Revolutionary War Dbq

983 Words4 Pages
Ready, Set, Revolution! A wise man once said that “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” Countless individuals look at war in simplistic terms while disregarding the true purpose of the battle, the purpose of The Revolutionary War however is what compelled the intelligent Thomas Jefferson to say these words to begin with. The British colonies and the country of Britain started with a frail construction that was further amplified in the midst of the burdens caused by the Seven Years War; this strain is what ultimately led to the battle of Lexington and Concord, when the ruling to shed the blood of patriots and tyrants could no longer be withdrawn. It is crucial to reflect on the…show more content…
In this case the difficulty in the mid eighteenth century is the Seven Years War, bringing debt and forcing England to attempt to bridge the gap between them and the colonies despite their early nature keeping their mindsets apart. England formed the proclamation of 1763 along with the Quebec Act of 1774 to restrict the expansion of the colonists which prevented them from expanding withholding them from potentially creating more profit, which was a principal motivation for many at the time. This irritation towards the King was then furthered by the sudden enforcement of the Navigation Act, which prevented the colonies from trading with nations other then England bringing profit away from the colonies and towards England, furthering the nature of the conflict which was the lack of consideration that England held towards their Colonies. However it was the Tea Act of 1773 which united patriots and spread the perception that King George III was a tyrant. This caused the Boston Tea Party which rallied patriots together in order to demonstrate to England the colonies discontentment. Instead of receiving recognition or representation however England then passed the Coercive Act and broadened the Quartering Act as punishment. This while being an important milestone in the…show more content…
This however would not be accomplished as Paul Revere and other minutemen would inform the cities of Lexington and Concord that the British were coming, calling minutemen out of their homes to hold off English soldiers while the colonial militia when after their weapons in Concord. This left Captain John Parker and seventy seven minutemen to hold off the redcoats in Lexington. Ultimately providing insight into the mindset of the rebellion as Captain Parker told his men "Stand your ground; don't fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here” , displaying doubt in the commitment to a violent rebellion unless the English decide to start one. English soldiers soon fired upon the minute men only to be stopped by the Colonial militia allowing for an American victory in the first military battle between the United States and England. This attack on the colonies by England formed the shot heard round the world, or in other words a declaration of war. Conversely as Thomas Paine states in Common Sense “The last cord is now broken, the people of England are presenting addresses against us.” This represented the last straw for the colonies, thoroughly convincing them to combat England and to refuse to be oppressed any longer. As

More about Revolutionary War Dbq

Open Document