1. The American Revolution 1.02
Getting the idea: The traditions of British law and the political philosophy of the Enlightenment guided the development of the early American colonies and the founding of the United States. British actions such as taxes and quartering soldiers led early Americans to revolt against Britain and win independence.

2. Early Foundations of Law and Government
The Magna Carta, or Great Charter, limited the power of the king by granting liberties to certain subjects
Drawn up in 1215
Guaranteed rights such as the right to a fair trial and protection from having property seized without due process of law.
Basis of British common law-based on customs and court rather than laws

3. Natural Rights
Parliament, a legislative body= The beginning of representative government. Their first action was to pass the “British Bill of Rights”
British Bill of Rights
Recognized a number of natural rights, Rights you have by simply being people
~Life, liberty, property~
Also guaranteed the right to a fair trial before a jury of peers
Guaranteed freedom of speech
Rights guaranteed by the British Bill of Rights were later included in the U.S Constitution.

4. Ideas of Enlightenment
Social Contract Theory
~ Government comes from the consent of the governed
~ Individuals agree to join together equally under a common law for protection against violence, for protection of their rights, and to achieve a common good.
The Pilgrims drew up a contract called the Mayflower Compact. The colonist established a system of law under which they would live. Direct Democracy
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut- established the basis for the political and legal system there.
The House of Burgesses, established in Jamestown, VA was the first representative governing body.

5. Discontent With Foreign Rule 1.03
In the 1600’s the British government passes a series of NAVIGATION ACTS. Which stated that the British colonies can only trade with the Mother Country.
During this time though the colonies enjoyed a period of “Salutary neglect”
The British did not pay too close attention to its American colonies so they spent a relatively free period of self-government.

6. Between 1754 and 1763, Britain and France fought the French and Indian War. The British government started taxing the colonists to help pay for the war. The period of Salutary Neglect was over!
The British began introducing a system of taxation that continued for the next two decades
The colonists considered these laws unfair…but what could they do?

7. The British Government Acts…..
Proclamation of Prohibited the colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains.
Writs of Assistance- Passed in 1760’s gave British officers the authority to search people’s homes for smuggled goods WITHOUT a warrant
Stamp Act- Passed in Placed a tax on all materials printed on paper, including newspapers, pamphlets, and playing cards.
Sons of Liberty- publicly burned British stamps
Boycotting starting occurring all over the colonies
Stamp Act Congress- Protested the Stamp Act.
Sent a petition to the king that stated that the Colonies could
not be taxed except with the consent of their elected assemblies
The Stamp Act was repealed<canceled

8. …The Acts Continued
The Declaratory Act- passed in Stated that Britain could tax the colonists without consulting them.
Quartering Act The colonists were required by law to provide temporary housing and food to British soldiers. The colonists considered this an unwanted intrusion into their privacy.

9. The Seeds of Rebellion
The British government became alarmed that the colonist had so much resentment towards the government!
The British sent troops to keep order.
In 1770 a group of Boston citizens taunted a British regiment, and the regiment killed five people….. THE BOSTON MASSACRE
The Sons of Liberty formed printing anti-British literature…. Driven by a “Committee of Correspondence”

10. The Boston Tea Party Occurred in 1773
American merchants protested that the lower prices charged by the British (due to the Tea Act) would hurt their business.
Members of the Sons of Liberty dressed up as American Indians and boarded British ships and dumped the tea into the harbor
The British Government passed the strictest laws ever, they were called the Coercive Acts. The Colonists called them the “Intolerable Acts”

11. The Albany Plan of Union
Pamphlets like Thomas Paine’s Common Sense argued for independence
In 1774 The First Continental Congress was established… The focus was getting the colonies’ rights restored.
However, some delegates wanted to create an independent republican union of states
In 1754 Benjamin Franklin helped draft the Albany Plan of Union
* This was an effort to unite the colonies for their common defense
The Albany Plan of Union

12. King George III did not respond well to the growing resistance by the colonies
After the 1st Continental Congress sent a letter demanding their rights back or else face continuous boycotting from the colonies…the King responded by force.
The first battles of the Revolutionary War took place in Massachusetts at Lexington and Concord
* “the shot heard ‘round the world”- the shot that started the revolutionary war
The 2nd Continental Congress met to discuss Independence
The Declaration of Independence- Signed in Listed the many abuses the colonies had suffered under the British King.

13. Assignment
Write a 2 paragraph paper justifying the colonist right to rebel against the British or the British right to keep their colonies.
This is due tomorrow,

14. Remember 3s and 4s on the EOC
The End!!
Thank you for
paying attention!!
Remember 3s and 4s on the EOC