Free Essays on The American Revolution

The initial relationship between the North American colonies and Great Britain was positive, each side benefiting from the other. England’s hold of these colonies was a major asset to them financially and had major positive affects on their economy. As was it the same from the other end, as Edmund S. Morgan agrees that the colonists felt they had advantages as being part of the British Empire. The policy under which England governed the colonies, known as salutary neglect, was very loose; the only regulations being the Navigation Acts. These were placed on the colonies but were not harshly enforced. However, as the competition for world power began to increase between imperial countries, England felt it would be further beneficial if they strengthened their control of the colonies, who in turn, would lose freedoms. Due to the actions taken by England from the mid-1750’s to the eve of the Revolution, the Americans drastically shifted their view of their mother government . The increasing firmness of Great Britain’s control over the colonies prompted the first of the colonists’ revolutionary thoughts. Parliament passed the Proclamation of 1763, which created boundaries of where the colonists could settle. This new sense of control upset the Americans, but not enough for any major action. Next, in 1764, the Sugar Act was passed, which tightened the sugar and molasses market to British agents. It also put duties on foreign imports to raise revenues. The colonial reaction was the first experiments with boycotts of the import. According to Thomas Draper, the colonists initially wanted to return to the way things were prior to 1763, because that had worked in their favor. The following year, the Stamp Act was passed, and was met with extreme opposition. It affected almost every colonist in everyday life, and limited not only their political rights, but their legal rights as well. The colonists reacted in various and numerous forms fro... Free Essays on The American Revolution Free Essays on The American Revolution Many historians trace the beginnings of the modern world to the Revolutions of the late 1700's. The first of these was the American Revolution, in which 13 British Colonies in North America declared their independence from their mother country and successfully resisted British Military pressure for seven years (1775-1783). Even before the Declaration of Independence was signed, British troops began arriving to put down the rebellion. These troops would not leave for five years. In 1775, the first military conflicts between the British and Americans occurred at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts as British soldiers attempted to capture a storehouse of American weapons. During this time the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia and named George Washington commander of American troops fighting around Boston, which the British had under siege. Before Washington arrived, British and American troops clashed at Breed’s Hill and Bunker Hill. In 1776, Thomas Paine, a writer arrived from Britain, and he published Common Sense, a pamphlet that urged the American colonies to throw off British rule. The Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia after the Second Continental Congress decided that the colonies must break away from the British rule. The British finally left Boston but they captured New York City after fighting General Washington and his troops. The Americans retreated to Pennsylvania. Between 1776 and 1777 during a surprise move on the British and their Hessian mercenaries, Washington captured British garrisons at Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey taking weapons and ammunition. American troops defeated combined forces of the British at Saratoga, New York. A turning point in the war, this victory strengthened American morals and convinced the French to send military aid and supplies to the Americans. During the bitter Winter of 1777-1778 American soldiers faced starvation and ... Free Essays on The American Revolution In Kirk D. Werner’s book The American Revolution, I learned all I ever wanted to know about the American Revolution. The book began from the very beginning, clear back before they came to the New World. I will discuss the main three reasons why the colonist’s left England; those were because of Political, Economic and Social Causes. I will also discuss the several Acts that were approved in the Revolution. In my opinion of the American Revolution the Political reason was the most important, because for the most part the colonists did not agree that the Parliament had the right to make laws for American colonists and to tax them when the colonists had no elected representatives in the Parliament. Other Political causes of the Revolution were the proclamation of 1763, which were, plans to reduce conflicts with the colonists and the Indians. It stated that no one was permitted to cross the mountains without the consent of British officials. American fur traders who wanted to settle the western lands resented the Proclamation. The colonists living in America had enjoyed relative freedom from England since they arrived. They came to the New World, after all, to escape England, for whatever reasons they may have had- religious, economic, or social. So when England decided in the eighteenth century that they were going to crack down on the colonies, the announcement was not met with open arms. In fact, rebellion was expected. Everhart 2 The Economic causes of the Revolution are second most important. In the eyes of Great Britain the American colonists’ primary job was to build a favorable balance of trade. With a favorable balance of trade a nation could be self-sufficient, become wealthy and build a powerful army and navy. However the British laws were to hard on the American colonists. The Sugar Act of 1764, placed taxes on molasses, sugar and other products imported from places outside the British Empire. M... Free Essays on The American Revolution â€Å"Americans saw themselves as a new society ideally equipped for a republican future.† (pg 4) This is what John Adams said in reference to the American Revolution. People realized that they did not like how Britain was ruling them from afar and they thought they knew what they needed better than any King would. After starting to think thing way, many things pushed them closer and closer to fight for their independence. After the French were defeated in the French and Indian War, people wanted to own land and started to settle farther towards the western frontier. Everyone wanted land. People like Ezra Stiles, a minister in Newport, to Benjamin Franklin wanted to buy and sell land. The Indians were getting frustrated with the settlers because they kept taking more and more of their land. The British decided to use royal troops to stop the Indians from fighting with the settlers. The population in the backcountry was growing due to many settlers coming from all over Europe. Since the population was growing, authority was weakening but cities were getting richer and normal Americans could afford luxurious things that only the wealthy owned before. One of the biggest problems for Britain was reorganizing the territory they got from France and Spain after the Seven Years’ war: new governments, Indian regulation, land claims, and warfare between settlers and Indians. The war caused Britain a huge debt and to keep the fighting down between Indians and the settlers, they had to keep troops in America. To help pay for all this debt, the British had to tax somebody so they decided to make taxes on things for the American settles, for example the Sugar Act of 1764, the Stamp Act of 1765, and the Molasses Act of 1733. This made settlers very mad and they declared these acts as unconstitutional and tried to do what they could to ignore them. In response to this, the British decided to use indirect taxes instead of direct. This only paid a... Free Essays on The American Revolution The initial relationship between the North American colonies and Great Britain was positive, each side benefiting from the other. England’s hold of these colonies was a major asset to them financially and had major positive affects on their economy. As was it the same from the other end, as Edmund S. Morgan agrees that the colonists felt they had advantages as being part of the British Empire. The policy under which England governed the colonies, known as salutary neglect, was very loose; the only regulations being the Navigation Acts. These were placed on the colonies but were not harshly enforced. However, as the competition for world power began to increase between imperial countries, England felt it would be further beneficial if they strengthened their control of the colonies, who in turn, would lose freedoms. Due to the actions taken by England from the mid-1750’s to the eve of the Revolution, the Americans drastically shifted their view of their mother government . The increasing firmness of Great Britain’s control over the colonies prompted the first of the colonists’ revolutionary thoughts. Parliament passed the Proclamation of 1763, which created boundaries of where the colonists could settle. This new sense of control upset the Americans, but not enough for any major action. Next, in 1764, the Sugar Act was passed, which tightened the sugar and molasses market to British agents. It also put duties on foreign imports to raise revenues. The colonial reaction was the first experiments with boycotts of the import. According to Thomas Draper, the colonists initially wanted to return to the way things were prior to 1763, because that had worked in their favor. The following year, the Stamp Act was passed, and was met with extreme opposition. It affected almost every colonist in everyday life, and limited not only their political rights, but their legal rights as well. The colonists reacted in various and numerous forms fro... Free Essays on The American Revolution There are several reasons that the 13 colonies tried to gain their independence from Britain. First off, Britain taxed all imports and exports from the colonies, and the taxes were unreasonable high. Second, the British used the Americas to send all their criminals to, which in turn started to pollute the states with crime. Third, the British government was not applied to the states in a way that it could be enforced, due to the lack of government officials. British soldiers were also very hostile towards the new colonies, and the population as a whole was being suppressed. This is when all the colonies came together and decided to revolt against Britain for their freedom. The first battle started after the governor of Massachusetts, ordered by the British, sent 700 troops to Concord to destroy the colonialists’ weapons on April 18th 1775. Paul Revere and William Dawes went to Lexington to warn Sam Adams and John Hancock about the attack. The next morning about 70 militiamen prevented the British from invading the town. April 23rd 1775, the colonial army, with a force of 13,600 men, starts a yearlong attack on the main British port of Boston. May 10th, the Second Continental Congress convenes in Philadelphia, and five days later, they unanimously vote for George Washington to be the commander-in-chief of the continental army. The first major fight was the Battle of Bunker Hill. The fight might have been won by the American is they had not run out of ammunition. Overall 400 American troops and over 1,000 British died during the battle. July 3rd 1775, George Washington takes control of the 17,000 men in the American Army. November 28th, the American Navy is established, and John Paul Jones is appointed top lieutenant. John Paul Jones did daring raids along the British coast and the famous victory of the HMS Serapis, when after his ship started sinking and caught fire, said, â€Å"I have not yet begun to fight†, and eve...