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How Did The British Support The American Revolution

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The American Revolution was a war for independence between the American colonists and the British. The tension was caused by the varying opinions about the taxes being placed on the colonies by the Parliament. The colonists believed that the taxes were unfair and unlawful, and that they should declare independence from England. On the other hand, the British believed that they had every right to tax “their” colonies. Both sides had several reasons supporting their point of view. According to the colonists living in North America, the taxes and acts imposed were unfair. Firstly, the British taxed them without their consent and didn’t give the colonists a say in the Parliament. Shouldn’t they be allowed to have representatives now that they were being taxed directly? Additionally, the people living in the colonies were not given that same rights as other English citizens. For example, …show more content…

For instance, they believed that they should have the right to tax the colonies that only exist because of the support England offered. They had also supplied their settlements with a market to trade goods in, so shouldn’t the people living there be loyal to them and their decisions? Moreover, the colonists should have to pay off part of the debt that was caused when Britain protected and fought for the colonies in the war. If it wasn’t for their interests of moving into the Ohio River Valley, there wouldn’t have been dues to repay. Some argue that only their colonial governments can tax them. However, this isn’t true, for the Declaratory Act states that Britain can make decisions for all colonies in all cases. Finally, the colonists barely have to pay anything compared to other English citizens. People residing in England pay 17 pounds each, equal to $340 whereas the inhabitants of the New World only had to pay 18 shillings, or $18. In conclusion, the English have many points backing up their decision to tax the

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"Those who want to reap the benefits of this great nation must bear the fatigue of supporting it" (Thomas Paine). This quote relates to the struggles that the British had to endure while finding solutions for their many dilemmas. In order for the British to have full advantage over the colonial nation, they had to overcome these issues. They figured that they could press the American colonists to help share this burden, which would not only be a solution for their problems, but would also increase their power throughout the country. Therefore, the British desired to tax the American colonists due to the financial consequences of the French and Indian war, to demonstrate sovereignty, and for defense against the French.

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This is critical because Britain had been taxing the colonists without their consent, then assumed the role of judge and jury. The colonists right to a fair trial and jury, and should not have had to pay taxes they did not consent to. Samuel Adams describes the way that the colonists felt after the Intolerable Acts were passed in Document 15: “The people receive this cruel edict with abhorrence and indignation.” The Intolerable Acts shut down the Boston harbor and the Declaratory Acts gave Britain total power of the colonies. The

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The British government believed that the colonies existed solely to serve the interests of Britain and should be used to provide raw materials and a market for British goods. This undemocratic feature meant that the colonists had limited economic opportunities and were not allowed to trade with other countries. The British government also imposed taxes on the colonists to finance their wars and to maintain their empire, which the colonists saw as an unfair burden. Another undemocratic feature of the American Colonies was the concept of the Navigation Acts.

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According to Benjamin Franklin, “Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God and nature.” In relation to this, many of the colonists believed that the natural freedom that belonged to them under God, was stripped away from them under British rule. Years after years of unfair actions opposed upon the colonists by the British eventually led the colonists to take action against them in an attempt to gain freedom and independence. After the French and Indian war, Britain was left in debt and looked to the colonists for revenue. They exercised certain acts such as the Sugar Act 1764, Stamp Act 1765, and Townshend Revenue Acts of 1767, that unfairly taxed and restricted the colonists.

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Nobody that lived in the colonies was able to represent them in the English Parliament. An expert in colonial affairs did represent the colonies, but had never lived in the colonies. The main difference between the colonists and English views on taxation is actual versus virtual representation. Colonists were upset

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The French and Indian War was important to the American Revolution because the debt from the war was the reason that Parliament started taxing the colonists. Also, the French and Indian War made Britain very weak, making the colonists’ actions work a whole lot better. Since France was not happy with the outcome of their war with Britain this was a main reasons for France’s interest in helping the now Americans throughout the Revolutionary War, which was very important to the colonies’ victory. ​The reason why Britain started to tax the colonists was because of the debt resulting from the French and Indian War. The first tax was the the tax on sugar, which was put on the colonists to help pay off the war debt.

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The issue that angered colonists the most in the New World was Britain’s taxation. Towards the beginning of 1700’s, most taxes in the colonies were based on settlement assemblies and land ownerships, but the addition of taxes on trade only created more tension. Before colonists could unload the docks, they had to pay the taxes before they were allowed to get the items off the ships. Whenever someone bought goods that were traded, they were paying an unintended tax from London which was not tolerated by Americans. The distance between Britain and the colonies gave Americans more independence giving them the advantage.

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The colonists wanted representation when it came down to being taxed, but the British government would not allow it. The government wanted full control over the people, so they made sets of acts and laws that were placed on taxation. For example, the Stamp Acts of 1765. These acts taxed all papers, pamphlets, newspapers, and cards. The Townshend Acts of 1767 were also a large part of taxation.

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If the members of parliament voted for a tax, they were also going to be affected by the tax. This made those virtually represented in England much more content with their lack of voting power. The American colonies on the other hand were not virtually represented. There were not any members of parliament that would be affected by the actions of parliament on the colonies. They could enact as many taxes as they wanted because they would never have to pay them.

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Many resisted to these taxes and this led to the Boston Massacre and Boston Tea Party. The colonies felt that the British violated their natural rights, so the Patriots organized the Continental Congress, and demanded the repeal of all “oppressive” legislation and their liberty. The Continental Congress proposed the Declaration of Independence that is the foundation of creating the new government that protect each individual's rights. It reflects the Patriots ideals for this Revolution and the new nation, United States of America; where it stated “ all men are created equal that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness... ”, this does not apply to the slaves. As you can see, the reasons for and ideals of the American Revolution was to create a new nation, where everyone’s natural rights are protected, does not included the

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The rights that the American colonists felt like they were being denied was that they have no say in any important taxes that were placed on them. They also felt like they weren’t able to worship or make their own laws or at least have some say in that department. The overall story is that the American colonists felt like they must run everything through the King and parliament and that they had no say. An example of this would be the stamp act of 1765 which made taxes on all legal documents. There were taxes gradually growing in everything the British could think of.

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“The history of present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations [unlawful seizures], all having in direct object the establishments of an absolute Tyranny over these States. ”(Document E). The British taxed just about anything they could; like tea, paper, legal documents, and stamps “Committees are appointed into the characters and conduct of every tradesman, to prevent them selling tea or buying British manufactures. ”(Document I) The British were taxing the American colonists to pay what Britain lost in the French and Indian war.

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