Transcript The French and Indian War

Influences on American Colonial
Government
Lesson 1
Essential Questions:
•How does geography influence the development of
communities?
•Why do people create, structure, and change
governments?
It Matters Because:
Ancient peoples and the great thinkers of the
Enlightenment influenced how the Founders shaped
our government in ways that still affect us today
The Foundations of Democracy
 Democracy- a government in which citizens hold the
power to rule
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Direct Democracy
Representative Democracy
 Direct Democracy- a form of democracy in which the
vote first hand
 Representative Democracy- a government in which
citizens choose a smaller group to govern on their
behalf
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
Republic
Constitutional Monarchy
Ancient Democracies
 Ancient Greeks created
the first direct democracy
 400s B.C, Athens
 Men 18 and older could take
part in the assembly
 Decisions made by council of
500
 Citizens took turns serving
on the council
 Members were paid for their
services
Republic
 The Romans created the first
republic
a representative democracy where
citizens choose their lawmakers
 Government was put in the
hands of the senate
 Senate members were wealthy
upper class members called
patricians
 Senate elected two members
called consults
 The consults lead the
government
Early English Influences
 Since the collapse of the Roman
Empire (A.D 476)
 Kings and Queens and Lords ruled
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Europe for the next 700 years
Lords- noblemen who usually inherited
land, wealth and power
Overtime the growth of towns as
business and trade centers weakened
the power of the lords
Kings gained greater control of their
kingdoms
Nobles resisted this change
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In England they rose up against King John
in 1215
He was forced to sign a document called
the Magna Carta
 Latin for “Great Charter”
The Magna Carta
 Limited the power of the
King
 Forbade him from placing
certain taxes on nobles
without their consent
 It gave rights to free men
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Right to equal treatment
under the law
Right to trial by one’s peers
Right to rebel if the King
broke his part of the
agreement
Limited Government
 Limited Government- the
idea that a ruler or
government is not all
powerful
 At first the Magna Carta
rights only protected the
nobles
 Overtime those rights came
to apply to all English people
 The Magna Carta established
limited government
Parliament
 After King John, Kings were advised by noble and
church officials
 Gradually these advisors grew to include
representatives of the common people
 By the late 1300s the advisors had become a legislature

Legislature- a group of people that make laws
 English monarch remained strong
 1625- King Charles I dismissed Parliament and
ruled alone
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Petitions of Right- like the Magna Carta, Charles I, was
forced to sign it
Civil war broke out when Charles I didn’t abide by the terms
Charles I was removed as King, beheaded, and Parliament
ruled for 20 years
King James II the son was place back on the throne
The English Bill of Rights
 In 1688 Parliament forced
King James II from the
throne
 The son of Charles I
 His daughter Mary and
husband William were
asked to rule
 This transfer of power was
known as the “Glorious
Revolution
The English Bill of Rights
 Mary and William had to accept
rules set by Parliament
 English citizens had rights that no
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king could violate
Citizens had the right to a fair trial
They could not be taxed unless
Parliament agreed
These Rights became known as the
English Bill of Rights
The signing of the English Bill of
Rights brought an end to the
struggles between Parliament and
the monarch
Influence of the Enlightenment
 Guiding Question: How did Europe’s
Enlightenment influence ideas about
government in what became the United
States?
 The conflict between Parliament and the
monarch produced new ideas about
Government
Enlightenment
 Enlightenment- a large cultural movement in Europe
driven by ideas
 1600s, scientific discoveries led to the belief that
God had created an orderly universe
 The laws that controlled the universe could be
discovered through human reasoning
 Apply the laws that ruled nature to people and society
 This change in how some people saw their world is
called the Enlightenment
 It had a great effect on political thinking in Europe and
the Americas
Enlightenment Thinkers
 Niccolo Machiavelli -
1469-1525
 Renaissance writer , wrote
the book The Prince
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“it is safer for a ruler to be
feared than loved”
Although he praised
republics as the best form
of government
Many enlightenment
thinkers look to
Machiavelli
Enlightenment Thinkers
 Thomas Hobbes -1588-1679
 Early enlightenment thinker
(English)
 Experienced the English Civil War
first hand
 Believed that a social contract
existed between the people and the
government
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People agreed to give up some
freedom and be ruled by government
Government had to protect the
people’s rights
He believe that people needed a
strong leader because they were too
selfish to be able to rule themselves
Enlightenment Thinkers
 John Locke -1632-1704 -English
 Influenced by the events of the
Glorious Revolution
 Published “Two Treatises of
Government”
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A treatise is a long essay
All people are born equal with certain
God-given rights called natural rights
Rights to life, freedom and to own
property
He also believed in a form of social
contract
If the ruler failed to protect the rights of
people, the contract was broken
Enlightenment Thinkers
 Jean-Jacques Rousseau -
1712-1778
 He wrote “The Social
Contract” -1762
 “Man is born free, yet
everywhere he is found in
chains”
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He was referring to Europeans
living with little freedom
He believed that people
should have right to decide
how they should be governed
Enlightenment Thinkers
 Baron de Montesquieu -
1689-1755, French
 Developed the idea that the
power of government should
be divided into branches
 He believed no one branch
would become to strong and
threaten peoples rights
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The idea of separation of
powers
Enlightenment Thinkers
 Francois-Marie Arouet
(Voltaire) -1694-1778
 People should have liberty
 Supported freedom of religion
and freedom of trade
 Social contract, natural rights,
and separation of powers
influenced the writers of
 The Declaration of
independence
 U. S. Constitution
The First Colonial Governments
 Guiding Question: How were first English colonies in
America shaped by earlier ideas about democracy and
government?
 Colony- an area of land in one place controlled by a
country in another place
 Early colonists were loyal to England
 They brought to America the traditions, beliefs, and
changes that had shaped England’s government
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Individual rights and representative government
Jamestown
 First permanent English
settlement
 Located in what is now
Virginia
 Founded in 1607 by the
Virginia Company
 A business owned by a
group of London
merchants
 Ruled by a governor and a
council
 The company appointed the
officials
Jamestown Government
 In 1619 the Virginia Company
allow the colony to make their
own laws
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This attracted more settlers
 Colonists elected leaders to
represent them in an assembly
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Leaders were called burgesses
The assembly was called the House of
Burgesses
The beginning of self-government and
representative democracy in colonial
America
Plymouth Settlement
 Pilgrims arrived in 1620
 They set sail for Virginia
on the ship Mayflower
 They were seeking
religious freedom
 Blown off course by a
storm
 Landed off the coast of
Massachusetts
 To survive they needed
to form their own
government
Mayflower Compact
 Before they went on land
they drew up the
Mayflower Compact
 Written agreement
 They agreed to choose
leaders and work together
to make their own laws for
the colony
 They agreed to obey the
laws
 The people in Plymouth
held town meetings to
discuss problems and make
decisions
Lesson 2
Settlement, Culture, and Government of the
Colonies
 Essential Question:
 How does geography influence the development of
communities ?
 Why do people create, structure and change
governments?
 It matters Because:
 The reasons early settlers came to America and the
economies and governments that grew helped to shape
the new United States and continues to influence
American culture today.
Settling the English Colonies
 Settlers mostly came from
England
 Others came from:
 Scotland, Ireland, and
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Wales
Germany
Africa (Slaves)
Amsterdam (Dutch)
Sweden
Economic Opportunity
 Most settlers settled here for
a chance to earn a living
 The colonies had land for
farming and other jobs
 Those who could not afford to
pay for the voyage came as
indentured servants
 Indentured servants- a worker
who contracted with American
colonists for food and shelter in
return for his or her labor
 They worked for 4-7 years or
until the debt was paid
Religious Freedom
 There was much religious unrest
in England
 Some groups were persecuted or
treated harshly because of their
religious beliefs
 Some groups decided to come to the
English colonies for religious freedom
 Puritans founded Massachusetts
 They were called Puritans because
they wanted to reform or purify the
church in England
 Puritans were dissenters- one who
opposes official or commonly held
views
Religious Freedom
 Puritans wanted to worship God in their own
way
 They did not allow others the same freedom
 They forced others to leave their colony
 Rhode Island- founded by Roger Williams
 Known for its religious freedom
 Connecticut- founded by Thomas Hooker
 Connecticut developed America’s first written
constitution
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The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
Colonists would elect an assembly of representatives from
each town
They also elected a governor
Colonial Life
 Guiding Question: How was life in the colonies
shaped by where people lived?
 People lived in different ways depending on where they
settled
 The features of its geography influenced each colony’s
economy
 By 1733 England had 13 colonies along the Atlantic coast
 Three economic regions were developed
New England Colonies
 Massachusetts, New Hampshire,
Connecticut, and Rhode Island
 Located farthest north
 Most people lived in towns
 Cold climate and rocky soil made
farming difficult
 Many of the colonists were Puritans
 Their religion stressed the value of
thrift and hard work
 Worked as shopkeepers, and other
small businesses
 Shipping and fishing
 Hunting for fur, trading with Native
Americans
Middle Colonies
 New York, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, and Delaware
 Located south of New England
 Climate and soil were better for
agriculture
 Cash crops- are grown in large
quantities to be sold, not just to feed
family
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Many crops were sold oversees
Many businesses were owned by colonists
from Germany, Holland and other
European countries
 Rich in Natural resources
 Lumber, metals and natural harbors
 Sawmills, mines, ironworks and other
businesses grew
The Southern Colonies
 Maryland, Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, and
Georgia
 Warm climate, long growing season,
and rich soil
 Large-scale agriculture
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Tobacco and rice became the main cash
crops
 Plantation- large farms
 Many workers were needed
 Indentured servants were used at first
 Plantation owners became dependent on
labor of enslaved Africans
 Smaller farmers- further inland
 Poorer soil and they mainly grew what
they needed
 Depended less on enslaved labor
Colonial Government
 Most colonies shared
their English heritage and
were loyal to England
 England was far away
 Colonists began to depend
on their own governments
and legislatures
 Colonists began to think of
themselves as Americans
rather than English subjects
Governing the Colonies
 In the beginning England’s government paid little
attention to the colonies
 Parliament was in a political struggle with the King
 The purpose of the colonies was to benefit England
 1650s Parliament began passing laws to regulate the
colonies’ trade
 These laws were hard to enforce
 Colonists began to resent having less rights than people
living in Great Britain
Lesson 3
Disagreements with Great Britain
 Essential Question: Why do people create, structure,
and change government
 It Matters Because:
 The events that led American colonists to declare
independence affected the choices they made about a
new government
Social and Political Changes in the Colonies
 Guiding Question: What events and movements affected
colonial attitude?
 The Great Awakening- religious movement from 1740s to
1760s
 Swept across the colonies
 Fiery preachers stressed the value of personal religious
experience
 They rejected the teachings of church leaders
 Urged people to build a direct relationship with God
 Pressed colonists to question traditional religious, and
political authority
Liberty
 The Great Awakening
movement created a strong
spirit of liberty or personal
freedom
 Colonists wanted the same
rights as people in Great
Britain
 Parliament created laws for
colonists and most governors
where appointed by the king
 Growing resentment in the
1760s towards British rule
The French and Indian War
 Colonies were expanding
westward (1750s)
 France claimed those lands
(Ohio Valley)
 The tension led to war
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The French and Indian War
 In Europe England and
France were at war
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The war in Europe spread to
America
The British won the war and
took control of French lands
The war was over so the
colonists expected the British
troops to leave
The British troops did not
leave
New Laws and Taxes
 French and Indian war left Britain in a lot of debt
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Colonists caused the war by moving west
 King George decided the colonists should pay for
the war
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He issued new taxes
He wanted to keep peace with the Native Americans
He issued an new proclamation or official statement that
forbade the colonists from settling in the land won from the
French
He placed over 10,000 British troops in the colonies to keep
order
These actions enraged the colonists
New Taxes
 King George asked Parliament
to tax the colonies to pay for
war debt
 In 1765 Parliament passed the
Stamp Act
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Colonists had to buy and place tax
stamps on many kinds of documents
Colonists protested and called for a
boycott, refused to buy, British
goods
The believed only their
representatives had the right to tax
them
1766 Parliament repealed or canceled
the Stamp Act
Colonial Dissatisfaction Grows
 Guiding Question: What
events increased colonists’
anger toward British rule?
 Townshend Acts- placed
duties (taxes) on a variety
of goods the colonists
imported from overseas
 Colonists again resisted
with boycott and protests
 Parliament repealed all
duties except for a tax on
tea
General Search Warrants
 One of the Townshend
Acts allowed for general
search warrants
 Combat smuggling-
illegally moving goods in or
out of a country
 Warrants were called writs of
assistance
 Could enter any business or
home to look for smuggled
goods
 Colonists were greatly
angered
John Hancock’s ship –The Liberty
Tea Act- 1773
 The Tea Act of 1773 was not a tax
 It allowed a British company
that grew tea in India to import
tea into the colonies without
paying existing taxes
 Colonies still had to pay taxes on
their tea
 Made the British companies tea
cheaper
 December 1773- Boston Tea
Party
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Colonists boarded British ships in
Boston Harbor
In protest they dumped 342 chests of
the British company’s tea into the
water
Parliament Response to Boston
Tea Party
 Parliament passed the
Coercive Acts
 These laws were meant to
punish Massachusetts,
especially Boston
 They closed Boston
Harbor
 The laws were so harsh,
colonists referred to them
as the Intolerable Acts
Steps Toward Independence
 Guiding Question: What
ideas about government
influenced the Declaration
of Independence?
 Parliament thought that
the Coercive Acts would
frighten the colonists
 Instead they had the
reverse affect
 The other colonies banded
together to help
Massachusetts and
challenge British authority
Boston Massacre –Engraving by Paul Revere
The First Continental Congress
 September 1774- Delegates from 12
Colonies met in Philadelphia
 They met to plan a united response to the
Coercive Acts
 What should be done about the issues with
Great Britain
 They decided to send a letter to the
King
 Asked that Britain respect the colonists’
rights as British citizens
 They also organized a total boycott of British
goods, and a ban on all trade with Britain
 King George’s response was for stronger
measures
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“Blows (a fight) must decide whether they are
subject to this country or independent.”
Second Continental Congress
 The delegates met again in May 1775
 April 1775, British troops and colonial militiamen had fought
at Lexington and Concord, in Massachusetts
 Congress had to decide whether to work towards peace or to
split with Great Britain
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They debated for months
 Support for independence grew in the colonies
 January 1776, Thomas Paine published a pamphlet titled
Common Sense –more than 500,000 sold
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He used John Locke’s ideas to make a case for independence
By spring more than half of the delegates favored independence
The Declaration of Independence
 A committee was chosen to explain why the colonies
should be free
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John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert
Livingston and Roger Sherman
 The committee chose Thomas Jefferson to write the
document
 He was influenced by the writings of
 Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Voltaire
 The Declaration of Independence was approved July 4,
1776
 John Hancock was the first to sign the document