Causes of the American Revolution
Emily Griffth 1763-1776
The Navigation Acts
The Navigation Acts was a set of laws the colonists had to follow. The purpose of these acts was to put mercantilism into practice. The laws were that colonists could only trade with British ships and that their raw goods must go through Britain to get anywhere else. Another part of the acts was the Sugar Act. The colonists opposed this act because, even though sugar was made cheaper, they still had to pay the British taxes. The most significant part of the act was that it crushed manufacturing and increased anger in the colonies.
The Proclamation of 1763
The proclamation of 1763 was created soon after the French and Indian war. The proclamation was that colonists couldn't settle past the Appalachian mountains. This made the colonists very angry but King George 3rd issued the proclamation to prevent conflict among the Indians and colonists and to save money. This was only the second chapter.
The Stamp Act
The stamp act was a tax on all paper or printed goods. The stamp acts was only created to help pay the British debt still looming from the French and Indian war. The Committee of Corresponce didn't like these taxes and contacted other colonists in an attempt to Boycott. The sons of liberty on the other hand used violence to protest the unfair law, even though both organizations were founded by Samual Adams. The Stamp act congress decided it was high time to take action and Ben Franklin to address parliament. The king had no choice but repeal the acts but gave lesgilature full run over the colonies.
Quartering Act
When Britain responed to the stamp act protests, they sent in even more troops and passed the Quartering Act. The Quartering Act requires colonists to house,
feed and clothe soldiers. The colonists did not appreciate the invasions of their property, privacy and rights. They also didn't like the expenses it took to quarter several solidiers. The Writs of Assitance came along allowing every solidier to search anyone's house without reason. The colonist's bitterness towards Britain ever grew stronger.
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were a tax on glass, paper, tea and other goods. The colonists didn't like this and an organization called the Daughters of Liberty responded by creating their own cloth. The British government repealed the taxes in 1770 but continued to tax tea. The Sons of Liberty continued their brutal protests in response to the continued tax.
Boston Massacre
The Boston massacre took place on March 5, 1770. Angry colonists had gathered and were protesting against the British solidiers, throwing snowballs and even rocks. Shots were suddenly fired and 5 people were killed. Samuel Adams felt this act to be unforgivable and used the drastic event as propaganda in his protests. On the other side, John Adams represented the British solidiers in trail and claimed they only fired in self defense.
Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party
The tea act was a law making the British East India Company the only company allowed to sell tea to the colonies. This created a large monopoly. The colonists were outraged and even though the price was lower the taxes to Britain made it all the worse. The Sons of Liberty protested by dressing up as Indians, illegally boarding a British cargo ship, and dumping every pound of its cargo, tons of tea, into the Boston Harbor. This was further more called the Boston Tea Party.
The Intolerable Acts or Coercive Acts
The colonists called the Coercive Acts the Intolorable Acts because of the cruel nature in the laws. The laws consisted of shutting down Boston's harbor, not allowing town meetings, giving Britain complete control over the colony and increasing the Quartering Acts. Boston lost all commerce and began to fall into poverty, but the other angered colonies supported them and the acts began stirring the colonists Revolutionary spirit.
The American Revolution
The American revolution was the final stand America had against Britain. The first great awakening stirred the social aspects of the colonists and they had had enough of being put underneath British soldiers and tax collectors. The British had taxed the already poor colonists to the bone and their unfair laws was the last straw. The colonists declared independence and fought for it and I believe they were justified in doing so. The British could no longer crush the American spirit.