Causes of the American Revolution

By Christina and Lindsey

The French and Indian War

The French and Indian war lasted from 1754-1763, between Great Britain and France in North America. The fight started over claim of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers and eventually escalated into a 7-year war.

Reason for Ranking #1: The war had a big impact on both the Colonist and British lives

Boston Tea Party

This was a protest by the Colonies against the British, where they dressed up as Mohawk Indians, snuck onto British ships and dumped 45 tonnes of tea into the Boston Harbor. The Colonists were upset about the Tea Act.

Reason for Ranking #2: This cost the British a lot of money and caused a big fuss. (plus in our opinion it was hilarious X3)

Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre, also known as the Boston Riot, was a clash against British troops and a group of Colonists in which five Colonists died by the British muskets. The incident occurred due to the tense feeling the British military presence had on Boston.

Our reason for ranking this #3: The British killed innocent civilians, thus angering of the Colonists

Stamp Act

This act put a tax on every sheet of every legal document. This tax was put into effect to help pay for troops stationed in North America after the British victory in the Seven Years’ War. Many of the Colonists considered it a violation of their rights to be taxed without their consent, consent only the colonial legislatures could grant; colonies had no representatives in parliament and therefore no influence on taxes. To act against the Stamp Act indirectly, the colonies boycotted British goods and formed the Sons of Liberty and the Daughters of Liberty.

Reason for Ranking #4: The British imposed the Stamp Act on the Colonies to support their own troops, thus cheating the people out of their hard-earned money which could have been put to better use.

Tea Act

The Tea Act was passed in 1773. The British wanted to expand the British East India Company's monopoly on the tea trade to British Colonies. The British also put a tax on all imported tea from Britain because the boycotting of their other goods by the Colonies hurt their trade.

Reason for Ranking #5: The British tried to push the Colonies to buy their tea, and their tea alone.