British Actions and American reactions, 1763 - 1775 Flashcards
5 points
Evidence that the relationship between the British and the Colonists was strong in 1763
- The Thirteen Colonies recieved more independence from Britain than any other of its territories.
- The colonists had joined the British in the fight against the French (20,000 men volunterred for the army).
- The colonies lacked some key aspects / systems for nationhood, e.g. customs systom, post office, economic systom, which were all British and therefor linked the two together.
- Some colonists felt proud of their heratige.
- Distance, population growth and other factors for weaker ties didn’t always lead to separation (e.g. Canada).
4 points
Evidence that the relationship between the British and the Colonists was weak in 1763
- Removal of the French threat meant that the colonies no longer had to rely on Britain for protection. The two countries no longer had a common enemy.
- The colonies were rapidly developing and became a mixed place with a culture different from Britain’s.
- The colonies were running their own affairs, leading some Governors to complain about the growing sense of independence. If Britain tried to assert its rights, the colonists would get anrgy, but if it did nothing they would drift away.
- Some colonists began to dislike mercantilism due to their own growing economy.
What was the Proclamation Line?
Following Pontiac’s rebellion (in which some Native Amricans attacked settlements in the Ohio Valley after the colonists settled there following the transferal of land after the Seven Years’ War), the British set up a royal proclamation line in 1763 banning colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains.
Not only did this reduce conflict with the Native Americans, but it also stoped colonial contact with the Spanish settlements in the South (so the colonists’ ties to Britain would remain stronger) as well as stopping people from migrating to the colonies from Britain.
What were the consequences of the Proclamation line (1763)?
- The Colonists resented the attempt to limit their expansion Westward, and saw it as the Brittish meddling in their affairs. Despite Benjamin Franklin’s attempt to make a new colony there called Vandalia, other colonists beat him to it (especially from Virginia), and by 1774 50,000 colonists lived beyond the Proclamation Line.
- The colonists also didn’t like that the British took the side of the Native American’s over them, especially since they had done similar things before (e.g. The Crown siding with the Wappinger Indians who held land in New York)
What was the Stamp Act?
Date: 1765
This was the first tax passed by the British directly taxing the colonies (not their trade). It taxed 50 printed articles from legal documents to newspapers to playing cards. People had to buy a stamp to put on these documents or it wouldn’t be legal.
4 points
What was the colonial reaction to the Stamp Act like?
- The colonists felt that the act was unlawful since they thought the British shouldn’t be able to directly tax the colonies without representation.
- 27 delegates from different colonies met in the Massachusetts assembly and attacked the Act as threatening their “rights and liberites”. They wanted to return to salutary neglect. This is one of the first examples of the colonists uniting.
- The people of the colonies rioted and created a sense of anrachy in the streets so it was impossible to collect the tax. They hung an effigie of Andrew Oliver (a tax collector) and then attacked his house and office, leading him to resign.
- The Sons of Liberty were a semi-secret organisation who organised the mob action and also implemented a boycott of British goods which spread quickly.
Why was the Stamp Act repealed?
- Rockingham was under pressure from British merchants who were losing money from the boycott on British goods.
- The comander of the Colonies, General Thomas Gage, said that the Act couldn’t be upheld without sending more troops, since the ones they had were patrolling the Proclamation line.
What was the Declaratory Act?
It was an Act passed by the British the same day the Stamp Act was repealed stating that they still had authority to tax and govern the colonies however they liked. It was their way of exerting their dominance over the colonies whilst backing down from the Stamp Act.
What was the Quartering Act, what problems did it cause and what opposition was there to it?
It was an Act passed in 1765 saying that soldiers had a right to be quartered in houses, inns etc and supplied with food. It also said the assemblies should pay for this food. This angered a lot of people, who thought it was infringing on their liberties, but only New York refused the Act.
What were the Townshend Duties?
They were a series of measures passed between 1766 - 1767 to raise money for the upkeep of the army in North America as well to make clear parliament’s authority over the colonies.
1. The Revenue Act- imposed taxes on glass, paper, tea, paint, wine and china. There were all taxes the colonies needed to import, so they thought it would cause less offense.
2. The Commissions of Customs Act - created a new customs board in Boston to enforce regulations, representing a significant tightening in regulations.
3. The Vice Admiralty Court Act - set up a new court for smugglers run by judges appointed by the crown who earned 5% of every fine they gave.
4. The New York Restraining Act - shut down the New York assembly until it complied with the Quartering Act (they grudgingly agreed).
Why did the Townshend Acts make the colonists upset?
- More taxation without representation (Revenue Act - tea, china, wine, paper, glass).
- New York angered by what they saw as an illegitame attempt to shut down their assembly.
- Colonies hated having to pay for the British army which they deemed unnecessary and oppressive.
- Some of the money from the taxes was used to pay the salaries of the governors (who used to be paid by the colonists), so this was an attempt to take more control from them.
- Rigorous enforcement of measures caused resentment and a feeling that the new system was corrupt.
Opposition to the Townshend Duties
The opposition to the Townshend Duties was more led by intellectualls.
1. John Dickinson wrote “Letters of a Pennsylvania Farmer”, in which he argued against taxation without representation.
2. The Massachusetts assembly sent out a circular letter arguing against taxation without representation.
3. Boston organised a boycott of British goods which soon spread to all the other colonies (except New Hampshire). Comittees enforced the boycott and those who broke it were attacked.
Why were the Townshend duties repealed?
- Merchants were complaining about the loss of trade due to the boycott (exports fell from £2.5 million in 1768 to £1.6 million in 1769)
- The Duties weren’t raising that much money
- The British didn’t want to send extra troops to restore order.
What was the Tea Act and when was it passed?
Date: 1773
This Act was designed to help the near-bankrupt East India Company by allowing them to trade tea directly to the colonies instead of having to trade tea through Britain. North thought this would be popular since it actually made tea cheaper for the colonies.
Why was the Tea Act unpopular?
- It put a lot of colonial merchants who traded the tea with Britain out of buisness.
- It also meant that people stopped buying smuggled dutch tea, putting those smugglers out of buisness as well.
- They thought that accepting the Tea Act meant they accepted the Townshend duty on tea, which they were morraly opposed to.
