PRIMARY CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AND ITS

This research paper examines whether British mishandling of the American colonies during the period 1763-1776 was the primary cause of the American Revolution and whether American independence was inevitable. By the end of the Seven Years War (1756-1763), deep geopolitical, political, economic and other external and internal factors had developed which would have, sooner or later, led to a fundamental reshaping of the relationship between the colonies and the mother country and probably to full independence. A more enlightened policy by Great Britain toward the colonies would have slowed the patriotic movement. The actual policies pursued by Britain aroused nationalistic passions and produced an unprecedented degree of colonial unity. Political instability in Britain in the 1760s and inept monarchical and ministerial leadership there, which compared unfavorably with the high calibre of colonial leadership, accelerated the collision, which was further intensified by misunderstandings and inflamed sentiment on both sides of the Atlantic. The inevitability of revolution exploding in 1775-1776 is gainsaid by the thin margin of mass support for the War of Independence within the colonies. Given the temper and commonly held attitudes at the time, revolution and complete separation became the only possible outcomes.

Primary Causes of Serious Colonial Discontent

Great Britain's victories in North America, at sea

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, which might then have led to armed conflict, petered out after commercial interests in England as well as in the colonies opposed the tax. The new government of the Marquis de Rockingham repealed the Stamp Tax after Pitt denounced it in January 1766. Henceforth, no taxation without representation would be a major rallying cry of the patriots who largely took control of colonial assemblies. The new government formed by Pitt, dubbed the Earl of Chatham, was largely rudderless after he suffered a mental breakdown in 1767. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Charles Townshend, emerged as the strong man in the government. The 1767 Townshend Acts imposed a new series of customs duties and taxes which were designed in part to pay the salaries of governors and other royal officials and to reduce their dependence on colonial assemblies. According to Christie, these Acts "posed a far more serious threat to colonial self-government than Grenville's measures." The colonists reacted with another boycott against goods imported from England which, Christie said, "had almost complete success." The Townshend Acts were repealed in 1770, but the duty on tea remained as a constant irritant to better relations. Prelude to Revolution 1770-1774 T
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Approximate Word count = 2346
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)

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