power and the people - chapter 6

Question 1

when did groups of european settlers begin to occupy land in north america - land owned by indigenous americans

Answer 1

in the 16th and early 17th century

Question 2

what did the british do in america

Answer 2

after the british defeated the french and used their colonies there to make money, growing crops like cotton, tobacco and sugar to sell all over the world - often relying on indentured servants and, later, enslaved people

Question 3

in the early 1700s how many british colonies were there in north america

Answer 3

13

Question 4

by 1775 what was the population of settlers and enslaved people in british colonies

Answer 4

around 2.5 million

Question 5

why did countries, such as britain, want empires

Answer 5

they could tax the people who lived in the colonies, and ensure that they brought british goods

Question 6

what nationality did many of the colonists in america consider themselves

Answer 6

despite being of british descent, they now considered themselves american

Question 7

what did americans start to resent

Answer 7

the american support they had to give the british

Question 8

how did the british justify taxing the americans

Answer 8

they used the tax to pay for the army which ‘protected’ the colonists from other foreign powers

Question 9

what tax did the british impose on the americans and how did the american react

Answer 9

the Stamp Tax of 1765 (a tax on documents such as legal papers and newspapers)
they responded by rioting

Question 10

throughout the 1760s, what were the colonists force to comply with

Answer 10

Navigation Acts
-> ensured only british goods were imported into america
-> there could be no trading with other countries
-> it britain produced something, the colonists could not buy it from another country

Question 11

why did the colonists feel bossed around by the british

Answer 11

the colonists were given boundaries that they couldn’t cross
the british made these agreements with the indigenous americans without consulting the colonists
these boundaries stopped them accessing good farmland: the colonists wanted more of a say

Question 12

why did the colonists feel that there was no one to speak up for them

Answer 12

they had no representatives in british parliament

Question 13

what did the colonists begin to state (to do with taxes)

Answer 13

no taxation without representation

Question 14

what key event sparked the fight against the british

Answer 14

the Boston Massacre

Question 15

when was the boston massacre

Answer 15

1770

Question 16

what was the boston massacre

Answer 16

when some anti-british colonists jeered and threw snowballs and sticks at the british army on 5th march, the army opened fire and killed some of them

Question 17

how did unrest continue to grow in boston after the boston massacre

Answer 17

the Boston Tea Party

Question 18

what was the boston tea party

Answer 18

some of the colonists, who were unhappy with the heavily taxed british tea they were forced to buy, boarded a ship and poured the tea out into the harbour

Question 19

what did the british do in retaliation to the boston tea party and why

Answer 19

the act of defiance scared the british and in retaliation they closed the port of boston

Question 20

by 1775, what happened that proved the anti-british feeling was so strong

Answer 20

• when the british army tried to seize a supply of gunpowder in Concord they were fired on by 20,000 ‘minutemen’
• these men were local farmers, clerks and ploughboys who had had enough of british rule
• this became known as the Lexington incident and marked the start of the revolution against the british

Question 21

by 1775, who had the americans made leader of their army

Answer 21

George Washington

Question 22

when and where was the Declaration of Independence issued

Answer 22

in 1776, congress had a meeting in Philadelphia where it was issued

Question 23

what did the declaration of independence state

Answer 23

that the 13 colonies were free and that all control from britain had ended

Question 24

how did the declaration eventually become a reality

Answer 24

after 7 years of fighting with the british

Question 25

although the british won most of the battles during the war, which battles did they struggle with

Answer 25

many of the battles took place in forest and mountain areas, in land the british did not know well

Question 26

where and when was the decisive battle of the war

Answer 26

at Yorktown in 1781

Question 27

what were the reasons for the americans winning the battle at yorktown

Answer 27

- they had reinforced themselves with 3000 extra men - they had the support of the french

Question 28

why did having the support of the french allow the americans to win

Answer 28

the french had secured control of the waters around yorktown -> important as the british needed to get their supplies in from the sea

Question 29

how did the british commander, charles cornwallis, unwittingly help the americans

Answer 29

he moved his troops onto a peninsula as they awaited supplies -> they were now cut off and in a weak position

Question 30

what did george washington do while the british were in the peninsula that allowed the americans to win the war

Answer 30

- he attacked the british - with few weapons and no supplies, the british were forced to surrender

Question 31

what were the opinions of the americans after winning the war of independence

Answer 31

- the americans were delighted with their victory - however, not all were, and many moved north to canada, which was still under british rule

Question 32

what government system did america set up

Answer 32

set up their own system of gov with a written set of rules (constitution), a parliament (congress) and a president -> this system still exists today

Question 33

how was america not perfect

Answer 33

- many poor farmers, who could not afford to buy land, could not vote - african-americans, indigenous americans or women could not vote - rich, white men were represented, but no one else - slavery still existed - indigenous americans were widely discriminated against, losing more man to the colonists

Question 34

now an independent country, what did america proclaim itself

Answer 34

‘land of the free’

Question 35

consequences of the war of independence on britain:

Answer 35

- britain spent a lot of money on the war and lost a lot of men - worsened relations with france becuase they sided with the americans - britain strengthened its navy and made up for the loss of america by colonising other parts of the world - america had been used as a penal colony, where criminals were sent to work on plantations alongside enslaved people and indentured servants who worked to pat off the cost of their passage across the atlantic -> britain now turned its focus to australia and new zealand as a place to send convicts - relations with america improved as the years went by and the two countries began to trade with each other - the loss of america was not an issue by the 19century because by then britain had a colony in every time zone of the world -> ‘sun never sets on the british empire’ - however, the idea of overthrowing authority was one that may spread to britain itself and with a growing working-class population this was possible

Question 36

consequences of war of independence on the rest of the world

Answer 36

- success of america against british authority inspired the french revolution -> french were fed up with their king, Louis XVI -> people were starving while he and his wife ate lavish food and lived in luxurious palaces - the success of the americans acted as a spark for the french people to remove the autocratic rule of their king, louis - this went on to inspire the working class in britain when it came to their voting rights and representation in parliament