American Revolution
American Revolution- political events in the British colonies of North America in 1775-1783, ending in the formation of the United States. They were caused by the reluctance of the colonies to submit to the interests of the mother country. The concept of "American Revolution" is not identical to the concept of " US War of Independence" - the war is part and final stage of the revolution.
Prerequisites
The Americans made a successful raid in May 1775, taking by surprise two forts near the Canadian border and many artillery pieces. Then they failed: a futile winter siege of Quebec put an end to hopes of a quick victory. Throughout the war, Canada remained British and served as a base for their military operations. At the same time, the British fortified Boston and, when the rebels began to occupy the heights on the outskirts of the city, under the command of General William Howe, they launched a counterattack. They chose the initially erroneous tactics of advancing up the slope and came under heavy fire from the defenders. The American positions were still crushed, but the victory at Bunkers Hill cost Howe half of his army of over 2,000 men and gave the colonists confidence that the British could be defeated.
Without waiting for the rebels to bring the guns captured in the forts to the city, the British left Boston in March 1776. Their attempts to conclude a peace treaty came to nothing. In America, there was a general desire to break completely with the mother country, and the English-born radical Tom Payne's pamphlet "Common Sense" strengthened the resolve of the supporters of independence.
US Independence
In July 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of secession and passed the Declaration of Independence, authored by Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration condemned the tyranny of George III and proclaimed the right of all people to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". The 13 former colonies became known as the United States of America.
After an unsuccessful attempt to capture the city of Charleston (South Carolina), the British transferred their forces to the north, and from July 1776, William Howe won a series of victories: he captured New York and delivered several tangible blows to the troops of Washington, who had to retreat across the Delaware River. Washington had no special talent as a general and his men were no match for regular English forces, but this strong man never gave up, and the British, who were fighting in foreign territory, began to have problems with supplies and replenishment. Washington boosted the morale of his troops by crossing the Delaware River again and surprising the enemy's nearly 1,000-strong garrison on Christmas night in 1776. However, the following year, success was again on the side of General Howe, who captured Philadelphia. Washington's army was thinner after that frosty winter.
The British were let down by hopelessly poor planning. While Howe's corps marched on Philadelphia, another general, John Burgoyne, hoping to link up with him north of New York, led his army from Canada towards the city of Albany through difficult terrain, falling into rebel ambush. As a result, the British were surrounded by superior enemy forces and laid down their arms near Saratoga. Inspired by the success of the rebels, the French entered the war on the side of America. The Spanish and Dutch soon followed suit. The British, who had lost command of the sea, had to fight on several fronts. George III was already ready to make concessions, but the Americans needed only independence.
New strategy
Whatever it was, Britain continued the war. Her troops left Philadelphia, but held New York, fighting was fought on the northern front with varying success. In 1778, the British switched to a new strategy, aiming to capture the southern lands with their tobacco, rice and indigo plantations. At first, everything went well: the British occupied Georgia, defeated the American and French units trying to capture Savannah, surrounded and forced the surrender of a large enemy formation near Charleston, and defeated General Gates - the winner in the battle of Saratoga - near Camden (South Carolina). Then the British commander Lord Cornwallis decided to capture North Carolina - and made a fatal mistake. The Americans under the command of Nathaniel Green retreated, exhausting the enemy along the way.
The British again retreated to the lands of Virginia, their headquarters took refuge in Yorktown, on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. The Americans, who, moreover, did not act in a very coordinated manner with the Allies, this time gathered large forces around the British, blocking them from the sea with French ships, and directed a flurry of artillery fire at them. Soon everything was completed.
Parisian world
The British surrendered on October 19, 1781. In fact, the American War of Independence has come to an end. British forces remained in New York for another two years, but the fighting was against the French and outside the States. In September 1783, the Peace of Paris was signed, recognizing the independence of the United States of America.
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See what the "American Revolution" is in other dictionaries:
- (American Revolution) The War of Independence, as a result of which the colonists of North America freed themselves from the rule of the British Empire and founded the United States. Despite the political upheavals of the 17th century, by the middle of the next century ... Political science. Dictionary.
American Revolution- (American Revolution), see the Revolutionary War in North America... The World History
American Revolutionary War Clockwise from top to bottom: Battle of Bunker Hill, Death of Montgomery at Quebec, Battle of Cowpens, Battle of Moonlight Date 1775–1783 ... Wikipedia
This term has other meanings, see Sons of Liberty (meanings). The Sons of Liberty was a revolutionary American organization that fought for the self-determination of the North American colonies. Founded in 1765 ... ... Wikipedia
American Civil War Clockwise from top right: Confederate prisoners at Gettysburg; Battle of Fort Hindman, Arkansas; Rosecrans on the Stones River, Tennessee Date April 12, 1861 - April 9 ... Wikipedia
The bourgeois revolution is a social phenomenon, the purpose of which is the forcible removal of the feudal class from power, the transition to the capitalist system. Once it was a cutting-edge, significant event. Having taken place in England, the Netherlands and France in the 17th and 18th centuries, the bourgeois revolution changed the course of world history.
The revolution can also preserve the remnants of the feudal regime. In this case, it is called bourgeois-democratic. It is to this type that the events that took place in Germany in 1918-1919 belong. The name "bourgeois" revolution is due to the Marxists. But this term is not recognized by all researchers. So, from the concept of "Great French bourgeois revolution" the word "bourgeois" is usually excluded. However, this does not change the meaning. What are its reasons? What are the preconditions for a bourgeois revolution? More on this later.
Causes of the bourgeois revolution
The conflict between certain forces is the prerequisite for any political upheaval. The cause of the bourgeois revolution also lies in the contradiction. This is a conflict between the productive forces, which are gaining momentum, and the feudal foundations, which hinder the development of industry. An important factor in its origin is the clash of the national economy and the dominance of foreign capital. This can also be called the prerequisites for the bourgeois revolution.
Targets and goals
What determines the historical role of the bourgeois revolution? The problems she solved. The removal of barriers to the development of capitalism is the main goal of the bourgeois revolutions in Europe. Private ownership of the means of production is the basis of the new society. In different countries, the reasons for this phenomenon are different. More details about the bourgeois revolution in France, England and the Netherlands are given below.
In some countries, an urgent solution to the agrarian question was required. In others, the problem of national independence, liberation from the hateful oppression, is acutely ripe. End goals:
- the elimination of feudalism;
- creating a favorable environment for the flourishing of bourgeois property and the development of capitalism;
- the establishment of a bourgeois state;
- democratization of the social order.
This is the main feature of bourgeois revolutions.
driving forces
The main driving force, as you might guess from the historical term, was the bourgeoisie. It was immediately joined by artisans, peasants, workers - representatives of the emerging social stratum.
The bourgeoisie, which led the struggle against the feudal lords, could in no way abolish private landed property. The bourgeois themselves owned land allotments. The most rebellious and active force was, of course, the workers, and from the lowest strata of society. As you know, the most violent revolutionaries are the oppressed and outcast.
In the era of imperialism in the developed, the bourgeoisie turned into a counter-revolutionary force. She was afraid of the proletariat threatening her dominance. Having ceased to be the leading force, she tried to turn the revolution onto the path of change. It was hampered by the working class, which had grown ideologically and organized itself into a political party. Now he claims to be the hegemon of the revolution.
In colonial countries where a national struggle is unfolding, the bourgeoisie is still capable of playing the role of the vanguard in defending national interests against foreign capital. But the most significant force remains the workers and peasants. The scale of its development depends on the participation of the broad masses of the people in the revolution. If the bourgeoisie manages to prevent the workers and peasants from solving political problems, to remove them from the struggle for their demands, then the revolution does not achieve its goals, does not solve the tasks set to the end. Examples of such revolutions: Turkey (1908), Portugal (1910).
Forms and Methods
There are various ways to fight. The liberal bourgeoisie chose the tactics of ideological and parliamentary confrontation between the military and conspiracies (remember the Decembrist uprising that took place in 1825). The peasants preferred revolts against the feudal lords, the seizure of the lands of the nobles and their division. The proletariat loved strikes, violent demonstrations and, of course, armed uprisings. The forms and methods of struggle depend not only on the leading role in the revolution, but also on the behavior of the ruling authorities, who respond with violence, unleashing a civil war.
Historical meaning
The main result of the bourgeois revolution is the transfer of power from the hands of the nobility to the bourgeoisie. But it doesn't always happen that way. The bourgeois-democratic revolution is carried out under the rule of the proletariat. Its result is the dictatorship of the peasants and proletarians. The bourgeois revolution was often followed by a series of reactions, the reconstruction of the overthrown government. However, the capitalist system, which had survived the political upheaval, continued to exist. The social and economic gains of the bourgeois revolution proved to be viable.
Theory of permanent revolution
Theorists of Marxism, analyzing the development of bourgeois revolutions in Europe, put forward the idea of an ongoing (permanent) revolution, representing a consistent movement from the struggle against feudalism to anti-capitalist confrontation. This idea was developed into a theory by Lenin, who explained under what conditions a bourgeois revolution would develop into an anti-capitalist one. The main factor in the transition is the hegemony of the proletariat in the bourgeois-democratic revolution. This conclusion was confirmed by the outgrowth of the February Revolution in 1917 in Russia.
The main bourgeois revolutions in Europe took place in the Netherlands, England, France, Holland.
The Netherlands is the first country in Western Europe to demonstrate that the capitalist system cannot exist alongside the obsolete orders of feudalism. The Spanish Inquisition also oppressed the country politically and hindered the development of the economy. Economic and social problems led to mass discontent, which grew into a national liberation revolution in 1581.
England
In the 17th century, all trade routes intersected in England, which could not but affect its economic development. Capitalism has won strong positions in agriculture, industry, and trade. Feudal relations hindered the development of these industries. Besides, all the land belonged to the king.
In the 17th century, two revolutions took place in England. The first was called the Great Revolt. The second is the Glorious Revolution. What are their features? First of all, it is worth mentioning the characteristic feature of all bourgeois revolutions, namely, the action against the feudal monarchy and the nobility. The rebellious mood was fueled by dissatisfaction with the union of the Anglican Church and the new nobility. But the main feature of the revolution is its incompleteness. Large landowners retained their inheritances. The agrarian issue was resolved without allocating land to the peasants, which can be called the main indicator of the incompleteness of the bourgeois revolution in the economy.
On the eve of the events, two political camps formed. They represented different religious concepts and social interests. Some advocated the old feudal nobility. Others - for the "cleansing" of the Anglican Church and the creation of a new one, independent of royal power.
Capitalism in England acted as an active fighter against absolute royal power. The revolution (1640) abolished feudal ownership of land, new political forces gained access to power. It cleared the way for the development of a new mode of production and production relations. The economic rise of England began, its power on the seas and in the colonies was strengthened.
France
The beginning of the bourgeois revolution in France was laid by the conflict between the feudal-absolutist form of government and the capitalist production relations growing in the depths of feudalism. The events of 1789-1799 radically changed the country. Yes, and the whole world. More about the French Revolution.
Versailles
He was too soft a monarch, perhaps this is one of the reasons for the revolution that took place at the end of the 18th century. The king did not accept the Decree. The situation in the French capital became more and more tense every day. 1789 was a fruitful year. However, almost no bread was brought to Paris. Crowds of people gathered at the bakeries every day.
In the meantime, nobles, officers, and knights of the Order of St. Louis flocked to Versailles. They held a feast in honor of the Flanders regiment. Some officers, intoxicated with wine and general merriment, tore off the tricolor cockades and tore them. Meanwhile, in Paris, new unrest arose, caused by fear of another aristocratic conspiracy.
But people's patience is not unlimited. One day, crowds of people who stood in line at the bakery in vain rushed to the people for some reason believed that if the king was in Paris, then food problems would be solved. Cries of "Bread! To Versailles! they were louder and louder. A few hours later, a raging crowd, consisting mainly of women, headed towards the palace in which the king was located.
By evening, the king announced his consent to approve the declaration. Nevertheless, the rebels broke into the palace and killed several guards. When Louis XVI, together with his wife and the dauphin, went out onto the balcony, people shouted “The King to Paris!”.
Country reconstruction
The revolution in France became the brightest event in Europe at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. But its causes are not only in the conflict between the feudal lords and the bourgeoisie. Louis XVI was the last representative of the so-called old order. Even before his overthrow, reconstruction took place in the country. From now on, the king could rule the country only on the basis of the law. Power now belonged to the National Assembly.
The king had the right to appoint ministers, he could no longer, as before, use the state treasury. The institution of hereditary nobility and all titles associated with it were abolished. From now on, it was forbidden to call oneself a count or a marquis. All these changes have long been awaited by the people, whose situation has become more and more difficult every year. The king, on the other hand, allowed his wife to use the treasury unlimitedly the day before, did not limit her in anything, while doing little in public affairs. These are the prerequisites for the bourgeois revolution that took place in France.
From now on, there were no royal councils and no staff of secretaries. The system of administrative division has also changed. France was divided into 83 departments. The old judicial institutions were also abolished. In other words, France gradually turned into another country. Revolutionary events unfolded, as is known, for ten years.
One of the most important events of the revolutionary years was the unsuccessful escape of the king. On June 20, 1791, Louis, dressed in the clothes of a servant, tried to leave France. However, he was detained at the border. The king and his family were returned to the capital. The people met him in silent silence. His escape was taken by the Parisians as a declaration of war. Moreover, the king in this war was on the other side of the barricades. From that day on, the radicalization of the revolution began. Its organizers no longer believed anyone, especially the king, who turned out to be a traitor. True, the constitutionalist deputies took Louis under protection and stated that he allegedly fled not of his own free will, but was kidnapped. It didn't fix the situation.
The escape of the French king caused an emotional reaction in Europe as well. The heads of other states feared that revolutionary sentiments could penetrate their lands. In July 1789, the emigration of the nobles began. By the way, any revolutionary events always entail migration.
Fall of the monarchy
This event took place seven years before the end of the revolution. In June 1892, a wave of demonstrations swept the country. It was organized in order to put pressure on Louis. The king behaved rather strangely. He did not adhere to any particular position, often changing points of view. And therein lay his main mistake. In the courtyard, which was filled with demonstrators, Louis drank to the health of the nation. However, he immediately refused to approve the decrees.
After the uprising, which took place on August 10, the king was deposed and placed in prison. They arrested Marie Antoinette, the Dauphin and other royal children. Louis was accused of a double game and treason. The trial of the king lasted three months. He was declared guilty, called "a usurper alien to the body of the nation". Louis was executed at the end of January. A few months later, Marie Antoinette was on the chopping block. The events in Paris haunted the minds of European revolutionaries for a long time to come.
At the last stage of the bourgeois revolution in France, archaic feudal remnants were abolished, namely the privileges of feudal lords, peasant duties. And most importantly, freedom of trade was finally proclaimed.
The revolution ensured the victory of capitalism over absolutism. In a number of countries, feudal vestiges of the past have survived to this day. This sets the stage for the emergence of new democratic movements and revolutions.
1. Background
After the victory in the Seven Years' War of 1756-63, Great Britain gained dominance in the North American continent. Now she owned not only 13 colonies along the Atlantic coast (up to Georgia in the south), but also the lands conquered from the French in the north - part of modern Canada. However, soon a new test began before Britain - the inhabitants of the colonies rebelled against her rule.
At the end of the 18th century, almost 3 million people lived in the 13 American colonies, mostly from Great Britain. Mostly small settlements developed steadily. The largest city was Philadelphia with a population of 40 thousand people, in the second largest city of New York, there were 25 thousand inhabitants. The northern lands were developed by merchants, fishermen and hunters, planters grew rich on the fertile lands of the south, but the bulk of the population were farmers who cultivate their own lands and relied only on their own strength - it was they who were destined to play a decisive role in the coming revolution and lay the foundations of the American nation.
2. Claims made
The people of America were accustomed to having their word listened to, although friction often arose between the electoral bodies of the colonists and the nobles from London. The British government was too far away and could not realistically assess the needs of overseas settlers - and did not want to. In England (as in other European countries), it was believed that overseas lands exist only for the benefit of the mother country, they were founded and patronized, and, based on this, they imposed severe restrictions on the trading operations of the colonies.
It is not surprising that in America, which possessed rich resources and a growing enterprising population, this could no longer continue, and victory in the Seven Years' War hastened the approach of the crisis. Aspiring to the development of new lands, the colonists did not like the government's decision at the end of the war to create an Indian reservation, limited by a demarcation line that the settlers were forbidden to cross. Such government decrees, despite good intentions, were not feasible. Moreover, the elimination of the threat from the French meant that the colonists no longer needed to hide behind the bayonets of British soldiers. These tendencies were reflected precisely at the time when the British authorities, under the weight of war debts, were forced to strengthen the colonial oppression.
3 Boston Tea Party
Great Britain began with the fact that Parliament in 1765 introduced two laws: on the billeting of troops and on stamp duty. And if the first (demanding better maintenance of the British military) simply did not please the colonists, then the second, which introduced an additional fee for the execution of any documents and for any printed materials, including newspapers, touched all sectors of society and infuriated people. Radical associations have raised their heads, such as the "Sons of Liberty". Riots broke out here and there, and American merchants fought back and refused to buy British goods. The colonists rallied a new slogan: "No taxes without representation" (in the British Parliament). In Britain, already at that time, there were forces that supported the colonists in 1766. The opposition came to power and repealed the Stamp Act, but indicated in a special declaration act that the parliament would continue to have the unshakable right to make laws for the colonies
The respite was short-lived. In 1767, the new British Chancellor of the Exchequer taxed almost all colonial imports. In America, unrest rose again, their focus was Boston, the capital of Massachusetts. Here, in March 1770, English soldiers faltered in front of an angry crowd and opened fire, killing several people. The news of the bloodshed in Boston sobered both sides, and they retreated. All fees were abolished, except for the tax on tea, which the settlers did not resist, but simply moved from the legal import of tea to its smuggling.
However, friction between the British crown and the colonies did not stop, and another fire occurred 3 years later, when the authorities decided to help the East India Company experienced difficulties and took a number of emergency measures, including a tax on tea. The colonists resisted in every possible way and did not allow ships with a cargo of tea to anchor in their ports. In December 1773, when the governor of Boston nevertheless allowed one ship to be unloaded, a group of citizens disguised as Mohawk Indians entered the ship and dumped bales of tea into the water.
The British immediately punished the colonists for the demarche, which went down in history as the "Boston Tea Party": they closed the port until the locals paid for the damaged goods, but they did not agree to such conditions. As a result, the powers of local authorities were limited, and the English General Gage was appointed governor of Massachusetts, who received instructions to stop the unrest.
4. The storm is coming
The hour of the decisive battle has come. In power in Britain for a long time, from 1770 to 1782, there was the cabinet of Lord North, but in fact the decisions were made by King George III, whose stubbornness and short-sightedness had a detrimental effect on the country's policy. At the same time, the Americans, as never before, became ready for decisive action and approved their plan in September 1774 at the Philadelphian Congress, which brought together delegates from 12 of 13 colonies. In April 1775, General Gage secretly ordered his troops to arrest two radicals and destroy an armory located in nearby Concord. The colonists learned of these plans in time and sent horsemen to warn the locals of the approaching units.
5. First shots
Having received news of the danger, the rebel leaders fled, but in Lexington, where the troops sought to disband the militia, shots were fired, killing eight Americans.
The troops entered Concord and carried out Gage's assignment, but along the way they came under targeted fire from colonists who used guerrilla warfare tactics. Government units lost up to 300 people killed and, upon returning to Boston, were under siege.
6. The beginning of the war
In May 1775, truly revolutionary decisions were made at the Second Continental Congress, including the proclamation of an independent government. A regular army was created from the militia of Boston and the surrounding territories, led by the venerable landowner from Virginia, George Washington. A struggle began, which the Americans called the Revolutionary, and the British - the American War of Independence.
The Americans made a successful raid in May 1775, taking by surprise two forts near the Canadian border and many artillery pieces. Then they failed: a futile winter siege of Quebec put an end to hopes of a quick victory. Throughout the war, Canada remained British and served as a base for their military operations. At the same time, the British fortified Boston and, when the rebels began to occupy the heights on the outskirts of the city, under the command of General Howe, they launched a counterattack. They chose the initially erroneous tactics of advancing up the slope, and came under heavy fire from the defenders. The American positions were still crushed, but the victory at Bunkers Hill cost Howe half of his army of more than two thousand and gave the colonists confidence that the British could be defeated.
Without waiting for the rebels to bring the guns captured in the forts to the city, the British left Boston in March 1776. Their attempts to conclude a peace treaty did not lead to anything. In America, a general desire to break completely with the mother country was growing, and the pamphlet "Common Sense" written by the English-born radical Tom Paine strengthened the resolve of the supporters of independence.
7. US Independence
Finally, in July 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of secession and adopted the Declaration of Independence, authored by Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration condemned the tyranny of George III and proclaimed the right of all people to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The 13 former colonies became known as the United States of America.
After an unsuccessful attempt, capturing the city of Charleston (South Carolina), the British transferred their forces to the north, and from July 1776 Howe won a series of victories: he captured New York and inflicted several significant blows on the troops of Washington, who had to retreat across the Delaware River. Washington had no special talent as a general and his men were no match for the regular English forces, but this strong man never gave up, and the British, who were fighting in foreign territory, began to have problems with supplies and replenishment. Washington boosted the morale of his troops by crossing the Delaware River again and unawares the enemy's nearly 1,000-strong garrison on Christmas night in 1776. However, the following year, General Howe again succeeded in capturing Philadelphia. Washington's army was severely thinned that frosty winter.
The British were let down by hopelessly bad planning. While Howe's corps marched on Philadelphia, another general, John Burgoyne, hoping to link up with him north of New York, led his army from Canada towards Albany through difficult terrain, falling into rebel ambush. As a result, the British were surrounded by superior enemy forces and laid down their arms near Saratoga. Inspired by the success of the rebels, the French entered the war on the side of America. The Spanish and Dutch soon followed suit. The British, who had lost command of the sea, had to fight on several fronts. George III was already ready to make concessions, but the Americans needed only independence.
8. New strategy
Whatever it was, Britain continued the war. Her troops left Philadelphia, but held New York, fighting was fought on the northern front with varying success. In 1778, the British switched to a new strategy, aiming to capture the southern lands with their tobacco, rice and indigo plantations. At first, everything went better: the British occupied Georgia, defeated the American and French units trying to capture Savannah, surrounded and forced the surrender of a large enemy formation near Charleston, and completely defeated General Gates - the winner of Saratoga - near Camden. Then the British commander Lord Cornwallis decided to capture North Carolina - and made a fatal mistake. The Americans, under the command of Nathaniel Green, retreated, exhausting the enemy along the way. The British again retreated to the lands of Virginia, their headquarters took refuge in Yorktown, on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. The Americans, to the fact that they were not very coordinated with the Allies, this time gathered large forces around the British, blocking them from the sea with French ships, and turned a barrage of artillery fire on them. Soon everything was completed.
As a result of studying the chapter, the student must:
know
– the content of the main chronological stages of the largest socio-political revolutions of the 18th century. and their prerequisites, as well as the formulation of the main tasks of economic and social reforms and methods for their implementation;
be able to
- to show the interrelation and interdependence of political, internal and external economic factors in the development of the revolutionary situation on the eve of the American War of Independence and the Great French Revolution;
own
- basic ideas about the composition of the main driving forces of the revolutions under consideration, their socio-economic and political tasks, as well as the means they have chosen to solve the corresponding problems.
American Revolutionary War and its immediate aftermath
The war for the independence of the North American colonies became the prologue of the revolutions of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the first of which was the French Revolution.
The path of the colonies to independence
The Atlantic coast of the North American continent was colonized by England in the 17th century. Due to immigration, the population of the colonies grew rapidly, and during the 17th century. increased 10 times, reaching 3.9 million people by 1790. By the middle of the XVIII century. England's continental colonies expanded independent trade relations with the islands, including the West Indies. Contradictions with the mother country were also growing due to the policy of curbing the development of colonies.
So, private individuals were forbidden to populate territories from the Allegheny Mountains west to the river. Mississippi, which England took away from France following the results Seven Years' War 1756–1763 According to the Peace of Paris (1763), Great Britain departed from France in America - New France (Canada), Fr. Cap Bretop, East Louisiana (all lands east of the Mississippi River except New Orleans). Spain transferred Florida to Great Britain, for which it received West Louisiana and monetary compensation from France.
Nevertheless, these lands, declared the property of the English crown, were arbitrarily occupied by squileshare farmers (Eng. squat. - squatting foreign land).
In 1773, England granted the East India Company the right to import duty-free tea into the North American colonies. This product delivered considerable income to local smugglers. In response, activists from the Sons of Liberty organization boarded ships that arrived in Boston with tea and threw a large batch of it into the sea.
In response, England closed the port, forbade meetings of the townspeople and brought soldiers into Boston. The Sons of Liberty immediately used these facts to propagate anti-English sentiment throughout the country.
A few months later, the "Sons of Liberty" gathered the 1st Continental Congress (1774), where they announced a boycott of all English goods, and already in the winter of 1774-1775. started self-arming. Large rebel forces began to form. Only in the "freedom camp" near Boston concentrated up to 20 thousand fighters. The numerical superiority made it possible to inflict heavy losses on the British in the first battles (April 19, 1775 Concord and Lexington and June 17, 1775 Bunker Hill). J. Washington became commander-in-chief (June 15, 1775).
- The 2nd Continental Congress (May 1775) proposed that all colonies create new governments to replace the colonial authorities. Already then there were plans to "export the revolution" to the territory of Canada, but by March 17, 1776, only Boston was occupied.
- On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia adopted the Declaration of Independence.
The formal announcement of the separation of 13 colonies from the mother country and the formation of the United States of America (USA) was followed by an escalation of hostilities. Already in August, W. Howe defeated the troops of J. Washington at Brooklyn and on September 15, 1776, occupied New York.
The war continued with varying success for several more years. Only in 1783 did Great Britain recognize the independence of the United States.
Although political science ranks the American War of Independence with other bourgeois revolutions, it was a long way from full democracy when it ended. In many states, women were deprived of voting rights, and Negroes of civil rights. The economy was mixed, combining capitalism and slavery.
Even in the land question, the states did not quickly come to an optimal solution. Thus, the new government put the land beyond the Appalachians on sale only in large plots (at least 640 acres) and at an expensive price ($ 2 per acre), inaccessible to most farmers.
Economic dependence on England forced the United States to take the initiative to normalize relations. On behalf of Secretary of State A. Hamilton, negotiations began, and on November 19, 1794, in London, the American Commissioner J. Jay signed the Treaty of Friendship, Trade and Navigation. After ratification, the Jay Treaty came into force on February 29, 1796.
This opened the way to England for American grain. The export proceeds were used to purchase weapons, among other things. Trade with the colonies of the West Indies was limited to the tonnage of ships (no more than 70 tons), article XII of the treaty forbade the Americans from importing and exporting cotton, molasses, sugar and a number of other colonial goods.
Story. General history. Grade 10. Basic and advanced levels Volobuev Oleg Vladimirovich
§ 16. Revolutions of the XVIII century
England and its North American colonies in the 18th century. In the economy of European countries in the XVIII century. capitalism began to take over. At the manufactories owned by private entrepreneurs or the state, hired workers worked. The most favorable legal and political conditions for the development of capitalist industry were created in England. After the 17th century revolution its clear economic dominance was outlined.
In the political system of England in the XVIII century. the features of the rule of law were manifested to the greatest extent. As a result of the Glorious Revolution, the power of the monarch was significantly limited by the parliament, whose role increased. The parliamentary monarchy that arose in Great Britain (since 1707 after the unification of England with Scotland was officially called this country) the parliamentary monarchy delighted Montesquieu and Voltaire. However, only 5% of the male population of England had the right to elect deputies to parliament.
By the 18th century England became a powerful colonial power, owning land in Asia, the Caribbean and North America. At the beginning of the XVII century. along the Atlantic coast of North America, 13 migrant colonies arose. Their population was formed mainly due to immigrants who left Britain due to religious persecution. On American soil, they became farmers, hunters, fishermen. Power in the South belonged to the landed aristocracy. The main labor force on the plantations of the southern colonies were black slaves, exported by slave traders from Africa.
Home of European settlers in North America. Picture. 19th century
The economy of the colonies developed successfully: American furs were valued in Europe; heavy smokers could not imagine their lives without tobacco grown in Virginia. The North American colonies were closely connected with England: the inhabitants continued to consider themselves subjects of the British crown, separated from their homeland by the ocean. But the laws passed by the English Parliament often did not take into account the interests of the colonists, who were not represented in it. The British authorities ruled the colonies with the help of appointed governors, giving them broad rights.
The successful economic development of the colonies caused concern among English merchants and industrialists who feared competition, so a number of laws passed by Parliament were aimed at slowing down the industrial development of overseas territories. The situation in the colonies became explosive when the settlers were forbidden to settle on new lands, beyond the Allegheny Mountains. In addition, an additional stamp duty was imposed on business correspondence and printed matter. The colonists faced the threat of losing the rights they had as British subjects. Their main slogan was the demand to protect their interests in the British Parliament. "No taxes without representation!" they said. This position was expressed to members of parliament by the American educator Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790).
Introduced in 1766 by the British Parliament, new duties on imported wines, oil, fruits, glass, paper, leather and tea caused general indignation and led to a boycott by the colonists of all English goods. Parliament had to make some concessions. But in 1773, Parliament allowed the largest English trading company - the East India Company - to import tea into the colonies without duties. This decision undermined the economy of the colonies, since tea smuggling was widespread there. In December 1773, American colonists in the Boston port dropped a batch of tea from English ships into the sea. This action, called the "Boston Tea Party", marked the beginning of open disobedience to the authorities.
"Liberty Bell". XVIIIin. Philadelphia. USA. Photo
War of Independence for the North American Colonies. American Revolution. The events in North America were the first attempt to fight for the implementation of the ideas of the Enlightenment in a revolutionary way. The people rose up against tyranny, defending their natural rights. The armed detachments of the colonists, soon organized into an army under the command of George Washington (1732 - 1799), began hostilities against the British troops.
J. Trumbull. Adoption of the Declaration of Independence
In 1776, the II Continental Congress, which served as the general government of 13 colonies, adopted the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America. Its authors were supporters of the ideas of the Enlightenment, the future US presidents Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826) and John Adams (1735 - 1826). The Declaration proclaimed: “All men are created equal and endowed by the Creator with inalienable rights, which include life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. To secure these rights, governments have been established among the people, deriving their power from the ruled. If this form of government becomes harmful to this goal, the people can correct it and even completely destroy it and replace it with a new one ... ”For the first time, the principles of popular sovereignty and the protection of natural human rights, proclaimed by the French enlighteners, were affirmed in practice.
After a series of military defeats, Great Britain recognized the sovereignty of the United States of America, and in 1783 a peace treaty was signed between the two states.
The main problem for the young independent state was to achieve the right balance between the rights of individual states - the former colonies - and the central government. This is the goal set by the authors of the US Constitution, adopted in 1787 and in force to this day. The Constitution for the first time strictly demarcated three branches of government: the legislative branch belonged to the Congress, elected by the population, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives; the executive was handed over to the president (in 1789 it was George Washington), and the judiciary included the US Supreme Court and state courts. All branches of government exercised control over the activities of each other. This prevented the strengthening of one of the branches of power to the detriment of the other.
This structure of the state was the result of a compromise between supporters of the expansion of the powers of the central government and defenders of the rights of the states. One of the most important principles of American domestic policy was federalism - delimitation of the spheres of competence of the federal and local authorities. The states transferred part of the sovereign rights to the center, retaining the rights to issue their own laws, regulate economic relations and ensure public order.
The most important part of the American Constitution was the Bill of Rights, which came into force in 1791, which proclaimed the basic civil liberties: conscience, press, unions, meetings, inviolability of private homes, as well as the right of citizens to own weapons. The drafters of the document proceeded from the principle: "everything that is not prohibited by law is allowed."
Beginning of the French Revolution. If in North America in the 1780s. the principles proclaimed by the Enlightenment had already been established, then in France, in the homeland of the Enlightenment, the Old Order was preserved (this was the general name for the system of social relations that existed from the 17th to the end of the 18th century). The third estate, which included the bourgeois, people of creative professions, peasants, workers, artisans and small merchants, who accounted for 98% of the total population, was limited in rights. Most of all, the peasantry suffered from the preservation of seigneurial orders, because, in addition to various requisitions in favor of the nobles, the peasants paid a lot of state taxes (land, head tax, salt tax) and church tithes.
In the late 1780s, under King Louis XVI (reigned 1774-1792), political, economic and financial crises erupted simultaneously in France. The situation was complicated by crop failure, mass unemployment and the general fear of famine among the population. In an effort to improve the financial situation of the state, the king was forced to convene the States General, which had not met for almost 175 years. All three estates were supposed to be represented in them, but according to tradition, the right to make decisions belonged to deputies from the nobility and clergy, and voting was carried out not by name, but by estate.
The first meeting of the Estates General opened in May 1789. The deputies from the third estate gathered in a separate meeting and "in the name of the whole nation" declared themselves the National Assembly. Some of the deputies from the nobility and the clergy soon joined the representatives of the third estate. Then the National Assembly, now composed of representatives of all classes, proclaimed itself Constituent, and the deputies announced that they were taking upon themselves the responsibility and the right to establish the constitution of the country.
Demonstrations and rallies began in Paris. The armed people moved to the fortress-prison of the Bastille - a symbol of royal tyranny. On July 14, 1789, after the storming of the Bastille, it was captured by the rebels.
On August 4, 1789, the Constituent Assembly abolished all noble privilege: judicial rights of seniors, rights to hunt, fish; the corvee was liquidated, however, natural and monetary duties in favor of the seigneur still remained and were subject to redemption. At the same time, estate privileges, the sale of positions, and restrictions on access to military service were abolished.
In August 1789 the Constituent Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. It proclaimed: "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights." Every person was guaranteed "natural and inalienable rights", which meant "freedom, property, security and resistance to oppression". The nation was declared the source of supreme power (sovereignty), and the law was the expression of the “general will”. The provision on the equality of all citizens before the law was important. The Declaration stated that "the free expression of thoughts and opinions is one of the most precious human rights." Private property was declared sacred and inviolable in the Declaration.
In 1789 - 1791. The Constituent Assembly carried out reforms that contributed to the formation of civil society in France: estates and hereditary titles of nobles were abolished; the church was placed under state control, spiritual positions became elective, church tithes were abolished. Workshops were abolished, internal duties were abolished, and freedom of trade and competition was proclaimed.
Storming of the Bastille. Engraving. 18th century
However, the workers were forbidden to form unions and organize strikes under threat of punishment. In addition, the Constituent Assembly adopted a law on the redemption of senior duties by peasants.
In the summer of 1791, the royal family made an attempt to escape from France, but failed. The monarchy lost its authority, and politicians began to discuss the idea of establishing a republic. In the autumn of 1791, the French Constitution was adopted, which was based on the provisions of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. The document proclaimed the principle of separation of powers. Thus, a constitutional monarchy was legally established in the country.
Allegory of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. Picture. 18th century
The overthrow of the royal power in France. Girondins and Montagnards. The constitution of 1791 proved to be short-lived. The Legislative Assembly was elected to replace the Constituent Assembly. Since the deputies of the Constituent Assembly voluntarily refused to participate in the next elections, the road to power was opened for a new generation of politicians who showed themselves after the events of 1789. First of all, speakers and activists of political clubs, journalists, former lawyers gained popularity in revolutionary France, but they did not had neither experience in government, nor experience in foreign policy. It was these politicians and journalists who dominated the Legislative Assembly. They resisted the stabilization of relations in society and acted with the aim of unleashing a war with several European powers at once, hoping that the development of events would allow them to gain a foothold in power and acquire not only popularity, but also property. The group of Republican deputies who led this political line (their leaders were from the department of the Gironde, therefore this political group is called the Girondins) hoped that during the war there would be an explosion of public indignation, and in the conditions of a new political crisis, it would become possible and the abolition of the Constitution of 1791, and the overthrow of the monarchy.
These hopes of the Girondins coincided with the secret plan of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. The royal couple hoped that France, ill-prepared for war, would not withstand the onslaught of the Austrian and Prussian troops and the revolution would be strangled by the force of foreign armies. Therefore, in the spring of 1792, the king declared war on Austria and its allies. From the very beginning of the war against Austria and Prussia, the weak French army began to suffer defeat. Taking advantage of the panic that gripped the inhabitants of Paris in connection with the approach of the enemy to the capital, on August 10, 1792, the French revolutionaries raised an uprising with the participation of national guards and volunteers who arrived in Paris from departments. Tuileries Palace? was captured, Louis XVI was removed from power and arrested along with his entire family. Under critical conditions, the Legislative Assembly announced the convening of the National Convention to prepare a new Constitution.
In September 1792, the National Convention, elected on the basis of universal suffrage, proclaimed a republic in France and took measures to reorganize the army and strengthen the defense. At first, the leading role in the Convention belonged to the Girondins, but soon it passed to a more radical grouping of politicians-deputies, which was called the "Mountain" (the name was assigned to it due to the fact that these deputies were located in the hall on the upper benches). Politicians "Mountains" - Montagna?ry (in letters. per. with fr. "descended from the mountains") enjoyed the support of the Parisian radical revolutionaries who ruled the Commune of Paris (city government), and relied on the influential Jacobin Club (the name of the political club is associated with the former monastery of St. Jacob, where he met). Groups of deputies-Girondins and Montagnards were in the minority in the Convention, while the majority of the representatives of the people supported in the vote one group or another, for which they were called derisively "marsh" or "plain".
The Montagnards, who intended to take the place of the Girondins in the leadership of the republic, insisted on the use of harsh revolutionary measures. At their suggestion, King Louis XVI was convicted and executed in January 1793. This caused outrage among European monarchs and increased the number of countries participating in the anti-French coalition. In the spring of 1793, the French troops suffered several heavy defeats. The population of France treated the revolutionaries with great distrust. In the department of Vende? I, local peasants began a war against the Convention in defense of the Catholic Church and the monarchy.
Execution of Louis XVI. Picture. 18th century
The dictatorship of the Montagnards and its fall. At a difficult moment for the Republic, the radical revolutionaries of Paris organized May 31 and June 2, 1793 uprisings against the Girondins. Under the pressure of the armed crowd and the threat of physical violence, the frightened deputies of the National Convention expelled 29 Girondin deputies from their ranks and handed power in the country to the Montagnards. This is how a coup d'etat took place, when the deputies elected by the people were forced to submit to the will of the armed crowd.
The reaction of the population of France was not long in coming: in the north and south of the country, the formation of units began to march on Paris and overthrow the Montagnards. Mass movements against the coup on June 2 were noted in the largest cities: Toulon, Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille, Nimes. In July 1793, a young republican from the province of Charlotte Corday? killed the well-known radical politician and journalist Montagnard Jean Paul Marat right in his house.
Expecting to receive the support of the population and stay in power, the Montagnards announced the complete abolition of the seigneurial duties of the peasantry without redemption, began to sell land confiscated from emigrants in small plots, hastily developed and approved in June 1793 a new Constitution of France, promising broad democratic rights. In fact, the implementation of this Constitution was postponed "until the onset of universal peace." In France, meanwhile, the Montagnards imposed a brutal dictatorial regime, which the Convention declared a "revolutionary order of government" (historians traditionally call it the "Jacobin dictatorship" or "Montagnard dictatorship"). At the same time, troops were sent against the rebellious inhabitants of cities and provinces by decision of the Convention.
On behalf of the Convention, the country was governed by the Committee of Public Safety (government), which was headed by Montagnard deputies: former lawyers Maximilien Robespierre and Georges Cuto?n and the aspiring writer Louis Antoine Saint-Just. At the same time, the Committee of Public Safety included prominent military experts: Lazare Carnot?, Claude Prieur and others, who took the necessary measures to reform and strengthen the army, thanks to which, by the end of 1793, the real threat to France from the Austrian and Prussian troops were eliminated.
In order to supply the cities with food and necessities, the Committee of Public Safety established strictly fixed prices for basic goods, and also limited wages by decree to the so-called maximum. Nevertheless, the rebellion in the provinces against the authority of the Convention did not subside, and it had to be suppressed by extremely cruel methods. The civil war engulfed several economically and military-politically important regions of France. The revolutionary army suppressed the centers of the uprising, sparing neither the rebels nor the civilians. There were especially many innocent victims in Lyon, Nantes and in the Vendée region.
In order to retain power and intimidate all the dissatisfied, according to the decision of the Convention, a massive terror. In September 1793, the Suspicious Law was passed, according to which any citizen objectionable to the authorities could be sent to prison without trial and specific charges. A month later, the Convention created a revolutionary tribunal - a special judicial body for the prosecution of "enemies of the revolution", whose sentences were not subject to review. Public executions were carried out to whip up fear. Thousands of innocent French laid their heads on the guillotine, among them were Queen Marie Antoinette, and members of the royal family, and Girondin politicians, and scientists, generals, journalists, entrepreneurs ... Terror was directed not only against the political opponents of the Montagnards, but also against all who expressed the slightest dissatisfaction with the actions of the authorities. Hundreds of thousands of French men and women, old people and children became victims of terror.
Robespierre, who headed the Committee of Public Salvation, dreamed of creating a society where only highly moral people live and "virtue" reigns, saw in terror the most effective means of ridding the country of "morally corrupted" citizens and argued that "virtue is powerless without terror." Robespierre and his supporters did not spare even their comrades from among the Montagnards, and by the end of 1793 terror had become their main method of control. Many former friends of Robespierre died on the guillotine, including politicians and publicists Georges Jacques Danto?n and Camille Desmoulins, who openly opposed repression.
The arrest of a royalist peasant in Brittany during the revolution. Engraving. 18th century
On June 10, 1794, Robespierre's supporters passed through the National Convention a law that abolished the still existing judicial procedures. From now on, several dozen people were guillotined every day in Paris.
Now the majority of the members of the Convention did not feel safe, so a conspiracy arose among the deputies against the omnipotence of Robespierre and his associates. As a result of the coup on July 27, 1794 (according to the revolutionary calendar, this day corresponded to 9 Thermidore), Robespierre and his closest supporters were overthrown, arrested and soon executed.
The French Revolution did not end there. The leaders of the National Convention now faced important and difficult tasks: to consolidate the revolutionary achievements of 1789-1791, to end the war against European monarchies, to stop the civil war in France itself, to restore the economy and economy of the country.
The war for the independence of the American colonies from Britain took on the character of a revolution: yesterday's colonies, which during the 16th - 18th centuries. were the periphery of the Western world, turned into a new independent state - the United States of America. The events of the War of Independence had a great impact on European society as well. The young American republic seemed to Europeans the embodiment of educational ideals.
Having started a revolution in 1789, the French also wanted to create a new, more just society, but in Europe, the destruction of the old society and the creation of a new one was accompanied by severe upheavals, civil war and bloody terror. The historical significance of the two revolutions of the XVIII century. for modern civilization is that at this time for the first time were implemented broad suffrage, freedom of the press, the Constitution and the separation of powers. The traditions of the political culture of modernity were tested in practice precisely thanks to the American and French revolutions of the 18th century.
Questions and tasks
1. Analyze the contradictions between Britain and its North American colonies.
2. Why did the British, who asserted the principles of the rule of law in their homeland, infringe on the rights of the inhabitants of the colonies?
3. Discuss what principles formed the basis of the US Constitution and government.
4. How did the ideas of the Enlightenment influence the revolutionary events in North America and France? Justify your answer.
5. Make a table of the main events of the French Revolution (1789 - 1794). What were the consequences of the Jacobin terror?
“The articles which, in the opinion of the National Convention, are of prime necessity, and for which it considers it necessary to set a maximum or highest price, are: fresh meat, corned beef and lard, cow's butter, vegetable oil, live cattle, salted fish, wine, vodka , vinegar, cider, beer, wood, charcoal, coal, tallow candles… salt, soda, soap, potash, sugar, honey, white paper, leather, iron, cast iron, lead, steel, copper, hemp, flax, wool , fabrics, linen, factory raw materials, clogs, shoes, rape and turnips, tobacco ...
The maximum prices of all other foodstuffs and essential commodities ... will be throughout the Republic until September 1 next year, those prices that existed for them in 1790 ... with the addition of one third of them ...
All those persons who sell or buy goods ... above the maximum ... shall pay an administrative penalty in double the amount against the value of the sold item, going in favor of the informer. These persons will be included in the lists of suspects and prosecuted as such.
The maximum, or the highest amount, of wages, salaries, piecework or daily work ... is universally fixed by the general councils of the communes in the amounts that existed in 1790, with the addition of another half of this price.
Municipalities can declare mobilized and, if necessary, punish with three days of arrest those artisans, workers and representatives of all possible types of labor who, without good reason, will refuse to do their usual work ... "
What was the purpose of setting maximum prices for products? What did the deputies of the National Convention want to achieve? Why did the decree on the "maximum" provide for a ban on raising the wages of workers? What do you think, what result did the implementation of the provisions of the decree on "maximum" lead to? Did the authors expect such a result?
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