1.Introduction
In the last chapter, you learned that tensions between Great Britain and the American colonies had grown between 1754 and 1775.In this chapter, you will read about colonists who argued for and againstindependence[independence: separation from, or freedom from control by, another country or government], or separation from Great Britain.
People for independence no longer wanted Great Britain to rule the colonies.These colonists were calledPatriots[Patriot: a person in the American colonies who wanted the colonies to become independent from Great Britain].Some Patriots argued for their cause in speeches and newspaper articles.Others took stronger actions, such as joining mobs that attacked the homes and businesses of those who disagreed with them.
Colonists who remained loyal to Great Britain were calledLoyalists[Loyalist: a person in the American colonies who opposed independence and wanted the colonies to remain under the control of the king and Great Britain].Some Loyalists gave speeches arguing that the colonies should remain under the rule of Great Britain.Other Loyalists took stronger actions, such as armed attacks against Patriots.
Many colonists remainedneutral[neutral: not taking sides. In the American colonies, many people remained neutral and did not support either side (Loyalist or Patriot) in the fight for independence from Great Britain.], or did not take sides.They were neither Loyalists nor Patriots.
As you read this chapter, use this T-chart to track how six important colonists felt about independence.The Loyalists on the left-hand side of the T-chart argued against independence.The Patriots on the right-hand side of the T-chart argued in favor of becoming a country separate from Great Britain.Why did some colonists want to remain under the rule of Great Britain and its king?Why did others want the colonies to be independent?
2.Who Were the Loyalists and Patriots?
The colonies were divided over the question of independence.Historians disagree about how many colonists chose each side.Some believe there were more Patriots than Loyalists.But probably less than half of the colonists were Patriots, and less than half were Loyalists.The rest were neutral.
The Loyalists included many kinds of people.Some were rich landowners.They feared that Patriot mobs might take their property.
Some Loyalists were governors who had been appointed to their jobs by King George III.These men liked their government, and they felt that it was their duty to make sure that British laws were obeyed in the colonies.
Other Loyalists were religious leaders who believed that the king’s power came from God.Many of them were members of the Church of England, Great Britain’s official church.They believed that it was wrong to oppose the king.They told their followers, “You have a duty to be loyal to the church and to the king!”
Many colonists were Patriots.This group included merchants who lived in and around the city of Boston.They were angry about British taxes on goods such as tea and paper.The taxes hurt their businesses because many colonists boycotted the taxed goods.
Some Patriots were lawyers.They fought in the courts against British laws that they thought were unfair.They believed that the colonists should have more say in making laws that directly affected them.
Some Patriots were farmers.Others were people who worked at crafts such as printing, shipbuilding, and making clothes.They agreed with Patriot leaders who said that independence would bring more freedom and wealth to the colonies.
3.Thomas Hutchinson:A Loyalist Governor
Thomas Hutchinson was a Loyalist who lived in Massachusetts.The king named him the royal governor of Massachusetts in 1771.He was a dedicated official.But over time, Hutchinson became one of the most hated men in the colonies because he always sided with the British against the Patriots.
Hutchinson was a thin, serious man who rarely smiled.He didn’t like to show his feelings.Although he was a successful businessman, he didn’t wear fancy clothes.
As an official serving the king, Hutchinson firmly believed in enforcing British laws such as the Stamp Act of 1765.Patriots were furious about the Stamp Act.One night, an angry mob burst into Hutchinson’s house.The mob stole money and broke furniture.They also destroyed his prized collection of books.From then on, Hutchinson was a bitter enemy of the Patriots.
As a Loyalist, Hutchinson believed that the colonists could not govern themselves without the British king to guide them.He thought that King George III knew what was best for the colonists because the king was wise and experienced.Hutchinson also wrote that British people who lived overseas, such as the colonists, could not expect to have the same freedoms that British people in Great Britain enjoyed.
In 1774, some Patriots embarrassed Hutchinson by printing some letters that he had written to the British government.The letters said that Great Britain should be tougher on the colonists.When colonists read his letters in the newspaper, many more of them turned against him.And they became convinced that getting fair treatment for the colonies from Great Britain was not possible.
4.Jonathan Boucher:Loyalist Religious Leader
Reverend Jonathan Boucher was a British religious leader.He used his sermons to spread his Loyalist beliefs.
Boucher first came to the colonies as a young man in 1759.Later, he went back to Great Britain.There he became a priest in the Church of England.Then he returned to the colonies.He became a well-known religious leader in Maryland.
Many people in the colonies liked Boucher because he was intelligent and full of charm.He was balding and usually wore spectacles, or glasses.
Boucher was full of energy and ambition.He was a forceful man who was comfortable talking in front of large groups.Boucher was never afraid to speak his mind, no matter how many people disagreed with him.As a minister, he expected everyone to obey his teachings.He used his talents and his occupation to argue for the Loyalists’ cause.
Boucher preached that the king’s power came from God.He said that Christians had a special duty to obey British laws.Disobeying the king was like disobeying God.
Boucher did not believe that common people were capable of ruling.He argued that the colonists should obey British laws for their own good.He said that these laws came from God and made life safer and better for most colonists.
Finally, Boucher warned that working for independence was dangerous.These actions could lead to a war with Great Britain.Such a war would hurt thousands of people far worse than living with a few unfair laws would.
Boucher’s Loyalist sermons made some Patriots angry.They threatened to hurt him.Realizing that he was in danger, Boucher began keeping loaded pistols nearby when he gave his sermons.
5.Lord Dunmore:Loyalist Governor of Virginia
John Murray was a fierce Loyalist leader.His British title was Lord Dunmore.He came from a royal Scottish family and was elected to the British Parliament at the age of 29.In 1771, King George III appointed Dunmore to serve as royal governor of the colony of Virginia.
Dunmore was a proud and wealthy man.He dressed in fancy clothes that showed off his wealth and importance.He was stubborn and sometimes bad-tempered.And he was very loyal to Great Britain.
Dunmore pointed out that Great Britain started the colonies and continued to protect them.Therefore, he felt it had the right to rule them and to make them pay taxes on British goods.
Dunmore also argued that fighting for independence would hurt the economy and make many colonists poor.He strongly believed that the colonists had a duty to obey British laws.The colonies, he said, must depend on Great Britain.Colonists who would not fight for the king weretraitors[traitor: a person guilty of betraying or acting against his or her own country].
As governor, Dunmore thought that being tough would frighten the colonists into accepting British rule.Instead, his firm actions angered many people in Virginia.
Dunmore began to fear for his family’s safety.In June 1775, he moved them onto a British warship.He then gathered a number of warships.He sent the ships to attack Patriots’ homes and plantations along the Elizabeth River.He promised to free any slaves owned by the rebels if the slaves fought against the Patriots.A number of enslaved Africans joined him to gain their freedom.
In the end, Dunmore’s harsh actions only made the views of the Patriots more popular.Because of him, many who had been neutral began to think that they should fight for independence from Great Britain.
6.Benjamin Franklin:The Thoughtful Patriot
Benjamin Franklin was a popular and respected Patriot.At first, he did not favor independence.He hoped that Great Britain would start to treat the colonies more fairly.When that didn’t happen, Franklin sided firmly with the Patriots.
Franklin had many talents.He was a successful writer, printer, inventor, and scientist.He lived in the city of Philadelphia, in the colony of Pennsylvania.There, he helped to start a library, a hospital, and a college.
Although he was an important man, Franklin often dressed in plain suits.He sometimes wore spectacles.He often wore a little fur cap to keep his head warm in winter.
People liked and admired Franklin.He was knowledgeable, funny, and wise.He could stay calm when other people grew angry.He was good at helping people to understand one another’s ideas during arguments.
These abilities made him a skilled statesman.He had a leading role in shaping American policy at home.He was also a key diplomat who represented American ideas in Europe.
From 1757 to 1775, Franklin represented the point of view of the colonies in Great Britain.Patiently, he tried to persuade the British government to stop making laws that the colonists thought were unfair.He did help convince the government to repeal the Stamp Act. But Great Britain continued to pass unfair laws.At last, Franklin went home and became a Patriot leader.
Franklin favored independence for several reasons.He thought that Great Britain would keep making unfair laws. He believed that the colonists could no longer trust the British government.Finally, Franklin believed that the colonists had the ability to govern themselves.By 1775, he was ready to help them prove that he was right.
7.Mercy Otis Warren:Patriot with a Pen
Patriot Mercy Otis Warren was a Massachusetts writer and poet.Patriots shared their ideas at meetings in her home.Among those who attended were John and Abigail Adams, Samuel Adams, and Otis’s husband James. Some historians believe that the idea for the Committees of Correspondence was first discussed in her home.
Warren was thin, with dark eyes and dark hair.She was very religious and cautioned her friends against wearing the latest fashions.She felt that doing so would offend God.
Even as a girl, Warren loved reading, writing, and discussing politics.She became upset by Great Britain’s harsh treatment of the colonies.She felt that taxes were too high and that workers were paid too little.
In both her writings and discussions, Warren made several arguments in favor of independence.She said that British laws and taxes were unfair.Families in the colonies had a hard time earning enough money to pay for expensive British goods.Therefore, the colonies would be better off with their own government.
Warren also believed that women had a duty to speak out against Great Britain.And while she thought that women didn’t have the strength to fight on the battlefields, their minds could be quite powerful.She believed that women should have the same choices as men to get an education and to take an active role in politics.
Warren expressed her ideas through her writing.Two of her plays cleverly attacked Loyalists such as Thomas Hutchinson.Her writings helped to encourage many people in Massachusetts to become Patriots.
8.Samuel Adams:True Patriot
Samuel Adams was a leading Patriot in Massachusetts.Adams believed that the British were harsh and unfair rulers.He called on the colonies to fight for their independence.
Adams was always interested in politics.He went to Harvard University in Massachusetts.There he wrote a paper on people’s right to fight against unfair government.Other local Patriots saw him as a leader.By the mid-1760s he was a full-time politician.
Adams was born into a wealthy Boston family, but he didn’t always manage his money wisely.When he began his life as a politician, his friends had to buy him a new suit, a wig, and other clothing many politicians wore at that time.
Adams was devoted to politics.He was a dramatic speaker and a persuasive writer.And he was a master at using these talents to gain public support.His enemies called him a troublemaker.
Adams argued for independence by writing newspaper articles.He also gave speeches and frequently spoke at town meetings.Adams believed that colonists should not have to pay the high taxes on British goods.He also said it was unfair that the king chose governors for the colonies.The colonists, he argued, should be able to elect their own governors.Adams also thought that the colonists should have the power to change unfair laws.If Great Britain refused to give them this power, then they should become a separate country.
In 1765, Adams helped to organize a group called the Sons of Liberty.The Sons were a secret group of Patriots.They encouraged colonists to disobey laws like the Stamp Act.In 1773, Adams and the Sons led the Boston Tea Party to protest British taxes on tea.
Adams also helped to set up the Committees of Correspondence. These groups helped Patriots in all the colonies share news and plans with one another.Before long, Samuel Adams was working day and night to help the colonies win their independence.
Summary
In this chapter, you read about six colonists who had ideas about independence.You used a T-chart to identify these six colonists as either Loyalists or Patriots.
Loyalists supported the British king.Some, like Thomas Hutchinson and Lord Dunmore, were royal governors. They believed in Great Britain’s right to make laws for the colonies.Some, like Jonathan Boucher, were religious leaders.They thought the colonists had a duty to obey the king.Some landowners feared losing their property.
Patriots wanted independence from Great Britain.Some, like Benjamin Franklin, became Patriots only after trying to persuade the British to change their actions.Others, like Mercy Otis Warren and Samuel Adams, strongly protested against British laws and taxes.Soon, some Patriots were openly calling for independence.
In 1775, many colonists were not ready to take such a bold step.What convinced more colonists to support independence?Read on to find out.
Reading Further - Patrick Henry, Radical Revolutionary
Patrick Henry lived in Virginia.He was an early Patriot.At first, colonists thought his ideas were radical, or extreme.But his fiery speeches won him many followers.What role did Henry play in the march toward independence?
The year was 1763.The scene was a county courthouse in Virginia.The judge and jury were listening to evidence.The case was about a 1755 Virginia law.It dealt with how much money church ministers should be paid.Many ministers did not like this law.They felt that their pay was too low.They had complained to the British king.The king had overturned the Virginia law.Now a minister named James Maury was in court.He wanted money to make up for the low pay he had received under the old law. Arguing against Maury was a young lawyer.His name was Patrick Henry.He certainly did not look impressive.His clothes were plain.He did not wear a wig, which fashionable men of the time often wore at court.But Henry took a daring approach to the case.He argued that the king had no right to overturn the law.The people of Virginia had agreed to the law, Henry argued.They had a right to make their own laws and rules.