Causes of the American Revolution

1
Causes of the American Revolution

• The War for Independence

2
Loosening the Ties

• After the Glorious Revolution of 1688 in England
  and the collapse of the Dominion of New England
  in America, the English government made no
  serious effort to tighten its control over the
  colonies for over seventy years.
• The people of the colonies appreciated this
  freedom.

3
The Two Georges

• When George III ascended the English throne in
  1760, the situation for the colonies changed.
• George III made George Grenville the prime
  minister in 1763.
• Together, the two of them set about trying to
  impose a new system of control upon the colonies.

4
How do you think the people of the colonies
reacted to this new system of control?

• Were they accepting?
• Were they upset?

5
The Colonial Response

• The colonists resented the new imperial
  regulations.
• There was something in the Grenville program to
  antagonize virtually everyone.
• The colonists had no interest in giving up their
  political autonomy.

6
Grenvilles Acts

• Mutiny Act
• Sugar Act
• Stamp Act

7
Ready to Revolt

• The colonists wanted to protect their political
  autonomy.
• The newly organized Sons of Liberty started to
  terrorize agents working on behalf of the English
  government.

8
Nothing Changes

• Grenville was replaced by the flamboyant Charles
  Townshend.
• Instead of bringing the two sides closer
  together, Townshend makes the volatile situation
  worse.
• He did this by levying new taxes on various goods
  imported to the colonies from England.

9
The Massacre

• On March 5, 1770, several British soldiers fired
  into a crowd of angry Bostonians.
• Five people were killed.

10
Public Outcry

• The victims of the Boston Massacre became popular
  martyrs.
• Resistance leaders, like Paul Revere and Samuel
  Adams, expressed their outrage about this symbol
  of British oppression and brutality.

11
Representation

• Colonists did not feel it was right for them to
  be taxed without their consent.
• Instead of virtual representation, they wanted
  actual representation.

12
Tea Trouble

• The Tea Act of 1773 pushed many colonists over
  the edge.
• Bostonians dumped tea chests into the harbor as a
  form of protest.

13
Colonies Unite

• All these different Acts passed by the English
  government wound up uniting the colonies.
• They all shared something in common a hatred for
  English rule.

14
The Colonies Have Had Enough

• The first shots are fired at Lexington and
  Concord.
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