A Radical Congress

The First and second continental congresses' were shaped by differing of opinion from the three parties. Each faction provided convincing arguments for their positions. However the one that was most persuasive and effective in achieving their goals were the Radicals. This is due to their belief of the need to declare independence, "Taxation without Representation", and their disfavor of the Galloway plan.


The First Continental Congress was a body of representatives appointed by the legislatures of Twelve of the colonies except Georgia. It was initially also formed to coordinate a common American response to the Intolerable Acts.The First Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia in 1774, with 55 members. The three distinct groups were the Moderates, Radicals, And Conservatives. The Moderates believe that the relationship between the colonies and the mother counties could still be fixed . The Conservatives thought that the colonies could go back to how everything had been in the past.The Radicals believe that action had to be taken , immediate Independence. The Congress had two primary accomplishments. First, the Congress drafted the "Articles of Association" on October 20, 1774. The Articles formed a compact among the colonies to boycott British goods beginning on December 1, 1774. The Galloway plan , which was an idea made by the conservatives was not excepted by congress. Galloway's plan would have kept the British Empire together, while allowing the colonies to have some say over their own affairs, including the inflammatory issue of taxation.. The second accomplishment of the Congress was to provide for a Second Continental Congress to meet on May 10, 1775.

Though many were opposed to the idea of independence, the radicals thought it was the only way. The Radicals believe that the relationship with the "Mother country" would only get worse. If no solution could be found the the next result would be war. The Intolerable acts had paralyzed the colonies in many way, such as having to accommodate red coats not and not being able to organize freely in Massachusetts . It basically took away most of their freedoms. If they didn't break away soon they would be prisoners in their own homes. The Quebec act ( Which was part of the intolerable acts) gave their land back to the French. The land that they had fought for because of the "Mother country". Not to mention it was being given back to the enemies they had fought against. If the "Mother county" were giving enemies land and and giving the colonies ( their own people) acts and taxes then what would come next.

Another argument that the Radicals made was " Taxation without Representation". It was clear that all the factions agreed on this . Though Parliament argued that the colonist were represented "virtually", all agreed that a "Virtual Representative" knew nothing about the problems and views of the colonies. Another point the radicals said were what was being tax. Things such as paper,tea,sugar, and glass which were everyday thing. If they were taxing the simplest thing what else would they find to tax. The major point that the radicals stressed was that these taxes were making the British rich . After finding out how much tea the mother country own because of the East India tea Co. the colonist realized they were being cheated . Soon more people started to see the radicals point of view and realized that independence might be the only solution. they decided the only way to do this was to come up with a plan that all could agree on as a whole.

As said before the Galloway plan was a plan made by Joesph Galloway (a Conservative).He suggested the creation of an American parliament to act together with the Parliament of Great Britain. Dealing concerns having to do with the colonies each body would have a veto over the other's decisions. The American parliament would consist of a President-General appointed by the Crown, and delegates appointed by the colonial assemblies. The radicals wanting independence disliked Galloway's plan very much. So they came up with a different plan that every one might could agree on. Then the Declaration and Resolves planwas introduced ( also known as the Suffolk resolves ) .Which declared the Intolerable acts null and void. In the end the the Galloway plan was not accepted by the Congress. Which meant radicals won the upper hand and the Declaration of resolves went through.

April 19, 1775 the Battle of Lexington and Concord took place. The Radicals point was finally realized and what they had foreseen had started, the Revolutionary War. The Radicals being persuasive and effective in getting their point across is the reason why we are not under British rule today. In that we can conclude that the revolution was radical and because it was it also paved they way for women's right and slaves to make the society we live in today.

The first contenital congress

In the Eighteenth century the 1st and 2nd Continental Congress was fashioned by the clash between the Moderates,Radicals, and Conservatives. Between the collection, the one with the most convincing claim were the Radicals.The Radicals trusted that the relationship with the British was over,the only thing to do was to gain Independence, and also to unite the colonies and fight.



The First Continental Congress was a body of representatives appointed by the legislatures of Twelve of the colonies except Georgia. Initially also formed to coordinate a common American response to the Intolerable Acts,The First Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia in 1774, with 55 members. The three distinct groups were the Moderates, Radicals, And Conservatives. The Moderates believe that the relationship between the colonies and the mother counties could still be fixed . The Conservatives thought that the colonies could go back to how everything had been in the past.The Radicals believe that action had to be taken , immediate Independence. The Congress had two primary accomplishments. First, the Congress drafted the "Articles of Association" on October 20, 1774. The Articles formed a compact among the colonies to boycott British goods beginning on December 1, 1774.The second accomplishment of the Congress was to provide for a Second Continental Congress to meet on May 10, 1775.


Though many were opposed to taking the colonies independence, the Radicals wanted change. The Radicals were made up of representatives from Virginia , Massachusetts , and Pennsylvania.Some names of these representatives are John Adams, Patrick Henry,and Charles Thomson.During the arguments in the first Continental Congress's meetings the radicals expressed that the relationship between the colonies and the mother country had already been broken. This meant that either they rise up for what they believed in or live under someone Else's rule forever unhappily.They also concluded that the Parliament had no right and or authority to tax them. Unfortunately the other two groups ( the moderate and the conservatives) did not share the same ideas. Both groups though it to rash and hasty to rebel .

By the end of the congress's deliberation the agreed with the radicals and decided to make the Suffolk Resolves. It was a declaration to
boycott British imports, curtail exports, and refuse to use British products;
ignore the punitive measures taken against Massachusetts since the Boston Tea Party; support a colonial government in Massachusetts free of royal authority until the Intolerable Acts were repealed; urge the colonies to raise militia of their own. There was also a group of radicals known as Committees of Safety who were charged with enforcing the association; they soon became revolutionary spearheads in the towns and counties, creating the first effective union among the colonies and silencing Loyalist opinion.


Eventually the radicals started to sway people to their point of view, but still did not convince the whole.Before adjourning on Oct. 26, 1774, the First Continental Congress summoned a second Congress to assemble in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, if the king failed to respond favorably to its petition. When the Second Continental Congress convened on the appointed date, the battles of Lexington and Concord had recently taken place in Massachusetts, and militiamen were besieging the British occupying force within Boston.The radicals argument did not triumph until the spring of 1776, when Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense created such massive support for the break with Britain that conservative delegates could no longer resist.representatives such as John Adams , George Washington were elected to form the rebellion armies , and the revolution had begun.



The reason that we are not under British control today is because the radicals believed in Independence. Though at first their ideas were rejected by many, they made the colonies realize that rebellion was the only solution. The radicals were most the most persuasive because of their influential in the history of our country.

What role did religion play in the establishment of english colonies in North America?

Imagine having to move to another country in a crowded boat because of religious prosecution. In colonial times the new world was a place for a new beginning. Religion was one of the key reasons a great deal of people migrated , and made settlements in North America. The three major establishments were the New England colonies of Plymouth,Massachusetts bay, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. The first refugees to arrive in the new world were the Pilgrims.

In 1608 the Pilgrims ( Also known as Separatist ) Negotiated with the Virginia Company for rights to some land and departed from Holland. Sixty-Five days later they arrived off the coast of New England. They surveyed the shores and finally made camp .Since this area was outside of the Virginia company's control they had no rights to the land. But before leaving the Pilgrims created and signed the Mayflower Compact. It was a Pact to form a crude government and to yield to the majority vote, a start in making a solitary government that could prosper. Soon after came winter which wiped out 58 of the 102 people that had first arrived.A year later they had a bountiful harvest had had the first Thanksgiving.The one who was credited for this was the main leader of the separatist's , William Bradford. He was a self taught scholar and the author of '' The Plymouth Plantation" .Though everything was looking good ,Bradford was worried that non-separatist settlers might corrupt his "godly experiment'. Eventually around 1691 it combined with its neighbor to create a stronger , more spiritual settlement.

Not far from Plymouth was Massachusetts Bay were the Puritans made their home. April 1629 ,400 settlers under this new charter departed from England. Soon after the colonists were settled the franchise was " extended to all freed men" . This meant only males who were Puritans. In this society the only people who could vote and or run for office were males who belonged to the church.Intertwined with the government was religion . One example of this were the Blue laws .The Blue laws were any laws regulating activities on Sunday.Such as no kissing in public. One of the most religious politicians in the mass. bay area was John Winthrop.Winthrop is most famous for his "City upon a Hill" sermon (as it is known popularly, its real title being A Model of Christian Charity), in which he declared that the Puritan colonists emigrating to the New World were part of a special pact with God to create a holy community. He Was also the Governor of mass bay .Winthrop strove to establish a Christian community that held uniform doctrinal beliefs. It was for this reason that in 1638 he presided over the heresy trial and banishing of Anne Hutchinson from the colony, Because she challenge the moral and legal codes of the Puritans, as well as the authority of the clergy. In the end she was convicted and banished.In 1637 the tension between the English settlers and the Indians exploded.in 1657 Metacom son of Massasoit's coordinated assaults on English settlements . 52 had been attacked and only twelve destroyed, and Metacom was be-headed. In the early eighteenth century thing started to change.Religion was less fervid and people started to question ideas. This was what started the great awakening. It swept through all of the colonies like wildfire. One of the pastors of the awakening was Jonathan Edwards Who painted the landscape " sinners in the hands of an angry god. His worked sparked a sympathetic reaction.

Last but not least In the mid-1600s the Quakers(which derived from the report that they quaked under religious pressure) came to the colonies.The refused to support the church of England and wanted a place of there own .They were lead by a man named William Penn.William Penn and his fellow Quakers heavily imprinted their religious values on the Pennsylvania government. Among the most radical belief was religious freedom for all religions, as well as fair dealings with Native Americans. This extreme tolerance led to significantly healthier relationships with the local Native tribes. 1737, the Colony exchanged a great deal of its political goodwill with the Native Lenape for more land. The colonial administrators claimed that they had a deed dating to the 1680s in which the Lenape-Delaware had promised to sell a portion of land beginning between the junction of the Delaware River and Lehigh River"as far west as a man could walk in a day and a half."

In 1636 a man named Roger Williams fled to Rhode island. After settling there and building a Church he claimed it to be a Religious safe haven people from all round started to come to live, even the Catholics and Jews.There were no taxes ,no oaths, no attendance even to worship.Some settlements started to dot Rhode island. People started to call it "Rouge Island". Here in rouge island many people including Anne Hutchinson had nothing in common.Finally in 1644 they had rights to the land and started to create a government.

Religion is one of the most essential reasons that so many people migrated . It is also a reason why some still come, beside jobs. Weather your a Puritan,Catholic, or any thing the colonies was the best place to start.At the end of the day we are all foreigners who came to this country to create a better life and to live prosperously

The review of " The Radicalism of the American Revolution"

From monarchy and dependency to Democracy and change, the American Revolution brought on a radical change for the colonist. The book that I read over the summer is called The Radicalism of the American revolution by Gordon S. Wood. It Basically explains ( from Wood's point of view) how drastic the change was for the colonist. The three major themes of the book were Monarchy , Republicanism , and Democracy. Monarchy is the first theme

The definition of a monarchy is a political system in which a country or state is ruled by a monarch (Member of the royal family). During the Eighteenth century the colonist were ruled under the British monarchy . In the book Wood Often states " Living in a monarchy first of all meant being a subject of a king, and being a subject implied they were a society of dependent beings". Another thing people fail to realize is that the colonist were still very traditional. Everyone and everything was intertwined with each other. Whether it was the house hold or the whole community.One could not travel to another city with out being known. Another issue was the major similarities between the mother country and the colonies. Englishmen and women who visited the colonies commented on how some of the towns in the new world resembled their own. Another thing in common between them is the manners, morals, and amusement. This shows that at some point before the revolution the Britons and colonist were alike. They,both also showed much pride for their so called "Independence" which the were known for around the world. the last thing is the Aristocracy. In the mother country the aristocracy made up only 4-5%. Everyone who was a aristocrat had land and money , which only few had so that the percent. In the colonies any man with land was considered a "Gentlemen" . Almost every other man had land so most were allowed to vote. Being a gentlemen also meant people looked up to you . This also shows some type of dependency. If people look up to you they depend on you to show them the way to prosperity. It was also said you were not made a gentlemen , you were born one. Unfortunately for the British this monarchical society in the new world didn't last.

The definition of a Republic is a political order in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who are entitled to vote for officers and representatives responsible to them. During this time a Republican view of society started to reveal itself. It did not replace it over night, it simply wore away. The first people who invoked the idea of Republicanism were the intellectuals of the enlightenment. At first tons were opposed to the idea, but as time went on they started to want to be enlightened so they could improved their government. Soon people started to migrate from one place to another. Children started to leave home sooner , and their wants seen to out weigh the long line of tradition. The intertwines of the community and family started to brake. Apr. 19, 1775, shots had been exchanged between colonialist and British soldiers, men were killed, and the war had started.

The definition of Democracy is Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives. During this time of war,the revolutionaries wanted nothing less then a reconstitution the American society. All Americans believed in the revolution and its goals but most peoples confidence waded back and forth.The one thing that kept them all together was the idea of Equality. That as soon as they won the war every man would be equal. That also meant that gentry would no longer be so powerful, equality applied to all.This alarmed Gentry though, the fact that maybe ordinary people would be working with Gentry side by side. Eventually they won the war and began prosperous, because ordinary people, just like you and me were working harder to succeed.

In the end the American people won .Everyone believed in the public power of opinion. This opinion lasted through the century's and still remains till this day. Through Monarchy to Democracy we are a people of freedom and choice. None of this would be possible if the colonist didn't believe in a equal society , though to me the our society isn't completely equal . As Wood said "The American Revolution created this democracy, and we are living with it's consequences still".

Why I Wanted To Be In AP US history

The reason why i wanted to be in AP US History is because my favorite subject is history. I like to read about people and what they did and how it changed the world. I also like to hear about different types of culture and how they live and prospered. But in this class i will only be learning about cultures that were within and that came in contact with the united states. I also wanted to be in this class because i want to be challenged. I think that a challenged would be good for so that i can be more focused , not to mention that it would be a big accomplishment. Plus when i pass the AP test then that would another great accomplishments. I also took this class because i take history seriously no matter what country or topic it is about. History is very crucial because if we don't know our past we can never learn from the mistakes we made to get to the future.