There were many reasons why the colonies wanted to separate from Great Britain. One reason revolved around the limiting of access to the new western lands gained from France as a result of the French and Indian War. The British were concerned the Native Americans would attack the colonists. Thus, they passed the Proclamation of 1763 that prevented the colonists from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains. They also wanted the colonists to provide housing for soldiers to enforce this law. These laws weren’t popular with the colonists.
As the colonies became more expensive to operate, the British passed laws to require the colonists to pay for some of these costs of running the colonies. The Stamp Act and Townshend Acts were two tax laws that were designed to raise revenue from the colonists to help pay for the operation of the colonies. The colonists felt their rights were being violated because they had no representatives in Parliament who could vote for these tax laws. Thus, the colonists began to boycott British products.
The situation deteriorated in the 1770s. Five colonists were killed with the Boston Massacre. For the first time, some colonists were killed protesting British actions and policies. Some people believed this would eventually lead to a growing demand for independence. After the Boston Tea Party, the British punished the colonists, especially those in Massachusetts, by passing the Intolerable Acts. The colonists refused to obey this law and began to form their own militias. When fighting occurred in April 1775 at Lexington and Concord, many people on both sides were killed and injured. Many colonists were convinced independence wasn’t far away.
The colonists met to discuss independence. The asked the King to remove these unpopular laws in exchange for peace with the Olive Branch Petition. The King rejected this idea. Eventually, the Declaration of Independence was written and adopted. The Revolutionary War would now begin.
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