American Revolution Essay

Document Type:Essay

Subject Area:History

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It was after the eight years of struggle that the Americans got the victory and attained independence. Before then, a series of events had transpired from 1763 (After the French and Indian war) to 1775. The American colonies were quite objected to the unfavorable British policies that were implemented without their consent. Causes of the American Revolution. The American Revolution didn’t happen in a single instance. The last divide was neutral. In the 18th century, philosophers, great thinkers, and other prominent people began to get interested in the way the government was being run. As a result, many colonists bought into their influence. Most of these famous people had studied the writings of great authors that pointed out concepts like devolution of power, social contract, limited government and having the consent of the governed.

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For instance, one great author called Locke struck a chord by questioning the overreach of the ruling regime and the rights of the governed. In 1773, the British government began taxing tea. This provoked the Patriots to protest against this maltreatment. The angered Patriots directed the ships to the sea and dumped the tea in water. Another cause of Revolution in America was due to the reason beyond migration from England to America. The migrants escaped England to seek freedom from persecution by the religious authorities. British officials attempted to rally their colonies to back them up in the Albany Congress in 1754, but unfortunately, they only got halfhearted support. This provided a leeway for the French to defeat them since the Native American tribes allied behind the French wholeheartedly. The war was culminated when Britain held hostage major cities and forts based in Canada and Ohio Valley which had been taken over by the French government.

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There also existed a powerful chief known as Pontiac of Ottawa, Ohio Valley. He bound the whites from grabbing tribal lands and united the locals to revolt against the British government through raids. In 1776, the Parliament accepted the public demands to repeal the Stamp Act, but secretly enacted the Declaratory Act that outlined that the Parliament was authorized to tax the colonies whenever considered necessary. Besides, Townshend Acts were passed by the British government in 1767. The Acts would levy tax on tea, paints and lead. Alongside that, Suspension Act was also passed, which suspended the New York assembly for failing to enforce the Quartering Act. In fear of protests in Massachusetts, the ruling Governor Thomas Hutchinson requested for troops from the British government, and in 1768, about four thousand troops were sent to maintain order in the city.

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Parliament also passed the Quebec Act that gave Canadian Catholics more rights and expanded the Canadian territory. To protest against the Intolerable Acts, the Colonials held the First Continental Congress in 1774. They send a petition to King George III to repeal the Act. Besides, they boycotted all British goods. On the 19th of April 1775, a group of colonists marched to Concord to hold hostage a colonial army in Arsenal. In the end, a lawyer by the name Thomas Jefferson drafted the “Declaration of Independence,” and the new United States was born. Consequences of the American War. As the Americans fought the British and won, other territories which were under British colonial rule got motivated that they could also fight their colonialists and win. They had suffered a lot under the British colonial rule by the policies which were being imposed on them.

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Thus, the success of Americans in fighting their colonial regime was one of the factors which initiated the struggle for independence among various countries which were under British colonial rule in the world across various continents. Before independence, there were only thirteen American States which were directly under British colonial rule. After gaining independence from Great Britain, they occupied other thirty-seven states thus became a total of fifty, which together became the United States of America. Through various acts, the United States continued to occupy many unclaimed islands in the Pacific Ocean and were economically productive. The expansion towards the Pacific Ocean brought to an end by the occupation of Hawaii islands and towards the North by the purchase of Alaska from the Soviet Union. Furthermore, the American Revolution also brought along a positive impact on slave trade.

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London: Lorenz, 2008. Print. Osborne, Mary Pope. Natalie Pope. Boyce, Sal Murdocca, and Mary Pope. Print. Burnett, Betty. The Continental Congress: A Primary Source History of the Formation of America's New Government. New York: Rosen Central Primary Sources, 2004. Print.

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