The Impact the American Revolution had on the shaping of the United States concepts of freedom, justice and liberty for all. The American Revolution War stilffed the new republic desire for justice, equality and freedom. The people….
There were various preliminary acts that dealt with the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. Some of the many causes of the American Revolutionary War between the years of 1775 – 1783 came as results of people growing angry about taxes and many laws in which the people thought were unfair for them. Like most Americans, they chose several ways of fighting back to gain their independence. Some individuals protested by joining groups that were already formed while others used written methods to achieve the same outcome. Either approach chosen inspired those in leadership positions to create their own country.
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There were more than two million people living in the 13 British colonies during the mid-1700s. Some were naturally born individuals in the New World others moved and a place to call home. Many of the immigrants left England to come to America. They traveled from England, Holland, Scotland, Germany and Ireland. Some of the countries had fought in war and had on going problems which existed for many years found them working to build neighborhoods and families together. For some it meant learning new skills and occupations. Great Britain ruled many of the colonies therefore; the people considered themselves British citizens. They were protected by the British army and became loyal to the Britain’s king. However, they were bound by the customs and the laws of England.
Great Britain and France went to war in the 1750’s, at the end of the war it would be determined which country would be in control. The war was called the Indian and French War because some many Indians were fighting for France. The war was won by Britain and it controlled the land from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River and from Georgia to Maine, making it a safer place for those who settled in Britain. This new territory left many settlers angry because the new king wanted to restrict their movement to the west.
The cost of the French and Indian War was very costly for Britain, therefore, the government passed a special tax to help with the cost but the tax was only for the American colonists. This became known as the Stamp Act. This act required Americans to buy a special stamp to put on any and all printed paper, such as marriage licenses, newspapers and the like. The colonists became angry with this ruling and felt that if people in England were not required to pay a tax neither should they. The colonists decided they were not going to pay the tax. One of the tactics used to support their decision was to scare off the stamp sellers. Once the act received support no one was available to collect the funds. The people in the colonies had no representatives in Parliament. This meant they never got to vote on any Britain’s law. They decided they did not want to pay taxes unless they had a say.
The colonists’ took a stand on their belief on the Stamp Act so the Parliament repealed the act. A new set of taxes were passed. Theses taxes were called the Townsend Acts. Theses laws taxed paper, paint, glass, tea and lead. As a result of this act, continued anger for the people in America escalated. The colonists decided to boycott the British goods. The boycott was successful and the government repeals the taxes. Great Britain became angry with the boycott and sent 4,000 soldiers to Boston. The colonists were out numbered three to one. Innocent people were killed.
When the repeal on the Townshend Acts was made, the Parliament decided to keep the tax on tea. The Parliament passed what was called the Tea Act. Only certain shop owners were allowed to import and sell tea. This was to prevent Britain from having so much control over their economy. Samuel Adams, a member of the Sons of Liberty encouraged many protests. The Boston Tea Party was formed when a group of men went on ships and poured 342 chests of tea in the harbor.
Following the Boston Tea Party, King George III and his form of government pass several harsh laws that affected the colonists. They called this the Intolerable Acts. These measures closed the Boston Harbor resulting in no fishing of use of the ocean for the purpose trading. Many citizens were then forced out of work, and gave the British soldiers the chance to take over the property of the colonists. More and more people grew angrier and built a stronger desire to fight for the chance to be free from all the rules and laws.
By 1774 people in the colonies developed courage and wanted to increase their efforts to the next level. This allowed colonies from many areas to communicate and share their ideas and thoughts about problems they were experiencing with Great Britain. This group was referred to as the First Continental Congress. This meeting was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which was halfway between the southern colonies and New England. Their combined efforts created a message to King George stating their colonists’ complaints in which it was stated the king refused to read. This document was referred to as the Declaration of Rights and Grievances. The delegates attending this session instructed the leaders of the colonies to begin forming militias for the battle that they were preparing to enter.
Small armies were organized which angered the British soldiers. On April 19, 1775 the British soldiers marched to Lexington, Massachusetts. The colonial militia group waited for the British. It is not known who fired the first shot, thus the battles began. Being outnumbered, the colonists had to regroup. They wanted to break away from England, but fighting to form a new country was even more challenging. From these actions, a Second Continental Congress was held. It was decided to combine the small armies into a large Continental Army.
The colonies had many concerns, Could they defeat the powerful Great Britain? Could they really choose their own leaders? Could they win, and what would they do without a king to tell them how to live? Thomas Paine the author of Common Sense pamphlet gave some advice that help the colonists realize the best thing for them to do was to break bonds with England. So in July 1776, the Continental Congress sent the Declaration of Independence to King George. What this meant was they were no longer colonists, nor British citizens, but Americans.
a) There were various preliminary acts that dealt with beginning of the American Revolutionary War. The main cause of the American Revolution was the Royal Proclamation of 1763. After the French and Indian war was over many opportunities arose for the colonist such as moving to the western frontier. With the proclamation in effect, all the territory west and northwest of the river were not accessible to them not including the all the territory from Ohio to Mississippi rivers. It also established four new colonies Quebec, East Florida, West Florida, and Grenada, but it was mostly directed towards Indian territories. The King and the Indians agreed that they were not in favor of the settlers issues. Parliament was aware of the Indians association with the colonist, and they recognized that they would not have any values towards boundaries. The border extended from the Atlantic all the way to the new border. The British claimed that these posts were for colonial defense and the colonies should pay for it themselves.
Another reason for the American Revolution is the war between the Great Britain and France know as the French and Indian war. Great Britain used most of the money on the war which caused them to go into debt, to earn their money back they forced taxes on their colonies. The Sugar Act was approved by the English Parliament in 1764, to cover the debt brought on by the war. The money was used to pay for the operating cost of running colonies and territories. It also, increased the taxes on other imported items such as sugar textiles, coffee, and wines. After the colonist expressed their concerns towards the Stamp Act, it was finally repealed. This lead to other taxes such as the Quartering Act of 1765, Stamp Act 1765, Townsend Act 1767, and Boston Tea Party 1773, and the Intolerable Act 1774.
In 1765 the Quartering Act was approved and this tax obligated the colonist to inhabit their homes for the British soldiers. Having to occupy their homes to an unfamiliar person made the colonists enraged. The following close contact with British soldiers did not produce good feelings between the sides from Britain.
The government was now controlled by Charles Townsend. His main focus was support the British Parliament. Since he was the Parliament’s leader he made a great impact to influence them to pass the laws for the new taxes.
The requirement for the Stamp Act of 1765 was to obtain stamps so they could purchase a great deal of items. The most well known item that the stamps were required for was tea. The Stamp Act taxes varied from different things. The money was used to was assist in paying to guard the colonies.
All the disputes the colonies had against the Stamp Act later calmed down when the Tea Act was approved. This act contracted domination on importing and exporting tea in America. December 16th was the day that numerous people in the Boston and surrounding areas decided to hear Samuel Adams speak. After he criticized the Governor for denying the ships consent to leave with tea on board, they headed out to the harbor. Three Ships were boarded and docked, and then about 90,000 pounds of tea were thrown overboard. Parliament issued out an agreement on a chain of acts called the Intolerable Acts. As the Intolerable acts were agreed upon the docks were closed, until the tea establishment was reimbursed for all the tea that was lost.
Taxation without representation in parliament was another concern that started the war. The entire colonist felt that the Britain could not control colonies from the Atlantic Ocean. The majority of the people did not want to pay taxes on their cargo that was being imported and exported daily.
b) The Declaration of Independence is a vital document in history. It is one of the most widely read documents of modern history. The ideas that were formed were based on successful and unsuccessful independence movements and revolutions even after the war ended. This decree made a distinct statement in reference to the people’s rights who lived in independent states. This document declared the people to be independent and free. The foundation of the Declaration of Independence, self-determination of rule, is expressed in the document’s phrase, “governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” The authors of the document felt it was necessary to secure one’s God given or natural rights. The day of July 2, 1776, the affiliates of the Second Continental Congress voted for the colonist freedom. It proclaimed that the thirteen American colonies that were currently at war were no longer up under Britain’s rules. A second vote was held by the delegates and the Declaration of Independence was approved. As this document was signed on July 4, 1776, this day came to be known as the birth of America. A vast change was made in the government because of this decree and the democratic government came to be. Thomas Jefferson declared, that “governments were created to serve the people, and could only act with consent of the people.” The declaration consists of numerous parts, but only two parts are essential that is the preamble and the independence of America. The preamble depicts the rights of the people and it states, that “all men are created equal and have the God-given right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” The second essential parts of the decree proclaim independence for the American colonist and list all the issues that the colonist had against the British.
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c) African Americans whether free or slaves participated in several conflicts between the English colonies and their rivals in North America. They had favorable attitudes and served with honor, bravery and distinction in the Indian and French War, the American Revolution War along with the War of 1812 just to mention a few with limited circumstances. There were some laws that excluded African-American along with Indians from military service. There were some early colonial laws and some national laws that were in place that forbid the services of African-Americans during times of conflict and war. However, at times it didn’t matter what their status were, their physical strength were utilized.
The American Revolutions was more than war it was a fight for liberty and freedom from slavery. Benjamin Quarles understood the role of the minorities in the American Revolution, he presented as “realizing that loyalty was not to a place or a people, but to a principle”. In spite of where the loyalties of minorities lay, their contribution to the United States was often overlooked. During the American Revolutionary War, minorities fought for both entities in the war while working together to fight against inequality.
During the Civil War the Emancipation Proclamation was established by President Abraham Lincoln, this decree contains two executive orders. On September 22, 1862 the first order was released and it basically stated if the Civil War did not end then the all slaves would be making its way into the Western territories. If the succeeded states don’t come back before January 1st then the slaves would be free. On January 1, 1863 the second order was released and specified the states where slaves were declared free. They had to fight for their freedom. He informed them if they came back to the union the slaves would have their freedom.
The Emancipation Proclamation was the African-American Declaration of Independence. It did for a few what the Declaration of Independence did for a nation. It instilled a sense of hope and taste for freedom and equality. The idea of a people securing their natural, or God-given, rights by choosing their own form of government is an idea that was never expressed before the writing of the Declaration of Independence.
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