Causes of the Revolution & the Seven Years' War

Effects of the French & Indian War on the War for Independence

Dec 30, 2008

Mutually negative perceptions on the part of the colonists and the British during four colonial wars against France & huge war debts helped cause the American Revolution.

When looking for causes of the American Revolution against Great Britain, the various wars fought between England and France in North America, most notably the final conflict called the French and Indian War, must be taken into account, at least indirectly. The relationships between colonists and British soldiers and administrators as well as the on-going prosperity of the colonies, guaranteed to grow with the elimination of France from Canada, led to perceptions on both sides of the Atlantic that would contribute to the American desire for independence.

Colonials as Provincials

Despite the growth of colonial coastal cities and the growing prosperity of merchants and planters, the British perception of the colonies was generally of a bucolic people. By the time General Edward Braddock began his ill fated march to Fort Duquesne, Philadelphia was the largest city with over 18,000 inhabitants, followed by Boston and New York.

Braddock, however, had few kind words for the men he saw as colonial provincials, unequal to the task of protecting themselves from the French or their Indian allies. Refusing to take advice, even from respected Indian Agents like Sir William Johnson, he marched his columns into a disastrous ambush.

Similarly, colonials viewed men like Braddock with contempt. Often haughty and arrogant, officers like Braddock claimed to know better how to defend without soliciting local opinion. In essence, colonials were beginning to see themselves as a different breed from their cousins in England, and with good reason.

Professor Dickerson, in his study of the British Navigation Acts and the American Revolution, asserts that, “the wealth acquired by American merchants and planters was a real cause of jealousy on the part of residents in the mother country.” [1] This acquiring of wealth affected particularly British officers.

British officers continually complained that colonial militias were unreliable. Even during times of siege and battle, colonials would flee the ranks in order to return home and protect their own homes, crops, and family from Indian frontier attacks. Yet in many cases British officers were told beforehand that these frontier residents saw their own settlements as a greater priority.

The Debt of War

Dickerson makes the case that, “the wealth and prosperity of the Americas was probably one of the causes of the Revolution.” [2] The total colonial war debt, levied by individual colonies during the French and Indian War, stood at 2,600,000 British Pounds. In contrast, the British national debt was estimated at 133 million. However, while it would take an entire generation of Britons to payoff this national debt, assuming there would be no other wars, the thirteen colonies reduced their own war by 20% each year. [3]

Considering that the average Briton was paying 25 shillings per year in taxes compared to the six pence per year being paid by the average colonist, it is easy to understand why the British people supported Parliamentary efforts to enforce existing tax measures including tariffs and duties, as well as devising new methods of revenue collection from the colonies.

Thus, in 1775, at the height of New England protest against repeated tax measures, Sir Charles Dalrymple addressed the colonists, saying, “For you we submit to monopolies, for you lay restraints on our trade; for you we are taxed, and for you impose similar hardship upon other parts of our dominions.” [4] The perception that the colonies were growing immensely wealthy at the expense of the mother country was strong. It may also have accounted for the steady immigration of families from the British Isles in the decades preceding independence.

The French and Indian War provided both a direct and an indirect “cause” for the coming of war. Mutual perceptions helped pave the way for a growing American self-identity while the increasing overall prosperity probably contributed to British notions that the colonists should contribute more to retire the national debt and pay for their own defense.

Notes and Sources:

[1] Oliver M. Dickerson, The Navigation Acts and the American Revolution (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1951) p. 52-53.

[3] IBID see footnote no. 51, p.60, Conduct of the Late Administration Examined (London, 1767) pp. 26-28; 70-71

[4] The Address of the People of Great Britain to the People of America (London, 1775), p.17.