Chapter 6
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95
very angry about theway theywere treated
by England. The king stopped some taxes,
but startedother ones. By the1770s, the tax
situationwas so bad that the leaders of the
American colonies agreed it was time to
meet as a group. When a group of leaders
meets, it is called a congress.
Because Philadelphia was a center
keystone for all the colonies, the city was
chosen as the meeting place. In 1774, this
meetingwas givena longname. Itwas called
the
First Continental Congress
.
Thinking of the term continent might help
you to remember thename! As a result of the
meeting, the leaders of the colonies agreed
to stop buying imported English goods.
They also agreed to try to stop England’s
King George from passing laws and taxes
that the colonists believedwere unfair.
The American colonies carried out their
agreement. They did not buy English
products. The English king slowly stopped
taxes on the goods, except for the one on
tea. Then, the colonies refused to buy tea.
Ships were sent back to England full of tea
because no one would buy or trade for the
tea. The king’s leaders did not agree with
the colonists’ concerns. His leaders
thought, “How dare those colonists
question our laws!”
Meanwhile, the colonial leaders felt that
anothermeetingwas needed. InMay 1775,
they held the
Second Continental
Congress
. The meeting took place in the
Pennsylvania State House (now known as
Independence Hall
). How right they were!
One month earlier, fighting between
English soldiers and the Massachusetts
colonistshadbegun. Thiswas avery serious
meeting. After many hours of discussion,
the leaders of this Congress voted for
independence from England.
What a bold, daring action! No colony
had ever declared its freedom from the
powerful English empire. Do you think the
English king would allow the American
colonies to have their freedom? No!
Another war was about to be fought.
Congress voted
George Washington
as
commander of the American army. He was
sent toMassachusetts to form an army! The
leaders of this Congress continued to meet
and discuss issues for another year. They
decidedawritten statementwasneeded. This
statement would declare the American
colonies independent and free fromEngland.
Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and
Thomas Jeffersonwith the first draft of the
Declaration of Independence.
