Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 in Shadwell. He was an American Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and the successor of John Adams, which makes Jefferson the 3rd president of the United States. Thomas Jefferson also served at the Continental Congress, who represented Virginia and served also as wartime governor of Virginia. When the Revolutionary War against England ended, Jefferson became a diplomat. Thomas Jefferson was also the first United States Secretary of State, during George Washington's legacy as president. Jefferson began building Monticello in 1768.

Thomas Jefferson was the main author of the Declaration of Independence. He wrote it on July 4th of 1776, so that his country would be free from the British. Afterwards, Thomas made the Purchase for the Louisiana Territory in 1803, 828,000 square miles for $230 million in 2012 dollars. He was in office from March 4, 1801 - March 4, 1809. Also, Thomas Jefferson and his friend, James Madison (4th president of the United States), organized the Democratic-Republican Party.

In conclusion, Thomas Jefferson was also a very important man for the American Revolution. He wrote the Declaration of Independence, which is because of that why he is consider an American Founding Father. He served at the Continental Congress and was the first United States Secretary of State. It is because of him why US territory is so big, because of the Louisiana Purchase. He also had slaves, which he treated them good and gave them food.
He was not a great leader, but also a great person.

George Washington; General, Leader, Captain.

George Washington was the First President of the United States of America. He was born on February 22, 1732 and died on December 14, 1799. He was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Washington served as the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He presided the convention that drafted the Constitution.
Washington was born in Virginia. His family owned tobacco and slaves. Washington was a senior officer in the colonial forces, when the first stages of the French and Indian War occurred. In 1775, the Second Continental Congress choose Washington to be commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, during the American Revolution. He was able to remove the British from Boston in 1776, but he was defeated a lot of times when New York City was captured by the "redcoats".

George Washington was the leader that the colonists needed to defeat the British. He was very intelligent, so most of his tactics were of good benefit for the United States. George Washington lead his men on Christmas night of 1776, into the crossing of the Delaware River. Washington decided to give a "surprise attack" to the British and the Hessians (who protected the British). Washington's men bombard them so much, that the Hessians had to leave the place. The battle was called "The Battle of Trenton", which Washington's army won. This was one of the greatest wins, that George Washington had!

George Washington was a very important man for the American nation. Without him and his strategies, United States could have never got free from the British. George Washington was very known because he knew when to retreat. Although United States lost a big series of battles, the could won the war thanks to the man. George Washington was in the Presidential term from April 30, 1789 - March 4, 1797. He died in December 14, 1799 in Mount Vernon. He is one of the greatest leaders America has ever had!

Effect and Impact the American Revolution Had Around The World

The American Revolution had a big effect on the European way of thinking. It demonstrated that it was possible to overthrow an oppressive government. Some of the big effects this had on Europe is that It not only served as an inspiration for France, but also demonstrated that the liberal political ideas of the Enlightenment were more than just nonsense ideas of just people wasting their time but they were really intellectual and well analyzed. We can see that the three major events of the American Revolution had great influence on Europe were: First, the signing the Declaration of Independence. Second, implementing the ideas of Enlightenment and third the formation of the U.S constitution.


First, America by declaring independence demonstrated that it was possible to oppose and not to be agree with old governments, authorities, or laws and ways of doing things. This was the first time a colony had opposed and expressed what they really feel. They also successfully declared its rights to self-government. As an effect of this succesful action many European nations and colonies were inspired and felt confident to express what they felt and what they wanted for their nations. So this made other nations free and at some point this started the evolution of certain things.

Second, The United States had created a new social contract in the form of its Constitution, in which they realized the ideas of Enlightenment. The rights of man, the ideas of liberty, equality, and freedom of religion. this were no longer normal ideas, they took them seriously and started to analyze them. The people who consist the U.S Constitution rejected the ideas of some models such as greeks civic republicanism. They analyzed the differences between the democracy and their own system of representative democracy. This made the burguesy of Europe reconsider their own government and systems.

We can also see how all these factors were part and had an effect in the French Revolution, where the revolutionaries formed their own things like their slogan, “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”. Europeans obtained information about the American Revolution from soldiers returning from America. French soldiers returned to France with ideas of individual liberty.The French then protested against their monarchy, which they saw as tyranny.
So with all this factors we can really see the impact the American Revolution had around the world and between different nations which took America as a role model.

The Battle of Bunker Hill

On June 17, 1775 the Battle of Bunker Hill took place. It is one of the most important colonial victories in the U.S war for independence. It lent considerable encouragement to the revolutionary cause. This battle made both sides realize that this was not going to be a matter decided on by one quick and decisive battle. When the British planned to occupy Dorchester Heights on the Boston Peninsula, the colonists became alarmed at the build up of British troops off of the coast. The colonists decided that action had to be taken so as to stop the threatening British movement in this territory to protect themselves from an attack.

The Battle of Bunker Hill started when the colonists learned about the British plan to occupy Dorchester Heights. The colonists were understandably shaken by this news. They thought they had to protect their land and freedom. The Americans had proved to themselves, and the rest of the world that they could stand up to the British army in traditional warfare. And only a few days later, George Washington would lead a group of men up to Dorchester Heights, aiming their cannons at the British, and then watched the Red Coats retreat from the hill. So even though the British had won the battle, it was a short lived victory since the colonists took control of the hill again, but this time with more soldiers to defend it.

The Battle of Bunker Hill was important for a variety of reasons. The first one being that it was the first battle of the Revolutionary War, and because of the fierce fighting that defined the battle it foreshadowed that it was going to be a long, close war. Another important event that came from the battle was that it allowed the American troops to know that the British army was not invincible, and that they could defeat the British in traditional warfare. The losses experienced on the British side also helped to bolster the colonists confidence. So it came to be that the Battle of Bunker Hill would be the foundation that the colonists would look back to for the many battles that occurred during the American Revolution. The first being that the British suffered heavy losses and would no longer convinced of a victory when they went to battle the colonists.

Revolutionary Womens

Deborah samson, Was an illiterate(unable to read or write) massachusetts setts farm worker who loved adventure. In 1782 after the last battle of the war but while there was still some fighting she enlisted in the continental army as robert shurtliff. She served for one and a half years. According to one account afer samson was hit by a musket ball she cut the ball out of her leg to avoid being examined by a doctor. Later a doctor treating samson for a fever discovered her secrets. She was given an honorable discharge in October 1783. Some patrios womens set fire to their own property to keep loyalist from using it. Catherine schuyler set fire to her family's wheat fields in upstate New York so the british troops could not use the crop. In revenge, the british burned Schyler's house to the ground.

A few camp, Followers served on the battlefield they hauled cold water for cooling down the canons. Two legendary water carriers were Margaret Corbin took over her husbands cannon when he was killed in battle and fired it until her arm was nearly torn off by grapeshot. Hays also took over from her husband when he collapsed from heat. One soldiers memoir recalls that she kept firing the cannon ball blew off the lower part of her petticoat. Patience Lovell wrigth was an artist who made wax figures of famous people. In 1772 she moved to England. There, she met many important people. When the revolution started, Lovell began to spy for the patriot, passing along information to the colonies by hiding messages inside wax figures that she shipped over for display.

Ann bailey did not, Fare as well as deborah samson. She enlisted in 1777 as samuel gay. Within three weeks she was promoted to corporal. Shortly afterward her disguise was discovered and she ran away. A few month later bailey was found and tried in court. She was fined sentenced two months in jail and discharged from the army. In the british tax on tea on the night of December 16 1773 some men boarded a ship and threw all of its cargo of tea into Boston Harbor. The event is called Bosotn Tea Party. Sarah Fulton helped the men disguise themselves as Mohawk indians. Then she heated water in her kitchen so they could wash off the disguises. For this she called the mother of the Boston Tea Party

When Washington Crossed the Delaware

Christmas night of 1776, was a troubled time for the United States. After six months the Declaration of Independence had been signed, General George Washington and his army, had suffered defeat after defeat at the hands of the British. Washington lead the main body of his army across the Delaware River to launch a surprise attack to the British. Washington and his men were going against the odds. People thought it was impossible for them to win against the most powerful army in those times. But men who started across the cold Delaware loved their country and their leader, they wanted to get their Independence.

When they started across the Delaware, Washington's men had no jackets to keep them warm, many had no shoes. Everyone was hungry. Under General Washington's orders they had taken every boat they could find with them, so they were safe from the British. But Washington's men were exhausted and sick. On the other side of the icy river, British had stationed Hessians. The Hessians had no respect for the American. Before dawn on December 26 they would attack the Hessians at Trenton, New Jersey. Washington thought that they could only win if his men caught the Hessians by surprise.

Thomas Paine inspired Washington's men to fight against the British. On Christmas night of 1776, Washington led twenty-four hundred men to a crossing point 9 miles upstream from Trenton. Washington's men crowded into large boats that would take them to the opposite shore. They had eighteen cannons, so getting them across the river was very hard. But at three o' clock in the morning, the crossing was complete! Washington's army thought that their surprise attack would no be effective because they had to do it during the daylight, but they still did it. The American soldiers bombard them so much, that the Hessians had to leave the place. 19-year-old Captain Alexander Hamilton lead one of the companies firing the Hessians. Another person who was there was James Monroe, which later he would become the fifth president of United States. The battle was called "The Battle of Trenton", which Washington's army won.

Battle of Bunker Hill

Battle of Bunker Hill

This battle could be considered one the mosto significant battles of the colonists. The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775 on a place known as Breed's Hill. This was during the early stages of the Revolutionary War and the Siege on Boston.The Battle of Bunker Hill is named after "Bunker Hill" which is adjacent to Breed's Hill. It is located near a peninsula in Boston.

The British had all the odds for this battle, having the British Army and Hessiens as backup. The Colonists made some preparations for the battle (sending 1,200 soldiers to make some arrangements), but a British officer found out about their tactics and they decided to fight during the day. They fought at 3 pm, General Howe leading a group of infantry and brigadiers on the left flank of the Colonists defense. A group of sir Robert Pigot were situated just south of Charleston town, where they started to get sniper damage. They eventually decide to burn the whole town to the ground, leaving a lot of smoke in the battlefield.

This battle was fought between the Continental army and the British Army. It was planned by Lord William Howe, and he was expecting to win the battle easily against the United Colonies. Even though he won the battle, he had a total of 1054 casualties while the continental army only had 450 casualties. George Washington was able to defeat 2 attacks of the British, until they were out of ammunition and had to retreat. They lost the battle, but it gave the Continental Army a huge boost of confidence.

Declaration of Independence

One of the most remarkable documents during the United States independence. It was drafted and voted by Thomas Jefferson in July 2, 1776, and was later signed and approved July 4, 1776. This document basically stated that the thirteen colonies were completely independent from the British Empire. This document is located in the Library of Congress in Washington. 4th of July is now a national holiday, also known as Independence Day.

Thomas Jefferson as many know is the main author of the Declaration of Independence, but he is not the only one who contributed to it. 56 other delegates from the thirteen colonies had to sign the Declaration. When the Declaration was signed, people started to question Parliament and saying it was a set of laws for Great Britain only! The Declaration had a lot of controversial topics, for example it stated that the King was actually a tyrant. Another example was that it stated that "all men are created equal" which makes it a problem because rich men thought slaves were not humans.

As you know, before the Declaration United States and Great Britain were already fighting a war. The Coercive act was given to punish the people of Boston of their actions, like the Boston Tea Party. So the First Continental Congress decided to boycott British goods. The was one of the many responses of the colonists. Later the Second Continental Congress joined and they accepted the Declaration of Independence.

The Second Continental Congress

This congress took place in Pennsylvania and 13 colonies except Georgia were part of this congress. The chief accomplishment of the Second Continental Congress, which convened on May 10, 1775. Was the drafting of the declaration of independence. The Second Continental Congress took place in the wake of the Seven Years’ War between Great Britain and France, which left Britain deep in debt. To pay off this debt, the British Parliament passed legislation that increased tax revenues from the American colonies, including the Stamp Act of 1765 and the Townshend Revenue Act of 1767. Many colonists, though, and the purpose of both the First Continental Congress and the Second Continental Congress was to oppose them. The colonists argued that because the colonies were not represented in Parliament, that body had no authority to tax them, a view expressed in the still well-known phrase “no taxation without representation.”

This congress had 4 interesting things. First one, this congress assumed the whole responsibility of the war. Second one, they set up a continental army to defend them in any important case. Third one, George Washington who had a experience in the french-indian war being a soldier was put in charge of this continental army. And the fourth one, they sent a peace petition to King George III which he rejected. This petition is also known as the "Olive Branch Petition."

A important character which helped the second continental congress was, John Hancock. John Hancock which was the president of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress, was elected to be the president of this Second Continental Congress when Peyton Randolph left this place. He became the president because Henry Middleton which was their first option declined so John was the chosen one. Hancock is also known for his large signature in the Declaration of Independence. And for being the first member of the congress to sign this document.

First Continental Congress!

As you know, the Coercive Act, or the Intolerable Act as the colonists called it, was put into action in 1774. Some of the laws that was the Boston Port Act in March 31, 1774. This Act closed all ports in Boston and only British boats could enter and leave. Another act was the Quartering Act of 1774, which was the same act as the first one. These and many other acts were given to colonist and they were upset and tired with all the acts that were unfairly given.

In response to the Coercive Act, the colonists took action and decided to organize a meeting, hence the First Continental Congress was formed. It was the not the first congress they make, the first one was the Stamp Act Congress. The First Continental Congress was made up of delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies (excluding Georgia). This Congress was established September 5, 1774. The meeting took place in Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia. There were 56 seats inside the meeting room, and this congress was succeded by the Second Continental Congress.

The Coercive Act was not given without reason, the British wanted to punish the colonists because of their actions (Boston Tea Party). One of the major causes that the First Continental Congress did was the absolute boycott of British goods. This boycott was accepted by the colonists and began December 1, 1774. Joseph Galloway thought of a "plan of union" which he wanted a legislative power in America. Another important accomplishment in the First Continental Congress was that they decide on making the Second Continental Congress in may 10, 1775.

The Townshend Act

The Townshend Acts were a series of acts passed beginning in 1767 by the Parliament of Great Britain. The townshend act were they taxes on glass, paint, oil, lead, paper, and tea that were applied to a year for the administration of the colonies. The purpose of the Townshend Acts was to raise revenue in the colonies to pay the salaries of governors and judges so that they would be independent of colonial rule. The Townshend Acts were met with resistance in the colonies, prompting the occupation of Boston by British troops in 1768, which eventually resulted in the Boston Massacre of 1770. As a result of the massacre in Boston, Parliament began to consider a to partially repeal the Townshend duties. Most of the new taxes were repealed, except the tax on tea causing then the Boston Tea Party. Following the Seven Years' War the British Empire was deep in debt.

Merchants in the colonies, organized economic boycotts to put pressure on their British counterparts to work for repeal of the Townshend Acts. Townshend Acts 1767, originated by Charles Townshend and passed by the English Parliament shortly after the repeal of the Stamp Act. By the writings of John Dickinson, Samuel Adams, and others, protested against the taxes to make the colonist noticed they still have a voice to raise up. Colonist started gathering together to enforces each other and tell the parliament the have no right. The Townshend duties, imposed direct revenue duties that is, duties were not merely at regulating trade but at putting money into the British treasury. It was the second time of the history of the colonies that the tax has been levied only for the purpose of raising revenues.

Colonial reaction to these taxes was the same as to the Sugar Act and Stamp Act, and Britain eventually repealed all the taxes except the one on tea. In response to the sometimes violent protests by the American colonists, Great Britain sent more troops to the colonies. Charles Townshend, Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is as the chief treasurer of the British Empire in charge of economic and financial matters. With the repeal of the Stamp Act, money is needed. The Acts create a new Customs Commission and punish New York for refusing to abide by the Quartering Act. The colonists are being taxed by Parliament without being represented in Parliament. And they are Englishmen and deserve the rights of Englishmen.

0 Tolerance For Intolerable Acts

The Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts)

The Coercive Acts, or as the colonists named them, the Intolerable Acts, were acts that King George III imposed on the colonists for all wrong things they had done. These acts were all imposed in 1774. There are five Intolerable Acts. Boston Port Act, Administration of Justice Act, Massachusetts Government Act, Quartering Act, and the Quebec Act. Colonists called the Coercive Acts, Intolerable Acts because they were very intolerable to the colonists. The Sons of Liberty targered and feathered anyone in favor of the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts made the colonists be more together. We are going to post more about how the colonists fought back  English.

                                                                      Boston Port Act

The Boston Port Act was imposed on the colonists on March 31, 1774. Colonists had to payed nearly $1 million (today's money) on dumped tea. Also, the Boston Port was closed.  The Boston Port Act was the easiest way to enforce the other four Coercive Acts imposed on colonists. The Boston Port Act only allowed English ships to arrive on that port. The Boston Port Act was the first act of the Coercive Acts.

Administration of Justice Act

The Administration of Justice Act was one of the five acts imposed by Parliament in response to the Boston Tea Party. It was imposed on May 20, 1774 and it was the second of the Coercive Acts imposed.  This act stated that thee governor of Massachusetts could move trials of English soldiers accused of committing crimes to England, because they thought that in the colony they wouldn't get a fair trial. It was known as the Murder Act because the soldiers escaped the consequences of their faults. This act was centralized in protection for the English soldiers. 

About Us

We are US History students which are part of a project. The purpose of this project is to create a blog and post information about the things we learn in class. Our mission is to help other people with the information we're posting. Also we are helping us because this is a method to study and also to get a good grade in our class. The administrators of this blog are Edward. M, Antone. H, Maria. M, Ernesto. P. 

We hope you enjoy our blog and that it can provide you good information.  

The Boston Tea Party

During 1760-1770, many acts were created by the Parliament. Colonists began the boycott on English goods so that Parliament would repealed the Townshend Act. Parliament repealed all the taxes except the one on tea. England was in debt and they needed money, so the Parliament came up with an idea. They gave the East India Company the right to sell tea to the colonists. Parliament reduced the prices on tea for the colonists. However if the colonists bought their tea, the Parliament would have the right to tax them.

The colonists preferred to buy the smuggled Dutch tea (which cost more) rather than the English tea. They knew that if they bought English tea, Parliament would have the right to tax them. Since Parliament decided to continue with the plan, ships loaded with tea went to the American territory. During 1773, the tea was the major conflict in the American colonies. England was in debt after the Seven Years War, so they decided to leave the tax on tea.

On December 16 of 1773, three ships full of tea arrived in Boston. The Boston Patriots were going to attack the East India Company cargos. They decided to dressed us as Mohawk Indians. They were about 200 colonists. What they would do was to get inside the ships and dumped off their cargo. When they got in the ships, the began opening the crates full of tea and dumped them in the water. This in protest against the Parliament for putting taxes on them. Colonists thought that if they would dumped the tea and continued with the boycott, then the Parliament would leave them alone, but it only got worst. 

English Boycotted By Colonists

In June of 1767 the Parliament decided to cut off the land taxes imposed on the colonists. Charles Townshend decided to make the Townshend Act. This act stated that they would taxed the colonists. Then they would use the money collected from the Townshend Act to pay the salaries of the British soldiers that protected the colonies. This act created a tax on goods that colonists imported, like paper, glass, paints, and tea. The Townshend Act was very judged by the colonists. In October, the colonists decided to restart the boycott on English items.

In February, Samuel Adams of Massachusetts wrote a letter so that Parliament would stop taxation without representation. Adams's letter helped the colonists to continue opposing the English. This letter became very famous in the colonies. Colonies like New York, New Hampshire, and New Jersey decided to approve Samuel Adams's method of opposition. Colonists from all the English colonies began with the boycott. The reason of the boycott was that the Parliament would repealed the Townshend Act. Many collectors of taxes were killed by colonists!

When the Townshend Act was still active, lots of money was lost. Colonists were in need of goods, so they began buying smuggled things. Colonists preferred to buy smuggled things rather than English goods. All they wanted was that the Parliament repealed the Townshend Acts. With all the money lost and collectors of taxes killed, Parliament repealed the Townshend Act on everything except on tea in March of 1770. The Parliament left the act on tea to show the colonists that they were the authority in the colonies. In conclusion, Samuel Adams helped the colonists with the repealed of the Townshend Act.

The Boston Massacre

One of the major incidents that occurred during the American Revolution was the Boston Massacre. It was also called the "incident on King Street" by the British, it was the massacre of five colonial civilians and six injured civilians by British soldiers. The British soldiers responsible for this massacre were placed in Boston mainly to protect some British officials to enforce the Parliament's laws. The simple way of telling the what happened was that a group of soldiers fired at an angry mob formed by colonists. But it was not as simple as that.

It all began in the early 1700's when the British started enforcing laws, such as the Townshend act, and the King decided to send more redcoats for protection of the colonies. The soldiers knew the real reason was that the king wanted the colonists to obey. Soldiers were not happy in the New World, they were called "lobsterbacks" because of their redcoat uniforms, and also because they did not receive enough income from the British Government. The redcoats decided to work on the New World for a low wage so they could have some money. This are some of the reasons the tension between the soldiers and colonists formed and violence broke loose.

One night, a group of colonists got very drunk and they started to pelt a soldier with pieces of ice and snowballs. The soldier was later defended by a captain and ore soldiers, but the mob kept harassing them. Eventually one soldier felt so threatened he fired at the mob. More shots were fired afterwards and hence the massacre occurred. John Adams was able to defend the soldiers that were accused of manslaughter, except two who were punished by branding their thumbs which indicated they committed a crime. John Adams was then future president of the United States of America.

Stamp Act

The Stamp Act was the first attempt that the Parliament to assert governmental authority in all the colonies that the British owned. It was passed in March 22, 1765 by the Parliament. They put this act so that England could pay the debt they got from the Seven Years War. The money collected by the Stamp Act was used to pay the costs of defending and protecting the American frontier that were close with the Appalachian Mountains. Also, this new tax was imposed on the American colonists, that required them to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper they used. From ship's papers, legal documents, licenses, newspapers to playing cards were taxed by the Parliament. The Stamp Act made a lot of conflict in those times.

The actual cost of the Stamp Act was relatively small. What really offend the colonists was the standard it seemed to set. In the past years, the taxes on colonial trade were used to measure commerce, not to raise money. However, the Stamp Act was viewed as an attempt by England to raise money in the colonies without the approval of the colonial legislatures. Few colonists believed the idea that they could do anything more than grumble and buy stamps. But suddenly Virginia House of Burgesses adopted Patrick Henry's Stamp Act Resolves. These resolves declared that Americans possessed the same right as the English.

There were more things declared in Patrick Henry's Stamp Act Resolves. It stated that they should be taxed only by their own representatives. Another one was that Virginians should pay no taxes except those voted by the Virginia House of Burgesses. And the last conflict declared was that anyone who supported the right of Parliament to tax Virginians should be consider an enemy of the colony. The House of Burgesses defeated most of Henry's radical ideas, but 4 of them were adopted. In conclusion, the Patrick Henry's Resolves helped a lot the colonists to protest against the British and make them repealed the Stamp Act in 1766.