Article Two Fact Sheet
Proclamation of 1763: After winning nearly all
of France’s North American empire, Britain
issued a proclamation preventing colonists from
moving into the newly gained territory. One
reason was to prevent conflict with Natives; the
other reason was to keep the population near the
coasts, where there were important markets and
investments. This angered colonists who
fought in the war and were promised land for
their military service.
Taxation without Representation: To pay back its war debt from the French Indian War, the
British Parliament began to levy taxes on the colonists without any representation in the tax
law process. This led to refusal to pay and revolt against tax collectors. Examples: Sugar Act,
Stamp Act, Declaratory Act, Townshend Acts, Tea Act, Coercive Acts (“Intolerable Acts”)
Declaratory Act: This law stated that Parliament had the right to
tax and make decisions for the British colonies “in all cases.”
Until the Declaratory Act, the individual colonies had enjoyed selfgoverning for
decades. Now
Britain was
assuming all
governing
power.
Boston Massacre: An angry crowd of colonists, outside a pub in Boston,
insulted and assaulted British soldiers, who fired on the crowd, killing 5
people. Journalists began to call it a massacre to heat up the tension
between the colonies and Britain.
Boston Tea Party: In protest to
the Tea Act, colonists led by the
Sons of Liberty dressed up as
Natives and disposed of the British
East India Company tea shipments
by throwing them into the harbor.
Coercive Acts: Laws passed by
the British Parliament to punish
the tea partiers. The laws closed
down the harbor, instated
curfews, and allowed troops to
be quartered in private
residences.
Patrick Henry: Outspoken proponent from Virginia for independence, Patrick Henry gave the
famous speech, which included the phrase, “Give me liberty or give me death!” At the first
Continental Congress in 1774, Patrick Henry
summarized the meaning of the gathering, “The
distinctions between Virginians,
Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New
Englanders are no more…I am not a Virginian,
but an American.”
Battles of Lexington and Concord: On April 18,
1775, searching for resistance leaders Sam Adams
and John Handcock, British troops patrolling the
Massachusetts countryside entered into a fire fight
with minutemen, killing eight. This, along with
the follow up battle at Concord, ignited the
Revolutionary War.
Olive Branch Petition: After Washington took charge of the colonial
forces in Boston, the Continental Congress offered Britain a chance to
avoid war by sending the Olive Branch Petition, stating the colonists’ desire
for peace if the king would protect colonists’ rights. King George refused,
instead hiring 30,000 hessian German troops to fight with redcoats.
Thomas Paine: In January 1776, Paine published a pamphlet called Common
Sense, stating that it made perfect sense to separate from Britain given that it
was not just a squabble over taxation, but a struggle for freedom. Paine’s
writings convinced many colonists to fight for independence.
Declaration of Independence: Written by Thomas Jefferson and signed
by the members of the second continental congress, the Declaration of
Independence was written in response to King George’s refusal of the
terms in the Olive Branch Petition. “…that whenever any form of
government shall become destructive of these ends, it is the right of the
people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government…”