The struggle for Independence

'' The history of American form of Government begins with its settlers. Most of the early settlers came from Eng and- They lived in groups called colonies. The king of England was their ruler.

The English settlers founded the Virginia colony at Jamestown in 1607. -It was the first permanent English colony. In 1620 other English people came to America. They were known as Pilgrimes-They went to Holland first. In Holland their children began to forget the English ways. And they decided to leave Holland and go to the new world. They started Plymouth " colony in Massachusetts -They struggled to build homes and to exist. After a hard winter the Pilgrims who survive? held a feast with their friends; the Indians, ' who had helped them begin their new way of life. They thanked God for their blessings. This was the first American Thanksgiving. They still celebrate Thaksgiving Day each year near the end of November.

'" More Englishmen, as well as people from other European coun­tries came to live in America. Many, like the Pilgrims, wanted to be

free, to worship God in their own way. Others were looking for political freedom. Traders were seeking ways to make money. The poor and the unemployed people wanted jobs to earn a better living-Businessmen who had money to invest saw promise of success in America. They came from such countries as Holland, -Sweden and Finland. The Germans, Scotch-Irish and French were among those who came to the new World looking for a better life too.

After many years all the colonists came under British rule. Geor­gia founded in 1733 was the last colony to be formed.

In 1776 there were 13 British colonies in that part of America that later became the United States. These colonies became the 13 states.They are Delaware, Pensylvania, New Jersy, Georgia, Con­necticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hamp-shere, Virginia, New York, North Carolina and Rhode Island.

The king let the colonists elect representatives to make local laws. But as time passed more and more laws for the colonists were made in Great Britain. Under these laws, the colonists had to pay more taxes.

' ' However, the colonists were not asked to help make these laws. They had no representatives in Great Britain. They began to feel that some of their rights were being taken away from them and they declared they could be taxed only by their own representatives. The King refused to change the tax laws.

The colonists decided to hold a meeting to discuss their prob­lems. All of the colonies except Georgia sent delegates to this meet­ing. It was held in Philadelphia in 1774. It was the First continental Congress. ^The colonists asked the King for their rights as English­men. The king refused- He called them traitors- The Second Conti­nental Congress met in Independence Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsyl-venia, in 1775- It decided that the colonists should fight Great Brit­ain. This war was called the Revolutionary war or the War for Independence.

George Washington was appointed to lead the soldiers. He be­came their commaader-in-chief- Freedom-loving people from many countries - France, Poland, Germany - came to help the colonists because they knew Washington did not have trained soldiers- In January 1776 Thomas Paine, an English immigrant, wrote the pam­phlet " Common Sense". Paine's words excited the people- More and more of them talked of Independence.

The colonists decided to free themselves from Great Britain. They wanted their own Government. A committee was appointed to write

a Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Frank-lin^ John Adams and others were members of the Committee. Jeffer­son wrote most of the Declaration. On July, 4, 1776, the Continen­tal Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. The colo­nists declared themselves to be free. They became separate states-This is how the new nation began. Since then the 4th of July is a holiday in the United States known as Independence Day.

After You Read the Story

I..Checking Vocabulary Select the correct word for each Vanki

II. Checking Understanding Select the correct word for each blank:

Sentences a. The first English colony was in... b. The Pilgrims wanted religions... c. The Pilgrims went to... first. d. At the end of November Americans

celebrate the holiday of... e. The Pilgrims were helped by the... f. George Washington became the... of the American Army-g. Thomas Jefferson wrote most of the...