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Ch 4 - Section 2 PowerPoint

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Ch 4 - Section 2 PowerPoint

Uploaded by

Weam Hassn
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Ch 4 – Section 2

Ideas Help Start a Revolution


The Colonies Hover Between
Peace and War
2nd Continental Congress
► Met again in May 1775 in Philadelphia
► Despite debate, they agree upon:
a. Confirming the militia around
Boston as the Continental
Army
b. Appointing George Washington
as general
c. Printing money & negotiating
with foreign nations
Bloodshed becomes Real
Battle of Bunker Hill
► June 17,1775 outside Boston (Breed’s Hill)
► British General Thomas Gage tries to drive
militiamen off hill with 2,400 Redcoats
► Militiamen face 3 assaults before running
out of ammo Their rally cry: “Don’t fire ‘til
ya see the whites of their eyes…”
► British take hill, but lose 1,000 men
Still Hoping For Peace
The Olive Branch Petition
► July 8, 1775
► 2nd Continental Congress sends last
chance letter to persuade for peace and
a “return to former harmony”
► King George III tears it up, declaring the
colonists openly in rebellion
► He orders a naval blockade of East Coast
Power of Propaganda
Thomas Paine’s Common Sense
► Written by Paine, an angry colonist
► Urges all colonists to proclaim
independence
► Declares British king a tyrant
► 500,000 copies widely distributed and
read throughout the colonies
► Propaganda inspires many to become
patriots
Independence!!
Declaration of Independence
► June 1776 – 2nd Continental Congress
debates and organizes committee to draft a
document proclaiming their views
► Thomas Jefferson chosen for his word skills
► Influenced by English philosopher John
Locke (people have natural rights)
► Adopted July 4, 1776; the Liberty Bell rings
Whose Side Are You On?
► Colonists now had to choose sides…
► Patriots – supported independence and
a full break from Britain
► Loyalists – professed loyalty to the
Crown and opposed independence
► This Revolution truly became a “civil
war” as countrymen now were in a
position to fight each other as much as
Britain’s armies

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