Chapter One: The Revolution
Excerpt taken from
The First Patriotic War: 1775 to 1795
Author:
Dr. Hendrik van Buren, Georgian History Professor at Washington University
Published:
1995
The First Patriotic War[1], and the Great Exodus that followed, is something that all Georgians are taught in their history classes, from a young age all the way to the end of their time in the public school system. Not because of propaganda, no, but more so, because of the importance of it to the fate of liberty in the continent we call home.
However, to really understand how we went from there, waging a war of freedom on a continent so foreign to us now; to here, on the southern shores of a mighty continent, serving the purpose God intended, as Rudyard Kipling so aptly put.
"Georgia serves a mighty purpose for the world -- to shine a light of civilization in a continent of darkness."
- Rudyard Kipling, 1899
While the racial connotations of his words are less than ideal, we must understand that that maxim -- to shine civilization in darkness is still a fundamental part of our country's establishment. Where the ideal has changed less about race, and more to provide stability and freedom to a continent ravaged by European imperialism.
However, to understand Georgia's mission and crusade, we must understand the origin.
The story begins in the mid-18th century. The United Kingdom and the Kingdom of France had a long-standing rivalry over the Ohio River Valley and trading rights with American aborigines[2]. This escalated into war in the 1750s while Europe was busy waging the Seven Years War.
Combatants of the Seven Years War; British-Portugese-Prussian bloc in blue, Franco-Russian bloc in green
It was in this war that the Great Martyr of Freedom, George Washington, saw combat in the British Armed Forces. Under the order of the Governor of Virginia, whose investments were made to exploit the region against French wishes, Washington marched west to deal with the French issue. After a skirmish, Washington retreated and constructed a Fort called Fort Necessity.
However, a combined Franco-Aborigine expedition forced Washington's surrender on June 3, 1754. The Martyr organized a withdrawal and returned to Virginia. The course of the war went well for Britain otherwise, leading to the end of French North America in 1763, with the Treaty of Paris.
This war soon turned our Forefathers against the old mother country, as Britain levied unfair taxation policies against the colonies in an attempt to extort money to pay for the war debt, despite annexing a vast amount of land. Things soured quickly from here. Between 1763 and 1775, levying a series of taxes, refusing representation in British parliament for Amerikaner[3] representation, as well as in the later years, enforcing Stirling-esque[4] policies, and generally being extremely oppressive to the Amerikaners.
A major key aspect of the lead up to the revolution was the cold-blooded murder of Crispus Attucks and four other Amerikaner men in 1770 by British soldiers, of which there was no major repercussion. The outrage in the colonies escalated as restrictions were tightened down even more so than before.
In 1773, a group of disgruntled Patriots, known as the Sons of Liberty (not to be confused with the contemporary reactionary political party), lead the Boston Tea Party, in which they dumped copious amounts of British East India Company tea into Boston Harbor. London's response was quite brutal, they shut down the Boston Harbor, and enforced dictatorial governing on the city, further stirring up rebellion.
The first shots of the The First Patriotic War took place in 1775, with the Battle of Lexington and Concord, which brought to head the differences between the British Empire and the Amerikaner people, one that would grow greater as time went on...
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[1] "The First Patriotic War" is a term used by Georgians to refer to the American Revolution.
[2] "aborigine" is the term used to refer to native groups; this was the replacement of "Indian", a term deemed inappropriate to describe native tribes early on in Georgia's history. African tribes are referred to as "aborigines", as are Native Americans, Native Polynesians, so on and so forth.
[3] "Amerikaner" is the demonym referring to the group of people who undertook the Great Exodus. Historically speaking, an Amerikaner was a revolutionary against the British Empire during the First Patriotic War.
[4]Stirling-esque refers to a certain man and his penchant for totalitarianism. His series
Draka is considered at least, amongst Georgians, as the worst book series ever, as it basically depicts the means their country was established, but twists it into racism.