Archive for January, 2017

AMERICAN REVOLUTION – BACKGROUND

Posted on: January 1st, 2017 by hauleymusic No Comments

In 1767, the British Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which imposed import duties on paper, glass, paint, and other common items imported into the American colonies. The Sons of Liberty and other Patriot organizations responded with a variety of protest actions. They organized boycotts of the goods subject to the duty, and they harassed and threatened the customs personnel who collected the duties, many of whom were either corrupt or related to Provincial leaders. Francis Bernard, then Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, requested military forces to protect the King’s personnel. In October 1768, British troops arrived in the city of Boston and occupied the city. Tensions led to the Boston Massacre on March 5, 1770, and the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773. In response to the Tea Party and other protests, Parliament enacted the Intolerable Acts to punish the colonies. With the Massachusetts Government Act of 1774 it effectively abolished the provincial government of Massachusetts. General Thomas Gage, already the commander-in-chief of British troops in North America, was also appointed governor of Massachusetts and was instructed by King George’s government to enforce royal authority in the troublesome colony]. However, popular resistance compelled the newly appointed royal officials in Massachusetts to resign or to seek refuge in Boston. Gage commanded four regiments of British regulars (about 4,000 men) from his headquarters in Boston, but the country-side was largely controlled by Patriot sympathizers.

References
1.Cushing, Harry Alonzo (1896). History of the Transition from Provincial to Commonwealth Government in Massachusetts. Columbia University. OCLC 4297135.

2.Frothingham, Jr, Richard (1886). The Rise of the Republic of the United States. Little, Brown. OCLC 2081524.

3. Raphael, Ray (2002). The First American Revolution: Before Lexington and Concord. New York: The New Press. ISBN 978-1….