The American Revolution: The Colonists Had No Other Choice

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There were a number of factors that caused the colonists to revolt and declare their independence from Great Britain; leading to the American Revolution and the United States of America as it is known today. It is interesting to wonder whether the colonists truly chose to push away from Britain or whether this decision was essentially made for them by reacting against the social changes that they began to see in the years leading into 1776; when the Revolution "officially" began. A major decline in the price Britain was willing to pay for their established Tobacco trade, a governor who threatened the security of slave labor, and the establishment of a depreciating paper money system are three main factors that contributed to the motivation to prevent social change by engaging in the U.S.Revolution. The impetus for the war was not a matter of personal gratification for the colonists but rather was a necessary step to continue their original lifestyles.

The largest industry in the colonies at the time was undoubtedly the tobacco trade and it provided for much of .Virginia's income. The price of tobacco dwindled to record lows during 1773 with the lack of demand due do the recession the colonists were facing. The colonists were forced to investigate methods for boosting the price and they decided to withhold their crops and not export to Britain in order to create more demand for less product. By not exporting their crops, they were opening themselves to risks of losing their storage of crops and lawsuits for not fulfilling contracts obligating them to provide tobacco to people or companies. Although their plan succeeded, the farmers must have realized the uncertainty in depending on a foreign country to purchase th...

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...itish government turning the colonists against each other.

The colonists were faced with a decision to move on with or without their founding country and ultimately decided they were better off on their own. At first glance, it seems as if they chose to enter the revolution because they wanted their independence and needed to promote social change, but after further investigation the colonists may have only wanted their original lifestyles back. The British government forced change that the colonists did not want by implementing a price drop on the tobacco they were buying from the colonies, gave power to Lord Dunmore who threatened slavery in the south which eventually led to the deflating paper currency. The combination of these factors caused the colonists to resist the change that was being forced upon them and revolt; resulting in the U.S. Revolution.

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