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Economic effect of British imperialism
British imperialism in America
Impact of the Seven Years’ War
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In 1763 the Seven Years’ War ended with the British Empire emerging as victors. The victory came at great cost to Great Britain’s economy. The national debt almost doubled from 75 million pounds to 133 million pounds between 1755 and 1763. Given that Britain fought in North America to uphold the security of her colonial possessions, British ministers deemed it fair that the cost of the war should be shared with the colonies. Subsequently, import duties on popular goods were raised and a number of Acts regarding excise taxes were passed. These included the Sugar Act of 1764, the Stamp Act of 1765 and the Townshend duties beginning in 1767. The consequences of these actions were to place great financial burdens on the North American colonists, but more importantly, to …show more content…
For example, the Navigation Acts of 1660 and 1663 specified a number of key trade related rules. First, they specified that all colonial trade had to be carried on ships owned by British or colonial traders. Secondly, all colonial goods bound for North America had to pass through certain English ports, in order to be taxed and monitored. Finally, enumerated goods such as sugar were to be shipped only to English ports. Despite these laws existing, the government in London did not enforce them strictly up until 1763. This policy is often referred to as ‘salutary neglect’ and it had the effect of introducing a perceived sense of autonomy and self-determination in the North American colonies. Following 1763, the British government began to enforce the Navigation Acts British lawmakers began to introduce more Acts which further restricted and monitored colonial trade and increased taxes. To the parliament in London this was just enforcing and building upon old laws, an opinion that was not shared by the
Starting in 1763, policies likes the Grenville program and the Sugar Act united the colonists against the British, despite their own internal conflicts. Numerous acts were placed on the colonies during 1764, such as the Sugar Act and the Currency Act. The Sugar Act lowered the duty on molasses and increased the duty on sugar, even forming new courts to try smugglers. The Currency Act enforced that none of the colonies would be
The Seven Years War was best known to those in American history as the French and Indian war. In reality, the war was much larger in scope and devastation in relation to the simple name given to it. Lasting from 1756-1763, the Seven Years War involved much of the imperial powers of that time: Prussia, England, and Portugal on one side with France, Spain, and Austria on the other. Spurred by competition for land and territory, the war implicated the two world powers, Britain and France, in a fateful battle for dominance. The period also saw the rise of important figures such as George Washington and Benedict Arnold that would later be instrumental in the American Revolution. Yet the significance of this war was that it set up the stage for events like the French and American Revolutions, and rearranged a new world order of imperialism.
The word "privateer" conjures a romantic image in the minds of most Americans. Tales of battle and bounty pervade the folklore of privateering, which has become a cherished, if often overlooked part of our shared heritage. Legends were forged during the battle for American independence, and these men were understandably glorified as part of the formation of our national identity. The fact of the matter is that the vast majority of these men were common opportunists, if noteworthy naval warriors. The profit motive was the driving force behind almost all of their expeditions, and a successful privateer could easily become quite wealthy. In times of peace, these men would be common pirates, pariahs of the maritime community. Commissioned in times of war, they were respected entrepreneurs, serving their purses and their country, if only incidentally the latter. However vulgar their motivation, the system of privateering arose because it provided a valuable service to thecountry, and indeed the American Revolution might not have been won without their involvement. Many scholars agree that all war begins for economic reasons, and the privateers of the war for independence contributed by attacking the commercial livelihood of Great Britain's merchants.
After the French and Indian War, the British government decided to make the American colonies pay a large share of the war debt with new taxes that they issued. The English ...
France’s 1763 defeat left Britain broke so Britain turned to the colonies to raise the needed revenues by imposing taxes such as the stamp act. Britain violated home rule to make America help pay
One way of the British controlling the colonies was to impose trade regulations on them. They forced the colonies to trade only with them, as dictated by the Navigation Acts and the mercantile system.
1. Anderson, Fred “Crucible of War”, The Seven Years’ War and the fate of Empire in British North America. Random House: New York, NY 2000
The goal of this act was to “boost the recruitment of British seamen into the merchant marine and the navy; to stimulate employment in British ports and linked industries in their hinterlands; and to ensure that the profits of trade, plus shipping and harbor dues, benefited Britain rather than rival foreign centers of trade.” This idea was fundamentally mercantilist in origin. According to mercantilist doctrine, “legitimate exchange between colonists of different nationalities was seen as a threat to the imperial strength of the nation state,” so it makes sense that in order to maintain power over their trade and income, the Navigation Acts were created at the expense of Britain’s rivals. Despite all the economic success in Britain, “much of the vigour and enterprise that underpinned British trans-Atlantic trade and settlement in the empire was not the direct result of the Navigation Acts; at least equally important was the efficiency of the private sector of the
"Plutot mourir que faillir"("Rather dying than failing")and “UBIQUE! QUO FAS ET GLORIA DUCUNT" “Everywhere! Where Right and Glory Lead.” The Seven Years war, or the French and Indian war to Americans, was arguably the first true world. The Seven years war was a worldwide war fought in Europe, North America, and India between. It was France, Austria, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and (after 1762) Spain on the one side and Prussia, Great Britain, and Hanover on the other (the Americans where there only for the North American theater).This conflict was the result of the ongoing hostilities and the struggle of supremacy between France and Great Britain. In 1754, in North America, George Washington was defeated at Fort Necessity in western Pennsylvania. From that moment on, both France and Great Britain dispatched troops, although not in equal numbers. For France, the war in Europe was the top priority, so the country sent just a few troops. It also considered it was more important to protect its colonies in the West Indies, since sugar cane was more lucrative than the fur trade in New France (Canada). Great Britain on the other hand was determined to destroy France's colonial empire, and it sent more than 20,000 soldiers to America. It must also be noted that American colonists were unable to defend themselves against their Canadian counterparts, who, with the help the Native Americans excelled in the art of the guerilla warfare. For New England, it was imperative to obliterate New France and its Native allies, which were preventing the States from acquiring and occupying new land (New England had a very large population and sought new land to occupy and farm.) France waste no time in the war and attacked the British held island of Minorca. This island ended up in the hands of the French. Although France did well in the war until 1757, the tide proceeded to turn, in favor of the British troops, after William Pitt became Sec. of state for war. The British won several victories right including the battle on the Plains of Abraham in 1759, when James Wolfe defeated the army of Montcalm. Things were far from over, however, because the final result depended on whether France was victorious or defeated. In the end, France was defeated on all fronts (West Indies, the subcontinent of India, Europe and America). The Treaty of Paris, signed by Great Britain, France, and Spain on February 10, 1763, ended the Seven Years' War and its American counterpart, the French and Indian War (1754-1763).
Document 2,Navigation Act of September 13, 1660 (An Excerpt) highlights Britain’s attempt to control commerce through international trade restrictions. The Navigation Act of September 13, 1660 which reinforces the Navigation Ordinance of 1651, an English government policy that banned foreign ships and third-party countries ships from transporting goods from outside Europe to England or any of its colonies. Under the Navigation Act, three-quarters of the ships’ crews must be English and products not produced by England could only be shipped from the colonies to England or other English colonies.
After the French and Indian War ended in 1763, Great Britain had nearly gone bankrupt paying for the war. The British thought it was only logical to start new taxes against the colonists. After all, to the British, they had fought the war in the name of the colonies and in what they believed was in their best interest. Many different types of taxes came and went to help pay for the debt. Over time, the
After the Seven Years Way England was broke for she had spent more money needed to win the war. Also winning the war gave the colonist a “we can do it spirit”. However because England now was facing debt she decided to tax the colonies. One the first acts passed was the sugar act passed in 1764. This Act was the raise revenue in American colonies. What it did was lowered the tax from six penses to three penses per gallon on foreign molasses. Molasses is a product made by refining sugarcane, grapes or sugar beets into sugar. This upset the colonist because before the sugar act they didn’t have to pay the tax so even if it was lowered that meant nothing for they now had to pay for it. A year later, in 1765, the Britain’s passed another act known as the Stamp Act. The Stamp Act put a tax on stamped paper, publications, playing cards, etc. Because it was on all paper products in a way it affected everyone; from the papers for the upper class such as lawyers, publications such as newspapers for the middle class, and playing cards for the lower class for entertainment. Next, the Townshend Act passed by Charles Townshend. This came in 1767, which imposed taxes on colonial tea, lead, paint, paper, and glass which just like the Stamp Act affected all of the classes in the colonist in the Americas. Though this act was removed three years later in 1770, it still left colonists with a warning that conditions may become worse. Around 1773, parliament passed the Intolerable Acts one of those acts which affected taxation was the Bost...
In the 17th century, before the Seven Years’ War, the common soldier was just an unpaid citizen who fought for the local militia with his own weapon, but the Seven Years’ War totally changed in military system. The Seven Years’ War was very significant because it forced all of the European countries to focus less on commerce and more territory. This new shift in focus is what caused Britain to send so many more troops to America; the British politicians believed it was vital to militarize their colonies like America, West Africa, and Asia. This is because they believed that soldiers could acquire and defend new territories, as well as build important structures as a cheap
The Navigation Acts were first introduced in 1660 where only products made in the colonies could only be shipped to other colonies or Great Britain. This caused Great Britain to be able to collect taxes in the Colonies. This also later was modified so the colonies couldn't buy any goods from anywhere else besides Great Britain.
The Seven Years’ War was a worldwide conflict between 1754 and 1763 and the main conflict being between a seven year period of 1756 to 1763. Officially begins when England declared war on the french on May 18, 1756. This conflict was called the French and Indian War in America and the Seven Years War in Europe. In North America Britain and France had been struggling for years as they both expanded and clashed with one another. William Pitt became effective head of the ministry in December 1756, he believed to be the only person with the capability of saving the British empire. As he recognized the success of imperial expansion that would come out of this victory he borrowed heavily and created an enormous national debt. In 1757 he set out a