Moving Towards Independance essays

Moving Towards Independance essays 1) The Treaty of Paris ended the French and Indian War but not the issues that caused it: specifically, ownership of land. The only difference was the enemy that remained after the war ended. After the French had been removed from the picture, the British turned their attention to fighting the Indians for their lands. The Indians fought back, but faced almost certain defeat because of their limited supplies, manpower, and the general lack of cohesion between Indian tribes. The French and Indian War failed to solve another important problem: the growing differences between England and its colonies. It was the hope of many that fighting a common enemy would pull England and its colonies together. But it did just the opposite. Living in close quarters with the British the colonials became even more aggravated at the British. After the war, the heavy taxes Britain levied on the colonies to pay for the war only made the colonials angrier. The colonists had expected to return to a period of salutary neglect, a time when, with the exception of the Navigation Acts to control trade, Parliament had made few laws that affected the colonies. Now that Britain was faced with many war debts, they needed the help of the colonists. The French and Indian War led to more wars, resulting with the American Revolution. 2) British economic and political actions began to create a radical minority in the American colonies. After the French and Indian War, Britain began to impose taxes and a number of acts to confirm control on its colonies. One such act, was the Quartering Act. This act required colonists to provide housing and some provisions for British troops. By putting British troops in the colonies it belittled the colonists. In some ways, the colonists felt like they were being baby-sat. Their freedom was being eaten away at right in front of them. Also, many colonists began to realize that the taxes that the ...