Argumentative Essay
What influences did the Great Awakening and the Enlightenment have on this great event? What were the complaints of the colonists? Were their issues and complaints justified? What were the challenges faced by the independence leaders? What accounted for their ultimate success, and what challenges did they face after the war? Explain using examples from the reading.
The American Revolution occurred from 1765- 1783 it was a war that was fought for the independence of 13 Northern British colonies from British rule, they wanted to rule themselves. The American Revolution didn’t just occur out of thin air, there were several events that took place before the revolution that was part of the cause. There were Acts that were established before the American Revolution that made the colonists angry, unrepresented, and unjustified. Some of the acts include, The Stamp Act, in March 1765, parliament passed a law that taxed large transactions. Of course, the colonists did not like this law and resented it they felt that they should not have to buy goods from the British and get taxed on them as well. They taxed things such as magazines and newspapers, legal documents, and anything that had to do with being printed they taxed. Another act was “The Townshend Acts” which occurred from June 1767- July 1767. Parliament again tried to tax any goods that the Americans imported from Great Britain. They established a system to ensure that smuggling and corruption of officials were not breached.” Smuggled tea was cheaper because legal tea paid duties both in England and in America.” (pg.58, Morgan) The colonists also did not agree with this and started to rebel against this system, they organized a boycott and began to harass the British commissioners. Besides Acts what also resulted in the American Revolution was the Boston Massacre in March 1770 this event took place and left five people dead. One afternoon tensions between a British occupier and a Boston resident began and soon led to this.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
- Proper editing and formatting
- Free revision, title page, and bibliography
- Flexible prices and money-back guarantee
The Boston Massacre became a memorable event that produced propaganda. The infamous Boston Tea Party was also very impactful, in December of 1773, the Tea Act was in place. This meant that any tea that was imported would be taxed. This didn’t make the Americans happier; they were angry that Great Britain was basically telling them they could not buy tea from any other country besides them unless they were willing to pay tax on it. The Sons of Liberty stood up against them, they disguised themselves, boarded the ships, and began dumping the tea as an act of defiance. In 1774 from March to June, the Coercive Acts were in place. It was a response to the Boston Tea Party and Great Britain passed this law to have the expenses lost paid for by the dumping. The Quartering Act was also in effect which allowed the British military officials to be housed in unoccupied houses and buildings instead of sleeping on the sides of the roads. The American colonists also had to pay for food for the soldiers and for housing expenses. The Battle of Lexington and Concord also influenced the revolution to happen. The British tried to be sneaky and attack the Americans, their objective was to take Samuel Adams and John Hancock captive, however, the Americans had their own sneaky moves and had Paul Revere undercover to spread the word that the British were coming. Naturally, the British’s attempt had failed, The Americans had won that night.
The last major event that led to the American Revolution was the British attacking the coastal towns in October 1775- January 1776. ”The colonists met the ill-conducted attempt to tax them with an almost unanimous assertion of the principle that taxation was the exclusive right of their own elected representative” (pg. 52 Morgan) The Enlightenment era and The Great Awakening also had an effect on the American Revolution because of these two events the Americans realized that they need to focus on nationalism and individualism of their rights. The Great Awakening revolved much around Christianity and also influence America to adopt it. Many of the leaders of America were influenced by the Enlightenment ideas which were; equality, freedom of speech and press, and religion. Some leaders included; Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison. The actions of the Americans were justifiable they were expecting independence from a Great Britain and independence from Great Britain meant “Independent, of course, meant independence of Parliament, not the king” (pg.64, Morgan) The leaders of the Revolution War faced many challenges. For example, George Washington was declared the commander of two continental armies. He also had never dealt with such a large group before. Washington had many plans and tricks up his sleeve for the war. The fight did not necessarily end after winning their independence from Great Britain. The Americans still faced many challenges. The country was in debt because of the war and George Washington became the first president of the United States. Great Britain also violated the peace treaty and began to inhabit forts in the old northwest, and they also faced Spain. The leaders also had to work on establishing their new country and consult rules and ideas. They had to define the presidency, define a federal court system, figure out a financial program, and still dealt with battles. The American Revolution was justified in my opinion because I would not be in America today, probably, if not for it.
Stuck on your essay?
