Ryan Otto
Mr. Kilgour
AP US History
October 13, 2015
DBQ Essay
As late as 1775, America still comfortably identified itself as part of the British Empire. Even at the Second Continental Congress, where it was decided to form the Continental Army, it was recorded that "We have not raised armies with ambitious designs of separating from Great Britain, and establishing independent states." (Doc. E). This excerpt for the Declaration for the Causes of Taking up Arms illustrates how, despite being more cohesive than at any time prior, America was only partially unified before the revolution. At that point Americans were seeking representation rather than autonomy. Although some, such as Benjamin Franklin with his Join, or Die cartoon in the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1754, had advocated for unification before the Revolution, little concerted effort was made (Doc. A). Nevertheless, certain events before the revolution had granted the colonies some sense of unity.
The first significant unifying event in American history was the Great Awakening, a movement which fostered religious conformity throughout the colonies. The Great Awakening was the first "American" event, and so created the first semblance of national identity. This budding idea of Americans (rather than subjects of the Crown) gradually grew, and in the 1770's Hector St. John Crevecoeur defined them as people from all backgrounds who "are melted into a new race of men, whose labour and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world" (Doc. H). While previously America had no unifying faith, the fiery zeal of George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards was enough to create common ground between the colonies. This paved the way for other such unifying events. Though the Revolution was not influenced by religious motives, the Great Awakening was an important step towards coalescence and subsequently independence from the British Empire.
Apart from religious fervor, another unifying feeling was that of outrage at Britain's excessive taxation of the colonies. The desire for representation in parliament was ubiquitous in America, and many were in favor of taking action against the Empire. Writing in the February of 1774, Richard Henry Lee asserted that "A very small and corrupt Junto in New York excluded, all N. America is now most firmly United and as firmly resolved to defend their liberties ad infinitum against every power on Earth that may attempt to take them away." (Doc. C). Such indignation had been building since Britain imposed a slew of taxes to pay off the debt it had accumulated in the Seven Year War. In his "Notes for Speech in Parliament," Edmund Burke expressed his frustration with the system: "Govern America as you govern an English town which happens not to be represented in Parliament. Are Gentlemen really serious when they propose this?" (Doc. B). Burke was writing at a time when outrage at the Stamp Act and Sugar Act was still fresh. Though independence had not yet even been considered, the issue of representation was firmly in the minds of Americans. And yet even after independence had been won, not all were convinced the separation from Britain was necessary. In his 1781 history of the Revolution, Peter Oliver condemns the war as an attempt to "gratifye the Pride, Ambition & Resentment, of a few abandoned Demagogues" (Doc. F). While their fuming over taxes certainly gave them a common goal, not everyone in the colonies was prepared to go against the king. Still, the number of those in favor of taking action was great enough to move America towards independence.
These common interests manifested themselves in the form of the Second Continental Congress in July of 1775. The taking up of arms was one of the first tangible results of America's new unity. That they were able to raise an army is an indication of how strong anti-British sentiment was throughout the colonies. But the consolidation of power in the form of the Second Continental Congress was in no way meant to replace the British constitution. Despite their open resistance of the mother country, those assembled viewed themselves as subjects of the Empire (Doc. E).
It took the extreme pressure from the British to force the colonies to unite under a form of centralized government. Without such an immediate threat, unification may not have occurred so quickly or to such an extent. Shortly after the newly formed United States had won its independence, American merchant ships were being looted by pirates from the Barbary Sates. While the need for a navy was evident, the idea faced much opposition. There was no threat to American soil, and individual states feared that the formation of a central navy would compromise their prerogatives. Lacking in the urgency faced by the revolutionaries, it took far longer to establish the U.S. navy than the Continental Army. Ultimately, the threat that Britain posed to the people of America leading up to the Revolution resulted in an incomplete but effective unification of the states.
