Name: __________________ Class: _____ Due: __________

American Revolution 2.1

SSUSH3 Analyze the causes of the American Revolution.
a. Explain how the French and Indian War and the 1763 Treaty of Paris laid the groundwork for
the American Revolution.
French and Indian War
The desire for territory produced by mercantilism also meant that nations ended up fighting over land
and resources. As British colonists moved west, they found themselves fighting French settlers and
Native Americans. In 1754, this tension between French and British colonials resulted in the French
and Indian War. It was so named because Britain fought the war against France and its Native
American allies (some Native Americans helped the British). After nine years of fighting, France,
Great Britain, and Spain (a French ally) signed the Treaty of Paris in 1763. France gave up its
claims in Canada and all lands east of the Mississippi River. In addition, Spain ceded Florida to the
British as well. Great Britain now stood alone as the one, true colonial power in eastern North
America. The British claimed they were protecting the Colonist during the War and therefor the
Colonist need to repay the British for protection. 
The French and Indian War
1. Which two countries fought against one another in the French and Indian War? __________ & ___________
2. Which of these two countries had more Indian allies on its side during this war, at least when the war began?

3. According to the Treaty of Paris, what two major land claims did the French have to surrender in North
America as a result of losing the war?

b. Explain colonial response to the Proclamation of 1763, the Stamp Act, and the
Intolerable Acts as seen in the Sons and Daughters of Liberty and the Committees
of Correspondence.
Document Analysis 1
Document Analysis 1

4. In this political cartoon, what is the King’s principle concern?

5. It’s obvious from the cartoon that Prime Minister Grenville is angry with the colonists. Why?

6. House of Commons member Edmund Burke wonders if it’s fair to pass an internal tax on the colonists.
Why does he question this idea?

Tensions Rise between Great Britain and the Colonies

Soon after the French and Indian War, relations between England and its colonies deteriorated. After
fighting beside the British against the French, many colonists lost respect for Britain's military. They
viewed it as ill prepared and unsuited for fighting on the American terrain. Meanwhile, Great Britain
was heavily in debt after fighting to defend its colonies and felt that the Americans should help pay for
the expense. It also possessed vast new territories and felt that it needed to find a way to control
them. As a result, it took a number of steps the colonists found offensive. The first was the
king's Proclamation of 1763. It forbade colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains
and put the territory under British military control. The proclamation was intended to manage Britain's
new territories and ensure peace with Native Americans.
7. After the war, the King issued “The Proclamation of 1763.” What was its supposed purpose?

8. Why were colonists outraged by this proclamation?

Document Analysis 2

Document Analysis 2
9. American colonists were intensely angry about the Proclamation of 1763. On the other hand, what does this
cartoon seem to say about their actual attitude towards obeying the proclamation?
Acts by the British and the Colonist Reactions
Beginning in the mid 1760s, Parliament passed a series of laws and taxes that infuriated the Americans. One
of the most offensive was the Stamp Act. Under this law, the British government taxed nearly all printed
material by requiring that it bear a government stamp. Many printers protested the new law. In response, a
delegation of colonists met in what came to be known as the Stamp Act Congress. One of its leaders, James
Otis, protested the tax proclaiming, "No taxation without representation!" Under British law, no tax could be
imposed except one approved by Parliament. Since the colonies had no representation in Parliament, Otis and
others believed that they should not be subject to new taxes. In protest, the colonies imposed a boycott of
British goods. A boycott simply means that they refused to buy them, thereby withholding money that would
otherwise go to English businesses. Groups known as the Sons of Liberty and Daughters of Liberty sprang up
throughout the colonies to support and enforce the boycotts.
The Sons of Liberty often used violence to intimidate any merchant or royal official who might otherwise use
the stamps. Meanwhile, the Daughters of Liberty often used their skills to weave fabric and other products
that were usually bought from Britain. Of all the colonies, only Georgia ever issued any of the stamps,
prompting angry South Carolinians to threaten an invasion of Savannah. The boycotts, along with violent
responses to the Stamp Act, eventually led England to repeal (cancel) the law. However, on the same day that
it repealed the Stamp Act, Parliament passed the Declaratory Act. This act stated that Parliament had the
authority to impose laws on the colonies. In effect, England was telling the colonies that it expected them to
comply with British laws whether they felt represented or not. As a result of the Intolerable Acts, many the 13
colonies organized against the British laws. They were known as committees of correspondence, and they
made sure that the thirteen colonies were working together to resist British rule.
One such group took bold action in December 1773. Recent British laws enabled British traders to gain an
unfair advantage in the trade of tea (a popular colonial drink). In protest, Massachusetts's committee of
correspondence led a group of radicals who dressed as Mohawk Indians and marched to Boston Harbor.
There, in what became known as the "Boston Tea Party," the group raided ships hauling British tea and threw
the crates overboard. In response, Parliament passed the Coercive Acts (because of their harshness, the
colonists labeled them the Intolerable Acts). These acts closed Boston Harbor and placed a military governor
over Massachusetts. In addition, England expanded the Canadian border, thereby taking land away from
certain colonies.
Acts by the British and the Colonist Reactions

10. What colonial items were to be taxed by the “Stamp Act?”

11. Two groups – The Sons and Daughters of Liberty – sprang up in resistance to the Stamp Act. Besides
simply protesting, what was their primary purpose of these two groups?

12. What was the purpose of the “Committees of Correspondence?”

13. Everyone’s heard of “The Boston Tea Party”…..but why did it occur? What were its participants
protesting?

14. As punishment for the Boston Tea Party, Parliament passed the “Coercive Acts.” What did the colonists
call this set of laws?

15. List three parts of the Intolerable Acts.

 c. Explain the importance of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense to the movement for
independence.
Document Analysis 3
… Small islands not capable of protecting themselves, are the proper objects for kingdoms to
take under their care; but there is something very absurd, in supposing a continent to be
perpetually governed by an island. In no instance hath nature made the satellite larger than its
primary planet, and as England and America, with respect to each other, reverses the common
order of nature, it is evident that they belong to different systems: England to Europe, America
to itself…
Source: Common Sense, written by Thomas Paine,
January 10, 1775
Document Analysis 3
16. Why does Paine think the current government of the colonies is “absurd?”

17. Who does Thomas Paine suggest that America should belong to?

Importance of Thomas Paine

To deal with the crisis, representatives from nearly every colony (only Georgia did not attend)
gathered for the First Continental Congress in September 1774. In a statement to the king, the
Congress wrote that the colonists had a right to be represented in their government. Since the
colonies were not represented in Parliament, they were entitled to govern themselves. Then, in April
1775, all hope of a peaceful resolution was lost when fighting broke out at Lexington and Concord. As
British troops were on their way to seize arms and ammunition stored by colonists at Concord,
Massachusetts, they were met at Lexington by colonial militia (voluntary, local military units consisting
of private citizens rather than full-time soldiers). It was there that someone (to this day no one is sure
who) fired the "shot heard 'round the world" that started the American Revolution. Less than a month
later, following January, in 1776, Thomas Paine (1737-1809) published his famous
pamphlet, Common Sense. In it, he made a compelling case for independence that won many to the
cause. Due to the influence of Paine and others, the Second Continental Congress eventually
stopped seeking resolution with England and chose, instead, to declare independence.
Importance of Thomas Paine
18. In response to the Intolerable Acts, the First Continental Congress was formed, and met in Philadelphia.
What state did not attend the meeting? _______________________________
19. The First Continental Congress told the King that they should either gain representation in Parliament or…
what?

20. What was the impact of Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” on the Second Continental Congress?
 SSUSH4 Analyze the ideological, military, social, and
diplomatic aspects of the American Revolution. endeavors 
a. Investigate the intellectual sources, organization, and argument of the Declaration of
Independence including the role of Thomas Jefferson and the Committee of Five.
Declaration of Independence
Beginning in the late 1600s, Europe experienced the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was a time
that featured revolutionary ideas in philosophy and political thought. During this time, a number of
philosophers introduced concepts that later helped form American ideas about government.
England's John Locke was one of the most influential figures of this period. John Locke challenged
the old view that monarchs possess a God-given right to rule with citizens obligated to obey. Locke
believed that people were born with certain natural rights that no government could morally take
away. These rights include life, liberty, and property. He also advocated social contract theory.
According to this philosophy, there is an implied contract between government and citizens. Citizens
are born with freedom and rights. However, for the good of society, people agree to give up certain
freedoms and empower governments to maintain order. In other words, citizens submit themselves to
laws and governments in order to serve the common good and cultivate civic virtue (behavior geared
towards the betterment of society rather than simply one's own interests). Locke taught that citizens
have the right to replace any government that fails to serve the public good. 
Declaration of Independence
21. What was “The Enlightenment”?

22. Explain “Social Contract Theory.”

23. According to Locke, what do people have the right to do when their government no longer serves the public
good?

Document Analysis 4
“That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes
destructive of those ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a
new government….”
Source: Declaration of Independence
Document Analysis 4
24. According to the Declaration of Independence, from where do governments derive their power?

25. According to the Declaration of Independence, the people have the right to __________ or ________ their
government if it becomes destructive of their rights.
Declaration of Independence continued….
In June 1776, the delegates to the Second Continental Congress decided to declare independence
from Great Britain. They appointed a committee to prepare a Declaration of Independence that
would outline the reasons the colonist wanted to separate from British rule. The Committee of
Five was made up of Thomas Jefferson, John Livingston, Ben Franklin, John Adams and Roger
Sherman. One of the committee's members, a young delegate named Thomas Jefferson, drafted
the statement. Strongly influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, Jefferson asserted the principle
of egalitarianism (the idea that all men are created equal) and proclaimed that men are born with
certain inalienable rights (natural rights that government cannot take away). Among these rights are
"life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The document became known as the Declaration of
Independence and was formally adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The
Declaration of Independence begins by echoing the theories of John Locke and asserting the "natural
rights" to which all men are entitled. It proclaims that governments obtain their power to rule from the
free consent of the people and that if the government fails to serve its citizens, those citizens have the
right to resist and/or replace it with a new system (remember the Social Contract). The document
then lists the many ways in which the colonies believe England failed to rule properly and states why
the colonies have the right to rule themselves. It concludes with a formal declaration of independence
and the signatures of those in attendance at the Second Continental Congress.
26. What group helped to write the Declaration of Independence? _____________ __ ____________________
27. List the men in this group.
a. _______________________ b. _________________________ c. __________________________

d. _______________________ e. _________________________

28. Of these men, which one did most of the actual writing?_______________________________
29. Which Enlightenment writer most influenced Jefferson in the writing of the Declaration of Independence?