American Revoultion

¶ … American Revolution

There were many reasons why the American Revolutionary War was fought; and although it was mainly fought because of the desire for independence from the British government, there were other factors. And there were many key dates that are associated with the revolution. This paper will review those events and key dates in an attempt to provide an accurate overview and analysis of that great war that liberated the colonists from the British rule.

RELIGION: Religion played a major role in the revolution, according to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. On its Web site, the Library of Congress (LOC) (http://www.loc.gov) has a section called "Religion and the Founding of the American Republic." The reason religion played a big role, the LOC explains, is that religion offered a "moral sanction" for opposition to the British. In other words, all the bloodshed and violence that was to come, was justified by the religious colonists because God was on their side, they believed. By turning the resistance against the British into a cause that had a righteous tone to it, the article explained, and by "crying the message" to all people in all walks of society, the ministers did a great deal of the work to get the people ready for their separation from England.

The ministers that took responsibilities helped out the cause a great deal, the LOC explains; ministers served as military chaplains, as "penman" for correspondence committees, and as elected representatives to state legislatures, constitutional conventions and the national Congress. There were even members of the clergy who took up arms.

HOW THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR WAS BEGUN AND WON

One of the biggest events that kicked off the action which led to out-and-out war was the so-called "Boston Tea Party." But well before that, in 1765, King George III signed into law the Stamp Act, which taxed the American Colonies in order that the British could pay for the French & Indian War; that seemed very unfair of the new colonists in the New World, who had come to this land for religious freedom and to start a new way of life. In July of 1765, several patriots got together in Boston to oppose the Stamp Act; they were called "Sons of Liberty," according to "Timeline of Events in Revolutionary America" (Library of Congress). In August of 1765, an angry mob of colonists burned down the house of Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Thomas Hutchinson, to protest the Stamp Act. In 1766, England repealed the Stamp Act, but they passed the "Declaratory Act," which basically gave them the right to pass any laws they want in the colonies.

The Townshend Acts were passed by England in 1767, which meant more new taxes on American colonists. All of these acts which took money from the pockets of colonists added fuel to the fire that was building against England. In 1768, Samuel Adams wrote a letter protesting that the colonists were being taxed without representation, and he called for colonists to unite against the British. In March, 1770, five colonists were killed by British soldiers; it was known as the "Boston Massacre," and it caused more anger against Britain. In May of 1773, according to the Library of Congress time line, a new Tea Act was put in place by the British, and in December, 1773, the "Sons of Liberty" and other patriots dumped 342 crates of tea into Boston Harbor, known as "The Boston Tea Party" and alluded to earlier in this paper.

What did the British do in response to the tea party? In 1774, four British regiments were sent to Boston to close the city's port, and offer a show of military might against the rebellious colonists. Also in 1774, the British Parliament passed the "Intolerable Acts" which were designed to punish the colonists. In September, 1774, the First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia to begin discussing how to deal with England's iron hand over the colonies.

In 1775, Patrick Henry gave his famous speech ("give me liberty or give me death") to lawmakers in Virginia; he urges a citizens' army to defeat the British. The first shots of the Revolutionary War are fired after Paul Revere rode his horse through Concord and Lexington to warn colonists that the British soldiers are coming. Also in 1775, George Washington is given command of the Continental army, and John Hancock is appointed president of the Second Continental Congress. In August of 1775, King George III makes a declaration that the colonies are in open rebellion against the British.

The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia, by the Continental Congress. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal..." is the beginning of the declaration. Thomas Jefferson is given credit for most of the writing of the declaration, along with John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and others.

In December, 1776, things are not looking good for General Washington's troops; four months of battle has left 6,000 volunteers in his army very weary and wishing to go home for Christmas. Washington's troops have been "swept off" of Long Island (www.pbs.org),and is camped on the Delaware River. In Saratoga New York, on October 17, 1777, things have turned around dramatically for Washington and his army. The British Army (7,000 strong) surrendered, with the British General saying "The fortunes of war have made me your prisoner." The news of this surrender had a very positive effect on the colonies.

In 1778, France and the United States signed treaties of alliance and of trade, and these cooperative measures were to prove very helpful as the Revolutionary War dragged on.

Meanwhile, on October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his army, the entire British Army, to American and French forces near Yorktown, Virginia. The French had been a big help to the Americans; offshore, the French navy blocked any British ships from coming into Virginia to help Cornwallis's troops, and onshore, the "incessant shelling of the French and American guns" made it very difficult for the British troops to hang on.