Apush Dbq Analysis

"To prohibit a great people from making all that they can of every part of their own produce advantageous to themselves, is a manifest violation of the most sacred rights of mankind." These views of Adam Smith were very much supported throughout the mid-18th century. Throughout this time, many new developments were made regarding American colonists view's of their sense of identity and unity as Americans. Due to an over controlling British government and a need for individuality as a country, colonists became Americans through their great fight to highly develop their sense of identity and unity as Americans.

Of the many circumstances that promoted a developing American identity, British mercantilism and their following regulations on
When Prime Minister George Grenville imposed this act, the colonists were again angry. The Act mandated the use of stamped paper certifying payment of tax on certain legal documents such as pamphlets, newspapers, diplomas, and marriage licenses. With the implications of this act, Grenville seemed to strike at the local liberties that the colonists had come to assume as a matter of right and the legislation also seemed to jeopardize the basic rights of the colonists as Englishmen. As expressed by Richard Henry Lee, "The wicked violence of the Ministry is so clearly expressed, as to leave no doubt of their fatal determination to ruin both countries." [Doc C] This view was widely believed by most of the colonists throughout this time. The colonists were unified in action against the Stamp Act with the many nonimportation agreements. Mobilizing in support of nonimportation gave ordinary American men and women new opportunities to participate in colonial protests. The Stamp act clearly affected the rights of the colonists and definitely caused for the increase of unity amongst
As control of the British ministry was seized by Charley Townshend, he enacted the Townshend Acts. These Acts held a tax on glass, white lead, paper, paint and tea. The colonists fought this Act greatly. They took the act as least serious as possible, defying it at all costs. They found ways to smuggle and import/export goods at higher efficiency than the seditious Acts allowed. As the British learned of these endeavors, they landed two regiments of troops in Boston; what followed was the unfortunate Boston "Massacre" in which 10 British redcoats shot 11 colonists. To follow this, the British East India Company faced bankruptcy and it was decided to allow the company a complete monopoly over the American tea business. When the company's tea reached Boston, roughly 100 Bostonians, slightly dressed as Indians, dumped the tea into the harbor. This action may have united the colonists more than was contrived. Parliament, however, followed the Boston Tea Party with measures that brewed revolution. In 1774 it passed a series of acts to chastise Boston. The most influential of these acts was the Boston Port Act, which closed the harbor until damages from the tea "spill" were paid. These "Intolerable Acts" weakened the Bostonians and pressed them to a desperation state pushing for support from the other colonies. They