Prelude to the American Revolution

30 August 2004 (Lecture #03)

 

·    Brits win war, ending French presence in America with the Treaty of Paris, 1763

·    American colonists had done well financially from the subsidies and money made from supplying the Brit forces

·    Americans expected to be considered equals for their support and also lower taxes since war ended

·    Brit debt was high (more taxes needed) and many English were told the Americans were tightfisted and not helpful fighters

·    British Colonies

o        Governors see themselves as British, not Americans

o        Governor appooints councils

o        Most legislatures could not make laws, but had control over taxes

·         Mercantalism – try to import raw materials and improve them, exporting them at a profit

o        Get materials from colonies and forbid them from exporting them to certain areas

o        Heavily tax non-UK goods

 

·    Brit army stationed in US to protect colonists from Indians, French

·    Proclamation of 1763 – prohibited whites from going west (try to avoid Indian conflict and keep them close to the coast)

·         Sugar Act – halves tax in hopes of reducing smuggling

 

·    US not happy that admiralty, courts tried cases; thought only they should levy taxes on their country - representation

·    US let down for being treated as 2nd class citizens after being optimistic after war

·    Declaratory Act – Parliament says they can tax, etc.

·    Stamp Act – took money out of all US pockets; angered many

o        The fight over the act showed Americans how they were united and different than the Brits

·         Townsend takes over and has Parliament tax US heavily to improve Brit gov

·         Customs officials forced US merchants to pay unfair fines

o        Boston Massacre – Bostonians losing jobs to cheap off-duty soldiers; redcoats fire into crowd when hit w/snowballs

 

·         US associate with others being oppressed overseas

·         Resistance quietened some when Townsend was repealed but was revived

o        Brit schooner run aground and then burned by Providence

o        Brits send a commission which sidesteps US courts, angering colonists

·         Boston Tea Party – colonists dressed as Indians through 10k lbs of tea into the harbor; occurs elsewhere too

o        Tea Act was designed to help a failing Brit monopoly on tea in the colonies

o        Taax reduced after non-importation on all but tea which is not changed much

 

·         Coercive (Intolerable) Acts passed – Boston port closed, colony gov handed over to royal officials

o        UK believed applying pressure to the whole would squeeze out the rebels

o        Backfires massively with Coercive Acts

 

·         The First Continental Congress meets and they agree Parliament cannot tax or legislate the US

o        Trade ceased until the Coercive Acts repealed

o        Authorized defense strategy of civil disobedience; No plans for revolution

 

·         Second Continental Congress met to determine whether or not to call for independence

o        They told the Brits they did not want independence, but still raised an army and paid it with their own paper money

o        Brits had no intention to work peace – they intended to use force

o        Congress declares independence, saying they are no longer English

 

·         1/5 of the population were loyalists in 1775

o        Feared civil war w/o the Brits overseeing the colonies

o        Never substantial enough to threaten the Revolution

 

Conclusions

·         Tyranny in the US probably did not justify revolution

·         Revolution not wanted by all – started by a radical minority

·         Were not seeking representation in Parliament

·         Revolution occurred bedcause of economic conflict and persepectives of injustice