Continental Congress
How many continental congresses were there?
Two
What is an Act?
A law, usually a tax
What did the Sugar Act tax?
Sugar/Molasses
What is a boycott?
It's when you specifically don't do something or buy something to keep somebody from making money in order go get something you want
Who were the Sons of Liberty?
A colonial protest group
What lead to the First Continental Congress?
The Intolerable Acts
Why did the British start taxing the colonies?
They needed to pay back the money they owed after the French and Indian War
What did the Tea Act tax?
Tea
What is one other way besides boycotting that colonists protested British taxes?
They marched through the streets, they harassed tax collectors and British officials, they burned effigies
What is the difference between a Patriot and a Loyalist?
A Patriot was a colonist who wanted to break away from Britain and become independent, a Loyalist was a colonist who wanted to stay loyal to Britain and wanted the colonies to accept British Rule
What lead to the Second Continental Congress?
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
Why was the Stamp Act different from other taxes?
Why did the British pass the Tea Act?
To help the British East India Trading Company make money by forcing colonists to buy their tea
How did the British react to colonial protests?
They were not happy with the colonists at all, and continued to pass more and more restrictive laws to try to keep the colonists under control
Where was the first battle of the American Revolution?
Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts
What did the First Continental Congress decide to do? (3 things)
Stay loyal to Britain but protest the taxes, boycott British goods, and meet the next year to discuss the results of their protests
Why were the Townshend Acts so effective? (2 reasons)
Put a tax on things the colonists couldn't boycott, and used part of the money to pay the salaries of the British officials and tax collectors so they would continue to enforce it despite colonial protest
What 6 things did the Townshend Acts tax?
Why was the Boston Massacre important?
It convinced many colonists who were on the fence about the British that they had to fight back against the British or they would be killed, so it got a lot of colonists over to the Patriot side
Who wrote the Townshend Acts?
Charles Townshend
What did the Second Continental Congress decide to do? (2 things)
Formed the continental army led by George Washington, wrote the Olive Branch Petition as a last effort to make peace with Britain
What was included in the Intolerable Acts? (4 things)
Boston Port Act (closed Boston), Massachusetts Government Act (replaced colonial leaders with British leaders), Administration of Justice Act (made British officers and officials immune to criminal charges), and The Quartering Act (required colonists to house British soldiers)
What were the three major issues with the Stamp Act (besides it being a direct tax)?
Colonial leaders were not consulted, it could only be paid with British Sterling, which colonists didn't have a lot of, and the trial process for being arrested for not paying the tax was overly complicated
What was the importance of the Boston Tea Party?
It gave colonists confidence because it was so successful, they felt like they could really fight back against the British with their protests
What groups fought in the French and Indian War and what were they fighting over?
It was the British and the Colonists vs the French and the Native Americans, they were fighting over who would own the Ohio River Valley