Introduction

Where do your loyalties lie?
Recently, there has been talk by some of your fellow countrymen of 
taking action against King George III. Who has the nerve to take up 
arms against his protector? Who would dare to bite the hand that 
feeds them? For what reasons would a reasonable man separate from his 
own country???  Why would a man risk everything- even his life to 
rebel against his own government?  

 
  As you proceed in this Webquest, you will be assuming the roles of 
historian and journalist (we have already discussed in class what 
historians "do") to examine the causes of the American 
Colonists'change in attitude toward the British prior to the 1776 
Declaration of Independence.  By interviewing some of the individuals 
involved, you will seek to answer the following questions: 
 
1.  What accounts for the colonists evolution from swearing 
loyalty to King George III to calling him a tyrant and declaring 
independence? 
2.  What are the respective viewpoints of the Patriots, 
the King and the Loyalists?  
3.  With which viewpoint do YOU most agree??? Why?