s which had took businesses out of bankruptcy
but also angered some colonists who feared being replaced by a powerful monopoly
↳ The Tea Act of 1733 gave companies the right to export their merchandise
directly to the colonies without paying any navigation taxes
● The Tea Act
↳ East India Company
↳ Price of tea was reduced
↳ Tea was boycotted because america argued the New Act of Parliament was just
another unconstitutional tax
↳ Boycott helped link colonies together
↳ Daughters of Liberty, “Rather than freedom, we’ll part with our tea”
Pg. 119
● Boston Tea Party
↳ ​ Dec 16, 1773​ Tea chests were broke open by three companies of fifty men and
then they threw the tea into the Harbor of Boston
↳ Many people followed by example and made similar acts to the Tea Party
↳ When people refused to pay for damage, four acts of Parliament in 1774 were
made. They:
1) Closed the port of Boston,
2) Drastically reduced colonial self government,
3) Permitted royal officers to be tried in other colonies when accused of crimes,
4) Provided quartering of troops in the colonists empty houses
Pg.121
↳ Quebec act was extended in which Roman Catholics were recognized and
French communities were included between the Ohio and Mississippi rivers
↳ Many people saw these acts as threats
● First Continental Congress
↳​Committees of correspondence, Samuel Adams, MA 1772
↳ Rejected plan for colonial union under British authority
↳ Endorsed statement of grievances
↳ Approved a series of revolutions in which colonists make military preparations
for defense by British troops
↳ Stopped trade with Great Britain
Pg. 122
↳ ​Conciliatory Propositions​ were a series of measures that had stated, ​“Instead
of being taxed directly by Parliament, would tax themselves at Parliament's demand”
↳ Thomas Gage: ​April 18, 1775 had 1000 soldiers seize illegal supplies for “war”
with America though Americans were spying on them. British burned all gun powder they found
though most was hidden.
↳ French and Indian war ended in 1763
↳ British lesson: colonies in America needed firmer control from London
John Green: Crash Course 6 Notes: Taxes and Smuggling
●
Colonists did not end up happy after the Seven Year War
↳ Limited their ability to take land from Indians
↳ War debt
↳Colonists had no say on the taxes they were forced to pay
●
British government had to borrow 150,000,000 pounds in which the interest payments on
that money was half of the national budget
↳ Taxes were then put on colonists, many trading items
↳ Imports on caribbean went from 6 cents to 3 cents, cut tax but enforced it by smuggling
↳ Stamps weren’t free, that was so money was paid towards debt
↳ Sons Of Liberty fought the Stamp Act
●
Townshend got new taxes to pass and stopped smuggling
↳ Many colonists resorted to boycotting
●
Taxes on tea (1773)
↳ Cheap tea for lower prices
↳ Colonists were so mad they dumped tea into the Boston Harbor which was a $4,000,00 loss.
Why? Because tea held an importance
●
Intolerable act: Laws passed by British after Boston Tea Party which punished colonists
for their idea of wasting $4,000,000
●
Quebec Act: Extended southern boundary of Quebec and granted religious toleration to
catholics which was not popular then
●
Start of American Revolution
↳ Continental congress
↳ “Immutable laws of nature”
↳ The war between colonists and Britain of April 19,1775
↳ Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
↳ Abandonment of Boston
↳ Americans have habit of Britians but Britain hasn’t done well with democracy (Charles Inglis)
↳ Thomas Paine - Common Sense
↳ Powerful rhetorical arguments
●
After “Common Sense” Independence was called for by many nations
John Green: Crash Course 7 Notes: Who Won The American Revolution?
●
War for Independence
↳ Strategy for British: Capture all cities and to force colonists to surrender
↳ Captured Boston, New York and Charleston
↳ Americans held onto the countryside
↳ Washington surprised a bunch of Hessians
↳ Winter at Valley Forge
↳ Saratoga, American victory
●
Lord Cornwallis: decision to station troops on peninsula in which the
British lost the war
↳ Soldiers went unpaid and starved for people who didn’t care what could've
happened to them
↳ Colonists fought with British
↳ Quakers had their property taken when they refused to fight
↳ Losing property meant losing rights
↳ 1775, Lord Dunmore issued proclamation that granted freedom to all slaves
who deserted their master and fought for the British
↳ 100,000 slaves fled to British
↳ British Empire abolished slavery in 1843 without a civil war
●
Native Americans were affected by the Revolutionary war, they wanted
to stay out of it while the Colonists wanted them to remain neutral too
↳ Native Americans were told that saying out of war was what they were
supposed to do
↳ Younger Cherokees with British and older ones with Americans
↳ Indians got no rights
↳ Deborah Sampson fought in war dressed as a man
↳ Woman didn’t get much
↳ For public to survive they needed to have a well educated citizenry
↳ “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that
they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights and that among these are life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” - Declaration of Independence
↳ Constitutions were created when the colonies became states
↳ Religious freedom
↳ Jefferson: wall of separation between church and state
↳ North reliance: paid labor
↳ South reliance: slavery
●
Eli Whitney: invented cotton gin in 1793
↳ Made it possible to grow a profit
↳ Gave strength to slavery
↳ Equality of property
●
Slavery
↳ Slaves were held by people who were “against” abolition
↳ There were protests against slavery, most states got rid of slavery
slowly
●
No one should be denied the opportunity to succeed because of how their
parents were catalyzed change around the world which became the
foundation of the American Revolution