The American Revolution marked a significant change for Americans, setting us free from the control of the British Crown. As a result of the actions of the British, such as the Stamp Act, the Quartering Act, and the Townshend Acts, the American identity began forming, proving us different from our colonial leaders. We were inspired by John Locke, an Enlightenment thinker who believed in the ideals of natural rights. Thus proving ourselves to be different, it was time to break the shackles that trapped us under British control. Beginning in 1776, the American Revolution ultimately led to the creation of a new American Government, changing society forever. Along with this, the American Revolution marked the first instance of war against a British colony, representing an enormous change in American ideals. Our nation wanted that the efforts of the French and Indian War result in the amassing of land, and our founding fathers desired, regardless of previous diplomatic decisions by our British overlords. The American Revolution represented a major turning point in American History, through social, political, and ideological reform in the United States, like that of the role of women, the ideals of government, and the idea of man’s freedom and property in our expansive land mass.
Under British rule, women often felt neglected by their rulers. Women in colonial America held little power and had no say in the ways of life. Women’s roles were defined by the following terms: weakness and motherhood. Restrained by the shackles of corsets and this idea of the dangerous woman, most women were uneducated under British America. This, however, changed during the American Revolution, where women went out to fight for their nation. With the famous legacies of Molly Pitcher, a famous group of women who helped our nation in our fight for independence, Document 1 represents one of these such women, a woman wearing her petticoats, holding a musket. The petticoat represents the shackles of womens few rights, a historical way to remember the weights against them, while the musket, like the arrows in the talon of the eagle of our nation, represents the fighting war spirit the women hold. Created for the general American audience, it is meant to depict the growing spirit of women, to convey the importance and appeal of fighting in the revolution. Women, who once were simply known as homemakers, were now fighting for the nation, fighting for a cause they believed in. Along with this, following the war, women began playing a more important role in the home. The revolution brought about the spread of the idea of republican motherhood, where the woman was educated and served in educating her family in the home, thus expanding a woman’s general domain. Yes, women were not granted the right to vote or participate in assembly, yet women like Abigail Adams voiced their thoughts to the government, influencing men’s decisions. Adams, it is rumored, told her husband to avoid forgetting the women, representing the new spirit of American women. She, an educated and intellectual voice, defied the stereotypes of a colonial woman, with her eloquent and thought out writings that stay preserved today. In a letter to Thomas Jefferson, Adams uses this special ability to inform Jefferson about the revolts in Massachusetts; written in 1787, Adams speaks to this future president in hopes of warning and perhaps even enticing Jefferson to end the revolt, to use his power to somehow fix things. Adams, knowing the brevity of the situation in Pennsylvania, understood that her voice could signify the end of the conflict. Though she had no direct say in this matter, Adams knew her influence as both a spouse and a homemaker could better influence her government and thus helped in assisting the founding fathers in better governing our young nation(Doc 5). The American Revolution began the catalyst of women’s rise in our nation, catapulting women’s roles into a more important spectrum, with the introduction of the ideals of republican motherhood and more educational opportunities; American women were beginning to see the unlacing of the corsets of oppression!
Perhaps most important of all is the evolution of thought that America underwent, through the development of a Bill of Rights and government for the people and by the people. In the British system, government was more hierarchal, leaving men without land to have no say in government. Britain held a House of Lords and even Parliament often represented only those with some sort of familial dynasty. Still, as a result of the spread of Lockean ideals, Americans began thinking more of the equal rights of all men, seeing themselves as different from the typical British fellow. The spread of these Lockean ideals was an eye opener for our Patriots, who used the words of Locke to rally against the British and the oppression of unfair policies like the tyrannous Intolerable Acts, a policy enacted that enabled the British to demand search and seizure at any moment. In fact, Americans represented this Lockean mindset in our Declaration of Independence, a document citing that all men are entitled to Life, Liberty and Property. Thus, with this important set up, we began documenting the fundamental differences between us and our British ancestors. With the idea of freedom for all, America’s history marked it different from the oppressive system of the British. We understood the need for religious tolerance and equality, a system that our British forefathers disagreed with. Still, before the Revolution, many in America sought to prevent equal rights for people of all religious denominations. After fighting our Revolution, however, we began imposing this notion of religious equality as demonstrated in this excerpt from the Virginia’s state constitution that states “Be it enacted by the general Assembly, that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever…but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion.”. Written in 1786, this revolutionary thought process was aimed at the citizens of perhaps the most populated state in the union, perhaps to set an example to the rest of the country as per our national attitudes towards religious freedom. Considered one of the first documents granting such religious freedom, this state constitutional amendment that helped us when writing our Bill of Rights, which explicitly declare the right to religious freedom here in the United States (Doc 2). Thus, this important legislation and eventual amendment truly represent the transition between British and American thought, capturing the true essence of equality and acceptance that our nation was to embrace. Along with revolutionizing our views toward religious freedom, the Revolution was a catalyst to the rise of abolitionist sentiment in the United States. What is important to consider is that slavery was a concept given to us by the British. Had it not been for the invention of the cotton gin, slavery would have been completely eliminated from our nation by the end of the 18th century, however, our nation worked hard in preventing slavery from growing into a larger problem. One of the greatest examples of this turning point against slavery is the Northwest Ordinance regarding Ohio. This document states that slavery is bound to the original 13 colonies and thus, condemns the act of involuntary servitude on new lands of the United States. Written for our nation and the world to see in the year 1787, the document acts as the first explicit condemnation of the further spread of slavery in our nation, an important statement considering the improbability of such a fact only 5 years prior. In fact, had it not been for the American Revolution, such a policy would not have been considered, and perhaps the likelihood of these sorts of blocks on slave policy would have been entirely avoided. Considering that 1787 was a year when slavery was still rampant in the world, such a legislation was almost radical in the scheme of things (Doc 6). Yes, we did not completely follow through in preventing the spread of slavery in new territories, however, our Constitution ended our participation in the slave trade while abolitionist sentiment grew. The American Revolution acted as a catalyst toward ideals that the world could never fathom, of religious equality and an eventual end of slavery.
The American Revolution sparked the important rise of property sentiment in our nation, a turning point in our somewhat negative relations with Native Americans. Prior to the Revolution, the Native Americans had argued for the preservation of their territory after the British won the French and Indian war, and thusly, the Proclamation line of 1763 was created. With the end of British reign in America, our nation immediately sought to take this land, as a way to expand and grow our power. The beginnings of westward expansion were being set here, with the idea of property being embraced and thus Native Americans did feel left out. A major difference between us and the British was our ability to consider the opinions of the Native Americans. To the British, fighting with the Native Americans seemed somewhat unnecessary and useless, while we, on the other hand, looked at the Native Americans as a hurdle over a necessary commodity: land. Following the end of the Revolution, the British, French and Americans decided what to do with the land, sans the opinions of the Native Americans. Thusly, the Natives issued a statement, said at the United Indian Nations, proclaiming that the Natives felt left out and disappointed not to be a part of the process that was to decide the fate of their land. Addressed the new American Government, the declaration came at a time when our nation was new and ready to grow, a time that the Natives feared. Native Americans were afraid of war and conflict and hoped to appeal to American emotions by conveying their emotions and thoughts in this important speech (Doc 3). Ultimately, what is important to consider is that the American Revolution inspires us to further expand and blossom, making us avoid the upset sentiments of the Native Americans. As a result, our nation continued its efforts to expand through Native land, regardless of war threats as the idea of being this large and powerful nation grew important. Meanwhile, the American Revolution, which projected the idea of property being a natural right, ultimately inspired poor American farmers to chase this dream of holding land. The Revolution acted as this turning point as to who was to have a voice in our society by allowing all men in this great nation to vote, regardless of land ownership. This new right, however, did not stop these farmers from chasing their dreams of holding land. As seen in this Medal of the Philadelphia Society for the Promotion of Agriculture, the depiction of a farmer ploughing his land with his wife in tow represents this new idea of prosperity in our nation. Made for a general audience, the medal is followed with the words “Venerate the Plough” asking us to honor this important device, essential to the success of the American farmer. Farmers, who lived desolate lives under the British, were now granted the right to vote, to have a voice for their own issues and wants. The purpose of this image is not only to honor the mighty farmer and their work but to also superimpose this idea among the American public about the importance of the farmer and their work (Doc 4). True, farmers remained poor following the Revolution, but the Revolution marked a change with regard to the voice and power of the American Farmer. It marked the beginning of the age of reform and change for the lives of these farmers, bringing them from desolation and the fringe of society, into the eyes of politicians who could finally bring about important change.
The American Revolution served as a turning point socially, with regard to the rights of women and farmers along with religious minorities and slavery, politically, in terms of our nation’s policy of freedom and land, and ideologically, with regard to our ideas of freedom. When considering such an important and memorable turning point, we can connect our Revolution and its aftermath to the Glorious Revolution of England. True, England established a constitutional monarchy following their revolution, however, the Glorious Revolution expanded the right to vote, ended the tyrannous rule of a monarch and ultimately served to give higher power to the people of England. Ultimately, like the American Revolution, the Glorious Revolution created greater equality in the nation by ending the emphasis on hereditary succession in the Parliamentary system and stripping the power of the so-called executive. Still, unlike any revolution in the entire world, the American Revolution stands out because it not only ended in the creation of the world’s most powerful democracy; the American Revolution redefined the meaning of freedom and power for the common man in the world, assuring our citizens that anyone could hold power and be successful. It was a turning point for not just our nation but the entire world.