The French and Indian War

        Essentially, The French and Indian War, also known as the Seven Years War, was fought between the French and the English for Native loyalties. After the war, there was much debt to be paid. Before the war, the King did not interact much with its colonies. Afterward, the King and the Parliament had to become more involved to pay the war debts. This change created a rising tension between the colonies and its mother country, thus straining the relationship between the two.

Among the reasons why tensions rose, taxation was the main cause. Debts had to be paid back, so the British Council suggested that there be an immediate regulation on trade. (Document 5). Also created were a series of taxes that were intended to help the cause as well. On the other hand, taxes were created to give the King and the Parliament more control of the colonies. The colonies didn’t like this at all. They wanted many of the Acts, such as the Stamp Act and the Intolerable Acts, repealed. (Document 7) Many of the colonies even wrote letters expressing their loyalty to the king, hoping to get the Acts repealed. (Document 6)

Secondly, Another cause of tension was land. After the French and Indian War, a lot of new land was up for claims because the French lost all of their territory to the English. (Document 1) Colonies and Natives began to fight over the new land. The issue between Natives and colonists was that the colonists were expanding and taking all of the Natives’ territory. This problem was solved by the Proclamation of 1763. This stated that colonists could not expand past a territory line drawn through the Appalachian Mountains. This angered colonists because they felt like since the fought for this land and won, they shouldn’t be limited to what land they could have.

Lastly, because Redcoats and colonists couldn’t get along, more tension arose. During the war, Americans felt like the British were not protecting them or North America. The British had many unsuccessful turn outs. They suffered through the harsh winter months and were not equipped properly for the war either. (Document 3) This caused them to reach out for help to others. (Document 2) Although the Redcoats and colonists fought together, it did not unite them. Redcoats turned their nose up at colonists, and colonists thought the Redcoats were to aristocratic.