Revolutionary Movement

REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT The reasons for the American Revolutionary Movement are diverse and numerous; however, one reason stands above them all: economics. Ever since the first settlers began to colonize the United States, economics have been present as the foundation for the country. Our society today is derived from money matters just as it was in the time before and during the Revolution. The British fighting the French and Indian War was a base for strong financial changes that led to the Revolution. This was closely followed by the Declaratory Act that allowed the taxing of the colonies and the Intolerable Acts made by the British. They all had strong influences in the economics of the country that led to the Revolutionary War. In 1754, the British fought the French for the final of four wars in what we know as the French and Indian War. It was a fight to see who would rule in North America, and it was eventually won by the British. Despite their victory, the British were forced into debt, and their solution to get out of it involved one thing: taxing the colonies. This led to the formation of the Grenville Taxes. Two of these, the Quartering Act and the Stamp Tax, brought uproar from the colonists. The Quartering Act forced the colonists to house and feed British Soldiers with no additional money given to them. Many of the colonists didn't have the money to feed the soldiers, so it caused them to go into debt, which affected the financial side of the communities because the people were becoming so poor. After the Quartering Act, the British brought on the Stamp Tax. This was the first direct tax on the colonists, and it got them all riled up. A group known as the Sons of Liberty was formed and they led a boycott against the British taxing claiming that there should be "no taxation without representation". The tax changed the economics of the colonies, causing them to lose money rapidly, but the boycott came back in retaliation against the British. Because the British were no longer getting money from the colonists to pay off their debt, their finances were suffering, triggering the repeal of the tax. The Sons of Liberty appealed to the king about the Stamp Tax, so the king repealed the tax using the Declaratory Act. This act still allowed the king to tax the colonies, and he made full use of that fact. One year after passing the Declaratory Act, the king brought around the Townsend Act and put a tax on lead, paper, paint and tea, as these were the items most economically important to the colonists at the time. After much debate, all the taxes were revoked except for the one on tea. Nevertheless, the damage to the economy of New England was done, and the wealth of the country was declining rapidly, angering the colonists. The settlers in the colonies didn't agree with the British taking all of their hard-earned money, and so they were slowly building up to the American Revolution in retaliation. This led to the Boston Tea Party which was once again spear-headed by the Sons of Liberty. England grew very angry with the colonists destroying all their tea, and instead of giving the colonist what they wanted, they jacked-up the tax price on the tea and made them pay for what they had ruined. Once again the economy was dropping because all of the money was going to the British. With every act performed by the British that involved money, the colonists were becoming angrier with their mother country which caused them to strike back. The final acts made by the British were the real turn. These are known as the Intolerable Acts, and they are what finally brought the colonists to the Revolution. The Intolerable Acts are made up of several things done by the British, but the two that made the most impact were the ones that involved money. The British passed the Boston Port Bill which closed the port in Boston. This devastated the economy as the colonists could no longer import or export goods from one of their biggest ports. It caused inflation in prices and a riot within the colonies. Already angry with the British, the colonists now saw everything that England did as unforgivable and a reason to fight. Another one of the most influential Intolerable Acts was the increase quartering of troops. This happened because the charter stating that the colonists no longer had to house soldiers was revoked, and more troops were sent to keep the over-ambitious colonists under control. Fuming with anger at once again having to pay for not only them, but at least one other person as well, each colonist was finally thrown over the top, and they started to fight to gain their own country. From the time the British fought the French in the French and Indian War to when they instated the Declaratory and Intolerable Acts, economics became the main force driving the colonists into the American Revolution. Not only did England try to take advantage of the new colonies to earn money, but it seemed to neglect the fact that it was throwing the people into debt. Having to give all of their money to Britain, the colonists became infuriated, so they fought back and it led to the American Revolution. Economics were and are very important to every country, so it is understandable that inflation in prices and higher taxes could have led the American Revolutionary Movement, and it is even easier to accept that it was what primarily drove to colonists to begin fighting back.