What Was the Main Cause of the American Revolution?

Shortly following the French and Indian War, the American Colonies were issued many taxes and laws, which were passed by Great Britain. The colonists believed that King George III was becoming more of a tyrant, and less like a king of England. These taxes and laws were believed to be very unfair in the eyes of the colonists, causing great conflict between Great Britain and the American Colonists. This conflict would ultimately lead to the American Revolution. The American Revolution was caused by numerous British taxes like the Tea Act, the Intolerable Acts, the Stamp Act, and the Quartering Act, resulting in resistance from the colonists.

In 1761 the British began to reinforce writs of assistance, laws that granted customs officials the authority to conduct random searches of property to seek out goods on which required duties had not been paid, not only in public establishments but in private homes. The next step was the Sugar Act of 1764, and it quickly became apparent that the purpose of the act was to extract revenue from America.  The Molasses Act of 1733 had placed a tax of six pence per gallon on sugar and molasses imported into the colonies.  In 1764 the British lowered the tax to three pence but now eventually decided to enforce it.  In addition, taxes were to be placed on other items such as wines, coffee, and textile products, and other restrictions were applied, this upset the colonists.  Madaras L, SoRelle J (2011) & Wood S. G. (2003)

This made the colonists get very angry that they had to take care of more people that they didn't even know! This was madness. The proclamation line came into play in 1763 right after the French and Indian War ended. The British had to repay the Native Americans who helped them during the war. So, the Proclamation of 1763 gave the land between the Mississippi River and the Appalachian Mountains to the Native Americans that helped the English during the war (doc 5). The Proclamation Line was the western border of the English colonies. Unfortunately, some colonists already lived past the proclamation line and the colonists didn't want to go back to the squished colonies. Also, the border was so long that it was very hard for the English to enforce. That's why Great Britain passed the quartering act. This made the colonists feel like they were being spied on by the British.

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.

England knew it would be very expensive if they sent troops from England across the Atlantic Ocean to help the colonies. So England made a deal with the settlers. If they helped them win the war, the new land that would be gained because of the war would be rewarded to them. After many casualties on both sides of the war, the settlers did help England defeat the French but England did not keep their promise. Instead England prohibited the colonials from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains. This really made the colonials angry because it made them feel like they lost loved ones in that war for no

The Sugar Act of 1764 was imposed to prevent illegal sugar trade between the colonists and the West Indies. It lowered the duty on molasses which was detrimental to the market for sugar grown in the colonies. It also created a new court system, without juries, to try smugglers. The Currency Act of 1764 prohibited the colonists to issue paper currency, which they had used effectively during the French and Indian War. These acts were hurting the economy of the colonies and making them more subject to British rule. The Quartering Act of 1765 was an amendment of the Mutiny Act (Abdullah, M., et al 2014). This new provision forced colonists to house and feed British troops that were now permanently stationed in the colonies. They were also required to provide fuel and transportation. The American colonists were convinced, since the war was over, that the British troops were stationed there to keep an eye on them and this was further infringing on their liberties. The colonists opposed such regulations since they had lived primarily under smaller self-government for so long that they wanted desperately to protect that which they had become accustomed. The Massachusetts and New York Assemblies simply ignored the mandated Quartering Act. Charles Townsend dissolved the Assembly in New York as part of the Townsend Acts.

With the newly obtained French territories from the Treaty of Paris came the Proclamation of 1763 that stationed 10,000 soldiers near the Appalachian mountains and restricted the colonists from living there. This Proclamation angered some of the settlers because they weren’t allowed to settle onto new land or land that they had already bought. This proclamation affected the Virginian colonists the most.3

Beginning in 1763, the Americans had a long road of aggravation ahead of them as laws limiting their control were established by Britain. The French and Indian War caused a need for regulations due to the debt Britain accumulated and tensions between Indians and colonists. However, the colonies had no control over the regulations imposed on them. Britain restricted their territories, surrounded them with British soldiers, and continued to escalate the regulations. Eventually, the Americans rebelled in response to these actions. In the late 18th century, Britain’s unrelenting control over the American colonies was the primary cause of the American Revolution.

The first of several laws to accomplish this was the Proclamation of 1763 which forbade the colonists to move westward past the Appalachian Mountains. In 1764, Britain passed a law that prevented the colonies to print and use their own money. These and several other laws passed to tighten the English reign on the colonies brought out a lot of anger

According to King George III, he believed that the only answer to his problem is by taxing the colonists. In return, the British felt that it was an ideal time for the colonists to pay off their contribution, for providing them protection and trade. In the year of 1765, the Stamp Act was introduced, which set forth that for every piece of paper you used, you had to purchase a stamp. The states responded with shock, and felt that they had nothing to do with the British government. Many colonists started to rebel against British goods, as an aftereffect of the Stamp Act. Due to tension from British traders losing profit from the boycott, the British was compelled to abolish the Stamp Act in 1766. Nonetheless, just over a year, the Townshend Acts was introduced by the British government. Not only did the Townshend Acts establish the Sons and Daughters of Liberty, but also imposed taxes on all sought of imports from Great Britain, such as glass, paper, paint, lead and tea. At the end of the day, the colonists did not react well. Just like the Stamp Act of 1765, all the taxed goods in the Townshend Acts was repealed in the year of 1770, with the exception of tea. The Sugar Act of 1764, also known as the American Revenue Act, was another act that was implemented upon the American society. The reason for this act, was another approach of the British Parliament, to retrieve

“I have undertaken to examine, with an honest plainness and freedom, whether the ministry, by imposing taxes upon the colonies by authority of parliament, have pursued a wise and salutary plan of government, or whether they have exerted pernicious and definitive acts of power” (Bland 120). It began with the Sugar Act of 1764. The colonies were required to pay a tax for the importation of molasses which was widely resisted in the colonies. It was designed to strictly limit the American colonist to importing goods such as sugar, molasses, coffee, and various kinds of wine from Great Britain. The frustration of the colonies then led to the Currency Act of 1764. The Currency act was designed to to control the colonial currency system. It forbade the colonies to issue paper money as legal tender. The Quartering Act angered the colonies because it gave them the obligation of housing and feeding British soldiers at their own expense. The Stamp Act Crisis was the primary leading factor of the revolt with Great Britain and raised massive amounts of revenue for Britain as well. It imposed a direct tax on the printed materials in the colonies of British America. Great resentment spread through the colonies due to the many requests of the British.

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

The Proclamation line would forbid colonists from settling west of the Appalachians. This new measure infuriated colonists who felt cheated because the land they had fought so hard for had been given away to the Indians.

times of war and during times of peace the colonist would have to house British Soldiers in North America. This act furthered tensions between Britain and the colonist because they were forced to open their home to British soldiers at all times.

England started settling in America in the early 1600s when the settlement of Jamestown was built; eventually throughout the years this lead to the American colonies because more Englishmen and women decided that they too would start a new life in the “New World,” and more people means more houses for the people and more houses and buildings leads to more colonies being formed. This process of forming new colonies under British rule ended in 1732 when Georgia (the 13th American colony) became an American colony; however, since these colonies have been around for over a century these colonists have had an immense amount of time distant from England they begin to get a taste of this freedom and after