American Colonists vs. British Government
The onset of the American Revolution and the independence of the American colonies was the accumulation of many years of increasing disagreements between the American colonies and the British government. Most of these began after the French and Indian War when the British began using more control and power over the American colonies. The restriction of civil liberties strongly impacted the daily lives of regular colonists. This caused them to personally feel the effects of British control. On a larger scale, the British political control, especially economic policies, highlighted the fact that America colonies had no direct political representation in Parliament and they could not protest or protect their own political interests. Some of the most significant disagreements between the American Colonists and the British are prevalent in the lack of representation and the restriction of civil liberties.
The most important factor that contributed to the disagreements between the American colonists and the British and led to the Revolutionary War was the lack of direct representation in Parliament of the American colonies. Despite having a sizeable population and contributing enormously to the British economy, the American colonies did not have a voice in Parliament and were not directly represented in any way in the British Government. This led to conflicts with the British government when Parliament issued new taxes on the American colonies. It was furthered by the Sugar Act, which taxed sugar products. The Stamp Act of 1765 followed close behind where the British levied duties directly on any legally stamped papers. This act angered the colonists because the colonists thought the British government had no right to an internal tax, which led to a colonial protest. The popular slogan, ???No Taxation without Representation??? shouted out by James Otis during these protests. This helped Americans to realize that they had no political power to control their own fate. Taxation without representation began to be seen as a sign of abuse. In 1766, the British repealed the Stamp Act but declared that they had the right to tax anything they wanted, which was known as the Declaratory Act. Soon the Parliament issued another act, the Townshend Act, an indirect regulation with light import duty on certain items, for instance glass, paper and tea. This act was later repealed except for the levies on tea, which were changed to directly benefit the British East India Company. They lowered the price of tea considerably hoping that American colonists would buy from them, instead of smuggling. However, to protest their lack of representation, American colonists refused to buy it. Lowered price of tea angered the smugglers, which resulted in the Boston Tea Party. The Parliamentary Acts highlighted the political situations of the colonies within the British government. The colonies wanted full representation in government and full rights as citizens. The Parliamentary Acts to the American colonists become known as the Intolerable Acts. The colonists argued that, without parliamentary representation, these were acts of abuse and tyranny by the British and they demanded to be directly represented in the government. These demands went largely unheard. The colonists resented what they perceived to be an intrusion of a government with which they had previously had little to do with and which did not allow them to voice their concerns or further their cause. As a consequence of ???no taxation without representation,??? the Americans??™ freedoms were limited and induced another disagreement, civil liberties.
One of the most significant factors contributed to the disagreements between the American Colonist and the British was the restriction of the colonists??™ civil liberties. Unlike other disagreements, this alone took away the colonists??™ freedom and seized what the colonists thought were inalienable rights. Before the French and Indian War, the British government did not exert much control over the lives of the American colonists. After the French and Indian War, salutary neglect ceased and the British began to pay more attention to the Americans. That led to strict enforcement of the Navigation Acts, a set of laws that regulated trade and operated on the philosophy of mercantilism. This law limited American trade with other foreign countries therefore freedom of trade was removed from them. Not only did the British prohibit Americans from trading with others, but they also imported the traded American goods at low prices that benefited themselves.
American Colonists vs. British Government