Words to War essays

Words to War essays In the period after the French and Indian War it had become quite clear that the agendas of England and the American colonies had become severely different. It was in this time period that England greatly increased its focus on the colonies and began to, without knowing it, test the loyalty and patience of its colonies. England began to pass tariffs and tax laws that thoroughly enraged the colonists, who thought it wrong for the empire to all of a sudden take interest in them again. It became clear, after a very short period of parliament interfering with the colonies, that colonists angry words were on their way to becoming rebellious actions. It was also clear that not all of the colonists had the same goal in mind when it came to the idea of revolution. In 1765 parliament passed the Stamp Act, which put a tax on many everyday items. The Stamp Act was an internal tax that raised the cost of the goods in a way that made the colonists have to pay for it. Up until that time the colonists had seen many external taxes imposed, they were imposed in the form of tariffs used to regulate trade in the empire, but the merchants were the ones who had to pay for it. However, this new development infuriated the colonists and set them to thinking about radical ideas. The main argument that rose out of these was that of Taxation without representation, the colonists firmly believed that the government should have complete and total consent of the governed peoples to pass such any legal acts or laws. Ben Franklin, seeing the tension that was beginning to build up within the colonists, stepped up to the plate and explained to Parliament why the colonists disgusted their decisions. Ben explained that it wasnt that the colonists minded taxation; it was that they didnt like internal taxation. As good as he tried his words were a complete misrepresentation of what the colonists really felt. It was ...