Introduction
The American Revolution was a significant development towards independence. The event marked a historical success in the struggle for freedom from British colonization and is considered the most influential Revolution in modern history. The British rule was frustrating and cruel, contributing to the struggle for independence, life, and happiness. Gaining freedom seemed like a far-fetched idea, but conflicts accumulated over time, leading to the Revolution and ultimate liberty. This essay discusses historical events that directly or indirectly led to the Revolution and independence in America between 1765 to 1776.
The Stamp Act, 1965
After the French war, the British suffered significant losses resulting in debts and financial struggles. The Stamp Act, enacted to tax all colonies, was meant to facilitate debt repayments and stabilize the British economy. According to the British, they had sacrificed a lot of resources and lives in the French war to protect the colonies and saw it fit for the colonies to pay heavy taxes as repayment. Before the French war, all territories had separate administrations that decided on the tax amounts and collection (Passant, 2017); thus, most colonists did not welcome the central taxation system. American colonists already resented buying goods from the British, so the idea of paying tax for the goods received further resentment. As a result, colonists started riots all over the streets, making collecting taxes impossible. Benjamin Franklin tried to intervene by proposing the cancellation of the act (Brown, 2017). Still, after the cancellation, colonists got more courage to rebel against the British in the future since they could concede.
The Townshend Act, 1767
The British still tried to impose their power by enacting laws taxing all imports from Britain after the Stampp Act. The rules prohibited illegal trade by the colonies by stationing their own customs officers and forcing all tread transactions to pass through customs (Passant, 2017). However, Americans decided to boycott the taxed goods and harass the customs officials, resulting in the British invasion of Boston escalating the Americans’ need for freedom.
The Boston Tea Party, 1773
The Boston tea party was among the major factors leading to the American Revolution and independence. After the Townsend event, the British annulled most of the legislative rules of the Townsend act and withdrew their armed forces from Boston. However, they left taxation on tea and enacted a new law, the Tea Act, to support the financial instabilities of the British East India company. In the act, the East India Company was exempted from taxation, given a monopoly over all tea exportations to the colonies, and given duty refunds on surplus tea in its possession (Passant, 2017). Giving monopoly over all tea exports allowed only East India Company ships to sell tea through its agents at a lower price than the American merchants, bringing a conflict of interest. Therefore, colonists allied to riot against the tea act, involving raiding British tea ships. The rebellion was harmless as the rebels only destroyed the tea by throwing tea chests in the water and spared all lives without vandalizing anything in the boats, which clearly showed that the merchants were displeased with the tea act. However, the parliament imposed more strict rules on trade as a way of retaliating against the colonists. As a result, colonists became more united in preparing for war to deft the British and gain independence.
The Coercive Acts, 1774
After the Boston tea party, the British decided to punish the rebellious colonists by imposing legislative laws to control them in Coercive acts. The Coercive Act’s first law, the Boston Port Act, included closing the Boston harbor until the colonists paid for the destructions made. The Massachusetts Government Act involved replacing the colonist’s council with a British-appointed committee, giving sweeping powers to the British general, and forbidding meetings without British approval. The Administration of The Justice Act issued provisions to protect British criminal officials, thus eliminating fair trials. Finally, according to colonists, the most provoking act was the Quartering Act, which demanded colonists cover the expenses of British military troops who stayed in vacated buildings within towns (Strow & Strow, 2018). According to colonists, troops should remain in upcountry camps to save on extra costs (Mohamed, 2018). Alternatively, the British could pay for their troops rather than impose the expense on them. The Quartering act became a great source of conflict during the Revolution leading to independence.
British Attack on Coastal Towns-1776
Although southern and northern colonists had conflicts of interest with each other where each group lived and functioned independently, the British war on the coastal areas brought them together to fight for a common goal. The British navy attacked coastal towns, burning and destroying everything in Norfolk, Massachusetts, and Falmouth (Brown, 2017). The northerners in Falmouth had to flee with difficulty and very few possessions in fear. Southerners also withdrew from Norfolk and started mobilizing colonists to invade the colonists’ burning ports in fear of African insurrection. According to southerners, the British attack would give Africans freedom; therefore, colonists had to act quickly to avoid the slave insurrection (Mohamed, 2018). Thus, southern rebels called for a union with the northerners to defeat the British, leading to their ultimate independence.
Conclusion
Most of the conflicts discussed did not directly lead to the Revolution and independence from British rule. Although negotiations could suffice in resolving the issues, the need to obtain freedom overrode reason. Hence the conflicts accumulated, leading to a military battle, sacrificing many lives for the greater good. In the end, the clashes led to a historical revolution marking independence, democracy, and a new nation that other countries followed to achieve worldwide.
References
Brown, M. (2017). A Founding, If You Can Keep It. The Independent Review, 21(4), 489-496. Web.
Mohamed, I. S. (2018). Between social democracy and communism: an institutional and socioeconomic perspective. The International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 38(9), 698-721. Web.
Passant, J. (2017). Taxation and the American revolution. Australasian Accounting, Business And Finance Journal, 11(3), 20-29. Web.
Strow, B. K., & Strow, C. W. (2018). Social Choice and the American Revolution. Journal of Applied Economics & Policy, 33(1), 33-54. Web.