USA independence
Causes
How it began?
Declaration of Independence - July 4th, 1776
American Revolution
The British Defeat
Continental Congress
There were 13 colonies, and the colonists (people living in the colonies) did not like many of the actions of the British Government
For many years the British government decided which countries could trade with the colonies, instead of the colonies deciding it themselves. Many colonists wanted free trade
The war started after years of problems between the British Empire (The Red Coats) and the colonists of North America, especially Roanoke after the French and Indian War.
The bearable relationship of the colonies with Great Britain was shattered by the British Crown's attempt to extract more taxes. It was unhappy because the settlers had no representatives in the London Parliament to make their position heard.
This disagreement was aggravated after the Seven Years War of England against France (1748-1756), in which the inhabitants of the colonies collaborated with troops and victuals so that the English could seize all the French lands in North America.
In 1774, the British passed the Intolerable Acts.
But the colonies had not deserved an improvement in the deal, on the contrary, England responded by raising taxes on sugar, tea, and paperwork.
This law said that colonists had to buy stamps for legal papers, newspapers, and even playing cards, as other British people did. The money from the stamps went to the King.
In 1765, the British Parliament needing money for the French and Indian War, and passed a law called the Stamp Act.
The situation was festering and parting and the war broke out. The first shots were crossed in the town of Lexington on April 19, 1775. In May the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia itself.
In 1775, the Second Continental Congress convened after the American Revolutionary War (1775-83) had already begun.
Howe sought to isolate New England and defeat the rebel army in a decisive battle, in the style of the great war movements in Europe. But Washington shied away from a battle campal and, rather, used a system of "guerrilla warfare".
The First Continental Congress, which was comprised of delegates from the colonies, met in 1774 in reaction to the Coercive Acts, a series of measures imposed by the British government on the colonies in response to their resistance to new taxes.
When Great Britain realized that it was a war and not just a revolt, he sent an army of 30,000 men, under Sir William Howe, to New York, a city that thought itself more favorable to the Crown.
Great Britain realized that was the beginning of a war, so appoints William Howe as the leader of his army.
From 1775 to 1777, Howe commanded the largest expeditionary force Britain had ever amassed, confronting the rebel army under George Washington and enjoying a string of victories.
The battle began on April 19, 1775, in Lexington and Concord Massachusetts On June 14, 1775, Also, George Washington takes command of the newly designated Continental Army.
The Americans were successful in shunning open battles and attacking with skirmishes; that made them more dangerous than "if they had a large regular army.
The defeat of the British in Saratoga, north of New York, in October 1777, was important.
Great Britain came to have, in 1778, in North America, about 50,000 well-trained soldiers, about 18,000 mercenaries Germans they hired for the race; they used half of his powerful fleet
From there, France arrived openly in the war: supported with money, arms, and armies of sea and land. Spain, which supported the rebels with money, arms, and ammunition, was still reluctant to direct intervention.
But a year later, they declared war on England, after a secret agreement with France. Later, Holland also joined the coalition formed by Spain and France.
In 1781 they surrendered the last English redoubt in Yorktown, in front of a French fleet and a combined French-American army of 16,000 men, under the command of George Washington.
George Washington was elected the first president of EE. UU in 1789, under the terms of the Constitution of 1787, and the oldest in the world, because it is maintained until now with only a few amendments.
The Continental Congress met in Philadelphia intending to vote for independence from England. In anticipation of this vote, Congress selected a committee to draft a declaration of independence.
The declaration of independence is a document written by Thomas Jefferson on July 4th, 1776. It proclaimed the right to independence for the American colonies to separate from Great Britain.
The committee, composed of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert R. Livingston, and Roger Sherman, in turn, instructed Thomas Jefferson to write the declaration.
These rights contain the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Being independent and becoming their ruler, the colonies would create a government that abides by these rules.
On July 4, 1776, Congress approved by unanimously the Declaration of Independence of the United States. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington, who later became presidents of the nation, were among the 56 members of Congress
The declaration justified the war. Besides, he presented a long list of complaints against King George III of England. But the most important thing was the argument for independence, proclaiming that all men are born equal and they have inalienable rights
Such as life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness; that governments can govern only with the consent of the governed (self-government) and that any government can be dissolved when it stops protecting the rights of the people
