...Colonists living in America were not justified in their revolt against the ruling British government. After the French and Indian War, which ended in 1763, the British needed to collect taxes in order to pay for soldiers to defend the newly won land. In addition it would only be just for the British government to have the colonists pay a tax after protecting them from the French. However, the American colonists, did not want taxation without representation, so they took matters into their own hands to revolt and free themselves from British rule. The first piece of evidence that proves that the colonists were not justified in revolting is from the Stamp Act Documents, Source B. Published by the London Paper in January 27, 1766, this primary source letter was later republished by the Boston Gazette Supplement. Initially the document was written to inform the people of England about the anger in the American colonies against the Stamp Act. In the letter, the author states, “I would have been less surprised by their behavior if we had taxed their beer, because everyone drinks beer. But the Stamp Act is a tax on none of the necessities of life. It does not affect the poor. And even a poor person can afford this little amount of money.” The language in the document shows the disbelief of the author....
Words: 928 - Pages: 4
...One of the reasons that the colonists decided to break from Great Britain was because they believed that they were not given certain political rights that every person should be given. Another reason that the colonists decided to break from Great Britain was because they felt that Parliament was denying them of basic economic rights such as putting restrictions on trade and imposing unfair taxes upon them. Finally, another main reason that the colonists decided to break from Great Britain was because they believed that they were not being given the respect that they deserve by the people of Great Britain, especially the aristocrats and members of Parliament. For a long period of time Great Britain did not pay much attention to their colonies in America. This was due to the fact that Great Britain was in the midst of a civil war and then later on the French and Indian war. They devoted most of their time, effort, and money into the wars so they did not have a lot of time, people, or money left to govern the colonies and keep them under their control. The distance across the Atlantic Ocean and the size of America also made it difficult for the British to control due to the amount of time it took to travel and get messages back and forth. This period of time when Great Britain did not enforce much control is known as the Period of Salutary Neglect. During this period the colonists began to learn to govern themselves. They had many economic and political freedoms that they otherwise...
Words: 1424 - Pages: 6
...happiness” to frame colonist’s rights. The Declaration of Independence is a document in which gave freedom and liberties to people who lived in the American colonies. Many American colonists were unhappy with the British because of how they were treating them and therefore sought for equality and rights. However, some colonists had different views toward the American independence movement. Yet, the outcome changed America forever. American colonies felt that Britain was trying to take away their rights and liberties by enforcing new laws and imposing taxes upon them. The British established the Sugar Act, which lowered the tax on molasses. Even though they lowered the tax the colonists were left furious because they didn’t want Britain to be in control of them. This Act enforced colonists not to smuggle. The colonists were angered by this because they were used to smuggling and when the British established this tax they felt that they were being forced to pay a tax which had them feeling like they were having their rights taken away. Another tax that angered the colonists was the Stamp Act. This was a tax on all printed documents and it gave the parliament permission to regulate all the trade. This led colonists to protest “no taxation without representation”. It was the concept of who is representing the colonies. They felt like they had no one representing them and that they were being taken over by the British government. American colonists organized protest groups...
Words: 692 - Pages: 3
...The Colonists Since 1765, the people of Boston had been having protests against the british taxing them. First against the Stamp Acts, then in 1767 against the Townshend Acts. Many citizens believed that Britain did not have the right to tax them because they did not have their representatives in Parliament. Only the Massachusetts Assembly, whose members were elected every year, had the right to put taxes on the colonies. The day is March 5, 1770 right outside the Customs House, the day the Boston Massacre occurred. A colonist walked over to a sober soldier had a few words with him. The soldier hit him randomly with the painful butt of his hard wood and metal gun. The colonist walked over to the other colonists and explained what happened...
Words: 1239 - Pages: 5
...may think that the colonists owed Britain a favor for the French and Indian War but the British had a choice. They didn’t have to fight the war. They chose to. The British did not have experience with governing the colonies, and the colonists had come accustomed to governing themselves their own way for many years. When Britain started to tax the colonies the citizens reacted the way they should; they rebelled. I agree with the colonists, in that the British had no right to perform any of these acts of tyranny. I will try to convince you by all possible means as to why the colonists’ revolution was justified in the three following points: tax acts, violence, and the declaration of independence which led to war,...
Words: 505 - Pages: 3
...shop one day. Shouting and yelling was coming from outside, but I didn’t know what it was from. I opened the door to go to the market when I saw many colonists looking very angry. I ventured outside, and I saw colonists holding signs, some that read: NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION. I wondered what that meant. I hurried to the market and picked up the supplies. On my way back, I heard some colonists laughing wickedly. I peered over to see a man covered in a black, sticky liquid and feathers. He looked as if he was in severe pain. I was curious to know why they had done that, but I was running late so I rushed back to the shop....
Words: 627 - Pages: 3
...Legislation The early settlers in the New World were subject to many different laws and acts of legislation passed by the British government. Most of which were meant to help the King and England rather than support the colonies ability to be a free and self-governing people. Some of the legislation like the Stamp Act was passed to help England recoup its losses from the French Indian War. Although some like the Coercive Act contained a series of legislative tactics meant to punish colonists for going against or acting against the King or the mother land. Both of these acts were purposeful and against the colonists and only for the benefit of England. The French and Indian War caused the British government to go into a tremendous amount of debt. This debt had to be recovered somehow. So parliament decided that they would create a tax on the colonies to help recover some of the money lost. The Stamp Act was the British Parliaments attempt to take governmental authority over the colonies. The Stamp Act created a tax or duty on different types of documents printed on paper including “… legal documents, business papers, licenses, pamphlets, newspapers, almanacs, printed sermons, playing cards, and dice” (Reich, 2011 Ch. 25 Para 17). For instance the act stated that any piece of parchment that was “…engrossed, written, or printed, any declaration, plea, replication, rejoinder, demurrer or other pleading, or any copy thereof; in any court of law within the British colonies and plantations in...
Words: 1183 - Pages: 5
...During the road to revolution, there were a lot of events and forces that helped shape how the revolution began and how America is today. Parliament was the colonist’s model for representative government. The colonists in America did not want to give up their right to representative government. They were lucky, because there was some self-government allowed in the colonies since Parliament and the king were far away. However, this all changed after the French and Indian war. When the 9 year long war ended, the Treaty of Paris was signed. The treaty ended nearly all French control in North America, and greatly expanded Britain's colonial empire. However, this ended up not being such an amazing victory for the colonists after all. Because of...
Words: 513 - Pages: 3
...of an absolute tyranny over these colonies.” Evaluate the accusations made against George III in the Declaration of Independence. During the eighteenth century there were several conflicts between the north American colonies and Great Britain. The north American colonists were being taxed to pay for the debt that Great Britain had received after conquering the French and Indian war. When the colonists created the declaration of independence, they blamed king George III for everything severe that had happened. “The history of the present kind of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having, in direct object, the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states.” This judgment of king George III is right because the colonists were mistreated with with the rights to have their freedom and being taxed exhaustively....
Words: 585 - Pages: 3
...Great Britain and the American colonists had many conflicts throughout the 1700s that eventually lead to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The multiple wars, the unfair taxes, and the horrible acts that the colonists had to deal with have helped shaped America today. Starting in 1753 and ending in 1763, the French and Indian War was the beginning of the end for Britain and the colonists. It all started in the 1740s, when British settlers, who were looking for farmland, moved into the Ohio River Valley. Previously, this land was claimed by France; however, Britain also claimed the territory as their own. In early 1753, France began building forts between the Ohio River Valley and Lake Erie. This frightened the Virginia Company, so they sent George Washington, a young surveyor in the militia, to order the French to leave.The French refused to leave, causing a major dispute between the two countries. Washington was...
Words: 1566 - Pages: 7
...the Stamp Act, Townshend Acts, and the Boston Massacre, are all different events that summarize how the American colonists were living during the years of 1764, to around 1776, when being held under British rule. Desperately, the colonists wanted change and independence. Even though some people may argue that the colonist were not justified in separating from Great Britain, many believe the American colonists were justified in separating from Great Britain due to the taxation that was placed on them, and the acts of tyranny by King George. And yes, the American colonists were justified in waging war and breaking away from Britain. The taxation that was placed on the American colonists is a prime example of why they were justified in separating...
Words: 1681 - Pages: 7
...the colonies to only trade with them, and create certain items based on their needs, and pay taxes. However, the colonists, wanting to maximize profits, did not follow this policy, and tax evasion, bribery, and smuggling became common practice. Britain was unable to strictly enforce these rules and followed a method called salutary neglect in which they allowed the colonies to continue the illegal behavior because they profited greatly from...
Words: 765 - Pages: 4
...stopped at all costs. The American colonists were being ruled by a tyrannical government. They were in every way justified in breaking away from Britain and waging war. The American colonists were defending themselves against unjust laws, unfair taxation, and their natural rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. Britain needed money to pay its war debts and the King and Parliament were convinced that they had the right to tax the colonies. In 1765 the Parliament and King passed several different taxes so the colonists could help pay for the French and Indian War. These taxes included the Townshend Act, passed in 1767, which required the colonists to pay taxes on imported goods such as tea paper, and lead. Other laws, like the Stamp Act, passed in 1765, required colonists to pay tax on printed materials such as newspapers, legal documents, and magazines. Lastly, the Sugar Act, which raised prices on certain goods such as tea and coffee. As a result, many people in the colonies were angry. They...
Words: 645 - Pages: 3
...taxing without the colonists being represented. This resulted in harsh laws and punishments like the Coercive Acts also known as "the Intolerable Acts. The. Acts angered the colonists even more. Parliament and King George III thought that these punishments would bring order but, in the end they only brought rebellion. The colonists thought that the British government taxing them unfairly disrespected their rights as English citizens. One of the first unfair taxes was the "Sugar Act.' This placed a tax on molasses and sugar which are the main ingredient for Rum. Next, the "Stamp Act" was passed. This tax was placed on all legal documents or important forms. All the new taxes angered the colonists. Another tax was passed, it was called the "Tea Act" this was a tax on all tea. Britain also passed a new law allowing the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonies. Tea merchants started to become worried about losing their business to the British East India company because of their cheap prices. To try to stay in business, Tea merchants started smuggling in tea to avoid being taxed. They...
Words: 557 - Pages: 3
... |colonies and New France. This particular war resulted in a British victory over |the British colonies. Some of the actions and laws of the British crown angered the | | |the French, in addition to territorial changes as well. |colonist, thus, later contributing to the Revolutionary War. | |Sugar Act |In 1764 British Parliament passed the Sugar Act which reduced the tax rate on |The Sugar Act and the reactions of the colonist to the act greatly contributed to | | |molasses; and was strictly enforced. In addition, the Sugar Act also listed many|Revolutionary War. With strict enforcement of the Sugar Act and the tax, colonists were | | |other foreign goods to be taxed as well. |unable to evade the tax as they were prior to the Sugar Act. In addition, the Sugar Act | | | |disrupted the economy within the colonies. | |Stamp Act |Another tax imposed on the colonist was that of the Stamp Act. The Stamp Act was|The Stamp Act was...
Words: 1406 - Pages: 6
