The Real Story of the American Revolution 

Origins of American Resistance, 1700-1763

Latest changes: 08Mar30 - align dates better / 08May28 - 1754 events / 08Jun05 - more on F I War /

Economic Restrictions  A number of regulations that had been enacted by the British Parliament rather than the colonial government restricted the liberty of colonists to use the resources which were on their own property and to buy goods from and sell goods to whomever they pleased. These had annoyed colonists for decades. [See Maier, "From Resistance to Revolution"] Restriction of Trading Partners: Since the 1650s the only way imported or exported goods could enter Great Britain's colonies was on English ships manned by English crews. Thus all French goods received in the colonies had to be first shipped to England (on English ships manned by English crews), then charged import duty, and then sold to the colonies by an English middleman (at a higher price to provide some profit) and shipped again (on English ships manned by English crews). [Boatner, pp 773-5] Restriction of Use of Property: The White Pine Act of 1722 and 1729 banned colonists from cutting trees that were needed as masts in building British navy ships. Most of the large trees suitable for tall masts had already been cut down in the British Isles, and this act required that all suitable American trees would be reserved for use by the navy. The Iron Acts of 1750 and 1757 prohibited the construction of iron finishing plants in the colonies and eliminated the duty on iron shipped to England. [Boatner, pp 775]

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1754-1763: The War That Made America  "In the primeval forest of western Pennsylvania 250 years ago, the French and British empires clashed in a violent struggle for territory that spread throughout North America. Indian nations entered the war with their own interests at heart, desperate to keep control of the land for their own people. The French and Indian War raged for seven years, and during this bloody conflict an inexperienced Virginian militia colonel named George Washington, serving under the British flag, learned battle lessons that would shape his future. "Through this war the empire of France in North America was destroyed, changing the course of our world forever. Britain -- cash strapped by victory -- turned to its colonists to help bear the burdens of empire by imposing taxation upon them, igniting the American Revolution. " [quoted from the WQED Website] The War That Made America [Station WQED -- Pittsburgh PA] is a Web site of history, suggested heritage tours, and comemorations based on a four-hour TV series of that name that premiered on PBS in January 2006. George Washington and the Start of the War The Ohio River Valley was a pleasant place to live, and for many generations before 1700 there had been conflicting claims and battles for posession, first among various Amerindian groups, then extending to French Canadians and the British colonies of Pennsylvania and Virginia. In the early 1750s the French built forts along the Ohio River, and in response (in 1754) Virginia's Colonial Governor Dinwiddie sent a militia regiment under Lt. Col. George Washington (age 22) to build and defend a fort at the forks of the Ohio (where Pittsburgh is today). Washington's regiment discovered and ambushed a small French-Amerindian scouting party and learned that a much larger French force was nearby. The scouting party's leader, Ensign Joseph Coulon de Jumonville, was murdered during interrogation in Washington's custody. Washington, who was awaiting reinforcements, began building a defensive structure, "Fort Necessity", in anticipation of an attack by the larger French group, led by Jumonville's half-brother. On July 4 (a month later) Washington's regiment was overwhelmed by the larger French force. The colonial troops were allowed to keep their weapons and return to Virginia only after Washington agreed to sign a statement (in French) saying that he had killed the French officer. It is not clear whether Washington -- who could not read French -- knew exactly what he was signing. 1754 - The First Proposal for United Action of the Colonies At the request of the British government colonial delegates from MA, NH, CT, RI, NY, PA, and MD and delegates from the Iroquois nation met in Albany NY in 1754 June to consider agreeing to work together to oppose the threat of French expansion south of Canada. They considered several plans to facilitate consultation and coordinated action. The colonial delegates agreed to propose Benjamin Franklin's Albany Plan of Union to their colonial councils. Franklin believed that the colonies could better provide for defense through a united council that could raise taxes and develop coordinated plans for troops and forts. All of the councils to whom the plan was presented voted down the proposal. Franklin was sent to London in 1757 to represent the interests of the colony of Pennsylvania (and later other colonies). He remained there until 1775, learning much about art of diplomacy and making many valuable contacts in the business and diplomatic communities. Great Britain now engaged in an expensive conflict that had strong negative consequences for relations with the colonists. During the first two years British forces lost most of the major battles to allied French-Amerindian forces in North America. In 1756 military conflict expanded in Europe as The Seven Years' War, as Prussia (the ally of Great Britain) and Austria (the ally of France) -- backed by Russia -- fought for dominance of the Germanic states while France and England engaged in sea battles worldwide. Now it was French forces who lost most of the major battles in North America. In 1760 Britain's king, George II, died and was succeeded by his grandson, George III. In 1762 Russia's czarina, Elizabeth, died and was succeeded by her nephew, Peter III. Peter favored Prussia over Austria, and this change brought an end to the war. The 1763 Treaty of Paris ended the war, (among other provisions) transfering Canada from France to Great Britain, North America west of the Mississippi River from France to Spain, and Florida from Spain to Great Britain. The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania [ExplorePAhistory.com] has details, graphics of original documents, video files, and other educational resources. Pre-War Land Claims, Economics, and Politics in Pennslylvania [ExplorePAhistory.com] has maps of the claims, descriptions of the iron industry in Pennsylvania that later provided arms for the patriots, lesson plans, and other educational resources.

Repressing Local Governance  In 1760 George III inherited the throne of England and initiated policies through which the elements of self-governance [freedom, independence] that the colonies had previously enjoyed became gradually diminished by a series of acts of the British Parliament that increased taxes on trade with England, extended taxes to more items sold between the colonies, taxed internal activities such as making a will or printing newspapers, and reduced the range of activities that colonial assemblies could affect. Part of the motivation for these acts was to recoup the expense of the French and Indian War from the colonists, who -- it was argued -- benefitted most from the defeat of France in the Americas. Taxes on manufactured goods was a good way to raise money, since the mother country controlled all trade to and from the individual colonies. Even goods shipped between the colonies could be taxed if they were on a list of Enumerated Articles "Soon after George III ascended to the English throne in 1760, customs officials began aggressively to inspect ships, businesses, and homes for evidence of goods smuggled into Massachusetts by merchants seeking to avoid taxes. To conduct a search, customs officials needed only to obtain a writ of assistance, a general search warrant that allowed them to search within any identified premises. The government was not required to make any showing of cause before obtaining a writ." See Section B.2.a of John Adams and the MA Constitution [The Massachusetts Court System, Education area] In 1761, as counsel for the merchants of Boston James Otis asked the Massachusetts court to have Writs of Assistance declared unconstitutional based on the rights guaranteed in English common law against arbitrary and unreasonable search and seizure. While he lost the case, this abuse of governmental power became a cause of the Revolution and led to the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution for the United States -- prohibiting a search or arrest unless an official has established probable cause to a judge and the judge has issued a warrant for the search or arrest. Otis' speech against the Writs of Assistance [Constitution.org] Restriction of Economic / Military Power: Another part of the motivation for these acts was to limit the economic opportunity (and military capability) of people living outside of England so as to maximize the wealth of those currently in positions of power and minimize the ability of those living in the colonies to rise to positions of power and wealth or to develop the capability of effectivey resisting the authority of the mother country through armed resistance. The Proclamation of 1763 defined the boundaries of the provinces of Quebec, East Florida, West Florida, and Saint John (in the Caribbean). The proclamation also extinguished the claims of other British colonies west of the fall line of the Appalachian Mountains In some cases these claims in theory had extended to the Pacific Ocean. The land between the fall line and the Mississippi River was set aside as a reserve for Amerindian nations. In addition European settlers were barred from buying land or settling in this reserve and ordered any European already settled there to leave. text of the Proclamation of 1763 At right: Boundaries Defined by the Proclamation of 1763 [UShistory.org]

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