Were the colonists fighting for liberty, equality, and democracy? Explain. Were the colonists justified in their rebellion against England? If you had been there, would you have sided with the colonial elite or with the radicals? Why? Were the colonists really fighting for liberty, equality and democracy, or were they fighting for their own personal interests? My answer to this is that the colonists were indeed rising up against the British for the three values that the United States was founded on. The colonists felt as if they were being strangled by Britain’s rule, the British passing a series of policies that the common man, as well as the elite, didn’t agree with. This ranged from the Stamp Act to the Sugar Act to even …show more content…
The colonists, the colonial elite and the radicals alike, fought against the economic and political repression; however, it took the events after the Boston Tea Party for the colonists to unite, the radicals playing a major role in inciting rebellion. If I were put in the similar predicament of the American colonists, I believe that I would have agreed and sided with the radicals, also known as Patriots. The King forced the colonists to pay for the costs of the French/Indian War, as well as any war that the British participated in. Pair that with the bad policies passed by the British, that is a recipe for disaster and …show more content…
The Virginia Plan and the New Jersey plan had their differences: the latter wanting equal representation on the national legislature while the first wanted representation based on population size. One could see the problem the Virginia Plan could cause, since the majority of the population at the time lived in the Northern states and therefore would give states like Virginia and North Carolina a majority rule. The New Jersey Plan also caused an issue, since the states with smaller populations could have a majority rule over the larger states. Luckily, a compromise was reached. The outcome of this compromise was that the House of Representatives is to be based of the population size of the states, which, of course, benefited the larger states. But, the Senate benefited the smaller states, all states from Virginia to Georgia having equal representation. Another Agreement that was reach is the Three-fifths Compromise, of which made 5 slaves count as three free persons, though slaves were not permitted to vote. The issue of Slavery would later result in the American Civil War and the abolishment of slavery. Work Ethic:
Smaller states like Delaware and New Jersey objected to the Virginia Plan saying that the large states would easily outvote them in Congress if the number of votes were based on population. After weeks of debate, William Patterson of New Jersey put forth a plan that called for three branches including a legislature with only one house where each state would have one vote. The New Jersey Plan with a single house legislature and equal representation was more like Congress under the Articles.
The colonists were in every right, aspect and mind, not only justified but also it was about time that they stood of and actually take action against the British. The choice of going to war with them, was the only choice that they had. All diplimatical options that they had ceased to stand a chance against the tyrant Britain. From the very beginning when the colonists felt upset against their mother country and the way that they went about the law making, up until the beginning of the war, they tried all diplimatical options that they had, by sending letters, you name it. When they didn’t work then they had no other means but to declare war.
During this entire period the British were starting to make attempts to intimidate the colonists in hopes to end the rebellions. It seemed that the more and more England tried to scare the people, the angrier they got. The tactics obviously didn't work, but instead pushed the colonists even further into standing up against Britain. The British soldiers in America were told not to entice violence, and especially not to kill anybody.
About one-third of the colonists were patriots who were ready to take any means necessary to fight for independence for their country. The patriots were so passionate about their cause that they would torture or even kill loyalists or indifferent people. Because of this strong passion, the colonists had much more to gain then the British had to lose. The British had other colonies and other forms of export and import to create a profit, but if the Colonists lost they would have lost their independence and freedom.
To begin with the unequal representation of the states in the Virginia Plan was of great concern and controversy while the New Jersey Plan retained equal representation of the states. Virginia proposed a bicameral legislature that included elections by the people and appointments by those elected. This system used both wealth and population as a determining factor in regards to the number of seats in both houses. New Jersey on the other hand proposed single house legislature that allow each state a single vote. Votes based on population would put small states at a disadvantage. The states that were more populated would be in control of the legislative branches, leaving small states without a voice. Concerns about who was to be counted in the population also ...
Patrick Henry once said, “give me liberty or give me death!” During the revolutionary war. The American revolution had begun in Lexington on April 9, 1775. This was where the first battle of the American revolution occurred. Through all the battles and acts the British had placed on the colonists, they had suffered greatly and decided to break away from Britain. But, were the colonists valid in disuniting from Britain and conducting war? The American colonists were justified in waging war and splitting from Britain because the British were unjust to the colonists , they imposed unnecessary acts against the colonists and the British ignored all requests for change.
At the convention, the founders were debating about how many representatives in the Congress should each state allowed to have. For example, James Madison, who came from Virginia, one of the larger states, suggested that representation should be proportional to the state’s population (Hart et al. 109-110). Coming from a state with larger population had influenced Madison’s proposal, for he reasoned that since Virginia has a large population of people, so more representatives are needed to represent more people. However, the states with a smaller population disagreed with this proposal and came up with a proposal that would counter Madison’s proposal. Paterson, who came from New Jersey, one of those states with smaller population, proposed a plan in which equal number of people should be elected from each state for representation in the Congress (Hart et al. 109-110). It was evident to see how coming from a smaller state had affected Paterson’s proposal, for he feared
As I stated earlier each state wanted to be represented according to different factors. The states with bigger populations wanted representation to be based solely off of population. The states with smaller populations wanted there to be a fixed number of representatives per state, regardless of size or population. The Connecticut Compromise resolved this issue by forming the two houses that we have today.
The American colonists’ disagreements with British policymakers lead to the colonist’s belief that the policies imposed on them violated of their constitutional rights and their colonial charters. These policies that were imposed on the colonist came with outcome like established new boundaries, new internal and external taxes, unnecessary and cruel punishment, and taxation without representation. British policymakers enforcing Acts of Parliament, or policies, that ultimately lead in the colonist civil unrest, outbreak of hostilities, and the colonist prepared to declare their independence.
One of the main ones is about the government. Paine states “That government sole purpose is to protect life, liberty and property, and that a government should be judged solely on the basis of the extent to which it accomplishes this goal.” (Common Sense) Then reading what Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence which states “These rights include the right of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. When a government fails to protect those rights, it is not only the right but also the duty of the people to overthrow that government.” (Declaration of Independence) In both of these it states that they were doing what was in the best interest for the people. It was a check and balance system. It may not have started out as a great one but it was a start. However, the colonist did feel that British government was to complex. The colonist were seen as being rebels because they were standing up for what they felt was right. This is one of the big reasons the United States became
The colonies did not initially desire to succeed and become independent from the British, at first they were very proud of being British. Throughout the years of being a British Colony, The mother country of Britain committed actions that the colonists could not stand much longer. From taxation without representation to quartering British soldiers unwillingly, the tension built up until the colonists eventually rebelled. Some colonists remained loyal to the crown, while others joined the rebellion. These rebellious forces grew in strength and number, when the rebellion grew too big, the Revolution sparked. No longer would the colonist be forced to the British law, the colonists were willing to fight and die for their freedom. This event was
The American Revolution should never have happened. The British were not tyrannical, oppressive rulers although the American colonies perceived them to be so. The American colonists misperceptions led to revolution and independence.
The American Revolution was marked by the colonies’ independence from Britain. This separation pronounced a new age marked by a decisive political change in the colonies because of the implementation of the Enlightenment ideals and the continuation of English liberties. However, the American Revolution was considered a conservative movement because it “originated from an effort to preserve the existing liberties of the colonies rather than create new ones” (Strayer, 782). Furthermore, the revolution occurred not on the issue of taxation, but on the issue of representation. The colonists believed autonomy was part of their birthright and as Englishmen along with their economic rights and their “natural rights to life, liberty, and property” (Kramnick, Lockean Liberalism). These two sentiments can be seen in their famous slogan “No taxation without representation”. By challenging their economic interests, their established traditions of local autonomy, and their identity as true Englishmen, the colonists were truly infuriated. Thus the American Revolution didn’t grow out of the social tensions within the colonies but rather from an unexpected effort by the British government to tighten its control over the colonies and ex...
Another compromise made between the states was concerning Slavery. The North wanted The Slaves in the south to be accounted for so that they could be counted as people and be taxed. The South wanted the Slaves also to be counted but only for the population count, They knew if they had a higher population then they could have more representatives in the congress, and thus have more power. They Reached a compromise known as the Three/Fifths plan, This plan indicated that three/fifths of the slave population would be accounted for both taxation and towards the population of the state. This way both were happy.
One agreement the Constitution consisted of was the three-fifths Compromise. Foner states that the Constitution did not allow the national government to meddle with slavery in the states. This meant that three out of every five slaves could be counted as part of the state 's population. The powerpoint mentions that this raised their representation in the House of Representatives. The congress could not mess with the slave trade until