1300 WORD INVESTIGATION OF THE RESEARCH QUESTION
It must use a total of 12 sources please use the two main sources I have provided. You can change the additional resources but I have provided ten you could use along with a sample outline for the paper.
Two Main Sources
Anderson, Fred. Crucible of War: The Seven Years’ War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754-1766. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000.
Middlekauff, Robert. The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Ten Additional Sources
Otis, James. The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved. 1764.
Resolves of the Stamp Act Congress. 1765.
Washington, George. Letters. 1767.
Countryman, Edward. The American Revolution. New York: Hill and Wang, 1985.
Wood, Gordon S. The Radicalism of the American Revolution. New York: Vintage, 1993.
Greene, Jack P. The Constitutional Origins of the American Revolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Bailyn, Bernard. The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, 1992.
Breen, T.H. The Marketplace of Revolution: How Consumer Politics Shaped American Independence. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Nash, Gary B. The Unknown American Revolution. New York: Penguin Books, 2005.
Maier, Charles S. The Economic Origins of the American Revolution. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1977
Introduction:
- Research Question: Did the French and Indian War contribute to the start of the American Revolution?
- Background: The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was fought between Britain and France to control North American territories. It left Britain in debt and led to a series of taxation measures on the American colonies.
- Thesis: The American colonies’ relationship with Britain changed entirely following the French and Indian War. The financial burden of the war led to increased taxation on the colonies, fueling colonial opposition and laying the groundwork for the American Revolution by highlighting the colonies’ desire for greater self-autonomy.
Argument/Analysis:
- Financial Burden and British Taxation
- The cost of the war raised Britain’s national debt from £75 million in 1756 to £130 million in 1763. To recoup these losses, Britain imposed taxes such as the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act.
- “The Sugar Act of 1764 and the Stamp Act of 1765 were more than economic measures; they were the beginning of Britain’s effort to assert more direct control over its American colonies” (Anderson, 2000, p. 574).
- “The Stamp Act touched every colonist who used paper—lawyers, merchants, and even ordinary people—and united them in opposition to Britain” (Middlekauff, 2005, p. 112).
- Colonial Opposition and Resistance
- Primary Source: The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved (1764) by James Otis, where he argues, “Taxation without representation is tyranny.”
- Primary Source: Resolves of the Stamp Act Congress (1765), which stated, “The people of these colonies are not, and from their local circumstances cannot, be represented in the House of Commons in Great Britain.”
- These documents reflect growing colonial frustration with Britain’s taxes, which they believed violated their rights.
- Boycotts of British goods were “not only a response to unfair taxes but also a symbol of the colonies’ emerging unity” (Middlekauff, 2005, p. 132).
- Desire for Self-Autonomy
- The colonists’ desire for self-governance and anger over taxes grew revolutionary sentiment.
- “The Proclamation of 1763, restricting colonial expansion, intensified the sense of economic and political oppression” (Anderson, 2000, p. 583).
- Primary Source: George Washington’s letters from 1767 state that Britain’s policies “prohibit our extension, curbing the very lifeblood of our future economic prosperity.”
- “By 1774, the colonies were beginning to see themselves as a distinct people, with their own destiny separate from Britain” (Middlekauff, 2005, p. 160).
Evaluation of Perspectives:
- British Perspective: The British saw taxes on the colonies as necessary to manage the empire. “Britain believed that it was fair for the colonies to contribute to the cost of their own defense” (Middlekauff, 2005, p. 144).
- Colonial Perspective: The colonists perceived these taxes as an infringement on their liberties. “The growing unity among the colonies was fueled not just by economic grievances, but by a profound sense of constitutional violation” (Anderson, 2000, p. 584).
Conclusion:
Summarize Argument: The French and Indian War created a financial burden for Britain that strained its relationship with the American colonies. These tensions eventually erupted into the American Revolution as the colonies sought greater self-autonomy.