American Revolution in 1770's period Research Paper

American Revolution in 1770's period - Research Paper Example This essay outlines the causes of the war and the chronology of event that resulted to the declaration of independence. In the period between1754 and 1763, the British engaged the Indian and the French in a war that started as early as 1600s. During the 1750s, the French and the British were in the war with each other in Europe, but the war even spread to North America. The British colony wanted to take over the territories and fur trade that French had in North America. The American Native joined the French to fight against the occupation of British in the French land. The Native feared that the British would to take their land and for them to protect themselves, they had to join the French in battling the British soldiers. In 1779, the British General Wolfe captured Quebec and brought the war to an end. In 1763, a peace treaty was signed, and British got almost all of the French land. Moreover, the British introduced taxation to cover the cost of the war (Colin, 1991). The American native began their quest for independence long before the revolution, but before the start of the revolution, the American population has increased to about two million. In the time before the war, the colonies have urbanized, and road were now connecting the diverse colonies. In addition, the media has grown, and newspapers kept all the colonies informed. At this time, the colonies were enlightened and were thinking of themselves as Americans. The colonists, both the rich and poor differed on the issue of independence. George Washington who owned huge chunk of land and other businessmen like John Hancock agitated for independence. They did not want the British to control over their businesses and their lives. However, some other wealthy colonists feared the agitation of independence would affect their wealth if the revolution began. The wealth of these colonists was connected to the British government and its trade. The poor colonists could not relent from

What Mary Surratt Did to Change U.S. History Term Paper

What Mary Surratt Did to Change U.S. History - Term Paper Example Actually, it was the first case of the official female execution in the United States. Her son, John Surratt was also thought to participate in the assassination. †Mary Surratt was born to Archibald (who died when Mary was two years old) and Elizabeth Anne Jenkins in the southern Maryland town of Waterloo† (DeWitt, 1984 p.34). Her family was rather big – she had two brothers. Mary went to the Ladies School in Virginia. Her life was quite difficult since she became wife when she was only 16 years old. She was forced to marry John Harrisson Surratt, a Roman Catholic farmer. The spouses had three children – one daughter and two sons. The Surratts turned out to be good businessmen – they had a tobacco farm, operated several shops and in this way increased their income greatly. Despite being a prosperous family, they still had tough financial problems because of the husband constant drinking. â€Å"One biographer suggested that John Surratt was physically and emotionally abusive to his wife† (Larson, 2008 p.75). ... Mary had no other way as to sell her house to its former owner for a very small amount of money and move to the District of Columbia. That house was the ownership of her late husband and she remade the second floor to have a boarding house there. That business kept her on her toes and provided her children with sustainable level of living. At the trial Mary’s son John admitted that he was involved in the plot of Lincoln kidnapping but did never take part in the plot of his assassination. He was following the president that day of the murder but he had nothing to do with his death. Moreover, he denied that his mother had any relation to this matter. That day she was reported to visit one of her tenants to withdraw the rent and then she came home and got in her daily home routine. ‘Though, later John Lloyd later testified against her, saying she gave him a package containing field glasses and told him to make ready the shooting irons† (Swanson, 2007 p.43 ). Moreover, after the assassination she sheltered John Wilkes Booth, who was considered to be the assassin – he was seen to stop at her boarding house just after the murder. After a two-week trial Mary Surratt was admitted to be guilty, though she claimed to be innocent. The judge was governed by the clues found at her home place and several testimonials from the respectable citizens. The execution was demanded to be through hanging and Mary Surratt was allowed to have a priest before the execution. The ceremony took place in the square with the tickets being sold in advance. Mary’s death wasn’t as easy as of the rest of convicts. She suffered for more than 5 minutes in the noose. Concluding everything stated above it must be mentioned that Marry Surratt played a great role in the USA history. It is