...Professor Kodi Roberts African American History 09 October 2012 African Americans and the Revolutionary War The American Revolution, also known as the Revolutionary War, was a significant event that changed the whole world. Although the Revolutionary War lasted only for eight years, the American Revolution started developing years before the first shots at the battle of Lexington and Concord were fired. African-Americans joined the Revolutionary War, because the principles underlying the revolution implied the end of slavery and granting of rights for them. American historian Benjamin Quarles, understood the African-American community's need for equality and freedom. Around 5,000 African-Americans served as soldiers in the Continental Army and about 20,000 in the British Army. The Revolutionary War was a blessing in disguise for many African-Americans, as it paved the way to freedom from slavery and helped them to embark on their journey towards equality and civil rights. At the start of the war General George Washington did not want African Americans to fight in the military. In November of 1775 Lord Dunmore, the Governor of Virginia, promised freedom to any slave, owned by a rebelling colonist that fought for the British. This caused many slaves to escape to the side of the British. The Americans still did not let slaves fight with them. As time passed and the Americans lost many soldiers, some of the colonies began to let slaves enlist in1778. Virginia did not let slaves...
Words: 911 - Pages: 4
...Goals of the war The goals of the war are to gain wealth and also to gain more authority, territory, and the influence of the states. First continental congress The first continental congress was a meeting of delegates from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies that met on September 5 to October 26, 1774 at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, early in the American Revolution. Breed's Hill The place which the battle of bunker hill took place and where they store the weapon for the battle. And going to cross of the boston harbor and fight their way up. The Battle of Bunker Hill On June 17, 1775, early in the Revolutionary War (1775-83), the British defeated the Americans at the Battle of Bunker Hill in Massachusetts. Despite their...
Words: 842 - Pages: 4
...flag How it was like the war We played capture the flag representing the revolutionary war on Friday last week during class. The British was the red team, the blue team represented the Americans, and the white was the French. The blue team had to get the flag to win and they needed to win the war against the red team. The war lasted for a long time. There was a few amount of small battles because of the revolutionary war. We played capture the flag to show what happened in the revolutionary war. In the capture the flag game we played six rounds. The first round Mr. D had one flag on each side. In round two Mr. D said that one person on the blue team wouldn't receive a prize even though everyone else beside that one person on...
Words: 943 - Pages: 4
...------------------------------------------------- Minipulated African Americans and the Revolution Nikki Jones Genesee community college History 203: Fall 2014 Nikki Jones Genesee community college History 203: Fall 2014 Manipulated: African Americans and the Revolution One of the most notable intellectual paradoxes in American history is how the founding fathers could promote the equal rights of man and their perceived enslavement by the crown while simultaneously holding a fifth of their own population in bondage. Another question that plaques the history of this great nation is why abolition, or widespread emancipation, did not occur at this period in time when revolutionary and republican rhetoric existed alongside of anti-slavery sentiments. A case can be made that Americans were speaking more loudly for the end of political enslavement, rather than the freedom of slaves themselves. The exclusion of slaves from the political forefront made it easier for Americans to make these hypocritical claims. Whether or not whites were able to justify themselves the exclusion of the black community from their cries for freedom, the parallels revolutionary rhetoric had on their own condition were not lost on slaves. Many took advantage of the revolutionary crisis and ran away and joined either side in hopes to attain their own independence. There reasons that Blacks chose to join the revolutionary fight are as varied as the individuals who made them. The motives were...
Words: 2286 - Pages: 10
...Empires seek various prompts to help them expand their rule to other countries and territories. Amongst these motives include, economic gain, exploratory, political, religious and ethnocentric motives. Due to the large importation of American crops, England’s population doubled in size. With all the new people migrating to England, people started to compete for food, clothing and housing. This led to inflation of England. The increase number of people looking for works caused a decreased in wages. When landowners raised rents and seizing land, people were forced to leave their homes. Residents were forced to share smallholdings with multiple families. Living conditions worsen as the years went by. People were getting sick because of the unsanitary conditions in which they lived. In 1950, there were approximately 75,000 people living in London. A century later, nearly 450,000 occupied the streets of London. People began to migrate to the “new world” in hopes of improving their circumstances. Economic expansion was necessary in order for government and private organizations to maximize their profits. The economic expansion demanded cheap labor, the ability to buy and sell products to other countries, natural resources and land. After the Revolutionary War, the government met these requirements by meeting these demands by providing European factories and markets the materials they needed to manufacture products. This allowed imperial merchants to establish trading posts and warehouses...
Words: 1916 - Pages: 8
...Revolutionary War The Revolutionary war was so radical, people were killed and the new settlers fought against their King George. The American revolution also called the war for independence, took place between 1775 and 1783. It was a fight between 13 British colonies and the home England. The revolutionary was so radical in document one the people who were living in the new land were trying to take down King George’s statute because all of their money were going to the motherland instead of supporting the settlers. If people didn't have war the world will be peaceful. Even though African-Americans were freed the still couldn’t get jobs one one wanted to work with a colored man. In document 6 it's a speech made by a young African-American...
Words: 472 - Pages: 2
...of the Revolution Part 1 Complete the grid by describing each military event and explaining its relationship to the outcome of the Revolutionary War. Military Event Description Relationship to the Outcome of the Revolutionary War Concord and Lexington Britain's General Gage would send out regiments of British soldiers quartered in Boston. Their destinations were Lexington, where they would capture Colonial leaders Sam Adams and John Hancock, then Concord, where they would seize gunpowder Shots were fired that began the war Fort Ticonderoga served as a key point of access to both Canada and the Hudson River Valley during the French and Indian War On May 10th of '75, Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, and the Green Mountain Boys brought it under American power for the first time. Second Continental Congress From 1774 to 1789, the Continental Congress served as the government of the 13 American colonies and later the United States. In 1775, the Second Continental Congress convened after the American Revolutionary War (1775-83) had already begun When the Second Continental Congress came together on May 10, 1775, it was, in effect, a reconvening of the First Continental Congress. Delegates from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies were present when the Second Continental Congress convened. The Congress was to take charge of the war effort Bunker Hill The battle is named after the adjacent Bunker Hill, which was peripherally involved in the battle and was the original...
Words: 957 - Pages: 4
...Revolution: Women, Blacks and Native American Cherdae O. Kirkland History 121 02A Instr. Shuman April 19, 2011 Introduction The American Revolution began in 1775. It was a war fought between Great Britain and thirteen British colonies. It was also called the American Revolutionary War, United States War of Independence. The conflict between the British troops and the colonist began in Lexington and Concord Massachusetts when the Patriots (colonists who rebelled against British control) fired at British Soldiers in April 1775. Tensions were mounting from the Patriots or colonists, who were an angry about having to pay British taxes with little or no parliament representation. The Patriots wanted their independence from British rule and the opportunity to form the own government system. Although the war was originally a civil war between the British and the thirteen colonies, it quickly turned into an international conflict. This war lasted for eight years. “The turmoil of the revolution disrupted traditional class and social relationships and helped transform the lives of people who had long been relegated to the social periphery---African Americans, women and Indians.” Role of Women in the American Revolutionary War During the American Revolution, women played an active role in the British and American armies. Many of these women were wives and daughters of the soldiers. A lot of the women made small contributions to the war, but those contributions were life...
Words: 2305 - Pages: 10
...How Revolutionary was the American Revolution? Despite the name of the war, was the Revolutionary War actually revolutionary? To begin, what does revolutionary mean in the first place? Merriam-Webster defines the word as, “constituting or bringing about a major or fundamental change.” So, in historical context, the war should probably have heavily impacted at least a few aspects of our new country; the politics, economy, slavery/race equality, and society. The war was effective in leading to the abolishment of slavery, change in society, and political differences. Firstly, the issue of slavery was looked at through a completely new perspective. People were finally beginning to realize the equality of African-Americans and whites was not very farfetched. The Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson reflects this concept; “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created...
Words: 740 - Pages: 3
...from Great Britain. Protests grew rampant in many places throughout the colonies and one protest even led to the killing of five protesters after shots were fired into the crowd. These events led to the Boston Tea Party and the resulting Coercive Acts as punishment, further leading to the colonial alliance and the American colonies creating a separate and new identity in independence. While many colonial-American traditions and cultures stayed intact,...
Words: 1025 - Pages: 5
...Because February is Black History month I will be doing my research paper on the lives four blacks and what effect they had on American History. I will start out by asking the question, why most American history books don’t cover in written the history of individual black’s involvement in shaping of American in greater detail. The Two topics I will be covering are the Revolutionary War and The Civil War as far what blacks’ involvement. The first three paragraphs of this research paper will cover the events and history of three African Americans whose importance was not greatly covered during the Revolutionary War section of this book. I also am writing researching Mary Elizabeth Bowser, a free black woman. I will discuss what she during...
Words: 1457 - Pages: 6
...Revolutionary Mothers Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America’s Independence by Carol Berkin is an educational book that teaches the story of many woman during the American Revolution. Most of the history books teach the American Revolution, but they don’t really explain the whole story. They don’t explain the importance and the change that woman made during this war. That’s why this book explains the truth that happen during the American Revolution using important information written at that time, and by people who were experiencing the American Revolution. This is a great book, comparing the life of woman from different points: lower class or higher class, race, and the difference woman made during the war. One of the points she explains is how woman’s roles where different based on lower class and higher class. Lower class woman was known as camp flowers, who helped the soldiers during the war. This woman helped the soldiers by making them food, washing their clothes, and served as nurses to help ill the injured...
Words: 848 - Pages: 4
...The chapters of ‘Revolutionary Mothers’ that really did not surprise me that much but still made me feel really sad and disappointed in how women were treated during the Revolutionary War were the chapters about the Native American and Slave women. The predicament of Native American women is addressed in chapter seven, the lives of Molly Brant, a Mohawk Indian married to an Englishman; Nanyehi, a Cherokee warrior and diplomat; and Queen Esther Montour, a Munsee Delaware are examined. In Native American society, women enjoyed a much more powerful role than in white society. However, they were misunderstood by white colonists. Many tribes tried to enforce themselves with the British because they felt the British offered them the best opportunity...
Words: 315 - Pages: 2
...During the American Revolution women did many different things. The article suggests that the role the women played was very important. During the American revolution women tended the farms and shops while the men were at war. The indians also were a part in the war because before the American revolution the British promised them that they would stop the Americans from moving west. This document suggests that during the American revolution, “the women of America manifested a firm resolution to contribute,” (The Sentiments of an American Woman 1). This tells the reader that women during the Revolutionary War the women played an important role while the men were fighting against Great Britain. The women and other minority roles also played...
Words: 357 - Pages: 2
...Ethnic Groups and Discrimination Thomas J. Miller III ETH125 August 23, 2010 Maria Kithcart Ethnic Groups and Discrimination Most African Americans are descendants of Africans that were enslaved by Europeans and American slave traders. Slave markets used in Africa to sell prisoners of war by African states. The Europeans used these slave markets to exploit and expand the shipment of slaves to the New World or America. Some ancestors immigrated to the United States from the Caribbean. The first group of African slaves was brought to the United States in 1619 (Slavery, 2003). These slaves were labeled indentured servants, which are workers under contract to an employer in exchange for their lodging, food, and clothes. Most of the colonists used the Blacks on plantations because other groups did not want to work on them and the Blacks were easier to control. All colonies eventually legalized slavery passing laws that would keep the slaves and their children for life. During the Revolutionary War, slaves and free slaves were allowed to fight against the British. After the Americans, won their independence from British tyranny, the Declaration of Independence was signed July 4, 1776 (Slavery, 2003) declaring, “All men are created equal.” Many people in the northern states influenced by the Revolutionary War and began abolishing slavery in the North. The southern states wanted to keep slavery to fuel the South economy through the production from the cotton fields...
Words: 855 - Pages: 4
