Question

1. what was “salutary neglect”?
2. when and how did the british apply mercantilist economic policy to the thirteen colonies? how did the colonists react to britain’s attempts to regulate trade?
3. what specifically did the colonists resent about british tax policy in the colonies (famous slogan)?
4. what was the british justification for their colonial tax policies?
5. how did the colonists practice what we today call “civil disobedience”?
6. what was the first continental congress? when and why did it meet? what actions did it take?
7. how did colonial women influence events in america during the 1760s and 1770s?
8. how do the poems of phillis wheatley, the plays of mercy otis warren, the political pamphlets of thomas paine, and the engravings of paul revere reflect the events of the revolutionary era?

what students need to understand… (concepts)

1. why did the british draw the proclamation of 1763 line where they did? why was the location of that line controversial?
2. what role did free speech and free press play in the unification of colonies in the 1760s and 1770s?
3. how did african americans help create the american tradition of being willing to sacrifice for freedom? who were some examples and what were their accomplishments?
4. how does the poem “concord hymn” written by ralph waldo emerson more than 60 years after the battles of lexington and concord honor the american men who fought there?

Explanation:

These questions pertain to historical events and developments related to the American - British colonial relationship, such as policies, reactions, and cultural expressions during the pre - revolutionary and revolutionary eras.

Answer:

1. "Salutary neglect" was a British policy of the 17th and 18th centuries in which trade regulations for the American colonies were laxly enforced, allowing the colonies to develop their own economic and political institutions. This policy ended after the French and Indian War as Britain needed to raise revenue and tighten control over the colonies.
2. The British applied mercantilist economic policy to the Thirteen Colonies by passing laws like the Navigation Acts, which restricted colonial trade to British ships and certain British ports. The colonists reacted with resentment and sometimes engaged in smuggling. They felt these policies limited their economic opportunities and were an over - reach of British authority.
3. The colonists resented the British tax policies in the colonies because they were taxed without having representation in the British Parliament. The famous slogan "No taxation without representation" summed up their grievance.
4. The British justification for their colonial tax policies was that the cost of defending the colonies during the French and Indian War had been high, and the colonists should contribute to paying off Britain's war debt.
5. The colonists practiced "civil disobedience" by actions such as the Boston Tea Party, where they dumped British tea into Boston Harbor in protest of the Tea Act. This was a non - violent way of showing their opposition to British policies.
6. The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in 1774 in Philadelphia. It met to discuss a response to the Intolerable Acts (punitive measures by Britain against the colonies). It took actions such as agreeing to a boycott of British goods.
7. Colonial women influenced events in America during the 1760s and 1770s through activities like boycotting British goods, making homespun cloth instead of buying British textiles, and participating in political discussions within their households.
8. The poems of Phillis Wheatley, the plays of Mercy Otis Warren, the political pamphlets of Thomas Paine, and the engravings of Paul Revere reflected the events of the Revolutionary Era by expressing ideas of liberty, resistance to British rule, and the call for independence. Wheatley's poems sometimes addressed themes of freedom and equality, Warren's plays satirized British authority, Paine's pamphlets like "Common Sense" inspired the colonists to seek independence, and Revere's engravings, such as the "Bloody Massacre," helped to stir up anti - British sentiment.
9. The British drew the Proclamation of 1763 line along the Appalachian Mountains to prevent further colonial settlement westward. This was to avoid further conflict with Native American tribes and to manage the colonies more easily. The location was controversial because the colonists, who had fought in the French and Indian War expecting to gain access to western lands, felt their rights were being restricted.
10. Free speech and free press played a crucial role in the unification of colonies in the 1760s and 1770s. Newspapers and pamphlets spread ideas of resistance to British policies, shared news of colonial grievances, and helped to create a sense of a common colonial identity against British rule.
11. African Americans helped create the American tradition of being willing to sacrifice for freedom by participating in the Revolutionary War on both the British and American sides, hoping to gain their own freedom. Examples include Crispus Attucks, who was one of the first to die in the Boston Massacre, and Peter Salem, a black soldier who fought at the Battle of Bunker Hill. Their accomplishments were in contributing to the fight for American independence and challenging the institution of slavery through their actions.
12. Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Concord Hymn" honored the American men who fought in the Battles of Lexington and Concord by commemorating their bravery and sacrifice. The poem's opening lines "By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world" evoke the significance of the first battles of the American Revolution.