1999 Dbq - the British and the American Colonists

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fostering the growth of unity (Document C).

The colonists sense of identity and unity as Americans was further developed when they joined to fight the British. The colonists were not just from Britain, they were also German, French, Dutch, and Swedish, causing a very wide variety of ethnicity. Like Hector St. John Crévecoeur said, “What then is the American, this new man?... that strange mixture of blood which you will find in no other country… Here individuals are melted into a new race of men” (Document H). The American colonists insisted that they were still loyal to Britain, even though they really hated the rules and policies given to them and did not want to “dissolve that union which has so long and so happily subsisted between us...” (Document E). American colonists wanted to keep their rights and be free, willing to do anything, realizing that they would have to unite and separate from Britain in order to ensure their own freedoms. Richard Henry Lee stated that “…all North 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.” (Document C). Richard Henry Lee shows that the colonies are uniting and coming together as one in an identity of the American way.

The highly evolved sense of unity and identity amongst the colonist was caused by many different factors. Negligence and victimization from the British resulted in unification of the colonies. Also, the large amount of different ethnics and a vast span of ocean splitting the two nations resulted in the distinctive American identity.