Causes of the American Revolution Key Questions

What are several different ways that the patriots rebelled against British laws?

-ignored/disobeyed British laws -wrote letters and petitions to king -used violence and fear towards tax collectors and loyalists -boycotted British goods (after the goods were taxed)

What were some of the arguments made by the Loyalists?

. Colonists are British subjects and should obey British law 2. Taxes are due to pay for the French & Indian War which was fought to protect the colonies 3. American colonies would be weak without Britain, and subject to attack from other countries 4. Colonies profit from trade with England 5. If America rebels against Great Britain, it will likely lose because Great Britain is the most powerful country in the world. The colonies will likely suffer more by trying to fight against its mother country

What were some of the arguments made by the Patriots?

1.People have rights government cant take away. These rights are natural and given from God 2. The British government has abused its power. King George and Parliament have acted tyrannically 3.Colonists don't have voice in Parliament, so England shouldn't tax colonies (No taxation without representation) 4. There's no way colonies could ever be represented in Parliament because it is too far away. Therefore the colonies should be allowed to freely govern themselves 5.Many colonist fought in the French & Indian War (they had done their part

What is economic interdependence? How did grow over time?

Economic interdependence is when two or more countries depend on each other for trade. Today the world is globally interdependent. Global interdependence began to grow in the 1600s when European countries created colonies and used the economic system of mercantilism

How does Paul Reveres engraving of "the bloody massacre" show bias?

In this engraving, Paul Revere depicts the colonists as being unarmed and defenseless victims. However, the colonists provoked (started) the conflict by taunting/insulting the British, forming a mob and hitting solders with clubs and other objects. This image does not show that the colonists provoked the attack, so this image is very one sided, which means that it is biased. Paul Revere created this image for Samuel Adams who wanted to publish the image and stir up anti-British feelings and bring more colonists to the patriots side.

Why did the colonists call the "Coercive Acts" the "Intolerable Acts"? Explain the aspects of these laws that upset the colonists and why.

Many patriots felt that these acts were unfair and even "intolerable" because they restricted the daily life of citizens of Boston. The acts shut down trade in Boston, deeply hurting their businesses. Further, the acts also shut down the colonial government in Boston. The colonists valued the right to make their own laws so they were very upset when they could no longer make their own laws to rule their colonies. Finally, the presence of British troops was a sign of British control and limitations on their freedoms and rights.

What was the French and Indian War and who fought in it?

The French and Indian War was a war between Great Britain and France over land in North America. The British colonists and Iroquois tribe allied with the British and most other Native American tribes allied with the French.

Why is it important to look for bias in primary sources?

Primary sources are first person accounts of an event Primary sources will always be at least a little bit biased, because every person has their own experiences and opinions. Therefore, if we want to know what has really happened in the past we must look for possible biases in a source to determine which parts might not be completely true (might be the person's opinion.) Finally, we must compare several primary sources of the same event to get a full picture of what happened.

Why did the British begin taxing the colonies? Why did the colonists oppose British taxes on the colonies?

The British began taxing the colonies to repay debt from French and Indian war and to pay for the costs of sending British troops to protect the colonies. The colonists opposed these taxes because they were not given representation (a voice in Parliament: to make laws)

How did the British respond to the Boston tea party? Why did they respond in this way?

The British government passed the Coercive Acts (nicknamed by the patriots as the Intolerable Acts) These acts punished the colonists of Boston for the Boston Tea Party. These acts that were put in place so that the British could control the colonists.

What happened in the Battle of Lexington?

The British troops marched towards Concord to try and take the colonists weapons that they had been stockpiling. However, midnight riders spread the word that the British were coming, and a colonial militia marched to Lexington and intercepted the British. No one knows which side fired first in this first battle of the Revolution. At the end 8 colonists were dead

What was the outcome of the French and Indian War?

The British won land from the French as a result of winning the French and Indian War

What were the effects of the French and Indian war?

The French and Indian war led to conflict between the British and colonists for two reasons. 1: The colonists moved onto the land gained by the British in the war. This caused conflict between the colonists and Native Americans (who already lived on that land.) This led the British Parliament to pass the Proclamation Act which forbid colonist settlement beyond the Appalachian Mountains. Parliament passed this act because it was deeply in debt from the French and Indian war and couldn't afford to continue to send troops to protect the colonists. The colonists were not happy with the act because they wanted to move onto that newly gained land (some ignored the act and moved west anyway) 2: The British were in debt as a result of the war, and felt that the colonists should help pay for the costs of the war, and efforts to protect colonists from Native Americans. Therefore, the British passed the Sugar and Stamp Act to collect money from the colonists in order to help repay their debt. This angered the colonists because they didn't think they should pay taxes because they did not have representation in Parliament

How did colonial government create tension between the colonists and the British government?

The colonists set up their own democratic governments (called colonial assemblies) in each colony. They liked having the ability to rule themselves. However, the British were still citizens of Great Britain and were required laws and orders passed by Parliament and the King. The King appointed a royal governor to oversee each colonial assembly. The royal governor had the power to reject laws passed by the assembly and even dismiss the colonial assembly. This sometimes led to tension because the colonists wanted to rule themselves but they were often limited by the power of the Royal Governor, Parliament and the King.

Were the colonists' rebellions to taxation successful?

The colonists were sometimes successful in their protests. The most successful protest were colonial boycotts of British goods. This sent a very strong message to the British, and several times the British repealed acts that the colonists did not like (Stamp Act, Townsend Acts) because of these boycotts. However, the British King and Parliament strongly believed that they should have the right to tax the colonies, so after the repeal of both the Stamp Act and Townsend Acts, new taxes were passed. Therefore, the colonists felt success only for short periods of time.

What was the root cause of the French and Indian War?

This war began because the French and British both claimed the Ohio River Valley, a region that was fertile and a trade center that connected to the Mississippi River

What happened at the First Continental Congress?

This was meeting of colonists to determine what to do after the Intolerable Acts. They decided to: -send respectful message to King George urging them to recognize their rights -called for a new boycott -formed militias as a backup plan

What happened in the Battle of Concord?

This was the second battle of the American Revolution (the next morning after Lexington.) The British marched to Concord in order to raid colonist ammunition, but they did not find any weapons (the colonists hid them.) The British set fire to buildings in Concord as revenge. The colonists ambushed the British troops on their way back to Boston, killing many.

What were some of the reasons people settled in colonies?

To escape debt or prison To gain wealth in farming, trade or business For political Freedom/ More say Government For Religious Freedom/ Escape religious persecution

Explain why the Tea Act led to the Boston Tea Party

While the tea act actually made British tea cheaper, it also gave the British the power to create monopolies, which concerned the colonists. The colonists knew that with a monopoly Great Britain would be able to eliminate all other competitors who sell certain goods (in this case tea) to the colonies. A monopoly would allow the British companies to raise prices for certain goods. Some patriots felt that is act was unfair because it would lead to an increase in British control over colonial trade. A group of patriots called the "sons of liberty" protested by refusing to unload British tea into Boston, and then dumping that tea into the Boston Harbor

What was the major turning point of the French and Indian War?

William Pitt (Prime Minister of Great Britain) was determined for the British to win the war. In order to accomplish this goal he had the British Parliament borrow a lot of money. The British ended up winning the war as a result of William Pitt's efforts. (However, at the end of the war the British were deeply in debt)