Page 138 - American Stories, A History of the United States

pamphlets helped transform what had begun as a squabble among the gentry into a mass
movement. Once the people became involved in shaping the nation’s destiny, they could never 5.1
again be excluded.
Had it not been for ordinary militiamen like john Patten, the british would have easily
crushed American resistance. Although some accounts of the Revolution downplay the military 5.2
side of the story, leaving the impression that a few famous “Founding Fathers” effortlessly car-
ried the nation to independence, a more persuasive explanation must recognize the centrality of
armed violence in achieving nationhood. 5.3
the American Revolution involved a massive military commitment. if common American
soldiers had not been willing to stand up to seasoned british troops, to face the terror of the
bayonet charge, independence would have remained a dream of intellectuals. Proportionate to
the population, a greater percentage of Americans died in military service during the Revolution 5.4
than in any war in American history, except the civil War.
the concept of liberty so magnificently expressed in revolutionary pamphlets was not, there-
fore, simply an abstraction, an exclusive concern of political theorists such as thomas jefferson
and john Adams. it also motivated ordinary folk—the Patten family, for example—to fight and
risk death. those who survived the ordeal were never the same, for the experience of fighting, of
assuming responsibility in battle and perhaps even of killing british officers, gave new meaning
to the idea of social equality.

structure of colonial society

5.1 Why did Americans resist parliamentary taxation?
c olonists who were alive during the 1760s did not anticipate national indepen-

dence. For many Americans, it was an era of optimism. The population grew.
In 1776, approximately 2.5 million people, black and white, were living in
Britain’s 13 mainland colonies. The ethnic and racial diversity of these men
and women amazed European visitors.
The American population on the eve of independence was also extraordinarily
young, an important fact in understanding the development of political resistance.
Nearly 60 percent of the American people were under age 21. At any given time, most
people in this society were small children. Many of the young men who fought the
British during the Revolution either had not been born or had been infants during the
Stamp Act crisis. Any explanation for the coming of independence, therefore, must
include the political mobilization of so many young people.
Americans also experienced prosperity after the Seven Years’ War ended in
1763. To be sure, some ports went through a difficult period as colonists who had
been employed during the war were thrown out of work. Sailors and ship work-
ers were especially vulnerable to layoffs of this sort. In general, however, white
Americans did very well. Their standard of living was not substantially lower than
that of the English. A typical white family of five—a father, mother, and three depen-
dent children—not only could have afforded decent food, clothing, and housing but
would have had money left over with which to buy consumer goods. Even the poor-
est colonists seem to have benefited from a rising standard of living. Although they
may not have done as well as their wealthier neighbors, they too wanted to preserve
gains they had made.

breakdown of Political trust
Ultimate responsibility for preserving the empire fell to King George III (r. 1760–1820).
When he became king, he was only age 22 but was determined to play an aggressive
role in government. This dismayed England’s political leaders. For decades, a powerful

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