1. 1714 CE – 1790 CE

2. In the 16th century, Portugal came to
dominate Brazil, while Spain
established a colonial empire that
included parts of North, Central,
and South America
This region came to be known as
Latin America
Latin America was a multi-racial
society; Spain allowed intermarriage
between Europeans and Native
Americas (their offspring were
known as mestizos)
In addition, as many as 8 million
African slaves were brought into
Latin America (the offspring of
Europeans and Africans were called
mulattoes
Society was unique in Latin America
because of the mixing of ethnicities

3. The Portuguese and Spanish both sought profit from
their colonies in Latin America
There were abundant supplies of gold and silver, which
were sent to Europe
Farming was also profitable; landowners created
immense estates and created a class of dependent
peasants by using Native American labor
Trade provided another area for profit; products
shipped to Europe included
sugar, tobacco, diamonds, and animal hides
Trade was heavily regulated to prevent the British and French
from invading their markets

4. Spain and Portugal ruled their colonies for over 300 years;
however, because of the vast distance between Europe and
Latin America, local colonial officials had considerable freedom
in carrying out imperial policies
One policy was the “Christianization” of the native population;
this gave the Catholic Church a critical role in Latin America and
increased the church’s power there
Catholic missionaries used missions to help convert, teach, and
control the lives of the natives, who were taught to be obedient
and docile
The Catholic Church built cathedrals, hospitals, orphanages, and
schools in the colonies
Schools taught the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic
Women could become nuns and enter convents, rather than marry
Many nuns ran schools and hospitals and some urged that women be
educated

5. The United Kingdom of Great Britain came into existence in
1707, when the governments of England and Scotland were
united
In 18th century Britain, the monarch and the Parliament shared
power, with Parliament gradually gaining the upper hand
The monarch chose ministers who were responsible to the Crown and
set policy and guided Parliament
Parliament had the power to make laws, levy taxes, pass the budget, and
influence the ministers
In 1714, Queen Anne died without an heir; the crown was
offered to her nearest relatives, the German Hanoverian kings
King George I did not speak English and did not understand the British
system very well; his chief ministers handled Parliament
Robert Walpole served as the head of cabinet (and later Prime Minister) from 1721 to
1742 and pursued peaceful foreign policy
The middle class grew enormously during this time period as a result of trade, and
favored policies of expansion of trade and of Britain’s world empire

6. William Pitt the Elder became head of the cabinet in
1757; he expanded the British Empire by acquiring
Canada and India in the Seven Year’s War
In North America, Britain controlled Canada and the
13 colonies on the eastern coast of the Americas
By 1750, the British colonies had more than 1 million
people and were prosperous
The colonies were run by the British Board of
Trade, the Royal Council, and Parliament
The colonies had their own legislatures that tended to act
independently
Merchants in the port cities did not want the British
government to run their affairs

7. After the Seven Year’s War, British leaders wanted to get new
revenues from the colonies
They were supposed to cover war costs as well as pay the expense of
maintaining an army to defend the colonies
In 1765 Parliament passed the Stamp Act that required printed
materials to carry a stamp showing that a tax had been paid to
Britain; Opposition was widespread and violent and the act was
repealed in 1766
Crises followed throughout the rest of the 18th century
The Colonies organized the First Continental Congress in 1774
Fighting finally erupted in 1775 in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts
The Second Continental Congress met soon after and formed an army
with George Washington as its commander in chief
On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress approved the Declaration of
Independence, marking the official start of the American Revolution

8. The Colonists were able to gain foreign support
which helped in their fight against the British
France provided arms and money, and French
officers served in Washington’s army
Spain and the Dutch Republic also fought against
Great Britain
British General Cornwallis was forced to surrender
at Yorktown in 1781
The Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783 and
recognized the independence of the American
colonies

9. The 13 colonies gained their independence and were
now states in a new union
The states feared concentrated power and had little
enthusiasm for creating a strong central government,
preferring to keep power at the state level
The Articles of Confederation were the first attempt at
nation-building by the American colonies; they were
unsuccessful because the federal government lacked the
power to deal with the nation’s problems
The US Constitution proposed a federal system in
which power would be shared between the federal
and state governments
The federal government was divided into three branches
A Bill of Rights was adopted to ensure individual liberties
were maintained by the new government