Colonization through American Revolution
--Peace of Westphalia of 1648 ended the Thirty Years War and established a Eurocentric
international community; sought to end years of bloody war and religious strife by enlarging
stature and role of the nation-state
--Westphalia established sovereign equality of states, territorial integrity of the state, non-
intercourse by one state in the domestic affairs of another, peaceful resolution of disputes, and
obligation to abide by international agreements; diplomacy and war came under civil authority
--as settlers moved westward into the Ohio River Valley under land deals, Governor Robert
Dinwiddie of Virginia dispatched George Washington to warn the French to leave their posts
--George Washington along with his militia force ambushed a French force at Jumonville Glen;
after attack, Washington took his forces to the Great Meadows and built a stockade known as
Fort Necessity in preparation for the French counterattack
--Washington’s attack at Jumonville Glen launched the French and Indian War (1754/56-1763),
which the French lost; war left the British nearly bankrupt and the French people in an angry
state, which led the French to look for revenge in the form of aid to the American Revolution
--Pitt focuses on the colonial world as key to defeating the French in a maritime strategy, which
focused on superior British naval power and experience to enforce blockades of French ports,
seal off Canada, and support land campaigns
--decisive battle comes when General James Wolfe attacks the key and heavily fortified cities of
Montreal and Quebec; Wolfe with half of the British navy in support and a large number of
soldiers prepared for attack on Quebec, which was command by General Louis Joseph Montcalm
--British army finds a way to scale the cliffs of Quebec and arrives on the Plains of Abraham;
Montcalm marches soldiers out of the city and the two armies fight to the death of both
commanding generals; Montreal falls soon after Quebec and the French are essentially finished
--George III came to the throne of England at a time when conservatives in parliament ushered in
a stage of increased power for the monarch
--Ottawa under Chief Pontiac in Pontiac’s Rebellion rose up against the British after the French
were removed; Pontiac and the Ottawa had success by pushing the British out of a string of forts
--problem that arose among Ottawa unification was British succeeded in breaking some tribes
away from the confederacy; British reinforcements then proceeded to crush the remaining tribes
--what finally convinced the Native American tribes to back away is the Proclamation of 1763,
which prohibited settlement in the Northwest Territory
--Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended the Seven Years War; treaty was dramatic departure from those
that ended the previous wars as the British had won a decisive victory everywhere; treaty
removes control of Canada from the French to the British with the exception of St. Pierre and
Miquelon, which were kept by the French as islands for storing codfish; west of the
,Appalachians to the Mississippi is given to Britain from France; Spanish lose Florida and receive
Louisiana from France; France does repossess the sugar islands
--Duc de Choiseul wrote to Louis XV in 1764 with speculation that events like the Proclamation
of 1763 would eventually cause the colonists to rise up against Britain; agents are sent to the
colonies to assess colonial feelings towards Britain and find little cause for anger; most of the
French agents actually indicated readiness to revolt, which sets the French on wait for rebellion
--part of the intent of settling the New World was creating a more perfect society set apart from
the corruption characteristic of the Old World; statement ties into exceptionalism, the idea that
America would be above and apart from the rest of the world, an area to be modeled upon by
others and spread throughout the world; idea is that everyone else should be like America and
would be better off doing so
--John Winthrop was the first leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and envisioned it as a city
upon a hill that would serve as a beacon and example to the rest of the world
--in response to Boston, the colonies send delegates to the First Continental Congress, which
calls for boycotts and other measures
--British send forces to Lexington and Concord to retrieve arms and meet extensive resistance,
which forces the British to retreat all the way to Boston and fall under a siege; war begins as a
result and the Continental Congress becomes the revolutionary government body
--in 1774, Louis XVI comes to the throne and selects Comte de Vergennes as the French foreign
minister; first act is to patch the Franco-Spanish alliance and retain Austria as an ally to prepare
for future fight with British
--realization sets in that it is critical to form an alliance for war supplies; in 1775, Continental
Congress creates the Committee of Secret Correspondence, which is charged with corresponding
with other countries in an effort to explain the American cause; new purpose develops in creating
alliances in effort to obtain arms and munitions; committee is under the leadership of Benjamin
Franklin, who reaches out to the other countries such as France for an alliance
--Archad de Bonvouloir is the French diplomat sent to reach out to Benjamin Franklin; Franklin
is aware of colonial limitations and wants to gain arms, munitions, naval capabilities, etc; French
alliance is important as very few other powers want to risk involvement against the British
--main task of Franklin meeting with Bonvouloir is to convince him of American commitment to
fight against Britain and of possibility of victory; however, even after opening of armed conflict,
idea is still to remain with Britain; independence takes time to take hold throughout the colonies
--strongest support of independence is in New England (particularly Massachusetts) and Virginia
while support for independence decreased further south as pro British sentiment become stronger
--Caron de Beaumarchais is a French spy who is in Britain to recover important documents;
Beaumarchais meets with American representative Arthur Lee and is convinced that French
should offer secret aid that will help to advance French objectives while France becomes more
financially stable and lets time pass to see if Americans can gain more than small victories
, --is concluded that aid could be beneficial as if the British lose, there is thought that American
colonies will have little success and pose no threat as a nation that can be controlled and at least
diminish British power and offer financial benefits in trade with possibility of gaining territory
--early French aid to Americans is in the form of arms and munitions; French foreign ministry
sets up offshore trading company named Roderique Hortelez and Co. to handle arms transactions
--Jacques Targot, French finance minister, opposes aid due to belief that aid will bankrupt France
and then cause catastrophe as France reels in governmental chaos
--French aid also extends to offering safe harbor for American ships and privateer vessels; aid
came two months before Americans declare independence, before even Silas Deane is sent to
France to ask for arms and other equipment; British are aware of what Silas Deane intends to do,
but is just shadowed as the French and Americans conclude aid agreement
--Thomas Paine authored Common Sense, a pamphlet that made a passionate appeal for
independence by saying that it was absurd for Britain as an island to control America as a
continent; stated independence would allow America to live in peace and trade with any market
--drafting of Declaration of Independence was recognized as necessary for providing something
to rally support behind and elicit foreign sympathy and aid; as soon as declaration is finished,
efforts are made to establish diplomacy and relations with potential allies
--John Adams developed the Plan of 1776, a treaty of amity and commerce to develop the basic
principles that would be followed in efforts to establish diplomatic and commercial relations;
principles adopted include free ships make free goods where neutral ships are not to have their
cargoes seized by warring powers, narrow definition of contraband to only include military
hardware as opposed to British definition of anything that can help the enemy, and the right of
any neutral power to trade unmolested with belligerent powers
--Indian raiding parties attacked settlements in Kentucky and across the Ohio frontier; Virginia
with great claims in the area sent George Rodgers Clark to attack the British and Indian allies
--when Americans opened up a front against the Indians in western New York, the Iroquois
Confederacy split with some tribes siding with the British and some with the Americans
--after suffering losses in the Seven Years War, Cherokee welcomed efforts to stop migration of
colonists into the Appalachians; in response to British support, Cherokee rose up against
colonists and experienced a resounding defeat
--Franklin, Silas Deane, and Arthur Lee become the American agents to France; Franklin is
respected and well known, which brings him great welcome among the French people
--General William Howe is the commander in chief of British troops and commanded the British
troops that force Washington into a retreat at Long Island; Howe joins a campaign planned by
General John Burgoyne that calls for him to attack New England from the south while Burgoyne
attacks New England from the north along with General St. Ledger
--intent of the British attack is to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies with the idea
that the conflict will soon end since New England is where support is most concentrated
--Peace of Westphalia of 1648 ended the Thirty Years War and established a Eurocentric
international community; sought to end years of bloody war and religious strife by enlarging
stature and role of the nation-state
--Westphalia established sovereign equality of states, territorial integrity of the state, non-
intercourse by one state in the domestic affairs of another, peaceful resolution of disputes, and
obligation to abide by international agreements; diplomacy and war came under civil authority
--as settlers moved westward into the Ohio River Valley under land deals, Governor Robert
Dinwiddie of Virginia dispatched George Washington to warn the French to leave their posts
--George Washington along with his militia force ambushed a French force at Jumonville Glen;
after attack, Washington took his forces to the Great Meadows and built a stockade known as
Fort Necessity in preparation for the French counterattack
--Washington’s attack at Jumonville Glen launched the French and Indian War (1754/56-1763),
which the French lost; war left the British nearly bankrupt and the French people in an angry
state, which led the French to look for revenge in the form of aid to the American Revolution
--Pitt focuses on the colonial world as key to defeating the French in a maritime strategy, which
focused on superior British naval power and experience to enforce blockades of French ports,
seal off Canada, and support land campaigns
--decisive battle comes when General James Wolfe attacks the key and heavily fortified cities of
Montreal and Quebec; Wolfe with half of the British navy in support and a large number of
soldiers prepared for attack on Quebec, which was command by General Louis Joseph Montcalm
--British army finds a way to scale the cliffs of Quebec and arrives on the Plains of Abraham;
Montcalm marches soldiers out of the city and the two armies fight to the death of both
commanding generals; Montreal falls soon after Quebec and the French are essentially finished
--George III came to the throne of England at a time when conservatives in parliament ushered in
a stage of increased power for the monarch
--Ottawa under Chief Pontiac in Pontiac’s Rebellion rose up against the British after the French
were removed; Pontiac and the Ottawa had success by pushing the British out of a string of forts
--problem that arose among Ottawa unification was British succeeded in breaking some tribes
away from the confederacy; British reinforcements then proceeded to crush the remaining tribes
--what finally convinced the Native American tribes to back away is the Proclamation of 1763,
which prohibited settlement in the Northwest Territory
--Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended the Seven Years War; treaty was dramatic departure from those
that ended the previous wars as the British had won a decisive victory everywhere; treaty
removes control of Canada from the French to the British with the exception of St. Pierre and
Miquelon, which were kept by the French as islands for storing codfish; west of the
,Appalachians to the Mississippi is given to Britain from France; Spanish lose Florida and receive
Louisiana from France; France does repossess the sugar islands
--Duc de Choiseul wrote to Louis XV in 1764 with speculation that events like the Proclamation
of 1763 would eventually cause the colonists to rise up against Britain; agents are sent to the
colonies to assess colonial feelings towards Britain and find little cause for anger; most of the
French agents actually indicated readiness to revolt, which sets the French on wait for rebellion
--part of the intent of settling the New World was creating a more perfect society set apart from
the corruption characteristic of the Old World; statement ties into exceptionalism, the idea that
America would be above and apart from the rest of the world, an area to be modeled upon by
others and spread throughout the world; idea is that everyone else should be like America and
would be better off doing so
--John Winthrop was the first leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and envisioned it as a city
upon a hill that would serve as a beacon and example to the rest of the world
--in response to Boston, the colonies send delegates to the First Continental Congress, which
calls for boycotts and other measures
--British send forces to Lexington and Concord to retrieve arms and meet extensive resistance,
which forces the British to retreat all the way to Boston and fall under a siege; war begins as a
result and the Continental Congress becomes the revolutionary government body
--in 1774, Louis XVI comes to the throne and selects Comte de Vergennes as the French foreign
minister; first act is to patch the Franco-Spanish alliance and retain Austria as an ally to prepare
for future fight with British
--realization sets in that it is critical to form an alliance for war supplies; in 1775, Continental
Congress creates the Committee of Secret Correspondence, which is charged with corresponding
with other countries in an effort to explain the American cause; new purpose develops in creating
alliances in effort to obtain arms and munitions; committee is under the leadership of Benjamin
Franklin, who reaches out to the other countries such as France for an alliance
--Archad de Bonvouloir is the French diplomat sent to reach out to Benjamin Franklin; Franklin
is aware of colonial limitations and wants to gain arms, munitions, naval capabilities, etc; French
alliance is important as very few other powers want to risk involvement against the British
--main task of Franklin meeting with Bonvouloir is to convince him of American commitment to
fight against Britain and of possibility of victory; however, even after opening of armed conflict,
idea is still to remain with Britain; independence takes time to take hold throughout the colonies
--strongest support of independence is in New England (particularly Massachusetts) and Virginia
while support for independence decreased further south as pro British sentiment become stronger
--Caron de Beaumarchais is a French spy who is in Britain to recover important documents;
Beaumarchais meets with American representative Arthur Lee and is convinced that French
should offer secret aid that will help to advance French objectives while France becomes more
financially stable and lets time pass to see if Americans can gain more than small victories
, --is concluded that aid could be beneficial as if the British lose, there is thought that American
colonies will have little success and pose no threat as a nation that can be controlled and at least
diminish British power and offer financial benefits in trade with possibility of gaining territory
--early French aid to Americans is in the form of arms and munitions; French foreign ministry
sets up offshore trading company named Roderique Hortelez and Co. to handle arms transactions
--Jacques Targot, French finance minister, opposes aid due to belief that aid will bankrupt France
and then cause catastrophe as France reels in governmental chaos
--French aid also extends to offering safe harbor for American ships and privateer vessels; aid
came two months before Americans declare independence, before even Silas Deane is sent to
France to ask for arms and other equipment; British are aware of what Silas Deane intends to do,
but is just shadowed as the French and Americans conclude aid agreement
--Thomas Paine authored Common Sense, a pamphlet that made a passionate appeal for
independence by saying that it was absurd for Britain as an island to control America as a
continent; stated independence would allow America to live in peace and trade with any market
--drafting of Declaration of Independence was recognized as necessary for providing something
to rally support behind and elicit foreign sympathy and aid; as soon as declaration is finished,
efforts are made to establish diplomacy and relations with potential allies
--John Adams developed the Plan of 1776, a treaty of amity and commerce to develop the basic
principles that would be followed in efforts to establish diplomatic and commercial relations;
principles adopted include free ships make free goods where neutral ships are not to have their
cargoes seized by warring powers, narrow definition of contraband to only include military
hardware as opposed to British definition of anything that can help the enemy, and the right of
any neutral power to trade unmolested with belligerent powers
--Indian raiding parties attacked settlements in Kentucky and across the Ohio frontier; Virginia
with great claims in the area sent George Rodgers Clark to attack the British and Indian allies
--when Americans opened up a front against the Indians in western New York, the Iroquois
Confederacy split with some tribes siding with the British and some with the Americans
--after suffering losses in the Seven Years War, Cherokee welcomed efforts to stop migration of
colonists into the Appalachians; in response to British support, Cherokee rose up against
colonists and experienced a resounding defeat
--Franklin, Silas Deane, and Arthur Lee become the American agents to France; Franklin is
respected and well known, which brings him great welcome among the French people
--General William Howe is the commander in chief of British troops and commanded the British
troops that force Washington into a retreat at Long Island; Howe joins a campaign planned by
General John Burgoyne that calls for him to attack New England from the south while Burgoyne
attacks New England from the north along with General St. Ledger
--intent of the British attack is to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies with the idea
that the conflict will soon end since New England is where support is most concentrated
