| 1.
Townsend Act: a pension plan, proposed in the U.S. in 1934 but never passed
by Congress, that would have awarded $200 monthly to persons over 60 who
were no longer gainfully ployed, provided that such allowance
was spent in the U.S. within 30 days.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipd/A0698625.html
2. Writs of assistance: a writ issued by a superior colonial court
authorizing officers of the British crown to summon aid and enter
and search any premises. http://www.inease.com/ipd/A0742433.htmfopll
3. Quatering Acts: With effect from the first Public General
Act of 1996 all new Public General Acts have been published
in full text form on the rnet, initially via the Her Majesty's
stion-ery Office Web pages and from 1 July 1999 via these Web
Pages. All Public General Acts appear as originally passed by the UK parliament.
With effect from the first Local Act of 1997, all new Local Acts have been
published in full text form on the Internet, initially via the Her Majesty's
Stationery Office Web Pages and from 1 July 1999 via these Web Pages. All
Local Acts appear as originally passed by the UK asment. The aim
is to publish these documents on the Internet multaneously or at least
within 24 hours of their publication in printed from. However, any document
which is especially complex in terms of its size or its typography may
take longer
to prepare.
http://www.hmso.gov.uk/acts.htm
4. Crispus Attucks: The Murder of Crispus Attucks . . .
On the night of March 5, 1770, five citizens of Boston died when eight
British soldiers fired on a large and unruly crowd that was menacing
them. Boston's patriots, led by Sam Adams, immediately labeled
the affray the Boston Massacre and hailed its victims as martyrs for liberty.
The troops had been sent to Boston in late 1768 to support
the civil authorities and were themselves subject to the jurisdiction
of the local courts. All eight soldiers were jailed and tried for murder.
They were defended by John Adams,
who later became the second President of the United States, and
acquitted on grounds of self defense. The patriots used the trial to demonstrate
that law rather than mob rule had been maintained in Boston, and
that even the hated redcoats could receive a fair trial.
http://lcweb.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trr046.html
5. Committee of Correspondence: In March of 1773, twenty-nine
year old Dabney Carr rose from his seat in the Virginia House
of Burgesses and proceeded to change the world. Carr grew to
adulthood as young Thomas Jefferson's greatest friend and had
spent many bright afternoons with
young Thomas in the shade of the great oaks of the future Monticello.
The lifelong attachment to each other and this small hill, culminated in
their legendary promise to be interred in this hallowed ground.1
Carr addressed the House and suggested the establishment of
a standing Committee of Correspondence and Inquiry. This committee
would be tasked with contacting the legislatures of each colony so that
they could join Virginia and offer concerted opposition toward British
encroachments.2 With his gifts of youth, intellect, and ambition; Carr
seemed to be destined for a stellar career in politics. Destined he was,
not for power but for that comforting place on the side of
the mountain. Within two months of Dabney Carr's shining moment
in Williamsburg, the young man who had not yet seen his thirtieth
year would die in Charlottesville. His dearest friend would keep
their promise of years past and place Carr in the shade of the oaks.
Dabney Carr never understood his role in the formation of the United States.
For that matter, neither did his friend Thomas Jefferson or
any of his contemporaries. The parts these men played have
been left to us, the later generations, to examine and to explicate to
the best of our abilities. Committees of Correspondence were
not unknown to colonial legislatures. For many years, various colonies
had used these committees to deal with important matters usually between
the individual colony and the mother country.3 They tended
to be temporary organizations which were dissolved shortly after their
usefulness was exhausted until backcountry counterfeiting and Rhode
Island's Gaspee Affair spurred Richard Henry Lee and his Raleigh Tavern
associates to suggest the establishment of an intercolonial standing Committee
of correspondence http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/fall98/lastdays.html
6. Tea Act: Tea Act: The Tea Act (1773) once again
inflames the radicals, in spite of the fact that it will lower tea
prices. If the Americans accept the lower tea prices,
they also accept the duties (taxation without representation),
and put many of the founding fathers out of business
smuggling tea. Throughout the colonies "tea parties" are held where men
turn back ships or board them and toss packaged tea into the harbor.
Although no "tea party" is held in Georgia (no tea was allocted to
Savannah), a party was held at the harbor in nearby Charles Town, South
Carolina. In 1774 the Georgia House of Commons passes
a number of resolutions about
the relation of England and the colonies in general. In spite of the
prior political problems, when the First ntinental Congress is convened
no one from Georgia attends, for no one is appointed by the House. The
Midway district appoints Lyman Hall as its representative, but he does
not attend, feeling that he cannot represent the entire state. Open revolt
is brewing. Patriots in Charles Town, South Carolina,
essentially block communication with England. They open Governor Wright's
letters and replace them with forgeries. The political tension rises to
new heights when word of the battles at Lexington and Concord reaches
Savannah. Most of the actions taken by England are aimed at the northern
colonies. Since the colonies are not yet a cohesive unit, these do
not affect the state of Georgia. However, when Lyman Hall attends
the Second Continental
Congress in May, 1775, he brings money and supplies with him to aid
the rebellion.
http://ngeorgia.com/revolution/amrev5.html
7. Intolerable Acts: The colonies originally had charters
or letters from the King giving them the right to run their own affairs.
Eventually these charters were revoked. Some of the colonies became
Crown colonies and their government was modeled after that of England.
Instead of a King, they had a Royal Governor; instead of a House
of Lords, they had a Council; instead of a House of Commons, they
had an Assembly. The real power lay with the Colonial Assembly
which controlled the money. The Assembly even decided how big a salary
the Governor would get, if any, and how all money was spent.
King George III was determined to control the colonies by imposing a new
tea tax. In 1775, he demanded that three shiploads of surplus tea be unloaded
in Boston. The Bostonians did not want the tea and decided not to pay a
tax that their Assembly did not vote on. They dumped the tea in Boston
Harbor, believing England would then leave them alone. King George III
was furious! He, and many in Parliament, believed the colonies should
be punished for insulting Parliament and interfering with trade. To
punish them, Parliament passed the Coercive Acts, called by the colonists,
Intolerable Acts. These acts overturned the principles on which the Massachusetts
colony was founded in the charter of 1691. Without consultation and
without legal proceedings, the charter was changed. The colonists
were outraged! The Boston Port Bill was intended to close down completely
the Port of Boston until the East India Company was paid for their
tea and Parliament was paid the tax due on the tea. The Massachusetts
Government Act declared that members of the Massachusetts Council
would be appointed by the Governor, not elected by the Assembly. Also,
town meetings could take place only with the Governor's permission.
This act gave the governor full power to appoint local officials
and he judiciary, and decreed that in the future, juries would be appointed
by the sheriffs, not elected. The Administration of Justice Act provided
that any British official serving in the colonies, who was accused
of a capital offense could be removed from the colony and sent to another
colony or to England for a fair trial.Through a new Quartering Act
for the British Army, colonial citizens would be required to house and
feed, in their private homes, British officers and troops.
http://www.ga.k12.pa.us/academics/LS/4/sstudies/Colonial/4K/4k98/4keoj.ht
8. Quebec Act: , the Quebec Act was tacked on to the Intolerable
Acts. It gave Canada's Catholics civil equality and guaranteed
religious tolerance. It also gave the French vast territories west
of the Appalachians. The colonists saw this as an attempt to renew
their battles with both the French and the Indians.
The Boston Port Bill strangled Boston economically. She was totally
dependent on the port as an outlet to the ocean for fishing and commerce.
The other colonies supported Massachusetts in protest. Shops closed and
bells tolled. Demonstrators marched through the streets. Donations began
to pour into Boston: rice, wheat, sugar, flour, and even hundreds of sheep,
herded form Connecticut and New York to Massachusetts. Boston called
for a Covenant pledging a boycott of all British goods. The colonists agreed
to meet in Philadelphia at a Continental Congress to debate a course of
action. Sixty-four delegates met in September 1774, and decided on economic
measures only: non-importation and non-exportation. As the British
position stiffened, so did the colonists' resolve to break with England.
They worked together and in 1776 declared their independence.
Independence form Britain was inevitable. For 100 years the Crown and her
Colonies fought over power. The tough stand of George III, broadcast
through the Intolerable Acts, brought the issue to a head. Eventually,
http://www.ga.k12.pa.us/academics/LS/4/sstudies/Colonial/4K/4k98/4keoj.ht
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