Preview

Defining the American Revolution

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1028 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Defining the American Revolution
Defining the Revolution

When looking back in American history the Revolution is arguably one of the greatest turning points from its past. The American Revolution emancipated the New England colonies from Britain and led them on a path to become the powerful nation they currently are. This Revolution is incredibly significant and changed more than one would imagine in the United States. Prior to the American Revolution Britain controlled the trade throughout the colonies and only allowed them to trade with Britain. This was universally seen as negative through the colonies and was one of the many reasons why the Colonists felt they should be free. Another way in which Britain economically controlled the colonies were by imposing taxes, such as the Stamp and Sugar Act, which were see as unjust. The belief of “No taxation without representation” was unanimous throughout the colonies and led to much conflict. When America became independent through the Revolution, the Colonists made the decision for their country to have free trade and to only tax the citizens for the benefit or their own country. Not only did the American Revolution benefit the United States economically, it also had a large political impact. By writing and signing the Declaration of Independence, the Colonists created a new government in the name of “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” (The Declaration of Independence). This document separated the United States from the Parliament and allowed the Colonists to build a government in a way they saw fit. The American Revolution was critical to the development of the United States. Through this Revolution, America earned the economic and political freedom that the Colonists believed they deserved. Following the victory of the Seven Years War, the Parliament of Britain was in need of money to compensate for the price of the war. One way that the parliament attempted to increase their income was by giving more taxes to the American

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The American Revolution was caused by unfair taxes on everyday goods, such as tea and other items. The colonies revolted against Britain in 1776 when they signed the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution was ratified in 1787, establishing a democratic government based on Enlightenment thinkers. A system of Checks and Balances was put in effect. It prevented any one person or group from gaining too much power, and prevented a monarchy, where one person has control over the government.…

    • 454 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The justification of the American Revolution is often questioned years after its occurrence. Taxation without Representation became a great setback for the English parliament. The Intolerable acts weighed heavily on the American colonists who began to seek independence. The English did not identify with the colonists views, which ultimately led to British defeat. Primary sources validate the reasoning and rationality in support of both perspectives during the war.…

    • 1003 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The American Revolution was predicated by a number of ideas and events that, combined, led to a political and social separation of colonial possessions from the home nation and a coalescing of those former individual colonies into an independent nation.…

    • 1884 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    The American Revolution embarked the beginning of the United States of America. A war that lasted eight years, 1775-1783, was able to grant the thirteen colonies the independence they deserved by breaking free of British rule. The war was an effect of the previous French and Indian War, which forced England to tax the American colonist, compelling them to rebel against parliament. From the 1760’s to 1775, many factors lead up to the American Revolution such as the various acts the British Parliament passed to pay the war debt, no representation in parliament, and the American people wanting to gain their independence. “No Taxation without Representation”, a slogan used by the American colonist, was the most important cause of the colonists declaring war for their independence on the British government.…

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Harbinger Study Notes

    • 2960 Words
    • 10 Pages

    The American Revolution began in 1775 as open conflict between the united thirteen coloniesand Great Britain. By the Treaty of Paris that ended the war in 1783, the colonies had won their independence. While no one event can be pointed to as the actual cause of the revolution, the war began as a disagreement over the way in which Great Britain treated the colonies versus the way the colonies felt they should be treated. Americans felt they deserved all the rights of Englishmen. The British, on the other hand, felt that the colonies were created to be used in the way that best suited the crown and parliament. This conflict is embodied in one of the rallying cries of the American Revolution: No Taxation Without Representation.…

    • 2960 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The American Revolution occurred when the American colonists wanted to be free from Britain. After the war, the colonies had won and became their own country, but was the American Revolution revolutionary? The Revolution was revolutionary because it was the beginning of ending slavery, made people think about women’s rights, and America was free from Britain.…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The American Revolution, which was the strive of the colonial america to obtain independence, should have really been called, The British Revolution, for it was the British who brought upon the actions that made the final separation between the colonies and Great Britain. The colonies wanted to separate from the British because of the unfair demands and taxes they gave from 1763 through 1776. There were various problems for the colonists; politically, economically, religiously, and socially. Following the French and Indian War, the British had to take action in order to restore what was lost in the war. These actions are what pushed the colonial america to want a separation from Britain, they had it with Britain undermining them and just using them to the point where the colonists felt like slaves. After all, the colonies were just used as much as they could in favor of the crown.…

    • 763 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Free Response APUSH

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Politically the colonies had gone through many key changes in ideology that gave the idea of revolution the traction that it would need to gain public support. The people that encouraged revolution such as Thomas Paine, the writer of the essay entitled common sense, would be crucial in uniting the American people into a fighting force that could withstand the terrible devastation that a war with Britain would precipitate. Another political ideology that would prove crucial was the enlightenment movement that started before the Revolution. Enlightenment was a movement spearheaded by intellectuals. These reformers sought to challenge ideas that were accepted as common place in their respective societies. The unrepresented taxation by the British was one of the many policy that had become simply accepted without resistance or action until the enlightenment movement. Colonists were able to see that the world that they lived in was unfair and that it was within their power to change that and make it right. Overall politics had a very profound effect in uniting the people of the United States under certain ideologies. This unification allowed them to start the revolution. Although politics would not win them any fighting once the war had begun it was a crucial aspect of why the colonies were able to win the war.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What caused the little country to voice its mighty roar and take on the world giant? The timing of the American Revolution was right for both the colonists and the British subjects in England. For the colonists, they felt that they did not have a voice in Parliament and the laws and taxes that Parliament passed on to them were unfair, unjust and illegal. This was the being of the frustration felt by the colonists, but it had not yet reached the boiling point. When Parliament passed the 1763 Proclamation, which stated that the colonists could not settle west of the Appalachian Mountains, The Stamp Tax, and the now ever-present standing army, this was the last straw, which caused the colonists to rebel. At this same time, the British subjects in England began to feel that the colonies were becoming too much of a drain on their financial system and were causing their taxes to go higher to support the safety and control of the colonies. As individual colonies,…

    • 1129 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    If it wasn’t for the American revolution, the United States wouldn’t be where it is today. After this revolution, an important document was drafted such as the Constitution. America has all its freedom today because of the Constitution and its Amendments. It affects almost everything we can and can't do today and the religions that people get to practice and believe in. American exceptionalism is important in American politics today. From puritans in New England to presidential candidates today, political leaders have given voice to the idea of American exceptionalism. America is a free nation politically and individually. We as a nation are ruled by national and individual interests, which are established on our own constitution that is made…

    • 258 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Throughout the history of the United States of America, the American Revolutionary War was undoubtedly the event that was most impactful and decisive towards the ultimate fate of this country. Without it, this country wouldn’t have seen its formation in the first place. It began in the 1750’s and 1760’s, when British colonists who settled in the 13 colonies became fed up with British rule, taxation, and laws set on them. For example, when the taxes for tea were imposed on the colonies, a large majority started revolting, and strived for liberty from the British, so that they could govern themselves and create their own laws. As a result, many who lived in the colonies, including famous patriots, eventually sparked a revolution until a full-out…

    • 2389 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    A common misconception is that the American Revolution was a war fought to gain independence from the tyranny of King George. The American Revolution was no such thing, but it was a political movement that wanted change. The American Revolution included all things from the Boston tea party to the intolerable acts. These acts brought out a dramatic change in the colonies. The American Revolution brought about tremendous change by transforming the colonists who were no longer subject to the crown, into individuals of a republic which created new political significance to the meaning of the citizen.…

    • 696 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The American Revolution had a very big impact on the lives of millions at the time and history. It was a separation of the original 13 colonies from the British Empire. After years of the colonies trying to gain representatives in Parliament, they had enough. However the Revolution was not started because of one single thing that bothered the colonists. It was more like dominos which made one thing lead to another. The Colonists were able to defeat the British despite many disadvantages, due to the assistance from the French, better knowledge of the land and their determination of the soldiers.…

    • 241 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    It is necessary that the American Revolution helped the Americans to see themselves as an independent nation without the control of the another nation. At first, the Colonist and Britain work together as one, but British take Colonist just for their benefit. British partner with Colonist, to taxes them, control land, and attempt to take gold. After the French and Indian War, British government economic control over the Colonies, but then British taxes them so hard that make them feeling angry. Colonies feel like their right has been trampled. So the Colonies decided they will needed to break away from British and became a separate nation. The British disagree, then war happen, Colonies just want to prove themselves…

    • 390 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The American Revolution fundamentally changed American society in many different ways. Americans gained independence from Great Britain and began to govern themselves democratically and deal with their own dilemmas like slavery, internal revolts and rights of different groups of people without foreign interference. They utilized farming as the main labor but trade and manufacturing also picked up due to the end of mercantilism and the Navigation Laws.…

    • 676 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays