Proclamation of 1763
The Royal Proclamation was issued on October 7, 1763 by the then King of Britain, King George III (US History, 2012). It was issued after the end of the French-Indian war. The main aim of the proclamation was to control the area that was under the occupation of the colonists, and also to protect the Indians. To a great extent, it can be said that the proclamation was effective as it was implemented to the letter.
The colonists were not very pleased with the proclamation. After the end of the war, they were happy since they felt that more land had been opened up for them to conquer (US History, 2012). However, this was not to be the case. The proclamation cut short the celebrations by condoning off some of the lands and reserving them for the Indian natives. It categorically stated that the areas west of the Atlantic bound rivers either from the western or north-western directions were not up for grabs. This, to the colonists, was a stab in the back.
The British were the greatest beneficiaries of the proclamation. Through the proclamation, they got new colonies adding up to four in number. These were Quebec, West and East Florida, as well as Grenada. It can be said that the British got the lion’s share from the proclamation, and they had a reason to rejoice about it.
Reference
US History. (2012). Proclamation of 1763. Retrieved on 29th Sept. 2012 from http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/proc63.htm
