The American Revolution

The French and Indian War and its Effects

The French and Indian War or the Seven Years War was fought between Britain and France. As colonies of Britain, the colonists fought along side the British while the Native Americans sided with the French.

After French land in North America went to British hands like the map below illustrates, Native Americans could no longer benefit from balancing French and English interests against one another.

The colonists felt that their war efforts earned them the right to move into the newly acquired lands and saw less need for the protection of the British government. However, that is not how Britain saw it. They prohibited expansion west of the Appalachian Mountains with the passing of the PROCLAMATION OF 1763. The goal of the British was to avoid conflicts between the colonists and the Native Americans. The colonists deeply resented the law and often ignored it. It would become one of the many causes of the American Revolution.

British Efforts to gain political and economic control

Proclamation of 1763

The colonists felt that their effort fighting along side the British in the French and Indian War earned them the right to move into the newly acquired lands and saw less need for the protection of the British government. However, that is not how Britain saw it. They prohibited expansion west of the Appalachian Mountains with the passing of the PROCLAMATION OF 1763. The goal of the British was to avoid conflicts between the colonists and the Native Americans. The colonists deeply resented the law and often ignored it. It would become one of the many causes of the American Revolution.

The Stamp Act

By 1763, Great Britain secured control of a large portion of North America. It had a HUGE WAR DEBT to repay and needed money to maintain forces in the colonies in case of another French threat. Believing the colonies should pay for their own defense, Parliament passed a series of taxes on the colonists. The Stamp Act passed in 1765 required a tax stamp on printed material including newspapers, wills, and even playing cards.

The Townsend Acts

The Townsend Acts were a tax on imported goods such as lead, tea, paint, and paper. The purpose was to raise money to pay for the war debt and to maintain colonial defenses from another French attack. However, instead, imports dropped. To look for smuggled goods in merchant ships, warehouses and even homes, the British government passed WRITS OF ASSISTANCE which were open-ended, transferable search warrants.

The Tea Act

Made British tea less expensive than imported by colonial tea merchants. It virtually gave a monopoly to the British East India Tea Company.

The Boston Massacre

Five colonists were killed when an angry mob protesting the Quartering Act, which allowed British soldiers into colonial homes, was stopped in Boston Massachusetts. Word of the attack spread like wildfire in the papers when Samuel Adams drew a depiction of the events for local newspapers.

The Coercive Acts (also known as Intolerable Acts)

These Acts were meant to punish the colonists for the Boston Tea Party when the a group called the Sons of Liberty destroyed three shiploads of British Tea.

You can see from the graphic below, that the colonists reacted to all the British actions. Use this interactive to see if you can match up the reaction of the colonists to the actions of the British government.

Causes of the American Revolution

• Colonists viewed the taxes as a threat to their liberties including right to own property. They signed petitions, boycotted, and other more violent protests such as tar and feathering tax collectors or incidents like the Boston Tea Party.
• Had no representation in Parliament, believed taxes had to come from colonial legislatures. Slogan formed "no taxation without representation."
• Separated by 3,000 miles of ocean had led to a sense of self sufficiency and independence.
• Wanted to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains and gain land ownership. Because of abundance of land, as much as 90% of the white male population held enough land to qualify to vote.
• The Great Awakening encouraged people to question authority and increased a sense of equality among people.

To learn more about the causes of the American Revolution, you can review this Google Presenation.

Effects of the American Revolution

After failed attempts to mitigate conflicts between the British government and the colonists, the colonists eventually declared independence, which they eventually won through the Revolutionary War. This win affected individuals in different ways.

Native Americans lost a great deal of their land when the were no longer protected by the Proclamation of 1763. New Americans were ready to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains that was once forbidden. The Iroquois Nation was destroyed as well.

African Americans fought on both sides of the war during the American Revolution. However, more fought on the side of the British because they were promised freedom from slavery. During the Revolution, many enslaved Africans in the South successfully escaped. Others were freed in return for military service. Some left the country with the British army, while others settled in northern cities and became part of a growing free African American population. An antislavery movement led by the Quakers started in the North before the Revolution. After the war, northern states passed laws that immediately or gradually abolished slavery. Although free, African Americans in the North still faced discrimination. Many were not allowed to vote, except in New England. There was segregation in public places, housing, and transportation.

Women began to question their roles in society as rights and freedoms such as property and the right to vote were being discussed.

Taking a look at the map below, you can see how much the land the newly created United States acquired. This led to almost 90% of white men owning land and having the right to vote. It made a huge impact on the concept of equality in our nation.