The Road to the Revolution

The Road to The Revolution


After the French and Indian War, in order to please the Native Americans and tighten their control over the colonies, the English passed the Proclamation of 1763, which restricted settlement land for the colonists. This limited the amount of land on which the colonists could farm, which affected their income. The George Grenville Program taxed the colonists in an attempt to raise money. This angered the colonists because the taxes were used as revenue for the British instead of administration like normal taxes. The British passed the Sugar Act which taxed sugar, wine, and coffee for revenue. The colonists boycotted the Sugar Act by refusing to do business with British merchants. This motivated the merchants to complain to the British and get the Act repealed. This showed the colonists that they could take action against unfair laws. Next the British passed the Stamp Act which taxed all paper goods bought in the colonies. The colonists grew angry, and as a result formed the Stamp Act Congress in which they drafted the Declaration of Rights and Grievances. This document states that the British did not have the right to tax the colonies because they did not have representation in the government. The colonists protested with the method of mob violence. They viciously beat tax collectors and caused riots in the city. As a result, the British passed the Declaration Act which repealed the Stamp Act but still gave the British the right to tax the colonies. The Townshend Act made it to where lead, paper, paint, and tea, all much needed supplies, could only be purchased from Britain. The Boycott on British goods made the British take back taxes on everything except tea. All the unfair taxes with no actual representation created an idea of a revolution in the colonies but there was no courage to take action. With every Act they got the British to repeal, it gave the colonists confidence that they had the right to be heard. This created the desire for equality and when it never happened, they had the drive and motive to rebel against the British.