Words: 678
The French and Indian war was the event that provoked the American Revolution. The French and Indian war or Seven years war, lead to certain events that caused Americans to realize that their English liberties were being denied. The French and Indian war caused debts among the British. The British realized that during the war the income from the colonies was insufficient (document F). After the war, the British needed certain ways in which to gain revenue. They imposed taxes on the Colonists. These taxes, in turn, caused a stir among Americans. The Stamp Act was a tax imposed on the colonists without representation (document H).
Their liberties as English citizens were being denied. Radical Whigs would go as far to say it was a conspiracy because when one was tried for disobeying the Stamp tax one would be tried in Admiral Courts, which did not have presumption of innocence. Other Americans were reluctant revolutionaries, they wanted the tax removed, but, they did not want to secede from Britain. When a colonist served in the army, they were not allowed to be anything higher than a Colonel. This upset many Americans because they believed they, as British citizens, should be able to be a general in the Army.
Americans still wanted to serve Britain; however, they wanted the same privileges as Englishmen (document C) There were also economic reasons as to why the Americans eventually rebelled. After the French and Indian War, Britain gained supremacy in North America (document A). The colonists got a lot of new land; however they were not able to settle it. In an attempt to make the Indians happy and to make sure they won’t rebel, the British imposed the Proclamation of 1763, forbidding the Americans to settle the land (Document B). The Americans were upset with the British.
They felt that, they fought a war and were not able to settle the land that they rightfully won. The land gained by the French and Indian War was also the area where the French lived before, like Quebec. The Quebec Act was an attempt by the British to keep the French in Quebec content. Radical Whigs saw this as a conspiracy because the French did not have rule by law or trial juries. French were Catholic, and Americans saw this as a deal between the corrupt papacy and King George to return to Catholicism. This caused more unrest in the colonies. There were also many reluctant revolutionaries.
Americans considered themselves English and thought they deserved the same rights as Englishmen. Governors and Generals did not believe Americans were Englishmen. They treated the Americans badly. William Pitt’s policy of impressments upset many Americans. He took men off boats and forced them into the army where they were not treated like Englishmen. He also seized supplies for his men from American citizens. However, Americans did not want to secede from Britain. Benjamin Franklin, a reluctant revolutionary, believed that Americans should have English rights but should still be loyal to the Crown (document F).
After the French and Indian war, permanent troops were stationed in America because Britain felt America needed more protection. Americans were forced to house these troops. Americans felt their liberties as Englishmen were being undermined. They thought that they should not have to house troops they did not want there in the first place. Radical Whigs thought it was a conspiracy because once troops were stationed in the colonies Britain would easily be able to have complete control over the Colonists.
The French and Indian war provoked the American Revolution. It led to unwanted taxes which undermined English liberties. It led to the Proclamation of 1763 which did not let Americans to settle their own land. Radical Whigs wanted to secede. Reluctant revolutionaries wanted to stay Englishmen, however, with all the events, which occurred in a chain reaction from the French Revolution, they were forced to rebel. In conclusion, The French and Indian war is the starting point for the American Revolution.