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