Revolution Causes
Soon after England established the colonies in the New World, it began a period of salutary neglect. The English rarely intervened with colonial business. It was during this time that the colonies began gradually to think and act independently of England. This scared England, and initiated a period in which they became more involved in the colony's growth. Parliament tried o establish power in the New World by issuing a series of laws. The passage of these laws undermined the Colonist's loyalty to Britain and stirred the Americans to fight for their freedom. Before 1763, the only British laws that truly affected the colonists were the Navigation Acts, which monitored the colony's trade so that it traded solely with England. As this law was not rigidly enforced, the colonists accepted it with little fuss. The colonies also accepted England's right to monitor trade. The change of course in 1767 was what really riled the colonists. England began to slowly tighten its imperial grip to avoid a large reaction from the colonists. Additional problems began when England passed the Writs of Assistance, which gave British officials the right to seize illegal goods, and to examine any building or ship without proof of cause (The American R
This was arguably the first blood spilled in the name of the American Revolution. The Act stated that all Americans must used specially stamped paper for printing bills, legal documents, even playing cards (The American Revolution: War for Independence, pg. The building tension would soon undermine the colony's loyalty to England. The Prime Minister claimed that the Colonists were "virtually represented" in parliament: each member stood for the empire as a whole (The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution, pg. The business community appealed to parliament to repeal the stamp act or have all the merchants go bankrupt. They believed their rebellion had made Britain realize their vitality to the empire and all the anti-act groups disbanded. As Americans did not deem the soldier's presence as necessary in the New World, obviously they despised the tax. When this happened, the Americans had already developed such a sense of independence that nothing the British could have done could have destroyed it. The Sugar Act of 1764 was an example of a tax that had many affects on the Colonial lifestyle. The acts imposed by England to try to control and monitor America only succeeded in furthering its independence. They rightfully assumed that if the officials who issued the act resigned the act would be terminated.
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