Name______Period______
Chapter 6, Section 4 – Declaring Independence
I. The Continental Army Is Formed
1. The ______were able to build a militia 20,000 strong around Boston & the British troops moved into ______hoping the surrounding water would protect them.
2. On May 10, 1775, Americans attacked England’s ______in New York, led by ______and the Green Mountain Boys.
3. Allen & the Green Mountain Boys beat the British and captured the fort with its ______– later to be used in Boston!
4. On that same day, May 10, the ______met in Philadelphia with delegates including Sam & John Adams, John Hancock, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Patrick Henry.
5. At this meeting, they agreed to form the ______with George Washington as commanding general, and the printing of money to pay the troops.
II. The Battle of Bunker Hill
1. After the ______seized Bunker Hill next to Boston in June of 1775, the British attacked.
2. The ______won the battle, but it came at a great cost: over 1,000 British soldiers were killed & 400 militia rebels.
3. The inexperienced ______had held its own against the world’s most powerful army!
III. A Last Attempt At Peace
1. In July of 1775, Congress drafted the ______, which asked King George III to restore harmony.
2. The King ______the petition and vowed to punish the colonists for their disloyalty.
3. ______decided to help train the Boston militia & came up with a bold plan to invade ______, defeat the British, & convince the Canadians to join the rebels.
4. Under ______in November of 1775, they attacked Quebec but failed miserably and marched home in defeat.
IV. The British Retreat from Boston
1. 59 cannons from ______arrived in Boston after two months.
2. Washington pointed all of them at Boston, which resulted in ______withdrawing his 9,000 British troops.
3. The ______had reclaimed their city without attacking!!!
V. Common Sense Is Published
1. The publication of ______Common Sense convinced many Americans a complete break from England was needed.
2. Paine ridiculed the idea that kings ruled by the will of ______.
3. Paine believed all ______were corrupt.
4. The call for independence from ______had become a roaring cry!!!
VI. A Time of Decision
1. In May of 1776, Congress adopted a resolution authorizing the 13 colonies to establish their own ______.
2. On June 7, ______of Virginia introduced a resolution calling the colonies free and independent states from England.
3. Congress debated the resolution, but were not ready to vote on it, so they appointed a committee to draft a ______.
4. The committee included Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, & ______.
5. ______was chosen to compose the Declaration of Independence because he was a good writer & Virginian.
6. He wrote it in two weeks and Congress adopted ______resolution on July 2, 1776.
VII. The Declaration Is Adopted
1. On ______, 1776 Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, with John Hancock signing the document first.
2. ______wrote in large letters and commented, “There, I guess King George will be able to read that!”
3. The document was based on ______idea of inherent rights of man.
4. The ______was rung to announce the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence, in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776.
Please read the last four paragraphs on pages, 164, and 166-169 for more information on the Declaration of Independence!