A- John Adams- A Massachusetts lawyer and politician, John Adams was the one that defended the British shooters at the Boston Massacre. He went on to join the meeting at the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia in 1774. Adams and the rest of the Congress wanted there to be an end to the Intolerable acts that were put on the Colonies by the British, and they wanted to have their own government, instead of the British governing them. This lead to the start of the Revolutionary War. John Adams was one of the delegates from Massachusetts to sign the Declaration of Independence. B- Britain- The British tried creating colonies in the Americas, and they governed these colonies and taxed them to the point of treating them unfairly. They limited the colonies’ trade and business, and even attacked them periodically. The Americans had enough of the British, so they rebelled against them. The British were the main enemy of the American Revolution. C- George Rogers Clark- George Rogers Clark, born November 19, 1752 in Virginia, was a Military leader and explorer for the American side in the Revolutionary War. He was originally a surveyor, so this is how he knew the land and the geography of the battle he was fighting on. He took about 170 men through a 200 mile journey to attack Fort Sackville. This was a torturous journey, but all of them ended up surviving the trip. When they arrived at the fort, he tricked Henry Hamilton to come out and surrender to Clark. The trick: they only had 170 men, but he made Hamilton think he had an entire army. Clark died in Louisville, Kentucky on February 23, 1818. D- Declaration of Independence- Written by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence is the reason we celebrate our indepen... ... middle of paper ... ...riving and driving off the British fleet, Cornwallis was surrounded at all sides. He surrendered, ending the war and later leading to the Treaty of Paris. Z- John Peter Zenger- John Peter Zenger was the one who established the idea of freedom of speech and press. The Constitution of the United States reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or press; or the right of the people peacefully assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” because of Zenger. Zenger was arrested for libel, which is something written that goes against the government. Although he did not write the article, he was the one accused because he printed and published it. After sitting in jail for a year, he was finally acquitted (found not guilty) and released.
Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers to the United States, was not a patriot but a mere loyalist to England before the dissolution between England and the colonies occurred. Sheila L. Skemp's The Making of a Patriot explores how Benjamin Franklin tried to stay loyal to the crown while taking interest in the colonies perception and their own representation in Parliament. While Ms. Skemp alludes to Franklin's loyalty, her main illustration is how the attack by Alexander Wedderburn during the Privy Council led to Franklin's disillusionment with the British crown and the greater interest in making the Thirteen Colonies their own nation. Her analysis of Franklin's history in Parliament and what occurred on the night that the council convened proves the change behind Franklin's beliefs and what lead to his involvement in the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution. Benjamin Franklin was the colonial agent representing Massachusetts in Parliament in Britain.
John Adams began his career as a lawyer, and he first rose to prominence as an opponent of the Stamp Act of 1765 which deprived the American colonists of two basic rights guaranteed to all Englishmen, and which all free men deserved: rights to be taxed on only by consent and to be tried only by a jury of one?s peers. Then, he successfully defended the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre (1770) with only two of the eight found guilty of manslaughter believing that it was important to ensure that innocents were protected. From 1770 ? 1774, Adams served in the Massachusetts legislature and was then elected a member of the Continental Congress. He nominated Washington to be Commander-in-Chief and was part of the committee that worked to draft the Declaration of Independence.
Washington's selection to be the leader of the Continental Army was the wisest choice that the newly formed Continental Congress could have made. Washington's selection as Commander of the Continental Army did more to win the Revolutionary war than any other decision made during the conflict. His personal character epitomizes perfectly the five traits required in a successful general: wisdom, sincerity, humanity, courage, and strictness. (Sun Tzu p. 65) These five crucial traits will become apparent and Washington's strategy to win the War of Independence is elaborated on further
In the second half of the eighteenth century, the British were faced with rebelling colonies. Finally realizing that they had to fight to keep their colonial possessions, the British sent troops to America. Once the battles began in America, the British were not impressed with the colonial military, but the weak militias soon proved to be effective. With foreign aid from France, American devotion, and the lack of British vigor, the Americans soon discovered the open doors of independence. In my opinion, the American advantages and the British disadvantages proved to be the downfall of the English in the American Revolution.
Clark, during the 1770’s, was helping Kentucky defend itself from Native Americans. At the time, Clark was transporting gunpowder to the frontier between the Americans and the British. The Native Americans, who lived in the Northwest, disliked the Americans in the Northwest and their claim on Kentucky and with the British backing, waged war with the Americans. Clark was now in charge of defending the settlements and was promoted to major. Clark then made plans in taking British held forts in the region and persuaded Governor Patrick Henry to support him in capturing the forts. Clark had won the support of Patrick Henry, was promoted to lieutenant colonel, and was given command of the mission (“George Clark” 1). With the command of the mission, Clark had lead 175 men who traveled to Fort Kaskaskia, Illinois in six days. The fort was almost defenseless and was easily taken with Clark’s force. Clark had sent Captain Leonard Helm to capture Fort Sackville, after learning that the fort was undefended from American spies. Leonard Helm had then captured the fort, but was taken back by Henry Hamilton shortly after. Henry Hamilton, the famous British “Hair Buyer”, used militia and Native Americans to take Fort Sackville. In the winter, Clark lead a force of 170 men ...
George Rogers Clark Who was George Rogers Clark? This is probably a question most people in America couldn't answer. The reason is very simple, George Rogers Clark was a hero in an age of heroism. He simply could not compare to the legends of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other Revolutionary War heroes. Clark nevertheless is very important, especially to the people of Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana who became apart of the United States of America because of his great leadership and bravery in military campaigns at Kaskaskia, Illinois and Vincennes, Indiana during the Revolutionary War.
Jefferson, Thomas. "The Declaration of Independence." The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. 8th edition, Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw Hill, 2003. 305-308.
One of the greatest conflicts in the history of the United State of America, the Revolutionary War, was started when the colonies of North America declared themselves independent from British rule. A group of men known as the Founding Fathers, which included George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John and Samuel Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and others, formed the Continental Congress to rule their new nation. They chose Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence, which they would send to King George III to make their independence official. Jefferson knew that he needed to use strong language to make a solid agrument against British rule in the colonies and to convince the colonists that independence was the only choice to maintain their freedom as human beings. The powerful use of parallelism, ethos, pathos, and logos helpd Thomas Jefferson to convey his idea that all men are created equal with unalienable rights and that it is the duty of the government to protect those rights.
From the opening sentence of the essay, “We are free to be you, me, stupid, and dead”, Roger Rosenblatt hones in on a very potent and controversial topic. He notes the fundamental truth that although humans will regularly shield themselves with the omnipresent First Amendment, seldom do we enjoy having the privilege we so readily abuse be used against us. Freedom of speech has been a controversial issue throughout the world. Our ability to say whatever we want is very important to us as individuals and communities. Although freedom of speech and expression may sometimes be offensive to other people, it is still everyone’s right to express his/her opinion under the American constitution which states that “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press”.
John Adams was also against slavery and never owned a slave. He provided a successful legal defense to British soldiers who were accused in the Boston Massacre because he believed in the right to counsel and the protection of innocence in 1770. As a lawyer and public figure in Boston, and as a delegate from Mass. to the Continental Congress, he played an important role in persuading Congress to declare independence. In 1776, he helped Thomas Jefferson in drafting the Declaration of Independence.
“Is there a single trait of resemblance between those few towns and a great and growing people spread over a vast quarter of the globe, separated by a mighty ocean?” This question posed by Edmund Burke was in the hearts of nearly every colonist before the colonies gained their independence from Britain. The colonists’ heritage was largely British, as was their outlook on a great array of subjects; however, the position and prejudices they held concerning their independence were comprised entirely from American ingenuity. This identity crisis of these “British Americans” played an enormous role in the colonists’ battle for independence, and paved the road to revolution.
Late in the war, 1778, was the point of Britain being close to defeat. Current commander of British forces was Lt. General Henry Clinton trying to stop this rebellion. He was thinking on how to do this with the North of America under Patriot control. Clinton then decided on turning to the South of the United States (www.theamericanrevolutiong.org). Fighting was becoming heavy between the militia and the United Kingdom’s forces (www.theamericanrevolution.org). However, General Clinton had once been to the South of the U.S. before, but failed in taking a key city (Charleston, South Carolina) by sea on June 28, 1776 (www.theamericanrevolution.org).
First, George Washington was a skilled and experienced officer in the French and Indian War. At the Battle of Fort Duquesne, British troops were led by General Edward Braddock. The British were soon ambushed by Indians fighting on the French side. Washington displayed remarkable courage in the Battle. “He had two horses shot out from under him, his hat was shot off and bullets tore his coat” (Sheidley). Braddock was killed so Washington made the British troops withdraw. Americans admired Washington's courage and success when leading the retreat. Consequently, Washington also used his strategy of retreat in the Revolutionary War and it proved to be successful again. For example, the British defeated the Americans at the Battle of Long Island. That foggy night, Washington led a brilliant retreat of thousands of American soldiers by boat from Long Island to Manhattan. This prevented American soldiers from being wounded or killed and it gave them hope that they could still win. Lastly, George Washington had many important Revolutionary War victories. One of those victories was the Battle of Trenton. On Christmas Eve in 1776, Washington led his exhausted, hungry, and cold troops across the Delaware River. In a surprise attack two days later, the Americans defeated the Hessian soldiers. In addition, Americans won the Battle of Yorktown in which the Revolutionary War ended when British General Cornwallis surrendered on October 17, 1781. Washington had to go through countless hardships and defeats but he finally achieved
and his troops would be in danger. Another act was passed and this was the Tea Act. The British thought that this was a very good idea, but it was a double threat10to him. It worried him that the British were using this as an opening to acquire other trade. To him, the more important thing was the political implications. Americans were being asked to financethe destruction of their own rights. That fateful night, in which the throwing of the tea occurred, was one that will always be remembered. Before the unloading of the tea, a meeting was held, in which they decided to do, what they did. John Hancock was able say, in a period of order, "Let every man do what is right in his own eyes."11 Shortly afterwards, Samuel Adams gave the signal for the men to go on the ship, after declaring " this meeting can do nothingmore to save the country."John Hancock would go on to be the first signer of the Declaration Of Independence. John was a very smart, intriguing man. He was well-liked and known by all.John Hancock, in my eyes, is a true patriot. He will always been known to Americans, in
Jefferson, Thomas. "The Declaration of Independence." Mountain View College Reader. Neuleib, Janice. Cain S., Kathleen. Ruffus, Stephen. Boston: 501 Boylston Street, Suite 900. 2013 Print.