Theme Of Treason In The Revolutionary War

153 Words1 Pages
The top priority of the colonists was to win the war. One crime of major interest to the colonists, treason, was prosecuted throughout the war. Treason is the attempt to overthrow one's own government by assisting another country. Charges of treason were brought against those colonists remaining loyal (called loyalists) to Britain. The colonists applied a broad definition of treason to the Loyalists' actions. If loyalists provided any support to the British, colonists assumed the authority to seize their property. Though treason became more specifically defined in the U.S. Constitution, it remained the most serious of crimes in the new democratic republic. The colonists fought a difficult, bloody battle for their freedom. With victory