The patriots from all thirteen colonies believed in separation from Britain because of unfair laws and not being represented. When they arrived in America they felt they were still being treated as British subjects. The British put many taxes, such as, the Stamp, Molasses, and Sugar Acts, on the colonists that the colonists who were patriots thought were unjust. Some famous patriots are: George Washington was a planter from Virginia. He was elected to be the Continental Army's commander in the Second Continental Congress. Washington was later was elected president Patrick Henry was also from Virginia. He was a great orator,patriot and lawyer. His famous line was," Give me liberty or give me death!". Paul Revere was a silversmith from Boston, a secret agent for the patriots,and on April 18th, 1775 made his famous ride to Lexington and Concord warning the British were coming. When he made bowls or any other items he would put some patriot mark on it. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin were the writers of the Declaration of independence. Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of the declaration. John Adams and Ben Franklin revised it . Nathan Hale was a spy for the patriots. He was caught by the British. Before he was hung he said," I regret I have but one life to loose for my country" Crispus Attucks, was a black man killed by the British during the Boston Massacre in 1770. His death influenced many Africans to join the patriots.
What did patriots do to show they wanted to be independent?
Patriots would tease Tories, Loyalists who think the King should rule. Patriots would tar and feather tax collectors, boycott buying British goods, and they would protest by making a fake tax collector and hanging it. A famous protest was the Boston Tea Party on Dec. 16, 1773. They dumped hundreds of boxes of tea imported from Britain into the Boston Harbor. Also,Patriots fought for freedom and the right to govern themselves.Not all colonists were sure about independence England was a powerful country and could hurt a small and weak colony like ours. Some patriots formed a secret group called the Sons of Liberty. There they would plan against Britain. If the British caught you planning against them it would be treason and you would be killed.
African Americans in the 1700s
Most African Americans were slaves. If not they were born to a free family or they bought their freedom. Their life was harsh, working hard and being brutishly punished if you did something wrong. They were brought here on a boat with unhealthy conditions. They fought in the Revolutionary War some as Patriots others as Loyalists. They were promised freedom if they fought on the Patriots side. Most went to the Loyalists though and Britain had the largest free African community. Five thousand blacks fought on the Patriots side and twenty thousand fought on the British side. This is because the British said they would free them. Most decided to go with the British and be free. Some did go to the Patriots though because they thought it was right and they might become free or expand their civil rights.
Religion
Religion strongly affected the Revolutionary War. According to Abraham Keteltas, the Revolutionary War against Britain was approved by God. Also, if you were Anglican you were a Loyalist and most people chose religion over freedom. Another fact is if you were a Quaker your religion was against war so you could`t pick a side. A famous religious patriot was Peter Muhlenberg. After a sermon on January 1776 he threw off his clerical robe to show his patriot uniform while in an Anglican Church. He was the son of the Lutheran Patriarch Henry Melchior. As an officer, Muhlenberg successfully stormed the British lines at Yorktown.
I would rather be a Patriot because Patriots were brave and fought for what they believed, not what they were being told to do by the British. They would protest unfair laws by petitioning the King and boycott British goods as a means of peaceful protest and when the time came to fight, they fought for what they believed in. As a Patriot I would want to be represented, not held under British rule when I did not even live in Britain, and I would like to have our own government. This way, I could have a say in how my country ran. All these things were what the Patriots wanted, not just to have power, but freedom. The Loyalists just chose to be loyal because of the power and influence they received or from the fear they had of the British, even though they might have agreed with the Patriots on a lot of things, like the tax acts.