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Page 11 text:
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3 . . Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death!” Patrick Henr 3 Following the victory at Yorktown. Washington refused the offer o his troops to become king and returned to Philadelphia to aid with th establishment of a permanent government for the new republic—I loose alliance of sovereign states held together by the Articles o Confederation. An envoy composed of Benjamin Franklin. Johi Adams and John Jay was sent to negotiate with the British. It was no until 1783 that the peace agreement, known as the Treaty of Paris, wa: signed, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the United States of America The Articles of Confederation, despite many weaknesses, served to un ify the states until 1787 when a special convention was held a Independence Hall in Philadelphia to revise them. The meeting wai attended by fifty-five of the most-prominent men of the day. Twenty nine of the delegates representing a majority of the states met on Ma; 25 and decided to draft an entirely new constitution rather than am mend the Articles of Confederation. The meeting then became knowi as the Constitutional Convention. 4 The men who assembled for the Constitutional Convention were at illustrious group with nearly every delegate a person of prominence ii his home state. A large majority favored a strong central government After four months of debate, on September 17. 1787. the new constitu tion was completed. In a little more than four months, six states hat ratified the new constitution. Despite the good beginning, the fight fo ratification was bitter and it was not until September 13. 1788. tha the necessary two-thirds majority of the states had approved the docu ment and Congress could call for states to choose their electors an congressmen. Several of the states had ratified the constitution wit! the provision that it would be amended. Thus, as one of its first officia acts under the new constitution, the Congress added the first tei amendments known as the Bill of Rights. Washington was un animously elected President and a new nation was launched on » course of democracy. 4
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Page 10 text:
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“Stand Your Ground . . . If They Mean to Have a War, Let It Begin Here. ” Capt. John Barker 1 Capt. -John Parker uttered those words as the colonial militia under his command prepared to meet the British troops at Lexington. Those works and the painting—Spirit of '76—exemplify the dedication and determination of the American patriots in their fight for independence. The colonies had organized to express their grievances in an effort to resolve the differences within the framework of the Empire. Several of the colonial legislatures had instructed their delegates to the Con- tinental Congress in Philadelphia to oppose any move toward in- dependence. The movement for independence was gaining strength and following the publication of Thomas Paine's Common Sense. which argued for colonial sovereignty, a resolution was adopted and a committee of five appointed to draft a declaration of independence. 21 General Washington, who had been appointed commander-in-chief of American forces by the Second Continental Congress, was a brilliant military strategist. It was his decision to take his Continentals across the Delaware River on Christmas night which resulted in the first ma- jor colonial victory. That victory at Trenton over Hessian mercenaries gave the ragged army renewed vigor. Supported chiefly through the printing of Continental currency, the colonial army also went through the personal fortunes of many American patriots—among them Washington, Jefferson. Richard Henry Lee and John Adams. These fortunes were donated to the cause of liberty—a cause supported by about one-third of the American population which was near 2,000,000. Another one-third remained loyal to the English crown and the remainder were apathetic. Despite many defeats, the colonies managed to keep an army in the field as a symbol of American resistance, to guarantee a negotiated rather than dictated peace.
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