How Did The British Government Contribute To The Growth Of A Revolutionary Movement

The British government followed the policies of mercantilism which relied on the American colonies as markets for raw materials and sources of economy. Acts such as the Navigation Acts were established in the colonies to regulate colonial trade with nations other than Great Britain. Nonetheless, these laws allowed for autonomy in the colonies as the colonists were able to self-govern while England managed America’s economy. However, as Britain engaged in a series of wars between European powers and the colonies, England suffered from debt and loss of control over the colonies and as a result, restricted the colonies’ freedom by implementing harsh taxes and laws. While tensions between Europeans and Indians continued and several territorial
These continuities in colonial societies contributed to the growth of a revolutionary movement because colonists desired for expansion into native American territory as the two groups continued to fight as well as fighting for land in multiple series of wars. From 1700 to 1776, colonists’ urge for self-government caused Britain’s gradual shift of rule and the growth of independence movements because Britain’s increased trade restrictions and taxes on the colonies angered the colonists, leading them to challenge British authority. One change that occurred was Britain’s establishment of harsh laws on the colonies, also known as the Intolerable Acts. In the beginning of the period, the colonies were under Salutary Neglect, an unofficial British law that loosely enforced American colonial trade, which allowed the colonists to regulate their affairs. However, after the French and Indian War, England imposed strict taxes and acts on the American colonies to pay off their war debts. The Intolerable Acts consisted of laws such as the Stamp Act and the Declaratory Act that taxed the colonists without representation in the Parliament and prevented the colonies from separating from