After our class debate about the colonists’ ideas concerning separation, I began to wonder what were the final avenues taken to try to avert the Revolutionary War. To find a source pertinent to my interest and fitting for our assignment, I searched the “historymatters.gmu.edu” site using the key words “Revolutionary War primary document.” The search provided several documents, such as Washington’s papers at the Library of Congress, Martha Ballard’s diary, as well as a few others. None of the documents in my original search were specific enough to my interests in the days leading up to the American Revolution. I then narrowed my search to documents written in 1775 and found a link in The University of Georgia Tech’s American history documents database to The Olive Branch Petition.
In July 1775, The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia to discuss possible courses of action following the most recent battle with Britain at Bunker Hill. Members of the Congress disagreed about what steps to take in dissolving the confrontation with Parliament and King George III. Separatists, such as John Adams, were fed up with decades of British colonization and were ready for sovereignty, even if at the price of war. Yet Congressional moderates garnered enough support to attempt one last-ditch effort to stop further bloodshed and end the conflict amicably. The Congress decided to write yet another letter, send it to London, and hope the king would be receptive. They called the letter The Olive Branch Petition.
The Olive Branch Petition professed colonial loyalty to his majesty in a final appeal for peaceful reconciliation with Britain. Fighting with the British had already started with the Battles of Concord, Lexington, and Bunker Hi...
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...arliament, caused the colonies to become more and more independent throughout the eighteenth century. Yet the colonists wanted to exhaust every remedy to their grievances before resorting to war. Declaring independence was never going to be a swift process, as each colony progressed at a different rate. Nonetheless, forming a colonial army at the same time as attempting to negotiate peaceful conciliation with the British was not at first a popular decision, yet to many the benefits outweighed the possible losses. In the end, the rejection of the Olive branch represented a watershed in the evolution of a national identity that was completely independent of a British identity, for its dismissal stiffened the patriots’ resolve toward independence and paved the way for the penning of a much more famous letter to the king, the Declaration of Independence.
Their need to make peace made them write a petition that tributed a man they deemed despicable. King George III was their enemy, on the contrary after reading the plea one would say he was a “great man” crucial to the colonists. In the king’s lense, The Olive Branch Petition may have seemed as fragility, demonstrating the desperation of the people, he was not amenable to fulfill. In addition, they state they are connected with Britain by unbreakable ties, which is ironic because the sole purpose of fleeing was independence. The Olive Branch Petition was their last endeavor to make truce peacefully; thus, the American Revolution was waged as a war of last resort. Also, the colonists constantly mention the benefits of being an ally with Britain, depicting that it was not their first choice to conduct a war. Adversity was at such level that they risked destabilizing their economy and their comfort to be free. They did not want to be isolated from great Britain because they considered them as the roots from which they sprouted. Nevertheless, the anguish was so high that the colonists decided to risk their security for
The Olive Branch Petition is historically known as one of the most important documentations that influenced the American Revolution, taken place in 1775. The Olive Branch Petition was the last and final opportunity for Great Britain to agree with a nonviolent negotiation with the Colonist...
On the brink of revolution, the colonies were divided amongst themselves. Two factions with different ideologies “The Patriots” & and the “The Loyalist”, to know these factions we must first know another. Because both parties played a pivotal role in the “American Revolution”.
On the eve of the American Revolution, colonists have signified and ensured their newly discovered identity by coming together to rid the American colonies of the British monarchical influence. Throught means of newly developed legislatures, both passive and aggressive protests, and formation of propaganda were the American colonists able to engrave their identity on the future of America forever.
The eighteenth century, a time of turmoil and chaos in the colonies, brought many opinionated writers to the forefront in support or refutation of the coming American Revolution. This highly controversial war that would ultimately separate the future United States of America from Great Britain became the center of debate. Two writers, both of whom supported the Revolution, now stand to fully illuminate one side of the debate. Thomas Paine, a radical propagandist, wrote many pieces during this time including “The Crisis Number 1” (1776). Through writing, he appealed to the “common man” in order to convince them to gather their arms and fight for their freedom. In this document, he utilizes many of the same rhetorical skills and propaganda techniques as Patrick Henry, a convincing orator, did in his famous speech delivered to the state’s delegates in 1775. Among these techniques are transfer, abstract language, and pathos. In both works, these were used to call the audiences to war. These influential pieces both contained a call to action which, through the use of strong and decisive language, aided the beginning of the American Revolution.
They also helped create many things, including The Continental Army; George Washington being Commander-in-charge. The Olive Branch Petition was formed by the congress and sent to King George III to try and avoid a war between 13 colonies, but just made the king declare and prepare for a war. The congress also formed the Committee of Correspondence, active from 1775 to 1776. The Committee played a big part in lure allies and get French assistance. There was also the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, which was an official paper provided by The Second Congress on July 6,1775, to describe why the thirteen colonies had taken up arms in what had become the American Revolutionary War. The Congress also introduced The Lee Resolution, a solution of freedom that was a deed by The Second Continental Congress, proclaiming, the United Colonies to be free of the British Territory. The Declaration of Independence was also a big part in The Second Congress; this is a establishing contract of the American political historical convention that build the American republic saying that all men are made equivalent and possess the same built-in original entitlement.
After the French and Indian war, the Britain saw a need for the “more centralized control” (Outline of U.S. History, 2011, p.52). They felt as necessary to eliminate any interference from the colonialists. The colonies on the other hand, expected more freedom and independence. Hence there was a forthcoming conflict. When the organization of Canada and Ohio valley would not adopt the policies to “alienate the French and Indian inhabitants, and British needed more money and land for settlement” (54) and fear of more war erupting, the restricting and taxation laws were passed. For example the Proclamation Act of 1763, Stamp Act of 1764 and others. Although some of these were passed to counter the other, it was still evident that there was a conflict between the colonialists and the British. General Thomas Gage commanded the garrison in Boston, and his main duty was to enforce the Coercive Act (57). His forces were raided the “minutemen and eight killed in the attack “(59), and pushed on to Concord. Soldiers were lost during the fight. The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia and voted to go to war; Colonel Washington of Virginia was the Commander in Chief (59). Despite the break of war many people seen it has impossible to break the ties with England. At the end of that year, December 23, Thomas Paine, who had previously
An Analysis About the Interpretations of the Document “The Costs of Revolution” Created Between American Colonists in Support of the American Revolution and Those Not in Support.
Subsequently, it was appointed to King George III; withal, it was rejected. Obstinacy and greed characterized him, and torment was his specialty. He planned on keeping the “New World” for himself without even considering the outlook from his fellow men. He was not interested in making any type of variation, seeking only for domination. Written in the Olive Branch Petition, there is a line that reads “...your royal authority and influence may be graciously interposed to procure us relief from our afflicting fears and jealousies…” (Dickinson, John). That displays the everlasting fear that lived within the people of the thirteen colonies. The repercussions of the king’s disgraceful actions were The Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War. John Dickinson and the Continental Congress enunciate that they want to settle peace through every part of their dominions. However, the jilt of the petition divulged war as the only option, unless they wanted their doctrines of morality crushed. The colonists praised King George to such degree that misery came from his adoration; their need to make peace made them write a petition that tributes a man they deemed
In the world’s lens during the 1760s, the British empire had a clear and prominent control over the colonies. However, by the mid-1770s the Americans became enraged enough to declare war against the British for independence. Due to Britain’s massive imperial presence around the globe, the British civilians had a strong inclination for a successful outcome. Instead, the colonists pulled a surprising victory from what should have been a swift defeat. While the British had an abundance of advantages, they lost the Revolutionary War because the British army underestimated the colonists’ perseverance for freedom.
By the time of the late 18th century, the colonies had grown socially, culturally, economically, and politically setting the mood for a majority of the colonists to want to break ties with the mother country. The colonies were well established, growing rapidly with new settlers arriving, and had begun to interact and socialize with not only each other, but also the Indians and the French, with whom they shared the new lands. (Devore, Lecture # 3.) These newfound social and cultural interactions allowed the colonies to grow economically giving the colonists a sense of importance. The lack of recognition by parliament started to plant the seeds for the revolution.
For over a century Great Britain had ruled the colonies in America. Since the founding of the Chesapeake Bay colony in the south in 1607, and the Massachusetts Bay colony in the north in 1630, the colonies had relied on the crown for many of their needs. Over time the colonists established a social and economical system that was almost independent of the British Empire. In April of 1775, after many transgressions on both sides, the colonists decided that they no longer needed, or wanted the support, protection, and leadership of the country that founded them. There were many factors, both immediate, and longstanding that lead to the decision to fight for freedom from British rule.
However, the author 's interpretations of Jefferson 's decisions and their connection to modern politics are intriguing, to say the least. In 1774, Jefferson penned A Summary View of the Rights of British America and, later, in 1775, drafted the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (Ellis 32-44). According to Ellis, the documents act as proof that Jefferson was insensitive to the constitutional complexities a Revolution held as his interpretation of otherwise important matters revolved around his “pattern of juvenile romanticism” (38). Evidently, the American colonies’ desire for independence from the mother country was a momentous decision that affected all thirteen colonies. However, in Ellis’ arguments, Thomas Jefferson’s writing at the time showed either his failure to acknowledge the severity of the situation or his disregard of the same. Accordingly, as written in the American Sphinx, Jefferson’s mannerisms in the first Continental Congress and Virginia evokes the picture of an adolescent instead of the thirty-year-old man he was at the time (Ellis 38). It is no wonder Ellis observes Thomas Jefferson as a founding father who was not only “wildly idealistic” but also possessed “extraordinary naivete” while advocating the notions of a Jeffersonian utopia that unrestrained
From a young age, Abigail was centred around her the governmental and political views of both her parents and other influential nationalist figures. Abigail believed that the ties between Great Britain and its colonies should be severed. One such example came after Britain’s rejection of the Olive Branch Petition. Abigail is quoted to have said: “Let us separate, they are unworthy to be our Brethren. Let us renounce them and instead of supplications as formerly for their prosperity and happiness, Let us beseech the almighty to blast their counsels and bring to Nought all their
Although the colonists were justified in declaring their independence from the Mother Country, not all colonists welcomed independence. Some of the colonists were loyalists, so a war broke out called the American Revolution. It was a cluster of a few battles to protect and create a new nation, called the United States of America. The American Revolution had an immense impact on other parts of the world such as France and Latin America. From Saratoga to Yorktown, every battle in between, and the loss of Cornwallis’s army, helped convince Parliament that the American colonists could be defeated, but only at great cost. So the British, in 1782, met representatives of the United States in Paris, and negotiated. The Treaty of Paris, as it was called, ended the war, set nation boundaries, and recognized the American independence.