Georgia and the American Experience

1. Georgia and the American Experience Chapter 5: From Royalty to Independence, 1752-1783 Study Presentation © 2005 Clairmont Press

2. Georgia and the American Experience Section 1: The Colonial Period Section 2: Georgia Becomes a Royal Colony Section 3: The Call for Independence Section 4:The Revolutionary War Period

3. Section 1: The Colonial Period • Essential Question: • What were the similarities and differences between the three colonial regions in terms of political, economic, and socio-religious development?

4. Section 1: The Colonial Period • What words do I needtoknow? • New England Colonies • Middle Colonies • Southern Colonies • apprentice • puritans

5. Comparing the Colonies

6. Colonial Transportation and Communication • Boats used for shipping and transportation • Stagecoaches were available, but slow mode of transportation • Many old Indian trails were used • Newspapers read in cities; news often old when it arrived in rural areas

7. Education in the Colonies • Schooling took place in home or church; boys were taught practical skills • Girls learned homemaking skills • Apprentices learned specific skills from master craftsmen • First public schools began in New England; only boys attended • Wealthy families in South hired private tutors or had their sons schooled in Europe • Primitive “Old Field Schools” opened for boys from “common” families

8. Religion in Colonial Georgia • Anglican Church, or Church of England, made official church of Georgia colony in 1758 • Church attendance expected; shorter sermons and music common • Moravians and Jews also practiced religion in Georgia

9. Leisure Activities in Southern Colonies • Fox hunting, horse races, week-long parties with friends and relatives popular • Food central to large social gatherings • Children’s games: jump rope, hoops, tennis, London bridge, hopscotch, leap frog, yo-yos and puzzles • Storytelling

10. Romance and Marriage • Girls often married in their early teens • Courtships took place at dances, church, or during supervised home visits • Weddings were a day-long affair with great celebrations • Some wealthy families arranged marriages for business gain • Husbands were expected to provide; wives could not own property Click to return to Table of Contents

11. Section 2: Georgia Becomes A Royal Colony • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • What political forces shaped Georgia after it became a royal colony?

12. Section 2: Georgia Becomes a Royal Colony • What words do I need to know? • proprietary colony • royal colony • parish • French and Indian War • palisades • cracker • independence

13. Change in Colonial Government Status • Proprietary Colony: governed by a Board of Trustees • Georgia ceased to be Proprietary Colony in 1752 • Royal Colony: colony directly governed by the King • Georgia became a Royal Colony in 1752; some people returned to Georgia who had left the colony while it was proprietary

14. The First Royal Government • Naval Captain John Reynolds, first royal governor, arrived in 1754 • Reynolds introduced the idea of self-government • Two-chamber legislature set up: Commons House of Assembly (Lower House) and Governor’s Council (Upper House) • Court of Conscience settled disputes; overseen by justice of the peace • Only people owning 50 or more acres of land could vote

15. North America, 1754 • Spain claimed Florida and Mexico • France claimed land from Louisiana to the Great Lakes, and parts of Canada; New Orleans (south) and Detroit (north) anchored French settlements • Great Britain had established the 13 coloniesalong the Atlantic coast

16. French and Indian WarOrigins • France and Great Britain wanted the treasures of the American continent • Both countries feared the other would gain the most power • France had the stronger army with more experienced leadership; British had better navy • Both sides had allies with certain Indian tribes

17. The French and Indian War • Both sides claimed the Ohio River Valley area (more than 200,000 square miles) • The French built several forts in the area; many Indians sided with the French • The Virginia governor sent Captain George Washington with soldiers to Fort Necessity (near today’s Pittsburgh); a battle erupted • The war soon spread to Europe; by 1758, the British controlled the Ohio Valley • The Treaty of Paris (1763) ended the war

18. Georgia and the War’s Aftermath • Treaty of Paris set Georgia’s western boundary at the Mississippi River • Proclamation of 1763 (King George III): Georgia’s southern boundary set at St. Mary’s River; Georgia colonists could not settle west of the Appalachian Mountains • Cherokee and Creek tribes gave up land claims north of Augusta and in the coastal region

19. Georgia’s First Assembly • First met in Savannah in 1755 • Passed bills to repair and build roads • Organized a militia • Codes created to limit rights of slaves • Governor Reynolds was replaced in 1757 by Captain Henry Ellis

20. Governor Henry Ellis • Believed Savannah was one the world’s hottest places • Colonists immigrated to Georgia from South Carolina and the West Indies • Offered large land grants and slavery increased (3,600 slaves by 1759) • The economy flourished; more farms and goods to buy • In 1761, Ellis became royal governor of Nova Scotia, in Canada

21. Governor James Wright • Wanted to expand Georgia’s western lands to settlers • Completed Savannah’s defenses by strengthening forts and building palisades (fences made of sharpened stakes) • Sunbury became Georgia’s official port of entry • Land purchases increased greatly • More schools established, but for upper class children

22. Georgia Crackers • People from Virginia and the Carolinas settled into middle and western parts of the colony • Plantation owners viewed them as “undesirable people” • Soon, these lower class peoples were called “crackers,” which was meant as an insult • Crackers were not welcome and thought of as ones who did not obey the colony’s laws Click to return to Table of Contents

23. Section 3: The Call for Independence • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • How was Georgia’s role in the Revolutionary War affected by the attitudes of the colonists?

24. Section 3: The Call for Independence • What words do I need to know? • Tories • Patriots • Boycotts • Proclamation of 1763 • Liberty Boys • Acts (Sugar, Stamp, Townsend, Quartering)

25. Unhappy with British Acts • Great Britain needed money; much debt and security expenses resulted from the French and Indian War • Sugar Act: tax on sugar and molasses imported from the West Indies • Stamp Act: tax on newspapers, legal documents, and licenses • Georgians disapproved of these acts

26. The Liberty Boys • Georgians who came together to oppose the Stamp Act • Part of larger group, the “Sons of Liberty” • Some called them “Liberty Brawlers” • Met in taverns, such as Savannah’s Tondee’s Tavern • Georgia only colony to actually sell the stamps • Stamp Act was eventually repealed

27. Protests Increase • Noble Wimberly Jones, speaker of Georgia colonial assembly, led Townshend Act protests • Townshend Acts:placed import taxes on tea, paper, glass, and coloring for paints • Governor Wright disbanded the assembly to try to end the protests

28. Continental Congress • Met in Philadelphia in September 1774 to protest “Intolerable Acts” levied against the Massachusetts colonists • Georgia was not represented • Urged colonies to establish “Committees of Safety” • Agreed to stop all trade with Britain • Carried on its work in secret • “Provincial Congress” held in Savannah in January 1775; less than one-half of Georgia’s parishes were represented Click to return to Table of Contents

29. Section 4: The Revolutionary War Period • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • Why was there an American Revolution?

30. Section 4: The American Revolution • What words do I need to know? • Second Continental Congress • Declaration of Independence • ratify • Articles of Confederation • siege • Treaty of Paris (1783)

31. Second Continental Congress • Met in Philadelphia after Lexington and Concord battles • Drafted petition for King George III, asking for end of unfriendly steps against the colonies • Georgia III refused to accept the petition • Authorized Continental Army • Georgia’s Lyman Hall arrived in May 1775

32. Georgia’s Second Provincial Congress • Held at Tondee’s Tavern in Savannah in July 1775 • Archibald Bulloch, John Houstoun, Noble Wimberly Jones, and Reverend John Zubly chosen to represent Georgia in Philadelphia • Delegates given no specific instructions; told to make best decisions for Georgians • Governor Wright fled colony in early 1776; Council of Safety established “Rules and Regulations” to govern Georgia

33. Declaration of Independence • Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” pamphlet encourage colonies to break from Great Britain; sold more than 500,000 copies • Other pamphlets, including “The Crisis” influenced opinion • August 2, 1776: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, and George Walton sign the Declaration of Independence • The Declaration meant the colonists were one nation; Georgians prepared for war

34. Georgia’s First State Constitution • About one-third of Georgians remained loyal to Great Britain; they were called Tories • The Whigs influenced a state constitution allowing separation of powers and giving citizens rights to agree how they were governed • May 1777: Constitution adopted at Constitutional Convention in Savannah • Eight counties formed: Burke, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Richmond, Wilkes, and Liberty

35. The 1777 Georgia Constitution • The governor’s power was limited • Executive Council (12 legislators) held greatest power • Council could overrule the governor’s decisions • John Treutlen appointed Georgia’s first governor • Georgia’s 1777 Constitution changed in 1789

36. The Articles of Confederation • First Constitution of the United States of America • Ratified (approved) on July 4, 1776 • Went into effect in January 1781, when ratified by Maryland and Virginia

37. Revolutionary War Fighting in Georgia • Savannah captured and looted by British troops in December 1778; lootings, murders, and burnings occurred • Sunbury port captured in early 1779; Augusta was also attacked • Georgia militia not effective against well-trained British troops • Governor Wright eventually returned from Great Britain to govern Georgia

38. Battle of Kettle Creek (1779) • Colonel Elijah Clarke led Georgia militia, defeated 800 British troops near Washington, Georgia • Great victory for morale of the militia and Georgians seeking independence • Won badly-needed weapons and horses from the British

39. Siege of Savannah (1779) • 15,000 Americans and 4,000 French laid siege to Savannah • Attack on October 9 resulted in 1,000 American and French deaths in less than an hour; only 40 British troops died • Polish Count Casimir Pulaski killed • Savannah remained under British control for nearly four more years • Guerrilla warfare continued in the Georgia backcountry

40. Georgia Wartime Heroes • Nancy Hart single-handedly captured a group of British loyalists who bragged of murdering an American colonel; Hart County is the only county named for a woman • Austin Dabney fought with distinction and was wounded at Kettle Creek; he also saved Elijah Clarke’s life during that battle

41. The War Ends • Elijah Clarke, the Georgia Militia,and the Continental Army regain Augusta from British in June 1781; 11 battles or skirmishes fought in Georgia during the war • George Washington, with French help, force British surrender at Yorktown, Virginia in October 1781 • British leave Savannah in the spring of 1782 • Treaty of Paris (September 1783) ends war; treaty is signed by United States, Great Britain, and France Click to return to Table of Contents

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