Current events:
Today's lesson plan and HW is available on the blog: http://gmicksmithsocialstudies.blogspot.com/
Email: gmsmith@shanahan.org
The Shanawiki page (http://shanawiki.wikispaces.com/) has updated class information.
The online version of the Textbook is available.
LibraryThing has bibliographic resources.
I moved the "Blog Archive" to the top right on the blog page so it should be easier to find the daily lesson, HW, and other class material.
Along these lines, we can consider the Slideshare about The Enlightenment and the Founding of America. (http://www.slideshare.net/mhammond/enlightenment-presentation)
Next, I had asked you to consider other references and exercises on Sec. 4.
Of the three I had you to take a look at, which was the class favorite?
1. We can view an online exhibit about the Revolutionary War.
2. Also, we can view newspaper accounts of the American Revolution with a time line and quiz.
3. We might also explore an interactive portrait of George Washington.
Let's transition then to the other side, the British:
Britain Becomes a Global Power (Audio)
There are several key reasons for Britain’s rise to global prominence:
*Location placed England in a position to control trade. In the 1500s and 1600s, English merchants sent ships across the world’s oceans and planted outposts in the West Indies, North America, and India. From these tiny settlements, England would build a global empire.
*England offered a climate favorable to business and commerce and put fewer restrictions on trade than some of its neighbors.
*In the 1700s, Britain was generally on the winning side in European conflicts. With the Treaty of Utrecht, France gave Nova Scotia and Newfoundland to Britain. In 1763, the end of the French and Indian War and the Seven Years’ War brought Britain all of French Canada. The British also monopolized the slave trade in Spanish America, which brought enormous wealth to British merchants.
*England’s territory expanded closer to home as well. In 1707, England and Wales were united with Scotland to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Free trade with Scotland created a larger market for farmers and manufacturers. Ireland had come under English control during the 1600s. It was formally united with Great Britain in 1801.
In 1760, George III began a 60-year reign. Unlike his father and grandfather, the new king was born in England. He spoke English and loved Britain. But George was eager to recover the powers the crown had lost. Following his mother’s advice, “George, be a king!” he set out to reassert royal power. He wanted to end Whig domination, choose his own ministers, dissolve the cabinet system, and make Parliament follow his will. Gradually, George found seats in Parliament for “the king’s friends.” Then, with their help, he began to assert his leadership. Many of his policies, however, would prove disastrous.
Checkpoint for our Shanawiki page. (http://shanawiki.wikispaces.com/)
What led to Britain’s rise to global prominence in the mid-1700s?
Colonists Express Discontent
The Seven Years’ War and the French and Indian War in North America had drained the British treasury. King George III and his advisers thought that the colonists should help pay for these wars.
To increase taxes paid by colonists, Parliament passed the Sugar Act in 1764, which imposed import taxes, and the Stamp Act in 1765, which imposed taxes on items such as newspapers and pamphlets.
“No taxation without representation,” the colonists protested. They believed that because they had no representatives in Parliament, they should not be taxed.
Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in 1766, but then passed a Declaratory Act that said it had complete authority over the colonists.
Colonists Rebel Against Britain
A series of violent clashes intensified the colonists’ anger. In March 1770, British soldiers in Boston opened fire on a crowd that was pelting them with stones and snowballs.
Colonists called the death of five protesters the Boston Massacre. Then in December 1773, a handful of colonists hurled a cargo of recently arrived British tea into the harbor to protest a tax on tea. The incident became known as the Boston Tea Party.
When Parliament passed harsh laws to punish Massachusetts for the destruction of the tea, other colonies rallied to oppose the British response.
As tensions increased, fighting spread. Finally, representatives from each colony gathered in Philadelphia and met in a Continental Congress to decide what action to take.
Among the participants were the radical yet fair-minded Massachusetts lawyer John Adams, who had defended the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre in their trial; Virginia planter and soldier George Washington; and political and social leaders from all 13 colonies.
Primary Source
Audio (in-class)
stands as one of the most important documents in all of history. It still serves as inspiration for people around the world. Where did some of the ideas of the Declaration originate?
The Declaration of IndependencePrimary Source
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. 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 these ends it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
—Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776
Colonists Declare Independence
In April 1775, the ongoing tension between the colonists and the British exploded into war in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. This war is known as the Revolutionary War, or the American Revolution.
What we did on our summer vacation, Summer 2009
Do research on the U.S.S. Constitution. What can you find out about this remarkable ship, nicknamed "Old Ironsides?"
The Congress met soon after and set up a Continental Army, with George Washington in command. Although many battles ended in British victories, the colonists were determined to fight at any cost. In 1776, the Second Continental Congress took a momentous step, voting to declare independence from Britain. Thomas Jefferson of Virginia was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, a document that reflects John Locke’s ideas of the government’s obligation to protect the people’s natural rights to “life, liberty, and property.”
The Declaration included another of Locke’s ideas: people had the right “to alter or to abolish” unjust governments—a right to revolt. The principle of popular sovereignty, which states that all government power comes from the people, is also an important point in the Declaration. Jefferson carefully detailed the colonists’ grievances against Britain. Because the king had trampled colonists’ natural rights, he argued, the colonists had the right to rebel and set up a new government that would protect them. Aware of the risks involved, on July 4, 1776, American leaders adopted the Declaration, pledging “our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor” to creating and protecting the new United States of America.
Checkpoint
What Enlightenment ideas are reflected in the Declaration of Independence?
George Washington
When George Washington (1732–1799) was chosen to lead the American army, the British thought he would be a failure. Washington indeed faced many challenges, including an army that did not have weapons, uniforms, or bedding. He struggled to incorporate order and discipline and to instill pride and loyalty in his soldiers. Washington persevered to American victory. His success as a leader continued when he became the nation’s first President. How did Washington hold the army together through difficult times?
James Madison
James Madison (1751–1836) arrived at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in May 1787 with his thick notebooks on history and government. Madison chose a seat in front of the president’s chair and kept detailed notes of the debates. Madison was greatly respected and quickly became the Convention’s floor leader. His notebooks remained unpublished for more than 50 years, but they are now our main source of information about the birth of the Constitution. What did the Framers of the Constitution have in common?
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) was a philosopher, scientist, publisher, legislator, and diplomat. Sent by Congress to France in 1776 to seek financial and military support for the war, he soon became popular in France because of his intellect and wit. Those who admired America’s goal of attaining freedom also admired Franklin. When Franklin returned to America after nine years, he served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention as the eldest of the delegates. Why was Franklin admired in France?
HW: email me at gmsmith@shanahan.org.
You have a 20 question, multiple choice Test on Monday on Chapter 10 material. (I will not be in tomorrow on Friday; I am attending a National Honor Society induction for a very unique person).