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The American Revolution. Part 1: The Causes of the American Revolution. LONG TERM CAUSES. The Enlightenment. The most important cause The ideas of the Enlightenment (Freedom, Liberty, Social Contracts etc.) hade spread throughout the Western World
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The American Revolution Part 1: The Causes of the American Revolution
The Enlightenment The most important cause The ideas of the Enlightenment (Freedom, Liberty, Social Contracts etc.) hade spread throughout the Western World These ideas were accepted by most educated people After the Enlightenment, people were far more likely to question their leaders and suggest alternate solutions
The Seven Years War(The French and Indian war) During the war, the colonists were largely responsible for defending themselves Also, different colonies were forced to work together and co-operate (a sense of nationhood soon developed) After their victory, English policy changed, they became more forceful and active within their colonies in order to protect all their new territory The British, wanted peace with the natives, also discouraged the colonists from taking more land in the countryside
Money The Seven Years war bankrupt Britain They needed money in order to survive The colonists lived tax free and often disregarded British trade rules without punishment Now, Britain was forced to heavily tax the colonists and enforce trade restrictions in order to get their economy back on track
The Lack of Political Representation American colonists were not directly represented in the British parliament Representation in parliament was a part of the British constitution However, only 1 in 20 British citizens had direct representation in Parliament – and only 3% of men were eligible to vote The British parliament was dominated by the noble class The parliament argued that this parliament provided “virtual representation’ to all citizens”
Taxation British parliament passed a series of Laws that taxed products that American colonists bought from Britain Examples include the Stamp Act, the Townshend Act, the Sugar Act The Americans responded by illegally smuggling goods The Americans claimed it was illegal to impose taxes on them without their consent
British Troops To enforce taxes, more British troops were sent to the colonies However, the British lacked the money to house and feed their army Therefore, the British ordered that the colonist must provide Food, Shelter and Comfort for the soldiers The British Army was soon hated and seen as an occupying force
The Boston Massacre American Colonists began to openly protest British policies They formed “Secret Societies” to discuss their problems (secret because it was illegal to oppose British Rule) The most famous of these groups was the SONS OF LIBERTY During one protest in Boston, British troops and colonists exchanged fire Five colonists died
The Boston Tea Party The British passed another law (a tax on tea) The Sons of Liberty (dressed as natives) raided a British ship and dumped 340 chests of tea into the water The British were enraged and responded by sending even more troops to America to crush the colonists
Common Sense As the War began, an English Enlightened Philosophe, Thomas Paine, wrote a short book named “Common Sense” The book argues that the British had no right to rule America The book sold 600,000 copies and inspired Americans all over the colonies to fight against England
