What does it mean to be an American?

Common Sense

-Written by Thomas Paine -Discussed independence from Britain, union of new states, and republican state Gov'ts -Said the king was the greatest enemy of liberty -If America was free they could trade with entire world Encouraged the colonists to revolt against Great Britian.

Thomas Paine

A British citizen, he wrote Common Sense, published on January 1, 1776, to encourage the colonies to seek independence. It spoke out against the unfair treatment of the colonies by the British government and was instrumental in turning public opinion in favor of the Revolution.

Why was there such a widespread and enthusiastic colonial reception of Thomas Paine's radical pamphlet Common Sense?

Although it was very difficult for many colonists to see themselves separated from England and the King, they had seen how harshly the King was treating them, especially after he hired German Hessian mercenaries to kill them. Paine's Common Sense hit them close to home when he talked about the need for authority to be given by popular consent. This was how many town meetings in America were held, so the colonists realized it was actually possible to have a democracy and not a monarch. It made them realize that they had the ability to be in charge of their own lives instead of reporting to a monarch.

Loyalists

American colonists who remained loyal to Britain and opposed the war for independence

Natural Aristocracy

An aristocracy which arises out of work and competition rather than birth, education, or special privilege.

Tories

Another name for Loyalists

Charles Cornwallis

Commanding general of the British forces that were defeated at Yorktown in 1781, ending the American Revolution.

Compare and contrast Common Sense and the Declaration of Independence.

Common Sense and The Declaration of Independence are similar in that they both see the relationship between Great Britain and the American colonies as something that needs to be addressed and changed. Both sides argue that the colonies would be better of without Great Britain. Both state similar feelings about Great Britains rule over the colonies and that the King is a Tyrant. They both examine the same problem and state a similar solution. They both a proponents of a representative government whose authority comes from the people. The differences are found in the writing styles. Paine in Common Sense is posing a theory, that he believes that the colonists would be better off without Great Britain and the king. Jefferson is putting forth that the Declaration of Independence is just that a statement declaring the breaking away from the king and Great Britain. Common Sense states vaguely what is wrong with the King and Parliament but the Declaration of Independence lists specific grievances against the King.

Benjamin Franklin

During the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin served as an ambassador to France. Franklin was the oldest delegate to the Constitutional Convention and his advice proved crucial in the drafting of the Constitution. Franklin has often been held up as the paradigm of Enlightenment throughout in Colonial America because of his contributions to the fields of science and philosophy

Benedict Arnold

He had been a Colonel in the Connecticut militia at the outbreak of the Revolution and soon became a General in the Continental Army. He won key victories for the colonies in the battles in upstate New York in 1777, and was instrumental in General Gates victory over the British at Saratoga. After becoming Commander of Philadelphia in 1778, he went heavily into debt, and in 1780, he was caught plotting to surrender the key Hudson River fortress of West Point to the British in exchange for a commission in the royal army. He is the most famous traitor in American history.

Thomas Jefferson

He was a delegate from Virginia at the Second Continental Congress and wrote the Declaration of Independence. He later served as the third President of the United States.

Which contributed more to American victory: his military ability, his political skill, or his personal character?

I believe that his personal character is what contributed most to the American Victory. Militarily speaking, his victories were helped by the Prussian Baron von Steuben who helped train his troops, and by the fact that the French aided the patriots in enough time. He was also lucky that Howe was hesitant to make a mistake and slow to act in situations where he could have cut off the patriot army from their supplies and troops. Politics at this point were handled mostly by the Continental Congress. However, his personal character is what kept the Congress optimistic and informed of what the troops were facing and what they needed. His bravery and quiet manner helped to recruit men into the army and helped to retain them. His modest behavior made him able to ask for assistance from Baron von Steuben and the French. His belief in the cause helped him not to quit even though he was facing the greatest army and navy of its time.

Which was more important, Paine's advocacy of independence or of creating a republic.

I think that his advocacy of independence was more important at this point in the revolution (1776), rather than a republic, which would be more important later after independence was won. The colonists were not looking to share in a united country with each other as much as they were looking to be free and independent of a commandeering King and country. The concept of the republic however, coincided with the idea of independence, because people were picturing the power coming from themselves, the people, and the decisions being made by popular consent, not by a King. This beginning of a republic was important, but I believe the idea or goal of independence was more a priority at this point.

How did the conduct of the American War for Independence reflect the ideals for which the Revolution was fought? Were there any American actions that challenged or contradicted those ideals?

I think the ideals were set on representative government, army of militias that were people defending their land, their homes and their families. Unpaid leadership from General Washington, fighting on the goal of something that meant more than money. The states coming together for a common good of forming a country that was meant to serve the needs of people from all states. Lastly, I think it was represented when General Washington did not accept being made a king. I think that this was compromised when the Declaration of Independence did not outlaw slavery and make all people free. I think that it also contradicted those ideals when after Yorktown, the Patriot-Loyalist warfare in the South got especially brutal against people who were colonists themselves, but Tories. They should have respected that these people were going to help them build their country or return to England, since it was obvious the war was over.

Colonists had quarreled with Parliament and protested its actions since 1763 while continually professing loyalty to the King. Why, then, did the Declaration of Independence single out King George III as a tyrant threatening their liberties and barely mention Parliament at all.

Most of the problems leading up to the revolution were decisions that were made by Parliament. The Stamp Tax, the Sugar Act and the Tea Act as well as quartering British troops in colonists homes. However, the King refused to hear the colonists complaints against Parliament, so he in the end is responsible for the problems in the colonies because he could have stopped it. Also, if the colonists were writing this to form their own democratic country, they could not insult Parliament in too much detail, because they were unsure yet how they would be forming their government. Lastly, the Declaration of Independence vaguely mentioned Parliament in certain complaints against the king when they said the king and "others".

Nathaniel Greene

Quaker-raised American general who employed tactics of fighting and then drawing back to recover, then attacking again. Defeated Cornwallis by thus "fighting Quaker".

Patriots/Whigs

Patriots were rebellious colonists and the Whigs were their English counterparts. Whigs was the term by which the American Patriots were commonly known, to distinguish them from the American "Tories"

Mercenaries

Professional soldiers who fight for anyone who will pay them. In this case, they were mostly Hessian (German) soldiers hired by the British to kill the colonial rebels (patriots).

Privateers

Ships that are privately owned but are urged to attack enemy ships during a war. Legalized pirates.

Armed Neutrality

Term for alliance of Catherine the Great of Russia and other European powers who did not declare war but assumed a hostile neutrality toward Britain

In what ways should the American Revolution be considered a civil war among Americans as well as a war for independence? Why are Loyalists so often forgotten in American History?

The American Revolution was most definitely a civil war because they were fighting their own country men, (same continent and a different one, but all the same country) for the goal of a governmental change that would allow them to break away from their present country. If this was the American Civil War, England would represent the North and the colonists the South. The colonists had grievences that their King did not understand them or what they need. The south had similar grievences when they declared their independence from the United States. In a Civil War, often times the goal is independence or the creation of a new country or govenrment. In this way it is very similar. Loyalists are often forgotten because our history books focus on change, and how and why that change happened. Someone who does not want change is often forgotten in history. They did not help establish our country so they are not mentioned as much.

2nd Continental Congress

The congress met in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775. Three delegatres added to the Congress were Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Hancock. The Congress took on governmental duties and united all the colonies for the war effort. They selected George Washington as commender of the army. They encouraged the colonies to set themselves up as states. On July 4, 1776 they adopted the Declaration of Independence. The Congress ended March 1, 1781 when a Congress authorized by the Articles of Confederation took over.

What qualities made George Washington a good choice to command the revolutionary army?

The fact that Washington came from Virginia helped to unite the southern colonies with the New England colonies in the revolution. Although his experience in the French and Indian War ended in disaster, he did have miitary experience. He was also considered to be brave, likeable and modest. He was known to be honest as well. He was also a large man whose presence commanded respect.

Blockade

The shutting of a port to keep people or supplies from moving in or out.

What was the essential cause of the American victory in the War for Independence?

There were several factors that helped the colonists win the war for independence, including hiring privateers, knowing the landscape better than the British, understanding guerilla warfare better than the British, and having a desire to have their freedom. However, in my opinion the one item that made the War of Independence a success was the fact that the French came and assisted the colonists against the British. The French had an amazing military and sent some of their best commanders and troops to help the continental army. Without the French, I do not believe the war would have ended in the colonists winning. I do believe the war was won on the battlefield. I do not think that the British political will failing was a large part of it. The use of the French navy and the privateers handcuffed the British navy and troops at very important times, especially while Cornwallis was waiting for troops and supplies to arrive from Britain while he was at Yorktown. The Armed Neutrality that was started in Europe helped to divert British troops to other areas. While no one was actually attacking Great Britain there was a constant threat from Russia, Spain and France. Some bad decisions by General Howe led to wins from the Patriots, such as the Battle of Saratoga, when Howe did not choose to help General Burgoyne but instead went into Philadelphia to battle Washington there. Although he won the battles of Germantown and Brandywine, they were small victories compared to the loss that Burgoyne took in New York.

Baron von Steuben

This Prussian Baron is credited with training and making the Continental Army into a legitimate fighting force at Valley Forge. Some say he was the third most important leader of the Revolutionary War.

Declaration of Independence

This document was adopted on July 4, 1776. It established the 13 American colonies as independent states, free from rule by Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson wrote the majority of this document.

Treaty of Paris 1783

This treaty ended the Revolutionary War, recognized the independence of the American colonies, and granted the colonies the territory from the southern border of Canada to the northern border of Florida, and from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River.

George Washington

Virginian, patriot, general, and president. Lived at Mount Vernon. Led the Revolutionary Army in the fight for independence. First President of the United States.

New Jersey Campaign

a series of battles in the American Revolutionary War between British forces under General Sir William Howe and an American army under General George Washington. Beginning with the landing on Staten Island on July 3, 1776, British forces gained control of New York City and drove the Americans across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania. Late in 1776, Washington launched a surprise counterstrike, an important morale boost for the Americans after an otherwise disastrous campaigning season.

William Howe

during the summer of 1776, he led hundreds of British ships and 32,000 British soldiers to New York, and offered Congress the choice between surrender with royal pardon and a battle against the odds, and despite having far fewer troops, the Americans rejected the offer. He also commanded the British forces at Bunker Hill.

Bunker Hill

the first important battle of the American War of Independence (1775), A battle that took place on the strategic point of Breed's Hill (Boston). British victory on account of the depletion of American supplies. Yet gave them confidence- It pushed Americans towards a final decision for war.

natural rights

the idea that all humans are born with rights, which include the right to life, liberty, and property