The American Revolution
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Transcript of The American Revolution
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
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”
IMMEDIATE CAUSES
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