Revolution

Class Date: September 24th

Location: Your couch! See your weekly e-mail for Zoom link!

Last week we looked at the life of poet Phillis Wheatley. Even though we moved past the Revolution, we’re circling back a bit to Here is a brief overview of the events of the time:

• 1501 - Amerigo Vespucci explores the Brazilian coast

An Italian explorer and cartographer, Vespucci realizes that unlike Columbus, he has ‘discovered’ a new continent, already well populated. He wrote of his new contact:

“We knew that land to be a continent, and not an island, from its long beaches extending without trending round, the infinite number of inhabitants, the numerous tribes and peoples, the numerous kinds of wild animals unknown in our country, and many others never seen before by us, touching which it would take long to make reference.” - March 1503

A German clergyman and scholar, Martin Waldseemüller worked on a contemporary world map in 1507.

In honor of Vespucci’s ‘discovery’, Martin made up the name “America” and scrawled it across his wood block map on the southern continent. He sold 1,000 copies of his map. Later, he changed his mind about wanting to name the area America, but it was too late. Gerardus Mercator published a world map in 1538, the first to include North and South America. The rest, as they say, is history!

• 1521 - Magellan circumnavigates the globe

Funded by Charles V of Spain, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sails around South America to the Pacific. Though Magellan died in 1521, it is his expedition that circumnavigates the globe, opening up new avenues for exploration and colonization. 

• 1539 - Friar Marcos de Niza explores Arizona and New Mexico

French Franciscan friar Fray Marcos de Niza is sent north by the Spanish governor of Mexico to search for the Seven Cities of Gold. When returns to Mexico City, he spreads the rumor that he has seen the cities, prompting more people to continue searching. 

• 1595 - Pocahontas is born

The subject of much debate and even a Disney movie, this young native woman’s life was far more complicated than worrying over animal sidekicks. In fact, she was instrumental in relations between the powerful Powhatan Chiefdom that included more than 30 Algonquian speaking tribes. To read more about her life and involvement with the English, click here: https://www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/pocahontas-her-life-and-legend.htm

• 1607 - The English settle at Jamestown

104 Englishmen and boys arrived in North America on the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery to start a new settlement. They named Jamestown, Virginia, after King James I.

The Virginia Company had sent along instructions for where to settle and who would serve as the council members for the new outpost. Unfortunately, the death tolls were high, largely due to drinking from the salty/slimy portion of the river and bug-born diseases. Luckily for the settlers, Chief Powhatan sent gifts of food to help the starving and ill settlers, saving the settlement from complete disaster.

• 1620 - The Mayflower arrives

A group of 120 English settlers arrive to establish another colony, which they name Plymouth, the name of their port of departure in England. To read more about the establishment of Plymouth, click here:

• 1622 - Powhatan Confederacy resists English invasion

Though the colonists and Powhatan Confederacy had established peace in 1614, colonists continued to spread out from their initial settlements, encroaching on Powhatan territory, stealing food, abusing people, and allowing livestock to destroy crops and sacred sites. The swift and successful attack on the colonists was meant to demonstrate the military might of the Powhatan Confederacy and encourage the English to leave the area. The surprise attack resulted in the deaths of 347 colonists and launched the Second Powhatan War, which lasted until 1626. 

• 1675 - King Philip’s War

The conflict between the Wampanoag and the English has been called the most devastating conflict in America because 1 in 10 soldiers on both sides was killed, 1,200 colonial homes were burned, and many food stores were destroyed. The colonials suffered the effects for years, as did the natives who continued to have their lands encroached upon and their way of life disrupted. To read more about the conflict, click here:

• 1735 - Zenger Trial

The royal governor of New York, William Cosby, accused German printer and journalist John Peter Zenger of libel for his columns critical of the governor and his leadership. Cosby had Zenger arrested and he was charged with libel. Andrew Hamilton and William Smith, Sr. argued that the truth is a defense against the charge of libel and Zenger was acquitted. The trial helped establish the idea of a free press in the colonies and often serves as the legal basis for the First Amendment. 

• 1739 - The Stono Rebellion

One of the earliest documented rebellions in the colonies, the Stono Rebellion was led by an Angolan man named Jemmy. Though the exact reason for the rebellion (apart from the obvious forcible enslavement) is unknown, the Spanish are thought to have contributed to the unrest. Many enslaved people in the South Carolina colony had heard of runaways being given freedom in the Spanish colony of Florida. The Spanish had issued a proclamation promising freedom and land to those who escaped slavery and made their way to the settlement of St. Augustine. The group of rebels armed themselves from the local firearm shop and proceeded to march over 10 miles and killed between 20 and 25 slave owners (those who were known to be kind to the people then enslaved were spared). 

After the rebellion was put down, white colonists enacted the Negro Act, limiting the abilities of enslaved people to move about. They were prohibited from growing their own food, assembling in groups, earning their own money, or learning to read. 

• 1751 - Slavery is legalized in Georgia

Georgia, the last of the 13 colonies, had banned slavery in 1735, by decree of James Oglethorpe. No one was opposed to slavery on principle, but rather didn’t see it working with their economic institutions. The nearby Spanish settlements in Florida routinely offered assistance to slaves willing to revolt or escape from the English. Bowing to increasing pressure from residents, the Georgia government passed legislation permitting slavery. The capture and importation of enslaved peoples grew quickly, as planters sought to force people to work their rice plantations. 

• 1754 - The Albany Congress meets

Representatives from 7 colonies and 150 Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) chiefs to discuss support from the Haudenosaunee in fighting the French and establishing a colonial alliance. Though the leaders embraced the idea of a common militia and coordinated taxation to pay for it, the colonial legislatures all rejected the plan.

• 1754 - French and Indian War begins

Also known as the Seven Years’ War, this conflict was yet another extension of the continuing conflict between Britain and France. To learn more about this war, check out this 14 minute video here: 

•  1763 - Proclamation of 1763

After securing victory over the French, the British government recognized the increasing agitation of the Native populations of the Eastern seaboard. The native tribes were concerned that continued westward expansion by the colonials would drive them from their lands. The British Proclamation declared a boundary line for colonial settlement, even ruling that settlements beyond the boundary must be abandoned. Many Native tribes had previously aligned with the French, but in an attempt to build peaceful relations, the British government inflamed the sentiments of the colonists. 

• 1765 - Coverture traditions are encouraged

Sir William Blackstone published Commentaries on the Laws of England that encouraged colonials to follow the tradition of “coverture” - the idea that once married, a woman’s property belongs to her husband and she ceases to have any legal rights. Coverture was brought over by British colonists, who practiced English Common Law, which also removed the legal rights of married women.

• 1765 - British Acts

Great Britain passed the Stamp Act and the Quartering Act in March. The Stamp Act taxed all paper goods and legal documents, while the Quartering Act required colonists to provide food and housing for British troops. The Virginia House of Burgesses challenges the legality of the Stamp Act and the Stamp Act Congress meets in October to discuss the crisis in the colonies.

• 1766 - Declaratory Act

British Parliament repeals the Stamp Act but passes the Declaratory Act, which underscores the authority of Parliament over the British colonies.

• 1770 - The Boston Massacre

With tensions in the colonies already high as a result of a series of taxes and acts from the British government, the death of a young boy in an altercation between those boycotting British goods and those who weren’t primed the tensions in Boston for explosion. For a video overview of that night in Boston, click here: https://youtu.be/O05rNWygHF4

To read a good overview of the event, click here: https://www.britannica.com/event/Boston-Massacre

• 1773 - The Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party

Attempting to bolster the floundering East India Company, who were in possession of millions of pounds of unsold tea, the British government passed the Tea Act to ship and sell the tea cheaply in the colonies. Colonials were furious at the move that would undercut local merchants. After the three ships carrying the tea entered Boston Harbor, angry colonists disguised themselves as Native Americans and tossed 342 chests of tea into the harbor. 

• 1774 - The ‘Intolerable Acts’

A series of additional acts passed by the British Parliament designed to raise further taxes and bring the colonies back into submission. 

• 1775 - The Midnight Rides and the “shot heard round the world”

Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Ira Bissell rode through the night to warn of British forces (though they did not complete their journeys). Colonial militias organized and met the British forces at Lexington and Concord to protect their stores of munitions. On the Lexington Green, nearly 2450 British soldiers and 70 ‘minutemen’ regarded each other with suspicion. A bullet fired, known as ‘the shot heard round the world’ and tensions that had been building for years marched over the brink and into war. 

• 1777 - The Articles of Confederation

Stemming from wartime urgency and a strong fear of a central authority, the Articles were written to provide a loose government structure for a fledgling nation. They were not ratified until 1781. Under the articles, the states remained sovereign, with a Congress serving as the last resort on appeal of disputes. Congress was able to make treaties and alliances, maintain armed forces, and coin money on behalf of the “United States of America”. However, the Congress could not impose taxes or regulate commerce. Those issues would lead to the Constitutional Convention in 1787.

That is where our timeline leaves us for this week! Check below for additional reading resources and tune in this week to learn more about the experiences of people in the colonies. 

To read more about this period, here are some great books to get you started:

For Kids:

For Adults:

https://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.html

https://www.ushistory.org/us/9f.asp

https://www.constitutionfacts.com/us-declaration-of-independence/the-five-riders/

https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/slavery-colonial-georgia

https://www.nps.gov/inde/learn/historyculture/stories-libertybell.htm

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/native-american-timeline

https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/american-indian-wars

https://www.nps.gov/saga/learn/education/upload/african%20american%20history%20timeline.pdf

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-milestones