During the time of the American Revolution, there were multiple manipulative and unjust actions that the British took, which caused colonists to rebel against the crown, and create a society where the people would be the ones governing their own country. Parliament, who was seen as a protection to the people from the crown, were, at this time, seen as the enemies of the colonists. By imposing unjust taxes such as the Tea Act, restricting trade from the colonies to only Great Britain, and even going as far as to violating natural human rights, Parliament was seen more as an enemy of the people rather than their protector. These actions went against many of the rights which the Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights stood for, sparking …show more content…
a sense of anger and revolt among many of the colonists. This rage drove them to the idea of self-rule. By referencing the ideas from Montesquieu, Locke, and Tomas Paine’s book, Common Sense, the colonists began fighting for the day where they would be able to one day govern themselves. The colonists, influenced by the ideas presented to them by Paine’s Common Sense, Montesquieu, Locke, and historical documents such as the Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights, were angered by the unjust taxes and acts imposed upon them, which fed their obsession for self-government. The philosophical thinkers during the time of the Enlightenment, such as Montesquieu and Locke, contemplated the idea of a self-ruling government rather than a monarchy, which influenced the colonists.
Locke, whose ideas emerged in the 1690’s, argued that all men should be guaranteed basic rights, such as the right to life, certain liberties, and the ability to own property. He stated that the people should have the consent, much like a social contract, with their government. He believed that the people must obey the law, while the government maintains the right to create and enforce laws. In addition, Locke stated that if the government becomes unjust and unlawful, then the people have the right to overthrow and create a new form of government. Montesquieu was much like Locke, in the sense that he viewed a self-ruling government more beneficial than a monarchy. Similar to Locke, Montesquieu believed in a republican government where the people established a social contract with the government. On the other hand, he did not find a democracy, founded on majority-rule, as a viable form of government. He also emphasized the importance of separating and balancing powers within the government. The separation and balancing of powers is very important to insure the freedom of the people, as it is a defense from one branch of the government having too much power over the country. These ideas from Montesquieu and Locke, would help form a philosophical basis during the …show more content…
creation of the Constitution of the United States. Colonists were motivated by the contents of the Magna Carta, as they stood to protect natural human rights which were violated by the unlawful acts imposed upon them by Parliament. The English Bill of Rights further influenced the colonists to pursue the idea of self-rule, as it stated that the government should not impose cruel and unlawful punishments against its citizens.
The unjust and unlawful actions which Parliament took against the colonies violated what the English Bill of Rights stood for. The intolerable acts were a series of very cruel, harsh punishments imposed on the colonies after the Boston Tea Party had. The Boston port is a major port, where most of the economy is built of off. Parliament recognized the importance of the Boston Port in Massachusetts, but created the Boston Port Act in order to shut down the port. By shutting down this port after the Boston Tea Party, Parliament put the entire economy of Massachusetts at risk of collapsing. Because of the cruelty in these punishments, many colonists saw the intolerable acts as a violation of their natural human rights. While the British thought they could make an example out of Massachusetts using these punishments, what ended up happening was the colonies recognized the unlawful punishment that Massachusetts was facing. The harshness of these acts made it difficult for those who favored the Parliament, to speak in its favor. The result of this was that the colonies supported Massachusetts, and sense of revolt against the colonists. There were many more acts, much like the Boston Port Act, which punished the colonies in a very harsh manner, which then led to colonists
realizing the need to fight back and break free from Great Britain. Thomas Paine’s book, Common Sense, fed the obsession for self-rule among the colonists as it explicitly mentions the need to rebel against the crown and break free from British rule. The unlawful taxes, which Parliament imposed, angered the colonists, because they violated their natural human rights, which in turn led to them to ideas presented by Montesquieu, Locke, and Paine to feed their obsession for self-rule.
During the War for American Independence, 78 men were commissioned as general officers into the Continental Army by the Continental Congress. Many of these generals commanded troops with differing levels of competence and success. George Washington is typically seen as most important general, however throughout the war a number of his subordinates were able to distinguish themselves amongst their peers. One such general was Nathanael Greene. At the end of the Revolutionary War, Greene would become Washington’s most important subordinate, as demonstrated by Edward Lengel’s assessment of Greene as “the youngest and most capable of Washington’s generals.” Washington and Greene developed a strong, positive and close relationship between themselves. Greene began his life in the military after having been raised a Quaker. With limited access to literature and knowledge in his younger years, Greene became an avid reader which equipped him with the knowledge necessary to excel as a general during the war. Through his devoted study of military operations, firsthand experience and natural abilities as a soldier, Greene became an excellent military commander. He would become known for his successful southern campaign, during which, he loosened British control of the South and helped lead the war to its climax at Yorktown. Throughout the war, he was involved in a number high profile battles where he built a reputation of being an elite strategist who also understood unconventional warfare, logistics, and the importance of military-civil affairs and had a natural political/social acumen. The thesis of this paper is that Greene’s proven reputation of being a soldier, strategist and statesman would cause him to become the second greates...
The British rule that was established in the colonies was oppressive and unfair. The British rule was immoral because Parliament contained a totality of British politicians who only cared about Britain’s wants and needs. The Colonists, “wanted the right to vote about their own taxes, like the people living in Britain. But no colonists were permitted to serve in the British Parliament.” (Ember) This unfairness led to many unwanted laws such as the Intolerable Acts and the Stamp Act. These laws did not benefit the colonists in any way, but the acts significantly helped the British. Laws and acts were forced
Instead they passed new acts which were worse than the ones passed before. As a result of the Tea Act, all the taxes except the tax on tea was repealed in order to keep Parliament’s right to tax the colonies, and the colonists did not like this act. As a result of their anger towards the British, the Boston Tea Party occurred: Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty boarded three ships in the Boston Harbor and empty 342 chests of tea to the Boston. Still, the British kept on trying to control the Americans, but this time, they passed 4 acts, the Intolerable Acts, in order to punish and control people; The Boston Harbor would be closed, the people of Boston would have a curfew, Massachusetts would lose its self-government/town meetings, royal officers would be allowed to be tried in Britain, and the British troops would use empty buildings. Instead of giving Americans the freedom they wanted, the British punished them. Yet, this did not stop Americans. Instead, they were even angrier to the British for the strict rules the British was passing in order to control the colonists. They knew they had to do something, which resulted in continental congresses, the Articles of Confederation, and the American Revolution. The British was not going to stop trying to hold power over the colonies, and as Patrick Henry started off by saying “Caesar had his Brutus — Charles the first, his Cromwell — and George the third — ” and finished “may profit by their example. If this be treason, make the most of it”(Wolverton, Joe, II). This was no longer of a fight against the British, but a fight to be
The Intolerable Acts of 1774 greatly fueled the First Continental Congress. In response to the Boston Tea party, the British Parliament decided that a series of laws were needed to calm the rising resistance in America. “One law closed Boston Harbor until Bostonians paid for the destroyed tea. Another law restricted the activities of the Massachusetts legislature and gave added powers to the post of governor of Massachusetts.” As one can imagine, the American colonist viewed this as the British attempt to curtail their quest for independence.
Due to the redundant acts in the 1760s, the American Colonies demanded to revolt from Great Britain. The colonies would either fight or resist the actions , or taxes placed upon them by the British. They revolted due to the Boston Tea Party of 1773, and the Boston Massacre of 1770. All of these taxes were placed upon the colonies to help Great Britain pay off the debt of the French and Indian War. The colonist were resentful towards the British because they did not have a say in the British Parliament, which led to the saying “no taxation without representation” in approximately 1761 by James Otis. The British Parliament was the Congress of Britain, which passed the laws and taxes on the colonies. Overall, the colonies would either fight or resist the taxes passed on them, which would then lead to the American Revolution.
On March 24, 1774, the Intolerable Acts were series of punitive measures passed in retaliation for the Boston Tea Party, closing the Port of Boston, and limiting the rights for many of the colonists as a punishment. These laws were passed by the British Parliament and imposed by King George III. King George III was irritated about the colonists discarding ships loads of tea into the harbor, also known as the Boston Tea Party. In anger of the millions of lost money, he created the Intolerable Acts, which punished the colonists for they way they had acted. The Intolerable Acts were composed of five different laws. These include, Boston Port Act, Massachusetts Government Act, Administrative Justice Act, Quartering Act, and Quebec Act. The first
the colonies was removed and Andros with his councils took charge of all the power. Andros’ actions drove the colonists to become angry pushed them the edge of going against their power. They had already gotten used to the neglect and being governed by themselves. The revolution of 1688 allowed an opportunity for the colonist to do away with the Dominion. When they heard that the crown had been offered to William and Mary, they put Andros and his people in jail. It ended up being a revolution with more than 1,000 colonist fighting to get rid of the Dominion. The overthrow of the Dominion happened because it was thought to be tyranny by the king. If the Dominion had not been overthrown, there would be no self government and maybe even no Revolution.
“[The British] saw the destruction of 342 chests of tea belonging to the British East India Company as wanton destruction of property by Boston thugs who did not even have the courage to admit responsibility. Someone was going to pay”. (ushistory.org). The Intolerable Acts were a series of laws sponsored by British Prime Minister Lord North and passed in 1774. There were four different laws. The Impartial Administration of Justice Act allowed the trials of the British officers, who were accused of murder of the colonists to be moved to another colony. The Massachusetts Government Act gave the British full rule over the colony, which limited the powers of the colonists. Boston Port Act closed the Boston Harbor until the British were paid back for the destroyed tea. The Quartering Act required certain colonists to house and provide food for British troops. Each act had its own effects but overall they all had great effects on the American Colonists primarily in Boston. The acts also brought the colonies together and it led to the formation of the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Basically, the Intolerable Acts just made things worse and eventually led to the first Revolutionary
The American Revolution, fought for the independence of the American colonies from British rule, was a turning point in American history since it granted autonomy to the colonies from the powerful, influential nation of Great Britain. The colonists, as well as the founding fathers, helped plan the counterattack against British influence and actions to remove the burden placed on them through taxes and military involvement. The founding fathers, who were part of the colonial elite, galvanized the public and used their power to fight against the British and grant the colonists their ultimate desire: freedom. Bernard Bailyn is correct in saying that the British parliament was systematically trying to strip the colonists from their civil liberties, and the Founding Fathers and the colonists fought against this simultaneously for the advancement of society and ideals.
The American Revolutionary War was a struggle for freedom for the colonists. Patriots felt they should be free to govern themselves. Great Britain was not allowing the colonists to make a compromise with them. As Great Britain continued to take advantage of the colonists, such as the Quartering Act which, “required colonists to pay for the housing of British soldiers”, tensions were increased by the British policies. Many of the acts, such as the Quartering Act, helped unite the Patriots to fight against the British. Patriots from all around rebelled in order to show their frustration and anger about the things that the colonists were told they could or could not do. This reasoning suggests that the American Revolutionary War was unavoidable.
Americans constantly evoked the ideals of liberty and taxation without representation in their struggle against the British. For the colonists, being taxed and adhering to new British laws passed in Parliament without a representative violated their basic rights. For the British, these acts were necessary to pay off large debts accrued during the French and Indian War and cover administration costs in the thirteen colonies. A clash of these reasons ultimately led to the Americans declaring their independence from Britain and the beginning of the Revolutionary War.
What significant outcomes of the American Revolution help shape our ideas or principles of government?
The American Revolution fundamentally changed American society in positive and negative ways. There were political, social, and economic alterations that occurred during this time period from 1775 to 1800 that ultimately affected our country by changing it and giving us what we have today.
Was the American Revolution, Revolutionary? This has been immense discussion among historians throughout history. The American Revolution was one of the most important events in United States history that brought change during the 18th century. While some historians believe there was change many believe there wasn’t any change. How did the American Revolution bring change to the US with: politics, economics, and social groups were they small or big, for the worse or better, short or long-lasting changes, this has been the most debated arguments among historians over the years (Revolution DBQ, pg. 3).
The costly French and Indian War created a divide between British Parliament and the colonists that was temporarily appeased when William Pitt returned recruitment control to the colonists and reimbursed farmers and tradesmen for their goods and services that had been forcefully taken. However, this peace was short lived when British Parliament tried to acquire complete control of the colonies and regain financial stability by passing the Stamp Act of 1765, the Townshend Duties, the Tea Act of 1773, and the Intolerable Acts of 1774. The acts greatly inconvenienced the colonists and led to the Boston Massacre of 1770, the Boston “tea party,” colonial unity, and the first shot at Lexington that sparked the American Revolution.