Causes of the American Revolution

Misconceptions Regarding the Role of Taxes in War of Independence

Oct 5, 2007 Brian Tubbs

British trade restrictions, economic control, and the imposing of martial law in America clashed with the colonies' tradition of self-governance, leading to war.

When people consider the causes of the American Revolution, the slogan "No Taxation Without Representation" comes to mind. And so does the Boston Tea Party (1773), the Stamp Act (1765), and those "Sons of Liberty" tarring and feathering British officials in the streets.

That is, of course, for those who actually have a clue about the American Revolution. For most people, a question about the causes of the American Revolution would probably draw blank looks or that "deer-in-the-headlights" expression.

"No Taxation Without Representation"

The most famous slogan of the colonies leading up to the American Revolution was indeed "No Taxation Without Representation." The fact that this slogan endures today shows the power of good public relations. Words - coined effectively and succinctly - have staying power!

The power of slogans notwithstanding, when people conclude that the War for Independence was about taxes, they forget these simple facts:

• The most burdensome and controversial tax levied on the colonies was the Stamp Act of 1765, which was repealed in 1766 (nine years before military hostilities broke out and ten years before independence was declared)
• The last major tax which preceded the war itself was the Tea Act of 1773, which represented a paltry tax on British tea in North America -- so paltry, in fact, that British tea (taxed as it was) was still cheaper than smuggled Dutch tea
• When the Second Continental Congress enumerated the specific grievances in the Declaration of Independence, they listed "imposing Taxes on us without our Consent" as Number Seventeen!

Clearly, if taxes were the main cause of the American Revolution, the war would have started sooner than it did, and the Founding Fathers would've thought to list it higher up in the list of grievances in the Declaration of Independence.

So, if not taxes, what then was the cause?

With the conclusion of the French and Indian War and the ascension of King George III to the throne, the British government shifted its economic policy toward her North American colonies. Prior to the Seven Years War (or French and Indian War as it was called in North America), the British were content to allow the colonies to more or less govern themselves. After the French and Indian War, things changed.

The British extended their mercantilistic policies of trade restrictions and economic control, and began to directly tax the American colonists for the first time. In response to domestic tensions, they stationed more troops, undermined the authority of colonial assemblies, and ultimately imposed martial law in New England (and threatened to do so elsewhere). By the 1770s, it was clear that the British no longer respected the tradition of American self-governance.

The cause of the American Revolution was best summed up by militia volunteer Levi Preston. Interviewed over 50 years after the events of the Revolution, Preston gave the following explanation for the American Revolution: "What we meant in going for those redcoats was this: we always had governed ourselves, and we always meant to. They didn't mean we should."

****

Sources for this article include:

The Declaration of Independence (available at the National Archives online)

Common Sense by Thomas Paine

Patriots: The Men Who Started the American Revolution by A.J. Langguth

John Adams by David McCullough

****

For those seeking more information on the American Revolution, check out these book recommendations and the American Revolution & Founding Era blog.

The copyright of the article Causes of the American Revolution in American History is owned by Brian Tubbs. Permission to republish Causes of the American Revolution in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.