Causes Of The American Revolution

The American Revolution was not just a spontaneous revolt over taxes some may think . There were many things that led up to the outbreak of the American Revolution, such as the Navigation Act, the Enlightenment, the Great Awakening, the French and Indian War, the Boston Massacre, and the Coercive Acts. It took many years for it to take place. This all started previously before 1775 with the first major event being the Navigation Acts of 1651.

The American Revolution should never have happened. The British were not tyrannical, oppressive rulers although the American colonies perceived them to be so. The American colonists misperceptions led to revolution and independence.

The British had sent more than 10,000 troops to North America by the end of the French and Indian War. The British felt like they had spent a great deal of money in protecting the American colonists. They were in debt around 140 million pounds. To pay off all of their debt the British decided to increase the enforcement of existing taxes on the Colonists and impose additional taxes. The British issued The Proclamation of 1763 which meant the colonists couldn’t cheat the Indians out of land. They also establish a border in where they could not buy land. This made the colonist mad because it made them feel like the British were interfering and trying to limit their economic growth.

The causes of the American Revolution go back to the beginning of salutary neglect and the French and Indian War, as well as changes in the thinking of society. The effects of these events and other factors led to pressure within the colonies, ultimately resulting in rebellion.

The Proclamation of 1763 is Britain’s way of keeping colonists off the Indians lands. It was declared after the French and Indian war, on October 7 1763 by King George the third. It's still a fundamental Native American law even today across America and Canada.

The wars which happened between 1754 and 1763 had a high impact on the colonies that were initially proud to be part and parcel of Great Britain. However, as it was noted later after the war, most colonists got increasingly bothered by various Acts passed by the Britain

The American colonists and British policymakers disagreed on many things, but the common thread that seems to run through them all is the sense of exploitation on the part of the colonists and the perceived need to protect overall interests on the part of the British policymakers. The Sugar Act of 1764, The Currency Act of 1764, and the Stamp Acts are but a few examples of the disagreements between the legislators and the colonies.

“No taxation without representation!” (Brinkley 119) This was the common cry for colonial America during the elimination of illegal sugar trade between the colonies, French and the Spanish West Indies. After the Seven Years War Britain was put in great debt. They started the Sugar Act in 1764. This Act allowed the British to tax the sugar in order to gain money back and pull them out of their debts from the war. The Sugar Act was put in place originally because of the demand of Rum which is made of molasses, a type of sugar. There was a lot of anger from the colonists against the British because they felt that their sugar was too expensive and not as good as the sugar they were smuggling from the French and West Indies. As time went on the British caught on and

Britain should have abided by the colonists requests to not continuously tax them without representing them in Parliament. If they would’ve done this the first time around, it would’ve been easier and would’ve created less tension/conflict. Britain was too focused on paying off the debt that they didn’t care what the colonists thought, they just wanted their money.

British parliament’s main goal regarding the colonies, as stated by John Dickinson in Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania, was to “regulate trade.” Regulating the colonial trade would suppress their economy allowing Great Britain to take control of it. However, after the passage of the Stamp Act, it became clear that parliaments greed had finally shown through. The reason for the Stamp Act was to allow the British to financially benefit from the hard work of American colonists. In the year 1765 it was hard for most colonists to provide food for their families without extra costs. After the Stamp Act was passed, finding the means to get food became almost impossible. Passing Acts that the American Colonists had no vote in is just one of the many wrong-doings that the British did

Right before and throughout the American Revolutionary War there were many acts passed by British Parliament that limited and angered the colonist. To name a few, there was the Stamp Act, Townshend Acts, and Quartering Act. A man named John Dickinson wrote twelve letters expressing his thoughts on acts such as the Townshend acts, they were titled Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania. In his first letter he wrote directly to the colonist that lived amongst him and spoke to them as if he they were equals. The Townshend acts of 1767 imposed taxes on items like glass, paper, and tea. Later in 1770 these taxes were repealed. They were important because they were a key factor in the American revolutionary war that led the colonist to revolt against the British.

By 1765, there was quite a bit of tension between the American colonies and the mother country, England. The Sugar Act (Goldfield, the American Journey, 123) had left a sour taste of distrust in England in the mouths of the colonials. They were now told who they could trade with and how much and felt restricted by the King, who lived an entire ocean away. This led to stirrings of rebellion, and in an effort to stop that, Britain attempted (and succeeded in some cases) to pass a string of new laws, or Acts, to corral the colonials into submission.

Tension had risen between the Americans and the Great Britain. The years between 1763 and 1775 was full of changes for the two of them. So many events had taken place, all of which led to the American Revolution. Three of the many events that had taken place are the Treaty of Paris, Stamp Act, and Boston Tea Party.

The Boston Tea Party took place in 1773. The Quebec Act was put in place to extend the Quebecois territory to the Ohio River in 1774. The First Continental Congress met in 1774 to plea to Britain for the abolition of some “intolerable” laws. The Battles of Lexington and Concord took place shortly before America declared independence, in 1775.

How far do you agree that the cause of the American Revolution was the introduction of the Tea Act in 1773?