Was the American Revolution inevitable? According to John Adams in 1818, the desire for independence was already in the hearts of Americans long before war broke out in 1775. This was untrue for many loyalists living in the colonies in 1775. However, there was simply nothing the mother country could do to stop her colonies from wanting to move on from its natural state of identity in order to grow into a unique and independent country. To begin with, Richard Bland in his 1766 “An Inquiry Into the Rights of the British Colonies” believed that America should be independent “as to their internal government, of the original Kingdom, but united with her, as to their external policy…” (Doc A). The Navigation Acts were an example of external acts, …show more content…
Great Britain’s victory brought new problems. The British government issued the Proclamation of 1763: this banned all settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains. England could not enforce this; therefore colonists continued to move west. Colonists continued to disapprove of new British policies, and in 1763, tensions between Britain and Massachussetts increase. In 1761, during the French and Indian War, a royal governor was authorized to use the policy of writs of assistance. Writs of assistance allowed British customs officials to search any ships or buildings; some merchants worked out of their homes, so the writs enabled officials to search homes as well. The policy enraged colonists and after this, the British government stationed 1,000 troops that were meant to protect the colonists, but they viewed it as a standing army ready to turn against them at any time. Rather than striving to retain the original mutual understanding of their compact, the colonies and their mother country progressed to constantly be at odds with each …show more content…
The Stamp Act required colonists to purchase stamped paper for every legal document, license, and newspaper and imposed special “stamped duties” on packages of playing cards and dice. All who disobeyed the Act were to be tried in the vice-admiralty courts. By May of 1765, Boston shopkeepers, artisans, and laborers united in a resistance group called Sons of Liberty. By the end of the summer, the Sons of Liberty harassed customs workers, stamp agents, and royal governors faced mob threats and hence stamp agents resigned all over. The Act was to become effective on November 1st, 1765, but colonial protests prevented stamped paper from being sold. In the month of October, 1765, delegates from nine colonies met in NYC. Congress issued a Declaration of Rights and Grievances: it stated that Parliament lacked power to impose taxes on the colonies because they were not represented in Parliament. This was the first time in which colonies began to set aside their differences and unite as one. Eventually, the Act was repealed and in 1766, Parliament issued the Declaratory Act: it addressed Parliament’s full right to make laws “in all cases whatsoever”. The Tea Act was made in 1773 and it granted the East India Company the right to sell directly to the colonies, free of taxes, this would cut colonial merchants out of the tea trade because the company would sell for less. On December
The problem with the Plan was that the leadership community of the American colonies was more conservative and it was a small government, as well as the fact that the British were not ready to give up such control during a time of war to their own colonists. The British began to tighten their grip on the American colonists with the Proclamation of 1763 and the increase in troops that were present in the colonies. The Proclamation of 1763 dealt with the “Indian” problem, essentially ignoring the native people and restricting colonial ventures to all territory east of the Appalachian Mountains.
This enraged the colonist and made them rethink their political views. The Proclamation of 1763 also had a significant effect on the attitudes of the colonials towards the British. After the war and the Treaty of Paris, the Proclamation of 1763 was one of the first documents issued to govern the colonies. This proclamation simply stated that no further settlement beyond the Appalachian Mountains would be allowed. The colonists looked at the proclamation as putting an off limits sign on the Ohio River Valley which the whole war had started over. The Proclamation was actually misinterpreted by the colonist and Britain’s failure to clearly identify its intentions began the chain of events that led to the American Revolution. Each political step taken by the British after the French and Indian War drew Americans closer and closer to revolution.
The mistake of not making simple reforms, like allowing one representative in parliament per colony would lead to revolts, and even groups coming together. Some revolts were peaceful while others, which affected the tax collectors and stamp sellers, were violent resulting in the tarring and feathering of the British officials. The Sons of Liberty, led by Samuel Adams, James Otis, and Patrick Henry, were a very radical and overdramatic group, Patrick Henry would make the fateful statement of “Give me liberty or give me death.” On October 7th, 1765 the Stamp act congress would meet there were representatives from 9 of the 13 colonies. The representatives made a decision to boycott British goods. By March of 1776, the Stamp Acts will have been appealed, but the government in England is not happy.
Right before the Stamp Act, the Indian Chief Pontiac attacked the colonist trying to drive them from the land for the last time. The rebellion resulted in Britain passing the Proclamation of 1763 after realizing they did not have the means to protect the vast amount of land they had acquired. The Proclamation stated that no one could settle past the Appalachian Mountains. This law angered the colonist because they believed that the land was rightfully theirs.
One of the first policies that the British government set into place in the American colonies was the Proclamation of 1763. The proclamation ordered that “no settlers were to cross the Appalachian divide” (100). One of the major issues that the colonists faced were conflicts with the local
After nearly a year of protests, the Sons of Liberty were finally victorious in March of 1766 when Parliament decided to repeal the Stamp Act,but later the British put a tax on tea.The controversy over the tea tax was made worse by the passing of the Tea Act of 1773, which allowed for tea sold by British companies to be shipped directly to the colonies and sold at a discount. As the tax on tea was still in place, this act was a subtle way to persuade colonists to comply with the tax.The colonists were not pleased.
Soon the Quartering Act was passed, directing the colonies to provide quarters for British soldiers. Americans found this oppressive because it meant that soldiers were placed in colonial homes. In 1764 Parliament passed the Stamp Act, putting a duty on most printed materials. This was a normal tax for the British as it had been going on in Britain for a long time, and it made sense that the rest of their empire would pay the same tax. This placed a burden on merchants and the colonial elite who did most legal transactions and read the newspapers. Also passed in the same year was the Declaratory Act, which stated that the colonies were subject to the will of Parliament. This made a lot of sense to the British, as Parliament was their ruling body, but, to the colonies who had become used to their own government during the years of salutory neglect, this was a direct threat to their way of life.
War between britain and the american colonies couldn't have been avoided if the colonists had representation in parliament. We start with the French and Indian war, an inevitable war between French and British colonists. The war was inevitable because when a country colonizes a free open world ( except for the Native Americans ) there will be nations ready to colonize as well, this leads to land grabs and fighting. Ending in 1763 after a seven year contention, the British colonists end up losing the land they fought for, the appalachian mountains due to the "Treaty of Paris" which gave the natives their land back. The colonists were furious, what made things worse is when Great Britain raised taxes on the colonizes because the French and Indian
The Stamp Act further increased the duties on almost any printed material. The amount of mass defiance and rioting, especially in the major cities, that followed shocked the British government, they have never seen this amount or scale of discontent before with their subjects in America. As time went on, so did the riots, mostly in New York, Boston, and Newport, Rhode Island. Finally in March 1766, after a long debate, Parliament repealed the Stamp Act only to pass the Declaration Act, which stated that Parliament could enact laws for the colonies in all cases. Only now most Americans began to realize the power parliament had over controlling their basic rights. England further angered the colonists in June of 1772, when they announced that instead of having a legislature put into place by them, England would pay the governors and judges. Even though it would save the colonists money, they had the mindset of if the judges were paid by England, then they would obey them and what they said. In response, Boston created a Committee of Correspondence to win the sympathy of other colonies, by the end of 1773, all but 3 colonies had Committees of Correspondence. The final step before revolution started was taken in 1773 when the Parliament passed the Tea Act, which allowed the East India Company to ship tea directly to North America with a tax to the colonists, but the merchants who competed with the company announced this as
This group consisted of lawyers, merchants, politicians, and artisans who were all there to protest the stamp act. The Sons of Liberty usually relied petitions, public meetings, and pamphlets to rally support, but they would also get violent if necessary. The Stamp Act congress came together in 1765 to repeal the stamp act and deny the Parliament’s of its right to tax the colonies. British merchants who profited form colonial trade joined in the protest, fearing financial ruin. When the Stamp Act was repealed in 1766 people on both sides of the Atlantic rejoiced. While many were busy celebrating they ignored the passage of the Declaratory Act. The Declaratory Act gave the Parliament full power and authority over the colonies. The Declaratory Act also gave the Parliament the right to make laws. The Townshend Acts of 1767 placed import duties on common items such as tea, lead, glass, and dyes for paint. British customs officials used special search warrants called writs of assistance to enforce the law. Writs of assistance were much different than the modern day search warrants, because they did not specify the item sought and specific location to be searched. A customs officer with a writ and a suspicion had the right to search any where he pleased. Colonist hated these writs very much so they stopped housing the British soldiers as the quartering act of 1765 had called them to do. On the evening of March 5, 1770 a crowd of 50 or 60 angry
The Revolutionary War was not inevitable because America could have gained its independence in a more diplomatic way. Australia, Canada and Jamaica gained their independence from Britain without going to war. The colonists would have gotten their independence but it would have taken longer; and they would have had to deal with the taxing and restrictions on trade for a little longer. The colonists needed Great Britain less and less as the population grew, so it would have been difficult to keep absolute control like they wanted to. The revolutionary war was not inevitable because America would have been independent eventually.
Many know the American Revolution as a war of independence between Great Britain and the thirteen colonies in the United States. During this war, the thirteen colonies with the help of the French and others won their freedom from Great Britain. According to history the actual war started in 1775 and ended sometime in 1783. Although the war was fought in phases there were several factors that lead up to the war long before 1775 and a few immediately preceding 1775. The revolution was inevitable based on the long-term causes. The short-term causes are what solidified the war.
By 1765, at a Stamp Act Congress, all but four colonies were represented as the “Declaration of Rights and Grievances” was passed. They were determined to let Parliament know that they were equal to British citizens, that there would be no “taxation without representation,” and all efforts to stop tax on colonists would continue (Kennedy, etal 2011.) Although Lord Rockingham, the predecessor of Grenville, sought to repeal of the Stamp Act, this in no way meant Parliament was conceding their control. In fact, while the Stamp Act was repealed, another called the “Declaratory Act of 1766,” gave Parliament the authority to make laws binding the American Colonies, “in all cases whatsoever.” In 1767, George III passed the Townshend Acts to collect tax on glass, lead, paints, paper and, tea. Recognizing that tea was a favorite among the Americans, it ensured greater revenue the British government. Again, the colonists’ rights for representation were ignored and they started to boycott British goods and ultimately, smuggle tea. When the Quartering Act was passed, which specified that colonists were to give room and board to British troops, tension began to rise. For two years, the colonists tolerated British troops on their soil and their dissatisfaction with the British Parliament and King George III became evident through many violent riots, abusiveness of tax collectors and destruction of property. According to Kennedy, etal (2011), Parliament, continually met with
The passing of the Stamp Act by Parliament in 1765 caused a rush of angry protests by the colonists in British America that perhaps "aroused and unified Americans as no previous political event ever had." It levied a tax on legal documents, almanacs, newspapers, and nearly every other form of paper used in the colonies. Adding to this hardship was the need for the tax to be paid in British sterling, not in colonial paper money. Although this duty had been in effect in England for over half a century and was already in effect in several colonies in the 1750?s, it called into question the authority of Parliament over the overseas colonies that had no representation therein.
I know it is hard to believe we (the colonists) would be on the verge of a revolution against our own homeland. My father has explained to me the reasons we deserve independence from God, the King, and the British people. There are many things going on in the colonies to lead us to our current thoughts. The British people have imposed many Acts upon us colonists.