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Topic : Judging Colonial Opinions at the Onset of the Revolution

Explore the initial phase of the American Revolution, the impact of Thomas Paine's Common Sense pamphlet, and Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence. Understand the division among colonists and the reasons why some Americans chose not to join the revolution.

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Topic : Judging Colonial Opinions at the Onset of the Revolution

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  1. Topic: Judging Colonial Opinions at the Onset of the Revolution Do Now: “The American ‘Revolution’ was nothing of the kind. It was a war led by a group of ambitious people fighting for economic benefits, not some lofty goal of freedom or equality.” Briefly defend or refute this statement

  2. The Initial Phase • Second Continental Congress (May ’75) • Second list of grievances • Washington as General • Arnold and Allen at Ticonderoga • June ’75- Bunker Hill • July ‘75- Olive Branch Petition • Late 1775 • British burn Portsmouth, Norfolk • Rebel victory in South Carolina

  3. Thomas Paine: Stirring Up The Revolutionary Spirit • Common Sensepamphlet (1776) • Urged all colonials to fight • Small vs. large (natural) • George III –”Royal Brute of Britain” • Biblical imagery Republican Virtue • Mass democracy vs. meritocracy? • Support for Revolution increased

  4. Thomas Jefferson: The Declaration of Independence • Colonial legislatures want a “break” w/Britain • Continental Congress approves of “independence” (Richard Henry Lee) • Jefferson appointed to write the statement: • wrongs of the King • Colonies had the right to revolt • “natural rights” of humankind

  5. The “War at Home” • Not all colonists united (war within a war) • Patriots, Loyalists, “Neutrals” • British difficulty in controlling Patriot areas (New England) • Tory Zones: NY, NJ, parts of Penn • Grounds of Division: • Generation, section, religion, “class” • Confiscation of “tory” property • Were loyalists “used” correctly by British (50,000)?

  6. Conclusion • In what ways did Paine and Jefferson contribute to the ideals of the Revolution? • Why did some Americans not join the Revolution, even after 1776?

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