to what extent would it be accurate to say that the new england ,middke and southern colonies had merged to create a single american society by the oubreak of the revolution?
In my opinion, from everything I've read, it would not be accurate. There were many colonists who did not believe there should be a revolution or a separate country.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_America
Read the first two paragraphs carefully.
Another thing to think about is how long it took, after the war was won, to come up with the Constitution that we still have today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Articles_of_confederation
then
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_Constitution
This is a difficult question to answer.
The reason for the difficulty is that there is no single correct or incorrect answer and the conclusion is almost immaterial.
There were many examples at the beginning and during the revolution indicating that there was not a single American Society. Begin by reading Sections I and III of background to the american revolution lecture outline http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h789.html and then later why it succeeded.
There were many colonists who were against the Revolution. One of our founding fathers said that 1/3 were for independence, 1/3 were against independence and 1/3 did not care. Read about the Loyalists (those who were loyal to England) at:
Loyalist (American Revolution) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loyalist_(American_Revolution)
A Loyalist Answers Thomas Paine: James Chalmers and "Plain Truth" http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/fall96/loyalists.html
The King's Men: Loyalist Units in New York and North America http://www.nyhistory.net/~drums/kingsmen.htm
The Loyal American Regiment http://www.loyalamericanregiment.org/
A few examples of Americans who spied to England are as follows:
Spy Letters of the American Revolution -- From the Collections of the Clements Library, Ann Arbor, Michigan http://www.si.umich.edu/spies/
An interesting sidelight of the American Revolution was about George Washington and his glasses.
The Rise and Fall of the Newburgh Conspiracy: How General Washington and his Spectacles Saved the Republic http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/fall97/wshngton.html
Think also about the philosophy of natural rights, the social contract and the strong theoretical background
leading to the revolution and the uniting of the people in all sections in what we regarded as the evils of British colonialism.
Yet, we did of course win our independence. One of the major units that you will shortly deal with is how nationalism grew in the new nation. American Revolution - Patriots of the American Revolution Index http://www.americanrevolution.com/PatriotsIndex.htm . Please also remember that this was a difficult and world wide important war that not only affected us but Europe and other nations as well.
American Revolution http://home.earthlink.net/~gfeldmeth/lec.rev.html
In History it is very often not the conclusion that you reach but the way that you marshall evidence to support your opinion.
1 answer