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Proclamation of 1763 (Unfavorable)
A royal decree by Great Britain that forbid settling
west of the Appalachian Mountains
and marked the end of the Seven Years war.
While this didn't directly effect a Boston merchant,
the general attitude of the patriotic
colonists was unfavorable towards the proclamation,
with many colonists outright disregarding the order.
Defeat for the colonists!End of the French and Indian War (Unfavorable)
The end of the French and Indian War
came with the Proclamation of 1763,
which ceded all French territory in North America
to Great Britain.
The effects of the end of the war on the colonies
were not immediate, but shortly after the end of the war,
taxes began to increase on goods with laws
such as the Stamp Act and Tea Act, and the increased
enforcement of the Navigation Acts (which had
previously been neglected). A patriot merchant
from Boston would opposeSugar Act (Unfavorable)
The Sugar Act was passed by British Parliament
in 1764, increasing tax revenue on molasses when imported
to the colonies.
An increase in taxes on products imported into a port
like Boston would have negatively effected
the economy in the area and made it hard
for merchants to make profit off of products such
as rum. Overall, a defeat for the colonists but an important
stepping point on the road to revolution.Townshend Acts (Unfavorable)
The Townshend Acts were enacted on the colonies
by British Parliament in 1767 and 1768. They increased the level
of enforcement of trade regulations and increased duties
on many different imported products as a way to pay
for the salaries of loyalist magistrates/judges.
Of course, these laws were incredibly unpopular
in the colonies, especially among merchants.
Colonial unity against these laws began to take
shape with the first non-importation agreements
that were signed in Boston Massacre (Unfavorable, Turning Point)
In March 1770, British soldiers stationed in Boston
fired upon civilians who had reportedly "provoked" them by
throwing snowballs and rocks in their direction.
Later on, future President of the United States
John Adams would defend them in court.
The Boston Massacre directly effected patriots in Boston and inflamed the
already fiery tensions between the colonists and the British in the city.
While an unfavorable event to the colonists after the British soldiersCommittees of Correspondence (Favorable)
Samuel Adams began organizing "Committes of
Correspondence" in 1772. They would exchange
letters between each other, discussing
threatening or suspicious activities the British
were engaging in. They wanted to
spread the idea that the British were imposing
on the colonists rights. These committees
would sometimes violently enforce
the non-importation agreements that had been
created years previous.
The Committees of Correspondence were
a source of Boston patriot eBoston Tea Party (Favorable)
After the Seven Years War
the British were in a severe amount of debt.
As a result acts such as the
Tea Act directly taxed the colonists.
It also allowed the
British East India Company
to sell much cheaper tea
but with the tax.
The colonists were angered by
the taxation without representation.
This leads to the colonists revolting
against the taxes and tea smuggling.
On the evening of December 16, 1773,
a group of men part of the Sons of Liberty
disguised themselIntolerable Acts (Unfavorable)
The Intolerable Acts were a series of acts signed
in response to the Boston Tea Party. They were
put into place as a way to keep the colonists in check.
There were four Coercive Acts signed (Port Act, Massachusetts
Government Act, Administration of Justice Act, Quartering Act). These
laws closed the port of Boston, reduced the
power of the local government, forced British soldiers
to be tried back in Britain, and forced residents to house
British soldiers at any point. The QThomas Paine's Common Sense (Favorable)
At the time many colonists were hesitant
to think of breaking apart from Great Britain.
However, in January 1776, a pamphlet was
published that would soon sway the public
opinion. Thomas Paine released a writing called
Common Sense. He advocated for the separation
of the colonies and Great Britain. His pamphlet was especially
influential because it reached the greater public.
It was distributed to all regions of the colonies.
This was a push for the colonists to coFirst Continental Congress (Favorable, Turning Point)
The First Continental Congress was
made up of 12 delegates (Georgia did
not participate) from each colony. On
September 5, 1774, the delegates came
together to organize colonial resistance.
The congress issued the Declaration of
Rights, Articles of Association, Suffolk Resolves,
and the Continental Association. These were all
acts of protest against British rule.
As stated earlier, Boston patriots were the most
anti-British. This group of people woul
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