The Revolutionary Revolution
In the year of 1776, the colonists of America declared themselves independent from Great Britain. Five years later, the Americans defeated their English tyrants in the Battle of Yorktown. This era in American history was named the American Revolution. But was this event revolutionary? In the 1700s, the only forms of government in Europe were absolute dictatorships or monarchies. Both systems did not give the power to choose their leader. And any power given to the people was reserved for white men of rich families only. Was this new country, the United States, really so unique? Yes, the United States of America was revolutionary for its time, because it changed is views on some social groups and politics.
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No more are there noblemen or powerful landowners born above the rest. “...all men are created equal;” (Doc. 2). No more unjust laws brought upon the citizens by a crooked government. “...governments [derive] their just powers from the consent of the governed…” (Doc. 2). If the words of the Declaration of Independence doesn’t convince you that a great political change has happened, then the fact that the Patriots destroyed the statue of their King in Central Park should (Doc. 1). Perhaps more important, the Americans’ success in claiming their freedom from the British threatened empires and kingdoms around the world. When the people in many countries heard of the Revolution and what could be won from the rulers, most kings and dictators were forced to hand over basic rights to the citizens in fear of a revolution of their own, but to no avail. France came first, but also the Caribbean, the South American countries, and West India revolted, and so did many other countries in Europe (Coleman. Why Do We Study American History?). To be short, The United States’ Revolution influenced most if not all European countries’ political system for the better. How’s that for
On April 19,1775 the American Revolutionary War started and ended on September 3, 1783.Did you know that Samuel Adams had the idea for the Boston Tea party? I bet you didn’t know that!! Do you also know why there was an American War? Well, it happened because the Great Britain wanted to rule the new 13 colonies and the colonies did not want to be ruled.Did you know who patriots were? Well, patriots were people who fought for the rights of the colonies to be a free country which soon became our U.S.A. Do you know loyalists were? Loyalists were people who fought for the rights of Great Britain to rule over the new 13 colonies, but I guess that they didn’t win the war. There were also big events like the Boston Massacre, Boston Tea
The American Revolution changed American politically by allowing the people to be governed by representation, a central government, and a state government. Americans wanted a government different from the one of England so they created their own. Document I, informs us from a Federalists point of view that abuses of government must be controlled, the need of control of
Due to the conflict during the French and Indian War, tension arose between American colonists and the British government. This caused Americans to unite together to fight for their rights against the British. The Americans boycotted English rule, but this did not work so their only option was to go to war. The tension between the British and the Colonists lead to the revolutionary war. The American colonists were justified in waging war because they were unfairly taxed, their freedoms were denied and the British deceitfully killed the colonist.
The Revolutionary War can be interpreted differently depending on if it is being told from the White American perspective or the Black American perspective. From the White’s perspective the Revolutionary War was primarily about the oppression of the colonies by the British nation and the fight for freedom. During the war the White Americans fought against the British and used any person including slaves who was willing to fight in the battle against the British including those who supported the British cause. Once the colonies were free there was discrepancy over if the slaves should be given freedom or not. When taken into account the Black American population contributes a whole new dynamic to the Revolutionary War. The beginnings of
The change of American ideas between 1763 and 1783 became more anti British as colonists became increasingly ridiculed by British forces and enraged by their actions. They were uncompromising with their taxes and abused the colonists with their military forces. Starting in 1764, there was a stream of many taxes set in place including; the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, and Townshend Acts. These made the colonists angry, but there was more. The quartering act and Boston massacre were both actions of the British forces’ brutality and uncompromising behavior.
Even though there are a lot of good things that came out of the Revolution, there are still some things that weren’t that revolutionary. Like in Document 4, The poor still weren’t politically equal and in Document 6, the African American that went to school felt like people didn’t want him there and that he thought no one will be friends or work with him because he’s African. Even though everyone was treated as equal, some people still felt that Africans and poor people should be separated from the rich and white people. But all that would change in the future all because of the American
From 1775 to 1783, the 13 British colonies fought back the English. This was just the beginning of a war that will forever alter the face of American history. A struggle for power became a huge issue for all the class ranks of 18th century society . Nowadays, historians still dispute whether the American Revolution was a radical or conservative. A radical means a big change. A conservative means that there was no change at all with the revolution. Many saw the American Revolution as phony freedom.Historians have also had conflicting views of the on the question.One group argue that the Revolution was not very revolutionary.One other group thought the Revolution was really revolutionary. The American Revolution was radical because property/land
The American Revolution was a colonial revolt that took place between 1765 and 1783. It was an event that pushed for the separation of England’s North American colonies from Great Britain, which led to the formation of the United States of America. The revolution was revolutionary because it brought about radical ideas and changes in American society about women rights, changes in social classes, and the abolishment of slavery. After the American revolution, there was an increase in people's attention to political matters and made issues of liberty and equality especially important. Document 2 is The Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America that was written by Thomas Paine to confront the King that they want to declare independence.
In 1783 the fight for American independence was over. America was now a new nation separate from Great Britain. Americans were getting rid of British traditions and a constitution was written. However, even though the revolution created some change it was not a radical revolution. Gordon Wood, a renowned historian who supports the radical school of thought, argues that the revolution did cause radical change because it inspired other movements such as the civil rights movement, and the women's rights movement. However this is not the case because of the time between the revolution and these movements, along with a civil war happening in between. Carl Degler another historian supports the conservative school of thought, which believes the revolution
The word revolutionary means involving or causing a complete or dramatic change. The word revolutionary can be used to mean different types of changes depending on the time an event was taking place or how drastic things got compared to the ordinary daily life. An event in history that occurred that made the United States its own country was the Revolutionary War which was fought against the British. There were many different events that lead the colonies to finally want to break away from the British monarchy and it drastically changed the way of life for the colonies. The Revolutionary War was revolutionary because it led the colonies to establish a new form of ruling through government and mentally changed the way the colonials thought about certain things that they did not know they were capable to accomplish or obtain.
The American Revolution did a lot more than change the method of governance. After the war the spirit of equality weakened old habits of difference. The new political opportunities offered by the creation of state government led more
People may ask or wonder if the revolt of England was really revolutionary and I often wonder the same question. I ask myself the question of if the American Revolution was actually revolutionary or really just a chance for a new nation to be started with their own rules and politics. In my eyes, it is often hard for me to understand what actually happened during that era because of the freedoms we have endeared in the twenty-first century. As I look at facts and articles from this era the opinion that I have for what happened during this war often changes and can often be biased towards why the revolution of the new world really didn’t have as much of an impact as it should have right away.
The American Revolution was significant not only to the history of the United States, but also to the world. In our modern times, we may see our country as separate and a world apart from Britain. However, the United States was originally established by people that were freshly thrust out of Britain into a new world full of possibilities. There were a variety of causes for the rebellion that lead to the birth of a new nation and, in turn, there were some world changing results.
Throughout history many revolutions took place, ranging from the unremarkable to a truly memorable, as the French revolution, the American Revolution, and the Bolshevik Revolution, but American revolution took place in 1775-1783. The revolution was different from other revolution because of growing tensions between residents of Great Britain’s 13 North American colonies and the colonial government because American revolution was not like the others. This revolution was not like the others because it was unique. It was violent, changes to state, rebellion, and the refusal of orders from the Britain. As many people say that American revolution happened quickly, but it did not because one thing led to another that drove the road to the
The American Revolution, from 1765 to 1783, was a great movement and major changing point for the colonists. The colonists were fed up with all the taxes and unnecessary mistreatment that had been placed on them. The colonists finally had revolted against the British and surprisingly had taken the victory. The colonists were considered underdogs against the very powerful Britain and with much devotion and heart, the colonists pulled out a victory. Taking the victory was a huge turning point because now the colonists were free from British power and were able to form a nation of their own. The wealthy had lots of power and it affected the society a lot. America had created a new government and society, but it led to many problems and protests.