The-13-English-American-Colonies

1、The 13 English-American ColoniesThe War of Independence DiscoveryChristopher Columbus discovered America in the year .America is named after , who proved that Columbus had not reached India, but instead discovered a new continent. The newly discovered land became known as the .Interesting Facts: C.C

2、. was an opium addict. He never actually set foot on American soil. In his old age, he became delusional and claimed he heard voices. The Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria were no longer than a tennis court and no wider than 10 meters.First SettlementsThe first successful colony was called and King James

3、I of England financed the Virginia Company fleet in 1607.The original settlers were called because their religious convictions led them to desire a “purification” of the Church of England. These pilgrims established the Plymouth settlement in 1620.America became a refuge for persecuted Christians. T

4、hese Christian denominations included Catholics (Maryland), Quakers (Pennsylvania) and Calvinists (New York).Interesting Facts: Between 1692 and 1693, the New England colony village of Salem became infamous for its witch hunts, later known as “The Salem Witch Trials.” 14 women and 5 men were hanged

5、following trials that included verdicts based on the “witch cake test” and the “touch test.”Freedom in the New WorldMost settlers came from England in pursuit of religious freedom and wealth. However, many poor Europeans earned passage to America as , or “indebted slaves”, which required families to

6、 work for 5 to 7 years before they became citizens. America became, in theory, the land of opportunity if you were willing to sacrifice everything you had and work hard. In reality, do you believe this was true?Interesting Fact: During the second Roanoke Island settlement in 1587, several settlers s

7、et off for England to retrieve supplies. In 1590 they returned to find that all settlers had vanished and only the word “CROATOAN” was carved into a tree.Life in the ColoniesHardships included the sea voyage, disease, land disputes with natives, lack of open land for farming.Opportunities for prospe

8、rity included cotton, tobacco and grain surpluses, available land, shipping industries and religious freedom. Why were settlers not forced to practice one religion?Interesting Fact: Romantic love in the New World was a luxury that few could afford.“Mother Country” England viewed itself as the “mothe

9、r” of the colonies and expected to reap the economic profits of the colonies.English merchants became very wealthy through the slave trade and exporting raw materials like cotton, tobacco and grain. Money meant power and power meant control.France and England became involved in the Seven Years War f

10、rom 1756 to 1763 over disputes of “power”.The American War for Independence began with the . The East India Company, a vital source of British wealth, became financially troubled and in order to save the company, the British government gave the company immunity from import taxes. Independently finan

11、ced tea merchants, who still had to pay the tax, coined the phrase “no taxation without representation” and on December 16th, 1773, a group of men boarded British ships in a Boston harbor and dumped the tea cargo. 1st and 2nd Continental Congress1st Continental Congress: delegates from 12 colonies m

12、et on September 5, 1774 to “consult upon the present unhappy state of the colonies.”Lexington, Concord and the “shot heard around the world.”2nd Continental Congress: delegates met on May 10, 1775 to organize an American army. Commander-in-chief of this army was , who later became Americas first pre

13、sident.Interesting Fact: George Washingtons teeth were made of wood.IndependenceDeclaration of Independence: July 4th, 1776 (pg. 253)Thomas Paine, a famous colonial author, wrote “Freedom has been hunted around the globe”Reason and self-reliance the backbone of the Revolutionary War and the human ri

14、ghts the backbone of the Declaration of Independence, which states that all people are created equal and that “government officials are public servants rather than masters of the people and the people have the right to overthrow the government and remove its officials if the people become dissatisfied.” Interesti