Reasons Why America Revolted Against England

The American Revolution was a pivotal time in American history. It is obvious. Events happening differently could have resulted in peace or just flat out losing the war. It is important to know how we got to the point of revolting though. It is a major part of history and there are 3 mains reasons why: The first and most used reason is taxation without representation. If you asked one hundred Americans today why we revolted, almost all would probably say because of taxes. This is true though. After the French and Indian War, parliament had a lot of debt and needed funds. They thought that the colonies should have to pay for some of the expenses. The colonists were not happy with this, and when the Stamp Act passed in 1765, it planted the seed of discontent. Over the next ten years, England kept imposing and revoking taxes until both sides got frustrated and both did not want to compromise. So each side believing they were right, it set the course for the revolution, also it gave the colonist a direct object to fight for and that’s why it is a reason. The second and most rarely discussed reason is the American Enlightenment. Most people would not even know we had enlightenment. But we did. The ideas of Locke, Hobbes, Rousseau, liberalism, and republicanism took hold in the intellectual leaders of the colonies. These people increasingly saw the English government as being corrupt and diminishing American liberties. The colonists saw how they were treated as second class citizens, and the American enlightenment gave them ideas to turn to. You have to believe something is better to think another thing is worse. That’s why the American Enlightenment was important. It showed the colonists that there was more liberty to gain and gave them ideals for which they should gain their rights. The third and final reason is we had no other choice. After being rebellious and misbehaving a little, the colonies still wanted to be a part of the empire. It is like a teenage kid