‘Name’
‘Instructor’s name’
(What did the colonists rebel? How did they conceive the conflict with conflict with Great Britain? Were they justified? Why or why not?)
Richard Price, a Welsh philosopher and political activist, stated that the American Revolution is the second most significant incident in the history of mankind, next only to the birth of Jesus Christ. It was not a revolution in the mould of the French Revolution of 1789 or the Russian Revolution of 1917, where institutional foundations were overthrown and old power centers were replaced by new ones. But it transformed the people of a colony from being subjects of a crown, to citizens of a republic. This revolution is the starting point of many forms of freedom movements like women liberation movements, slavery abolition movements etc. So what are the primary causes that fuelled this great revolution? Let us discuss them in the following section of the essay.
While one cannot pinpoint a single cause for the resentment of the colonists, the broader issue was that there existed a disagreement over the way the Crown ruled its American colony. The thirteen colonies which united to fight the British rule had a common consent of opinion that, they were not being properly represented in the governance of their province. They wanted to have equal representation in the parliament, but the British governed them in a way best suited for their crown. This conflict is best conveyed through the famous war cry of the revolution - “No taxation without representation”. The elite leading the revolution was inspired by the enlightenment writings of the likes of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Hobbes etc., and from them they derived the ideas of social contract and the consent of the governed. This created an intellectual environment where the colonists developed a desire for a unique political and social identity for themselves.
The actual process of the revolution was set in motion as early as 1763 when the French and Indian war concluded, whereby the British thwarted the last hint of resistance in their American colony. This prompted the British Government, to enforce their policy of making the thriving colonies of the crown, bear the burden of financing the entire territories of the empire, and it started imposing a string of direct taxes known as the stamp act. This was followed with Townshend act of 1767, which taxed all import products such as tea, glass and paint. The colonists started rebelling against the tax collectors and the army had to be brought in to Boston, for preventing the situation getting out of hand. The presence of the British military brought about the first killings of the conflict, whereby four people were killed in Boston, when the troops opened random fire against a protesting crowd. The British Government reacted by banning public meetings and closed down the Boston Harbor.
In the declaration of Independence the elite representing the colonists, listed out many points as the reasons for their call for independence. They cited many reasons such as, passing of laws without the people’s consent, delay in conducting state elections, choosing inconvenient places for meetings of royal governors, raising the property prices, naming General Thomas Gage as the head of English forces in America, and many other points like this. The list also mentions the burden inflicted on the colonial people by asking them to house the army of the crown. These grievances are mentioned under the “history of injuries and usurpations". In November 1775, slaves were promised freedom in Virginia, if they joined the British forces and this was seen as instigating domestic insurrection by the colonists. The Crown also forced American sailors join the royal navy and seized the ships of the traders who violated trade restrictions.
These acts led to believe the colonists that they are ruled by a tyrannical regime which had little regard for their liberty. The American enlightenment movement, which was a famous ideological movement of this period, instilled the ideas of liberalism among the American public. The taxation and other oppressive laws passed by the crown further fuelled this emotion, and culminated in the colonists declaring their war of independence. The colonists are fully justified in their rebellion against the crown, because colonies were treated just as a money spinning tool for the British bureaucratic machinery. The British government did not take due steps to respect the sentiments among the American public, and failed to consider their views and choices before making crucial decisions regarding the colony, and paid the price for it. The revolution effectively replaced an overseas government with a local regime and gave the American colony a unique national identity. Till this day, the revolution is seen as the victory of liberalism and republicanism and is considered an important mile stone in the world history.
Reference pages
- Digital History. Was the revolution justified? Retrieved from http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtid=2&psid=3218
- Digital history. Overview of the American Revolution. Retrieved from http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraID=3&smtlD=2
- Martin Kelly. Causes of the American Revolution The Colonial Mindset and Events That Led to Revolt. Retrieved from http://americanhistory.about.com/od/revolutionarywar/a/amer_revolution.htm
- W. J. Rorabaugh, Donald T. Critchlow, Paula C. Baker (2004). "America's promise: a concise history of the United States". Rowman & Littlefield. p.92.
