Causes of the American Revolution
1763-1776
Causes of the American Revolution Summary
The American Revolution was a war between America and England. America was fighting England for its freedom. It was caused because the British were being unjust to the colonies by using acts and laws. The British were also very unfair to the colonist by not giving them their freedom of speech. I think that the colonies deserved freedom from England.
Navigation Acts
The purpose of the Navigation Acts was to put the idea of mercantilism into actual practice or use. There were some rules that the colonist had to follow. First, all trade had to be made with ships built in England. Second, all goods to be traded with other countries had to be sent to England first. The Sugar Act was part of the Navigation Acts. The Sugar Act placed a duty on the importation of sugar, causing the colonies to by costly sugar from the British West Indies.The significant impact on the colonies was the stifling of colonial manufacturing and the increasing tension between the colonies and England.
Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamation of 1763 was made by King George III. It was created after the British won the French and Indian War. The King issued the Proclamation of 1763 to prevent the colonist from moving West to avoid costly wars with the Natives.The colonists then became angry because they wanted to expand West.
Stamp Act
The stamp Act taxed anything on printed on paper. The Stamp Act was created in effort to pay the debt from the French and Indian War. The Committees of Correspondence boycotted the goods while the Sons of Liberty used more violent ways to get their message across. The Son of Liberty was a group of patriotic men led by John Adams who used more violent ways to protest. At the Stamp Act Congress colonial governments decided that only they should tax the people, and asked for the law to be repealed. The King eventually just repealed the law and signed off on the Declaratory Act.
Quartering Act
In response to the Stamp Act protests, Britain created the Quartering Act. The Quartering Act was an act where the colonists had to house, and feed British soldiers. Th colonist did not like the act because housing soldiers was costly. Also, they didn't like housing soldiers with blank search warrants. The search warrants were called Writs of Assistance. Writs of Assistance were warrants that allowed British soldiers to search colonists' homes.
Townshend Acts
Many things were taxed in the Townshend Acts. Things such as tea, glass, and paper were taxed. A group called the Daughters of Liberty protested to the acts by making their own things. After the Townshend Acts were repealed, the British still taxed tea to show the colonies they still had power over them. The Sons of Liberty reacted by using violent ways against tax collectors and British officials.
Boston Massacre
On March 5, 1770, a group of colonist started to harass a British soldier. As more soldiers came, the more violent the colonist became. The British eventually fired some shots and there were some American casualties. Samuel Adams used propaganda and the Committees of Correspondence to spread hate about the British. John Adams later represented the British soldiers in court.
Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party
The Tea Act was an act that only let the British East India Company sell tea to the colonies which caused a monopoly over tea.The colonist were unhappy because they were still being taxed by the British. On December 16, 1773 the Sons of Liberty dumped 342 crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. All of the 342 crates costed a lot of money, about one million dollars. The event was eventually called the Boston Tea Party in protest.
Coercive Act or Intolerable Acts.
The colonists called the Coercive Acts the Intolerable Acts because they were so harsh. There were many laws enforced by the Coercive Act. First, the trade from colony to colony stopped. Second, the Quartering Act was more enforced. Third, the act did not allow town meetings. Last, the act enforced the control Britain had on the colonies. The colonies spread the revolutionary spirit throughout the colonies.