British North America
By:Muzammil
Development of Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies as of 1775,we're British Colonies on the east coast Of North America which had been founded between 1607 and 1732.As part of the British Empire, the colonies engaged in numerous wars against France, but France was expelled from North America in 1763 and was no longer a threat.Most of their external connections were with Britain until the 1750's, when they began collaborating with each other at the Albany Congress of 1754 to demand protection of their traditional rights. Responding to popular grievances against London, they set up a Continental Congress in 1774, which declared independence from Great Britain in 1776, set up state governments, and formed a new nation, the United States of America.
Loyalists
Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the British monarchy during the American Revolutionary War.They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the American revolution. When their cause was defeated, about 15% of the Loyalists or 65,000–70,000 fled to other parts of the British Empire, to Britain or some where else in British North America.They boosted the population and heavily influenced the politics and culture of what would become Canada.As American rebels fought for independence from Britain, Loyalists supported the "mother country" for different reasons. Many felt a personal loyalty to the Crown, or were afraid that revolution would bring chaos to America.During the Revolution more than 19,000 Loyalists served Britain in specially created provincial militia corps.
The Declaration of Independence
On July 4, 1776, which announced that the Thirteen American Colonies,then at war with Great Britain, regarded themselves as thirteen newly independent supreme states, and no longer a part of the British Empire.Instead they formed a new nation—the United States of America. John Adams was a leader in pushing for independence, which was approved on July 2 without opposition. A committee of five had already drafted the formal declaration, to be ready when Congress voted on independence.The Declaration of Independence was ultimately a formal explanation of why Congress had voted on July 2 to declare independence from Great Britain, more than a year after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War.
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 lasted from 1812 to 1814.It was a military conflict between the United States and Great Britain. As a colony of Great Britain, Canada was swept up in the War of 1812 and was invaded a number of times by the Americans. The war was fought in Upper Canada, Lower Canada, on the Great Lakes and the Atlantic, and in the United States.In Canada, the war contributed to a growing sense of national identity, including the idea that civilian soldiers were largely responsible for repelling the American invaders.The First Nations allies of the British and Canadian cause suffered much because of the war, not only had they lost many warriors , they also lost any hope of halting American expansion in the west, and their contributions were quickly forgotten by their British and Canadian allies.