HIST362 Study Guide

Unit 4: The American Revolution: Ideas and Experience

4a. Provide a concise historical narrative of the American Revolution

  • What were the primary causes of the American Revolution? Describe its political aftermath.
  • Define Britain's laissez-faire approach to colonial government.
  • How did British policy change toward the American colonies after the Seven Years' War?
  • How did the colonies transition from early resistance, to more radical political claims, to eventual independence?
  • What were the most important turning points in the conflict?
  • Describe the role of some key figures and groups in the American Revolution: John Adams (1735–1826), Alexander Hamilton (1755–1804), Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), Thomas Paine (1737–1809), George Washington (1732–1799), King George III (1738–1820).
  • Describe some key events during the American Revolution: The Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the battles of Lexington and Concord, and the Treaty of Paris.

The American Revolution consisted of a series of revolts between 1765 and 1793, when the 13 American colonies declared independence from Great Britain and formed the United States.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, you might describe the British approach toward its colonies in North America as laissez-faire, allowing for relative self-government. The prosperity the colonies generated benefited Great Britain. However, this relatively peaceful arrangement changed when Great Britain raised taxes to force the northern colonies to pay the debt the French and Indian Wars created.

During the first reunion of elected representatives from several colonies in October 1765, the so-called "Stamp Act Congress", opposed the taxation. The Boston Massacre in 1770 and the Boston Tea Party in 1773 escalated the tension. In April 1775, several major confrontations sparked revolution, including the first major clashes in Lexington and Concord. In the spring of 1776, battles followed in North Carolina, New York and Canada. Representatives of King George III and the United States signed The Treaty of Paris in 1783 to end the American Revolutionary War.

Review this material in:


4b. Identify and analyze the long-term and immediate causes of the American Revolution

  • What were the most important causes of the American Revolution? Do you think the American Revolution was inevitable?
  • Why did the American colonists resist British rule? What did they want to achieve?

Thomas O'Brien distinguishes the American Revolution from the other revolutions we study in this course because it is a revolt against colonialism or anti-colony. It is also anti-monarchy since it replaces the monarchy with a republican form of government that ultimately supports capitalism.

What would make the American colonists change from being solid British citizens to revolutionaries in just 10 years? Many Americans had proudly fought in the Seven Years War from 1756 to 1763 (also known as the French and Indian War), but a series of British government policies changed this pride to hostility and resentment. The British argued that the costs to maintain their empire were too high and they began to impose additional taxes so the colonists could contribute what the British considered their "fair share" of the expenses.

Henry Sage argues that real cause of the revolution was a change in attitude: the Americans had established a sense of national identity due to their isolation from Britain. They were becoming increasingly frustrated with the lack of a clear way to redress their grievances. The Americans suffered from "imperial mismanagement" due to British insensitivity and lack of flexibility: the British government failed to consult them on major policy issues and treated the colonists like "dependent children".

Thomas O'Brien adds that internal factors, such as population pressures, consumerism, commercialism, relationships based on contracts rather than familial ties, and new ideas about political representation (Republicanism), prompted the Americans to revolt.

Review The American Revolution 1775-1777 and The American Revolution 1778-1783 by Henry Sage.

Review the lecture on the American Revolution (1765–1789), and the American Civil War (1861–1865) which followed to transform American society, in The American Revolution, World Revolutions by Thomas O'Brien.


4c. Compare and contrast the Federalist and Republican visions of society and the state

  • Define and compare the ideologies of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists.
  • Define the Federalist Papers.

Alexander Hamilton embodied the Federalist visions of politics, society, and state for the new American government, while Thomas Jefferson was an anti-Federalist (which later became the Republican Party).

The Federalists were committed to a strong central government, unwavering support for the U.S. Constitution, and a more traditional social structure. Carol Belkin explains that Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay strengthened their talking points during the U.S. Constitutional Convention in 1787 and outlined their support for the U.S. Constitution in the 85 articles and essays they published in New York papers in 1788, which became known as the Federalist Papers. 

By contrast, the Anti-Federalists preferred state sovereignty, limited federal government, and increased local control. Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and other anti-Federalists were afraid the Federalists were paving the way for a future government tyranny. Belkin explains they were not as organized in promoting their arguments since they had not participated in the Constitutional Convention. Their strongest argument was the lack of a bill of rights in the Constitution: they convinced the Federalists to add the Bill of Rights (the first ten Amendments to the Constitution) as a condition for their support for ratification.

Review Federalists and Anti-Federalists by Carol Belkin, the Keys to Understanding the Constitution by Henry J. Sage, and the The Bill of Rights.


4d. Critically evaluate the most important documents produced by the American revolutionaries

  • What claims did Thomas Paine make to support the fight for independence from Britain in his pamphlet Common Sense.
  • What does Paine say about religious diversity in the United States? How does he envision equal representation?
  • Describe the purpose of the Declaration of Independence (1776), the Federalist Papers (1778), the U.S. Constitution (1788), the U.S. Bill of Rights (1791).
  • How does the Declaration of Independence demonstrate the "logic of resistance".
  • How does the Declaration of Independence define and envision equality. Which groups of citizens did the framers include in their vision of equality? Who did they exclude and in what ways?
  • Name some important differences between the American Bill of Rights and the English Bill of Rights. What accounts for these differences?

The American founders published several documents to argue their cause, including articles, bills, essays, presidential addresses, and war documents. Americans still look to these documents to help provide direction. The Declaration of Independence offered a justification for revolution by articulating grievances against the British. The Constitution established the basic structure of government and the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution, outlined the rights of American citizens. The Federalist papers and Thomas Paine's Common Sense were also important founding documents.

These anti-colonial, anti-monarchy documents argue for the creation of a new nation, with a new republican government. Note that these documents articulated the notion of equality, but failed to include significant groups of Americans who were not allowed to vote in elections, such as women, slaves (500,000), indentured servants, and non-property owners.

Review this material in Keys to Understanding the Constitution: Important Points to Remember by Henry Sage and in these primary documents:


Unit 4 Vocabulary

  • Alexander Hamilton
  • American Revolution
  • Anti-Federalists
  • Battle of Concord
  • Battle of Lexington
  • Boston Massacre
  • Boston Tea Party
  • Common Sense
  • Declaration of Independence
  • Federalist Papers
  • Federalists
  • Colonial government
  • George Washington
  • John Adams
  • King George III
  • Laissez-faire approach
  • Republican
  • Stamp Act Congress
  • The Federalist Papers
  • Thomas Jefferson
  • Thomas Paine
  • Treaty of Paris
  • United States Constitution
  • United States Bill of Rights