Coercive/ Intolerable Acts

Outline

-What was it -how did it affect them -what was the quebec act -why did it upset them -british perspective -how did it lead to war

What were the Intolerable/Coercive Acts?

A series of laws passed by Parliament as a direct result of the Boston Tea Party. The laws passed closed Boston Harbor, outlawed colonial government in Massachusetts (including town meetings) in favor of British appointed government officials, allowed the trials of royal officials to be moved to Britain or another colony, and re-enforced the Quartering Act.

How did the Intolerable Acts affect the colonists?

In response to the Boston Tea Party, Parliament passed a series of laws, specifically targeting Boston. These laws included the closing of Boston Harbor until the money for the tea was refunded. Also British officials, charged with the murder of colonists, would be put on trial in Britain where the colonists were hated. What was really intolerable was the Quatering Act, which made the colonists responsible for housing, feeding, and clothing British officials.

Why did the Quebec Act upset colonists?

It not only expanded the Quebec territory all the way to the Ohio River, restricting the colonists from expanding, but the act of allowing religious freedom to the Catholics upset the prodominatly Protestant colonies. It also showed the colonists that Britain increased their controll of religion, government and land distribution in North America. While the Intolerable Acts were mainly focused on Massachusetts, the Quebec Act showed every colony that Britain would control their government.

What was the Quebec Act?

Set up government for the territory taken from France in 1763. It claimed the land between Ohio and the Missouri rivers as part of Canada. It blocked colonists from moving west.

The British perspective

The British wanted someone to pay for the amount of money thrown into the harbor so they punished Boston with the Intolerable Acts. The expansion of Quebec was seen as an obstacle for the colonists so as to deter them from provoking the Native American tribes. They wished to prevent another Seven Years' War.

How did the Intolerable Acts lead to the Revolutionary War?

The Intolerable Acts were supposed to punish Massachusetts and push them away from the other colonies. However, this act came too late and, rather surpress the colonies, it provided a motivation for the first meeting of the colonies, the First Continental Congress, and ultimately lead to the Revolutionary war. The Quebec Act, passed a few months after that meeting, created a larger resentment for British control.